Traders Purchase Large Volume of AES Call Options (NYSE:AES)

The AES Co. (NYSE:AESGet Free Report) saw unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock traders acquired 28,313 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 138% compared to the average volume of 11,907 call options.

AES Price Performance

AES stock traded down $0.49 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $10.96. 8,658,761 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,762,707. AES has a twelve month low of $10.81 and a twelve month high of $22.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.21, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The company has a 50-day moving average of $12.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $15.63. The company has a market capitalization of $7.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.59, a P/E/G ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.00.

AES (NYSE:AESGet Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $3.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.46 billion. AES had a net margin of 8.34% and a return on equity of 27.30%. AES’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.60 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that AES will post 1.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AES Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.176 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. This is a positive change from AES’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.17. This represents a $0.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.42%. AES’s dividend payout ratio is currently 47.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on AES shares. HSBC started coverage on shares of AES in a research note on Friday, December 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $17.00 price objective on the stock. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of AES from $24.00 to $21.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of AES from $17.00 to $12.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of AES from $24.00 to $16.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of AES in a research note on Monday, November 25th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $11.00 price target on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $18.80.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on AES

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of AES by 18.2% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 38,651,752 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $775,354,000 after buying an additional 5,960,546 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in shares of AES by 169.5% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,143,688 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $43,002,000 after buying an additional 1,348,195 shares in the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP lifted its stake in shares of AES by 30.3% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 3,838,500 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $77,000,000 after buying an additional 892,500 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP bought a new position in shares of AES in the third quarter valued at $17,390,000. Finally, M&G PLC lifted its stake in shares of AES by 12.7% in the third quarter. M&G PLC now owns 6,511,760 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $130,235,000 after buying an additional 732,457 shares in the last quarter. 93.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About AES

(Get Free Report)

The AES Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a diversified power generation and utility company in the United States and internationally. The company owns and/or operates power plants to generate and sell power to customers, such as utilities, industrial users, and other intermediaries; owns and/or operates utilities to generate or purchase, distribute, transmit, and sell electricity to end-user customers in the residential, commercial, industrial, and governmental sectors; and generates and sells electricity on the wholesale market.

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