Newmont Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:NEM)

Newmont Co. (NYSE:NEM) saw some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Stock investors purchased 58,700 call options on the company. This is an increase of 17% compared to the typical volume of 50,342 call options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NEM has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Scotiabank decreased their price target on Newmont from $50.00 to $43.50 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Newmont from $60.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 4th. TD Securities dropped their price target on Newmont from $40.00 to $36.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. National Bank Financial reaffirmed an “outperform overweight” rating on shares of Newmont in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on shares of Newmont from $57.00 to $56.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Newmont presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $50.89.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. TFC Financial Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Newmont by 242.2% in the 3rd quarter. TFC Financial Management Inc. now owns 705 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 499 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Newmont during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Life Planning Partners Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Newmont in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Newmont by 171.9% during the 4th quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 628 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 397 shares in the last quarter. Finally, OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Newmont during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. 68.85% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Newmont Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NEM opened at $43.41 on Friday. Newmont has a 1 year low of $29.42 and a 1 year high of $50.18. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $35.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $36.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.25.

Newmont (NYSE:NEM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The basic materials company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.23. Newmont had a negative net margin of 20.95% and a positive return on equity of 6.21%. The company had revenue of $4.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.66 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.40 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 50.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Newmont will post 1.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Newmont Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 5th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 4th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.30%. Newmont’s dividend payout ratio is presently -42.02%.

About Newmont

Newmont Corporation engages in the production and exploration of gold. It also explores for copper, silver, zinc, and lead. The company has operations and/or assets in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Dominican Republic, Peru, Suriname, Argentina, Chile, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Ecuador, Fiji, and Ghana.