Investors Purchase High Volume of HSBC Put Options (NYSE:HSBC)

HSBC Holdings plc (NYSE:HSBC) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Monday. Stock investors bought 4,988 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 263% compared to the average volume of 1,376 put options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

HSBC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of HSBC from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of HSBC in a research report on Monday, February 3rd.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of HSBC. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in HSBC by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 21,674 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $979,000 after buying an additional 542 shares in the last quarter. Optas LLC grew its stake in HSBC by 18.1% in the 3rd quarter. Optas LLC now owns 9,317 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $421,000 after buying an additional 1,431 shares in the last quarter. BSW Wealth Partners grew its stake in HSBC by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. BSW Wealth Partners now owns 12,928 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $584,000 after buying an additional 545 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in HSBC by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 310,442 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $14,029,000 after buying an additional 7,448 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Catalina Capital Group LLC grew its stake in HSBC by 16.1% in the 3rd quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 6,309 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $285,000 after buying an additional 877 shares in the last quarter. 1.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

HSBC Stock Up 1.7 %

NYSE:HSBC traded up $1.01 on Monday, hitting $60.92. The stock had a trading volume of 2,012,565 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,453,912. HSBC has a 1 year low of $36.93 and a 1 year high of $61.42. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $52.22 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $47.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.88. The stock has a market cap of $218.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 0.54.

HSBC (NYSE:HSBC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The financial services provider reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.04. HSBC had a net margin of 16.17% and a return on equity of 12.20%. The firm had revenue of $11.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.79 billion. Analysts predict that HSBC will post 6.66 earnings per share for the current year.

HSBC Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 25th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $1.80 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $7.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 11.82%. HSBC’s dividend payout ratio is 115.81%.

HSBC Company Profile

HSBC Holdings plc provides banking and financial services worldwide. The company operates through Wealth and Personal Banking, Commercial Banking, and Global Banking and Markets segments. The Wealth and Personal Banking segment offers retail banking and wealth products, including current and savings accounts, mortgages and personal loans, credit and debit cards, and local and international payment services; and wealth management services comprising insurance and investment products, global asset management services, investment management, and private wealth solutions.