Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of Brookfield Put Options (NYSE:BN)

Brookfield Corporation (NYSE:BN) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders purchased 5,155 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 234% compared to the average volume of 1,545 put options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

BN has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley set a $59.00 price objective on shares of Brookfield and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Brookfield to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 27th. Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $54.00 target price (up from $53.00) on shares of Brookfield in a report on Friday, August 14th. Scotia increased their target price on Brookfield from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Brookfield in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Brookfield has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.40.

Brookfield Price Performance

BN stock opened at $37.20 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $41.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $42.91. The company has a market capitalization of $91.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 67.65 and a beta of 1.53. Brookfield has a 52-week low of $36.67 and a 52-week high of $49.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.34.

Brookfield (NYSE:BN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 13th. The company reported $0.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.66 billion. Brookfield had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 3.93%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Brookfield will post 2.93 EPS for the current year.

Brookfield Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.07 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 14th. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Brookfield’s payout ratio is presently 50.91%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Brookfield

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wellington Altus USA Inc. boosted its holdings in Brookfield by 34.1% in the second quarter. Wellington Altus USA Inc. now owns 9,018 shares of the company’s stock valued at $392,000 after acquiring an additional 2,293 shares during the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP raised its holdings in Brookfield by 388.8% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 42,209 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,798,000 after purchasing an additional 33,573 shares during the last quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Brookfield by 119.5% in the 2nd quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 13,756 shares of the company’s stock worth $587,000 after purchasing an additional 7,489 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its position in shares of Brookfield by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 38,902 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,657,000 after purchasing an additional 2,333 shares during the period. Finally, Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Brookfield by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. now owns 466,698 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,877,000 after purchasing an additional 13,401 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.60% of the company’s stock.

About Brookfield

Brookfield Corporation (NYSE: BN) is a global investment and asset management company that owns and operates businesses across real estate, renewable power and transition, infrastructure, and private equity. Through its operating platforms and investments, the company is involved in assets such as office, retail, multifamily and logistics properties; hydroelectric, wind and solar facilities; transportation, data and utility infrastructure; and companies in industries including industrials, technology and business services.

Brookfield also maintains a significant interest in Brookfield Asset Management, an alternative asset manager that manages capital for institutional and individual investors.