Stock Traders Buy High Volume of iShares Semiconductor ETF Put Options (NASDAQ:SOXX)

iShares Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SOXX) saw some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock investors acquired 26,845 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 51% compared to the typical daily volume of 17,793 put options.

Institutional Trading of iShares Semiconductor ETF

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. IAG Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of iShares Semiconductor ETF by 5.7% during the first quarter. IAG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 462 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock worth $152,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Laurel Oak Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in iShares Semiconductor ETF by 0.3% during the first quarter. Laurel Oak Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,226 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock worth $3,361,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC increased its stake in iShares Semiconductor ETF by 1.3% in the first quarter. Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC now owns 2,006 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock valued at $659,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI boosted its holdings in shares of iShares Semiconductor ETF by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 1,615 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock valued at $486,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in shares of iShares Semiconductor ETF by 1.6% in the first quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 2,135 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock valued at $702,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the period.

iShares Semiconductor ETF Price Performance

iShares Semiconductor ETF stock traded down $31.09 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $501.67. 6,808,606 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,218,145. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.84 and a beta of 1.75. The business has a 50 day moving average of $382.00 and a two-hundred day moving average of $340.78. iShares Semiconductor ETF has a 12 month low of $199.93 and a 12 month high of $533.74.

iShares Semiconductor ETF Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 17th were issued a dividend of $0.2079 per share. This represents a $0.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 17th.

iShares Semiconductor ETF Company Profile

iShares PHLX Semiconductor ETF, formerly iShares PHLX SOX Semiconductor Sector Index Fund (the Fund), is an exchange-traded fund. The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the United States-listed semiconductor stocks as represented by the PHLX Semiconductor Sector Index (the Index). The Index is an equity benchmark for the United States-listed semiconductor stocks. The Index includes companies primarily involved in the design, distribution, manufacture and sale of semiconductors.