Investors Buy Large Volume of Put Options on iShares MSCI Japan ETF (NYSEARCA:EWJ)

iShares MSCI Japan ETF (NYSEARCA:EWJ) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Traders purchased 32,229 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of 350% compared to the average daily volume of 7,169 put options.

iShares MSCI Japan ETF Price Performance

NYSEARCA EWJ opened at $90.49 on Friday. iShares MSCI Japan ETF has a 12 month low of $71.71 and a 12 month high of $97.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.57 billion, a PE ratio of 14.63 and a beta of 0.68. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $92.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $88.94.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On iShares MSCI Japan ETF

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in iShares MSCI Japan ETF by 98.6% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 5,048,553 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock worth $426,300,000 after acquiring an additional 2,506,472 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in iShares MSCI Japan ETF by 2,279.0% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,670,435 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock worth $141,051,000 after acquiring an additional 1,600,219 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in iShares MSCI Japan ETF by 511.5% in the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,830,745 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock valued at $147,814,000 after acquiring an additional 1,531,363 shares during the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd lifted its holdings in iShares MSCI Japan ETF by 1,593.2% in the 4th quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd now owns 992,110 shares of the exchange traded fund’s stock valued at $80,103,000 after acquiring an additional 933,517 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI bought a new position in shares of iShares MSCI Japan ETF during the 3rd quarter valued at about $50,155,000. 64.60% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About iShares MSCI Japan ETF

iShares MSCI Japan ETF (the fund), formerly Ishares Msci Japan Index Fund, is an exchange-traded fund. The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of publicly traded securities in the Japanese market, as measured by the MSCI Japan Index (the Index). The Index consists of stocks traded primarily on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The Fund invests in a representative sample of securities included in the Index that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Index.