Traders Buy Large Volume of Call Options on iRobot (NASDAQ:IRBT)

Key Points

• iRobot's call options trading surged with traders purchasing 19,696 call options, marking a 404% increase over the average daily volume of 3,911.
• Wall Street analysts have been bearish on iRobot, with one analyst lowering the rating from "hold" to "sell" and the consensus rating currently being "Reduce."
• iRobot's stock rose by 42.6% in midday trading, reaching $5.60, alongside increasing institutional investor interest, with many buying new stakes in the company.

iRobot Corporation (NASDAQ:IRBT - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders purchased 19,696 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 404% compared to the typical daily volume of 3,911 call options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on IRBT shares. Wall Street Zen lowered iRobot from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, October 3rd. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of iRobot in a research note on Thursday, August 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of iRobot in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce".

Hedge Funds Weigh In On iRobot

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in iRobot during the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Hilltop Partners LLC acquired a new stake in iRobot during the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. CWM LLC boosted its stake in iRobot by 2,194.9% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 11,314 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 10,821 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in iRobot during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of iRobot in the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. 77.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

iRobot Trading Up 42.6%

iRobot stock traded up $1.67 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $5.60. 7,052,335 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,216,268. The stock has a market capitalization of $175.79 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.89 and a beta of 0.95. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $3.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $3.34. iRobot has a fifty-two week low of $1.76 and a fifty-two week high of $13.06.

iRobot (NASDAQ:IRBT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The industrial products company reported ($0.27) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.91) by $0.64. iRobot had a negative net margin of 32.55% and a negative return on equity of 296.63%. The business had revenue of $127.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $125.00 million. Equities analysts anticipate that iRobot will post -5.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About iRobot

iRobot Corporation designs, builds, and sells robots and home innovation products in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Japan, and internationally. The company offers floor care products, including Roomba floor vacuuming robots; Roomba accessories and consumables, such as the Clean Base Automatic Dirt Disposal, replacement dirt disposal bags for the Clean Base, filters, brushes, and batteries; Braava family of automatic floor mopping robots; and Braava accessories and consumables, which include cleaning solution, washable and disposable mopping pads, replacement tanks, and batteries, as well as subscription services.

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