iQIYI Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:IQ)

by · The Markets Daily

iQIYI, Inc. (NASDAQ:IQ – Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock investors bought 42,174 put options on the company. This is an increase of 138% compared to the typical volume of 17,741 put options.

iQIYI Stock Performance

NASDAQ:IQ traded down $0.05 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $2.18. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 25,414,876 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,188,690. The stock has a market cap of $2.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.80, a PEG ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.05. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $2.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $2.28. iQIYI has a 12-month low of $1.82 and a 12-month high of $5.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70.

iQIYI (NASDAQ:IQ – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The company reported ($0.03) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.01. iQIYI had a return on equity of 7.62% and a net margin of 2.62%. The firm had revenue of $919.56 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.62 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that iQIYI will post 0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On iQIYI

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of IQ. Flow Traders U.S. LLC purchased a new position in shares of iQIYI in the third quarter valued at $32,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in iQIYI in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Vident Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of iQIYI in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. PDS Planning Inc bought a new position in shares of iQIYI during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Finally, BTG Pactual Asset Management US LLC purchased a new position in iQIYI during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Institutional investors own 52.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on IQ. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of iQIYI from $3.00 to $2.80 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. OTR Global reaffirmed a “negative” rating on shares of iQIYI in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of iQIYI from a “moderate sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Benchmark restated a “hold” rating on shares of iQIYI in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of iQIYI from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $2.15 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, iQIYI currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $2.91.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on iQIYI

iQIYI Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

iQIYI, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides online entertainment video services in the People's Republic of China. It offers various products and services, including online video, online games, online literature, animations, and other products. The company operates a platform that provides a collection of internet video content, such as professionally produced content licensed from professional content providers and self-produced content.

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