Traders Buy Large Volume of Put Options on ResMed (NYSE:RMD)

ResMed Inc. (NYSE:RMD) saw some unusual options trading on Thursday. Traders purchased 11,473 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 1,297% compared to the typical daily volume of 821 put options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of ResMed from $240.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on ResMed from $300.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Mizuho reduced their target price on ResMed from $310.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 31st. William Blair raised shares of ResMed to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded ResMed from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ResMed currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $297.45.

ResMed Trading Down 1.2%

ResMed stock traded down $2.85 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $242.14. 223,418 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,015,891. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.47, a PEG ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.87. The company has a current ratio of 3.44, a quick ratio of 2.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $264.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $263.15. ResMed has a fifty-two week low of $199.92 and a fifty-two week high of $293.81.

ResMed (NYSE:RMD) last posted its earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The medical equipment provider reported $2.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.49 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $1.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.33 billion. ResMed had a net margin of 27.22% and a return on equity of 25.62%. ResMed’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.20 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that ResMed will post 9.47 EPS for the current year.

ResMed Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 18th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 13th will be issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 13th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. ResMed’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.56%.

Insider Activity

In other news, General Counsel Michael J. Rider sold 100 shares of ResMed stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.36, for a total value of $27,436.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 11,327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,107,675.72. The trade was a 0.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Peter C. Farrell sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $252.05, for a total transaction of $504,100.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 66,110 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,663,025.50. This trade represents a 2.94% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 18,607 shares of company stock valued at $4,919,501. Company insiders own 0.65% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of ResMed

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of ResMed by 1.6% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,040,440 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $5,211,940,000 after purchasing an additional 293,515 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of ResMed by 1.0% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,615,852 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,706,890,000 after purchasing an additional 64,448 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in ResMed by 2.4% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,215,145 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $1,083,409,000 after buying an additional 98,717 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in ResMed by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,744,541 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $390,516,000 after purchasing an additional 41,951 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of ResMed during the second quarter valued at approximately $306,452,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.98% of the company’s stock.

ResMed Company Profile

ResMed Inc develops, manufactures, distributes, and markets medical devices and cloud-based software applications for the healthcare markets. The company operates in two segments, Sleep and Respiratory Care, and Software as a Service. It offers various products and solutions for a range of respiratory disorders, including ApneaLink Air, a portable diagnostic device that measures oximetry, respiratory effort, pulse, nasal flow, and snoring; and NightOwl, a portable, cloud-connected, and disposable diagnostic device that measures AHI based on derived peripheral arterial tone, actigraphy, and oximetry over several nights.