Virgin Galactic Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:SPCE)

Virgin Galactic Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SPCE) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock investors purchased 27,449 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 40% compared to the typical daily volume of 19,562 call options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Virgin Galactic

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Catalyst Funds Management Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in Virgin Galactic in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. Pitcairn Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Virgin Galactic during the second quarter worth about $31,000. Caption Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Virgin Galactic by 112.1% during the first quarter. Caption Management LLC now owns 11,555 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 107,315 shares during the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp acquired a new position in Virgin Galactic in the 2nd quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Virgin Galactic in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 46.62% of the company’s stock.

Virgin Galactic Stock Up 2.8%

Shares of Virgin Galactic stock traded up $0.09 on Tuesday, reaching $3.11. 5,528,638 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,751,758. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $3.84 and its 200-day moving average price is $3.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 2.87 and a quick ratio of 2.87. Virgin Galactic has a 1-year low of $2.18 and a 1-year high of $6.82. The company has a market cap of $178.82 million, a P/E ratio of -0.42 and a beta of 1.98.

Virgin Galactic (NYSE:SPCE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The company reported ($1.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.51) by $0.42. Virgin Galactic had a negative net margin of 17,615.71% and a negative return on equity of 108.00%. The company had revenue of $0.37 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $0.32 million. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Virgin Galactic will post -16.05 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on SPCE. Morgan Stanley set a $2.30 price target on shares of Virgin Galactic and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Wolfe Research reaffirmed a “peer perform” rating on shares of Virgin Galactic in a research report on Friday, November 14th. Susquehanna reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $4.00 price target (up previously from $3.25) on shares of Virgin Galactic in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Virgin Galactic in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $4.33.

About Virgin Galactic

Virgin Galactic Holdings, Inc, an aerospace and space travel company, focuses on the development, manufacture, and operation of spaceships and related technologies. The company engages in the design and development, manufacturing, ground and flight testing, spaceflight operation, and post-flight maintenance of spaceflight systems for private individuals, researchers, and government agencies.