Edison International Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:EIX)

Edison International (NYSE:EIX) saw some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Investors acquired 32,509 call options on the company. This is an increase of 611% compared to the typical daily volume of 4,573 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on EIX. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Edison International from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Edison International in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $93.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Edison International from $87.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Edison International from $76.00 to $67.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Edison International from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $56.50 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $82.88.

Institutional Trading of Edison International

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in EIX. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of Edison International by 8.8% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 10,126 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $727,000 after buying an additional 816 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Edison International in the 2nd quarter worth about $2,003,000. AMF Tjanstepension AB increased its position in Edison International by 9.8% in the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 271,365 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $23,662,000 after buying an additional 24,208 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Edison International during the third quarter worth approximately $236,000. Finally, Handelsbanken Fonder AB acquired a new stake in Edison International in the third quarter worth about $2,137,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.95% of the company’s stock.

Edison International Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of EIX stock traded up $0.15 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $51.87. 1,006,134 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,935,552. Edison International has a 12-month low of $51.58 and a 12-month high of $88.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The business’s fifty day moving average is $72.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $80.00.

Edison International Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 7th were issued a $0.8275 dividend. This is an increase from Edison International’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 7th. This represents a $3.31 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.38%. Edison International’s payout ratio is presently 97.07%.

About Edison International

Edison International, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation and distribution of electric power. The company supplies and delivers electricity to approximately 50,000 square mile area of southern California to residential, commercial, industrial, public authorities, agricultural, and other sectors.