Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSEARCA:XLU)

Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (NYSEARCA:XLU) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Monday. Stock traders bought 71,705 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 49% compared to the typical daily volume of 48,091 put options.

Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSEARCA:XLU traded up $0.14 on Monday, hitting $46.69. The company had a trading volume of 4,930,200 shares, compared to its average volume of 25,833,557. Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund has a 1-year low of $39.06 and a 1-year high of $47.80. The stock has a market cap of $23.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.74 and a beta of 0.61. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $46.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $44.78.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of XLU. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in shares of Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund by 12.8% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,823 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock valued at $289,000 after purchasing an additional 433 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund by 3.5% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 51,682 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock valued at $4,075,000 after purchasing an additional 1,769 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in shares of Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund in the first quarter valued at $1,264,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund by 36.2% in the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,807 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock valued at $148,000 after acquiring an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund by 64.5% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 27,133 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock valued at $2,216,000 after acquiring an additional 10,637 shares in the last quarter. 90.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund

Select Sector Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund (the Fund), formerly Utilities Select Sector SPDR Fund, seeks to provide investment results that correspond to the price and yield performance of the Utilities Select Sector of the S&P 500 Index (the Index). The Index includes companies from industries, such as electric utilities, multi-utilities, independent power producers and energy traders, and gas utilities. The Fund utilizes a passive or indexing investment approach to attempt to approximate the investment performance of the Index.