First Majestic Silver Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:AG)

First Majestic Silver Corp. (NYSE:AG) (TSE:FR) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Stock investors bought 27,373 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 100% compared to the average volume of 13,664 call options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on AG shares. Scotiabank lowered their target price on First Majestic Silver from $6.50 to $6.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. StockNews.com upgraded First Majestic Silver from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Finally, HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $11.00 target price on shares of First Majestic Silver in a research note on Friday, February 21st.

First Majestic Silver Stock Performance

NYSE AG opened at $5.84 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.67 and a beta of 1.24. First Majestic Silver has a twelve month low of $4.43 and a twelve month high of $8.44. The company has a current ratio of 2.56, a quick ratio of 2.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $5.65 and a 200 day moving average of $6.03.

First Majestic Silver (NYSE:AG) (TSE:FR) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The mining company reported $0.03 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.05 by ($0.02). First Majestic Silver had a negative net margin of 18.17% and a negative return on equity of 3.07%. The firm had revenue of $172.34 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $227.77 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that First Majestic Silver will post 0.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

First Majestic Silver Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $0.0057 dividend. This represents a $0.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.39%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This is a boost from First Majestic Silver’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.00. First Majestic Silver’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -5.71%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On First Majestic Silver

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Integrated Advisors Network LLC acquired a new stake in shares of First Majestic Silver in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $399,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of First Majestic Silver by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 155,262 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $852,000 after purchasing an additional 11,649 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its holdings in shares of First Majestic Silver by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 88,896 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $488,000 after purchasing an additional 5,099 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its holdings in shares of First Majestic Silver by 90.6% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP now owns 118,715 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $652,000 after purchasing an additional 56,415 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP increased its holdings in shares of First Majestic Silver by 46.8% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 4,455,923 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $24,463,000 after purchasing an additional 1,420,937 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.16% of the company’s stock.

About First Majestic Silver

First Majestic Silver Corp. engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of mineral properties with a focus on silver and gold production in North America. Its projects include the San Dimas mine covering an area of approximately 71,867 hectares located in Durango State, Mexico; the Santa Elena that covers an area of approximately 102,244 hectares located in Sonora State, México; and the La Encantada covering an area of approximately 4,076 hectares located in Coahuila State, México.