Investors Buy Large Volume of Put Options on Nikola (NASDAQ:NKLA)

Nikola Co. (NASDAQ:NKLA) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Stock investors bought 107,074 put options on the company. This is an increase of 101% compared to the average volume of 53,209 put options.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Bryan, Garnier & Co cut shares of Nikola from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Nikola from $10.00 to $4.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. DA Davidson decreased their price target on Nikola from $12.00 to $4.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Nikola from $14.00 to $10.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $12.00.

Nikola Price Performance

Shares of Nikola stock traded down $0.33 during trading on Thursday, reaching $0.84. 60,164,639 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 19,352,750. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.17. Nikola has a 1-year low of $0.76 and a 1-year high of $34.50. The company has a market cap of $51.31 million, a P/E ratio of -0.06 and a beta of 1.99. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $1.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $4.57.

Nikola (NASDAQ:NKLA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported ($2.75) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($2.24) by ($0.51). The company had revenue of $25.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $37.23 million. Nikola had a negative return on equity of 95.73% and a negative net margin of 840.44%. Nikola’s quarterly revenue was up 1382.4% compared to the same quarter last year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NKLA. Barclays PLC increased its position in Nikola by 121.1% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 9,475 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 5,190 shares during the period. One Wealth Management Investment & Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Nikola in the third quarter valued at about $110,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Nikola during the second quarter worth about $138,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in Nikola by 84.3% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 45,312 shares of the company’s stock worth $208,000 after purchasing an additional 20,723 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Nikola in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $215,000. 37.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Nikola Company Profile

Nikola Corporation operates as a technology innovator and integrator that develops energy and transportation solutions in the United States and internationally. The company operates in truck and energy units. It commercializes battery electric vehicles (BEV) and hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEV) to the trucking sector.