Traders Buy Large Volume of Take-Two Interactive Software Put Options (NASDAQ:TTWO)

Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ:TTWO) was the target of some unusual options trading on Monday. Stock traders acquired 13,794 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 135% compared to the typical volume of 5,867 put options.

Take-Two Interactive Software Price Performance

Shares of TTWO traded up $4.15 on Monday, hitting $224.45. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,180,982 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,716,475. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The company has a market capitalization of $41.47 billion, a PE ratio of -9.95, a PEG ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $246.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $243.73. Take-Two Interactive Software has a fifty-two week low of $181.86 and a fifty-two week high of $264.79.

Take-Two Interactive Software (NASDAQ:TTWO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $1.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. Take-Two Interactive Software had a negative net margin of 64.26% and a positive return on equity of 12.49%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 33.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($2.08) EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Take-Two Interactive Software will post 0.97 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

TTWO has been the topic of several analyst reports. Arete Research raised shares of Take-Two Interactive Software from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $284.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Take-Two Interactive Software in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. UBS Group boosted their price target on Take-Two Interactive Software from $292.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Zacks Research raised Take-Two Interactive Software from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Take-Two Interactive Software from $275.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $273.11.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Michael Sheresky sold 182 shares of Take-Two Interactive Software stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $235.11, for a total value of $42,790.02. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 65,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,465,770.91. This trade represents a 0.28% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Ellen F. Siminoff sold 414 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $245.48, for a total transaction of $101,628.72. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,429 shares in the company, valued at approximately $596,270.92. This trade represents a 14.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,010 shares of company stock worth $242,102. Corporate insiders own 1.34% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Take-Two Interactive Software

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in TTWO. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Take-Two Interactive Software by 101.9% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 105 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Pilgrim Partners Asia Pte Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Take-Two Interactive Software during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Take-Two Interactive Software in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Take-Two Interactive Software in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. acquired a new position in Take-Two Interactive Software during the third quarter worth $29,000. Institutional investors own 95.46% of the company’s stock.

About Take-Two Interactive Software

Take-Two Interactive Software is an American video game publisher headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1993 by Ryan Brant, the company is publicly traded on the NASDAQ under the ticker TTWO and is led by Chairman and CEO Strauss Zelnick. Take-Two operates through distinct publishing labels that manage development, marketing and distribution of interactive entertainment for a global audience.

Take-Two’s publishing portfolio includes Rockstar Games and 2K, as well as the Private Division label, which supports independent and mid-size developers.