Traders Buy Large Volume of BARK Call Options (NYSE:BARK)

BARK, Inc. (NYSE:BARK) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Stock traders bought 7,439 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 839% compared to the average volume of 792 call options.

Insider Activity at BARK

In other BARK news, Director Jim Mcginty sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $0.63, for a total value of $37,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 439,384 shares in the company, valued at approximately $276,811.92. The trade was a 12.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Henrik Werdelin sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $0.65, for a total value of $32,500.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 10,890,385 shares in the company, valued at $7,078,750.25. This trade represents a 0.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 14.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of BARK

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in BARK by 627.8% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 154,257 shares of the company’s stock valued at $214,000 after buying an additional 133,061 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BARK in the first quarter valued at $65,000. Voya Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of BARK by 43.6% in the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 230,608 shares of the company’s stock valued at $321,000 after purchasing an additional 70,000 shares during the period. CWM LLC boosted its stake in shares of BARK by 100.1% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 42,221 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 21,118 shares during the period. Finally, R Squared Ltd increased its position in BARK by 195.5% in the 2nd quarter. R Squared Ltd now owns 47,873 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 31,673 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 28.76% of the company’s stock.

BARK Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BARK traded up $0.03 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $0.97. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 544,519 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,634,233. BARK has a 1-year low of $0.53 and a 1-year high of $2.04. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $0.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $0.80. The firm has a market cap of $166.79 million, a P/E ratio of -4.90 and a beta of 1.90.

BARK (NYSE:BARK) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The company reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01) by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $106.97 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $103.57 million. BARK had a negative return on equity of 23.45% and a negative net margin of 7.81%. As a group, research analysts predict that BARK will post -0.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of BARK in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of BARK to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of BARK from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, October 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $2.50.

BARK Company Profile

BARK is a consumer products and services company focused on the canine market, offering a suite of subscription-based and direct‐to‐consumer offerings designed to meet the everyday needs of dogs and their owners. The company’s core business revolves around carefully curated boxes of toys, treats and chews, which are delivered monthly to subscribers through its flagship BarkBox service. Over time, BARK has expanded its reach beyond subscription, tapping into e-commerce and wholesale channels to broaden its customer base.

In addition to BarkBox, the company operates BarkShop, an online storefront that allows customers to purchase toys, grooming supplies and nutrition products on an a la carte basis.