Tripadvisor Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:TRIP)

Tripadvisor, Inc. (NASDAQ:TRIP) was the target of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders acquired 47,369 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 851% compared to the average volume of 4,982 call options.

Tripadvisor Stock Down 28.0 %

NASDAQ TRIP traded down $7.14 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $18.34. The stock had a trading volume of 16,067,273 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,508,699. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $26.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $22.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 2.27 and a quick ratio of 2.27. Tripadvisor has a 1 year low of $14.15 and a 1 year high of $28.76. The stock has a market cap of $2.53 billion, a PE ratio of 301.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.56.

Tripadvisor (NASDAQ:TRIP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The travel company reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.07 by $0.14. Tripadvisor had a net margin of 0.56% and a return on equity of 11.69%. The business had revenue of $390.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $372.93 million. On average, research analysts expect that Tripadvisor will post 0.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on TRIP shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Tripadvisor from $23.00 to $34.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Tripadvisor from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 16th. StockNews.com raised shares of Tripadvisor from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. TheStreet raised shares of Tripadvisor from a “d+” rating to a “c” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Tripadvisor from $20.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $24.12.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Tripadvisor

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale bought a new stake in Tripadvisor during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Tripadvisor by 2,053.0% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,153 shares of the travel company’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 2,053 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its holdings in Tripadvisor by 52.6% in the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 2,497 shares of the travel company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 861 shares during the period. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new position in Tripadvisor during the first quarter valued at $83,000. Finally, SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC grew its holdings in Tripadvisor by 10.5% during the first quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 4,527 shares of the travel company’s stock valued at $126,000 after purchasing an additional 432 shares during the period. 98.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Tripadvisor Company Profile

TripAdvisor, Inc operates as an online travel company, primarily engages in the provision of travel guidance products and services worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Brand Tripadvisor, Viator, and TheFork. The Brand Tripadvisor segment offers travel guidance platforms for travelers to discover, generate, and share authentic user-generated content in the form of ratings and reviews for destinations, points-of-interest, experiences, accommodations, restaurants, and cruises.