Investors Purchase High Volume of Put Options on Amer Sports (NYSE:AS)

Amer Sports, Inc. (NYSE:AS) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Traders purchased 23,440 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 86% compared to the average volume of 12,603 put options.

Amer Sports Trading Down 2.9%

Shares of AS traded down $0.89 on Thursday, reaching $30.19. 2,275,521 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,107,500. The company has a current ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.98. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $28.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $33.50. Amer Sports has a 12 month low of $26.10 and a 12 month high of $42.76.

Amer Sports (NYSE:AS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 17th. The company reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $1.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.54 billion. Amer Sports had a net margin of 7.35% and a return on equity of 11.18%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 32.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.03 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Amer Sports will post 1.30 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Amer Sports

In other Amer Sports news, insider Wen-Chang Chen sold 117,461 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.60, for a total transaction of $3,124,462.60. Following the sale, the insider owned 434,855 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,567,143. The trade was a 21.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew Page sold 2,022 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.63, for a total value of $57,889.86. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 6,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $188,242.25. The trade was a 23.52% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Amer Sports

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in AS. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in Amer Sports in the 3rd quarter valued at about $176,274,000. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd grew its holdings in Amer Sports by 42.1% during the first quarter. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd now owns 3,665,157 shares of the company’s stock worth $120,657,000 after purchasing an additional 1,086,616 shares during the period. Junto Capital Management LP increased its position in Amer Sports by 583.8% during the second quarter. Junto Capital Management LP now owns 3,099,673 shares of the company’s stock worth $104,893,000 after buying an additional 2,646,364 shares during the last quarter. CI Investments Inc. acquired a new position in Amer Sports during the first quarter worth approximately $56,127,000. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its stake in Amer Sports by 85.1% in the third quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,672,178 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,634,000 after buying an additional 768,668 shares during the period. 40.25% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on AS. UBS Group set a $38.00 price target on shares of Amer Sports in a report on Monday, September 21st. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Amer Sports in a report on Monday, September 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Amer Sports from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. BTIG Research set a $42.00 target price on shares of Amer Sports and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Amer Sports in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $42.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.67.

About Amer Sports

Amer Sports is a global sporting goods company whose portfolio includes Arc’teryx, Salomon, Wilson, Atomic, Peak Performance and other brands. Its products span technical apparel and footwear, outdoor and winter sports equipment, and gear for sports such as tennis, baseball and basketball. The company serves consumers and athletes in markets around the world through its brands’ retail, wholesale and direct-to-consumer channels. Its operations are organized around technical apparel, outdoor performance, and ball and racquet sports.