AES Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:AES)

The AES Corporation (NYSE:AES) saw unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Traders purchased 28,249 call options on the company. This is an increase of 88% compared to the average daily volume of 15,024 call options.

AES Trading Down 2.2%

Shares of AES opened at $15.73 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.83, a PEG ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.00. AES has a twelve month low of $9.46 and a twelve month high of $16.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.15. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $14.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.84.

AES (NYSE:AES) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The utilities provider reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.69 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $3.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.37 billion. AES had a return on equity of 18.83% and a net margin of 9.47%.AES’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.71 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that AES will post 1.93 EPS for the current year.

AES Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.176 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 30th. This represents a $0.70 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.5%. AES’s payout ratio is 43.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AES has been the topic of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of AES in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Barclays reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $15.00 price objective on shares of AES in a report on Wednesday. Argus raised AES from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $18.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of AES from $15.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of AES from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Monday, October 13th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $24.08.

Institutional Trading of AES

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of AES by 406.5% in the 3rd quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 1,869 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares during the period. Cromwell Holdings LLC raised its stake in AES by 232.5% in the third quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 2,484 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 1,737 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its position in AES by 50.8% during the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 3,401 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 1,146 shares in the last quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of AES by 448.3% during the 2nd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 9,836 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $103,000 after acquiring an additional 8,042 shares during the period. Finally, Seven Mile Advisory purchased a new position in shares of AES in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $140,000. Institutional investors own 93.13% of the company’s stock.

AES Company Profile

AES Corporation is a global energy company focused on the generation and distribution of electricity across diversified markets. Headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, AES develops, builds and operates power plants and distribution systems that serve residential, industrial and commercial customers. The company’s portfolio includes thermal, renewable and battery energy storage facilities designed to deliver reliable and sustainable electricity solutions.

Through its subsidiaries, AES operates a balanced mix of power generation assets, including natural gas, coal and renewables such as solar and wind.