Capital One Financial Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:COF)

Capital One Financial Co. (NYSE:COF) saw some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Investors bought 27,311 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 180% compared to the typical volume of 9,761 call options.

Institutional Trading of Capital One Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of COF. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Capital One Financial during the fourth quarter worth approximately $108,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Capital One Financial by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 26,230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,677,000 after purchasing an additional 3,226 shares during the period. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ bought a new stake in Capital One Financial in the fourth quarter worth $91,780,000. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH lifted its stake in Capital One Financial by 2,139.7% in the fourth quarter. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH now owns 92,431 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $16,482,000 after purchasing an additional 88,304 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in shares of Capital One Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,343,000. Institutional investors own 89.84% of the company’s stock.

Capital One Financial Trading Down 1.4 %

Shares of Capital One Financial stock opened at $179.88 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98. Capital One Financial has a 1 year low of $128.23 and a 1 year high of $210.67. The firm has a market cap of $68.59 billion, a PE ratio of 15.52, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.47. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $191.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $177.14.

Capital One Financial (NYSE:COF) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The financial services provider reported $3.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.78 by $0.31. Capital One Financial had a net margin of 9.46% and a return on equity of 9.45%. The company had revenue of $10.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.22 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.81 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Capital One Financial will post 15.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Capital One Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.33%. Capital One Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 20.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Capital One Financial from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $200.00 price target on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Capital One Financial from a “moderate sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Capital One Financial from $185.00 to $232.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. BTIG Research upgraded Capital One Financial from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $208.00 price target on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Capital One Financial from $245.00 to $230.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $206.63.

About Capital One Financial

Capital One Financial Corporation operates as the financial services holding company for the Capital One, National Association, which engages in the provision of various financial products and services in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. It operates through three segments: Credit Card, Consumer Banking, and Commercial Banking.