Stock Traders Buy Large Volume of GameStop Call Options (NYSE:GME)

GameStop Corp. (NYSE:GME) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Traders purchased 258,342 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 72% compared to the typical volume of 149,779 call options.

GameStop Stock Performance

Shares of GME opened at $23.38 on Friday. GameStop has a 52-week low of $17.79 and a 52-week high of $28.10. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $20.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $21.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 8.07 and a current ratio of 8.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.38 and a beta of 1.72.

GameStop (NYSE:GME) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 8th. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.27. The firm had revenue of $790.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $756.85 million. GameStop had a return on equity of 13.57% and a net margin of 25.16%.The company’s revenue was down 18.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.31 earnings per share.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on GME. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of GameStop from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 7th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of GameStop in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Insider Buying and Selling at GameStop

In other GameStop news, Director Lawrence Cheng purchased 55,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $18.80 per share, with a total value of $1,034,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 143,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,688,400. The trade was a 62.50% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel Mark Robinson sold 3,957 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.62, for a total value of $89,507.34. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel directly owned 104,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,356,777.80. This trade represents a 3.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have purchased 2,228,180 shares of company stock worth $48,312,574 and have sold 18,125 shares worth $406,587. Company insiders own 9.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On GameStop

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in GME. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its stake in GameStop by 805.6% in the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 2,264 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 2,014 shares during the last quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of GameStop during the 1st quarter valued at about $60,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in shares of GameStop during the fourth quarter worth about $54,000. CX Institutional raised its stake in GameStop by 537.1% in the second quarter. CX Institutional now owns 3,313 shares of the company’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 2,793 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lido Advisors LLC bought a new stake in GameStop during the first quarter valued at approximately $210,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 29.21% of the company’s stock.

GameStop Company Profile

GameStop Corp. is a multichannel retailer specializing in video games, gaming hardware, accessories and related entertainment products. Its offerings include new and pre-owned consoles and games, controllers, headsets, collectibles, apparel, toys and trading cards. The company sells through its retail stores, e-commerce websites and other digital channels.

Founded in 1984 as Babbage’s, the company expanded through acquisitions and adopted the GameStop name in 2000. It has historically operated stores in the United States, Canada, Australia and several European markets, although its international footprint has changed over time as the company has closed or sold certain operations.