Iamgold Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:IAG)

Iamgold Corporation (NYSE:IAG) (TSE:IMG) saw some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock traders purchased 9,096 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 246% compared to the typical daily volume of 2,626 call options.

Iamgold Price Performance

IAG opened at $10.92 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $6.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.85, a PEG ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.21. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $7.98 and a 200 day moving average of $7.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.31, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.47. Iamgold has a fifty-two week low of $4.44 and a fifty-two week high of $11.32.

Iamgold (NYSE:IAG) (TSE:IMG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The mining company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.14 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $587.21 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $663.21 million. Iamgold had a net margin of 40.61% and a return on equity of 8.54%. On average, research analysts expect that Iamgold will post 0.67 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Iamgold

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in IAG. Marex Group plc bought a new position in Iamgold during the second quarter worth about $677,000. State of Wyoming bought a new position in Iamgold during the second quarter worth about $201,000. L1 Capital Pty Ltd bought a new position in Iamgold during the second quarter worth about $693,000. Hollencrest Capital Management bought a new position in Iamgold during the second quarter worth about $377,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in Iamgold during the second quarter worth about $738,000. 47.08% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on IAG shares. Royal Bank Of Canada upgraded shares of Iamgold from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $9.00 to $14.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Zacks Research lowered shares of Iamgold from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 15th. CIBC restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Iamgold in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Iamgold to a “hold” rating and set a $8.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Finally, National Bankshares restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Iamgold in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Iamgold presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $10.13.

Iamgold Company Profile

IAMGOLD Corporation, through its subsidiaries, operates as an intermediate gold producer and developer in Canada and Burkina Faso. It owns 100% interest in the Westwood project that covers an area of 1,925 hectare and located in Quebec; a 60% interest in the Côté gold project, which covers an area of 596 square kilometer located in Ontario, Canada; and a 90% interests in the Essakane project that covers an area of 274,000 square kilometer situated in Burkina Faso.