GameStop Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:GME)

GameStop Corp. (NYSE:GME) was the target of some unusual options trading on Friday. Stock traders purchased 303,893 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 66% compared to the average daily volume of 182,541 call options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of GameStop in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $13.50.

GameStop Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GME traded up $0.91 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $22.54. The stock had a trading volume of 8,232,560 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,082,267. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $23.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $24.33. GameStop has a fifty-two week low of $19.93 and a fifty-two week high of $35.81. The company has a quick ratio of 10.79, a current ratio of 11.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The company has a market capitalization of $10.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.89 and a beta of -1.00.

GameStop (NYSE:GME) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 9th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $972.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $823.25 million. GameStop had a net margin of 9.41% and a return on equity of 7.72%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 21.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.04 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that GameStop will post 0.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other GameStop news, General Counsel Mark Haymond Robinson sold 4,449 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.58, for a total transaction of $122,703.42. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 112,302 shares in the company, valued at $3,097,289.16. This trade represents a 3.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Daniel William Moore sold 6,509 shares of GameStop stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $27.58, for a total value of $179,518.22. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 112,620 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,106,059.60. This represents a 5.46% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 11,788 shares of company stock worth $321,046. Insiders own 8.58% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On GameStop

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GME. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in GameStop by 39.2% in the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,674 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 471 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its holdings in shares of GameStop by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 96,623 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,357,000 after acquiring an additional 511 shares in the last quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in shares of GameStop by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 30,761 shares of the company’s stock valued at $750,000 after acquiring an additional 576 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its position in GameStop by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 131,002 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,574,000 after acquiring an additional 578 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System increased its holdings in GameStop by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 114,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,793,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. 29.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About GameStop

GameStop Corp., a specialty retailer, provides games and entertainment products through its stores and ecommerce platforms in the United States, Canada, Australia, and Europe. The company sells new and pre-owned gaming platforms; accessories, such as controllers, gaming headsets, and virtual reality products; new and pre-owned gaming software; and in-game digital currency, digital downloadable content, and full-game downloads.