Traders Purchase High Volume of iShares Gold Trust Call Options (NYSEARCA:IAU)

iShares Gold Trust (NYSEARCA:IAU) was the target of some unusual options trading on Friday. Investors purchased 9,108 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 88% compared to the average volume of 4,847 call options.

Institutional Trading of iShares Gold Trust

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of IAU. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of iShares Gold Trust by 17.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,635 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock worth $96,000 after buying an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of iShares Gold Trust during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $267,000. McAdam LLC raised its position in shares of iShares Gold Trust by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. McAdam LLC now owns 7,687 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock worth $479,000 after purchasing an additional 341 shares during the last quarter. Summit Financial LLC raised its position in shares of iShares Gold Trust by 232.6% during the 1st quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 279,758 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock worth $16,495,000 after purchasing an additional 195,640 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Euro Pacific Asset Management LLC grew its stake in iShares Gold Trust by 36.9% in the 2nd quarter. Euro Pacific Asset Management LLC now owns 9,061 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock worth $565,000 after acquiring an additional 2,441 shares during the period. 59.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

iShares Gold Trust Stock Performance

Shares of IAU opened at $79.63 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $69.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $64.74. iShares Gold Trust has a one year low of $48.29 and a one year high of $81.34. The stock has a market cap of $66.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.53 and a beta of 0.15.

About iShares Gold Trust

iShares Gold Trust (the Trust) is to own gold transferred to the Trust in exchange for shares issued by the Trust (Shares). Each Share represents a fractional undivided beneficial interest in the net assets of the Trust. The assets of the Trust consist of gold held by the Trust’s custodian on behalf of the Trust.