Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of Shell Call Options (NYSE:SHEL)

Shell PLC Unsponsored ADR (NYSE:SHEL) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Thursday. Investors purchased 42,426 call options on the company. This is an increase of 276% compared to the typical volume of 11,271 call options.

Shell Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SHEL opened at $88.04 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $246.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.71, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.06. Shell has a 52-week low of $68.63 and a 52-week high of $94.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.27. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $83.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $83.45.

Shell (NYSE:SHEL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 8th. The energy company reported $2.44 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.14 by $0.30. Shell had a net margin of 6.85% and a return on equity of 11.18%. The business had revenue of $69.69 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $77.54 billion. As a group, analysts anticipate that Shell will post 9.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Shell

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SHEL. Colonial Trust Advisors grew its stake in Shell by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Colonial Trust Advisors now owns 1,488 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $109,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. raised its position in Shell by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 4,800 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $372,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Shell by 14.1% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 1,215 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $109,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Shell by 25.1% during the 4th quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 846 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of Shell by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 9,552 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $702,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 28.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SHEL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Shell to $122.40 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Shell in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Weiss Ratings downgraded Shell from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Shell from $77.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn downgraded Shell from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Shell currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.19.

Shell Company Profile

Shell plc (NYSE: SHEL) is a global integrated energy company that operates across the full oil and gas value chain as well as in developing lower-carbon energy solutions. The company traces its roots to the early 20th century merger of Royal Dutch Petroleum and Shell Transport and Trading, and today it is organized to explore for and produce hydrocarbons, process and refine them, manufacture petrochemicals, and market fuel, lubricants and related products under the Shell brand around the world.

Shell’s principal activities include upstream exploration and production of oil and natural gas, integrated gas operations including liquefied natural gas (LNG), and downstream refining, supply and marketing.