Investors Buy High Volume of Put Options on Wolverine World Wide (NYSE:WWW)

Wolverine World Wide, Inc. (NYSE:WWW) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Traders purchased 3,593 put options on the stock. This is an increase of 317% compared to the typical daily volume of 862 put options.

Wolverine World Wide Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of Wolverine World Wide stock traded up $0.18 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $13.99. The company had a trading volume of 618,630 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,236,427. Wolverine World Wide has a 52-week low of $9.07 and a 52-week high of $24.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.35 and a beta of 1.93. The company has a 50 day moving average of $17.26 and a 200 day moving average of $19.03.

Wolverine World Wide (NYSE:WWW) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The textile maker reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42. The firm had revenue of $494.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $485.74 million. Wolverine World Wide had a return on equity of 26.81% and a net margin of 2.73%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.30) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Wolverine World Wide will post 1.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wolverine World Wide Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.10 per share. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Wolverine World Wide’s payout ratio is 72.73%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Wolverine World Wide

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Wolverine World Wide in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in shares of Wolverine World Wide by 88.8% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,450 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 682 shares during the last quarter. Natixis bought a new stake in Wolverine World Wide in the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new position in Wolverine World Wide in the 4th quarter worth about $64,000. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its stake in Wolverine World Wide by 43.8% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,303 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $96,000 after acquiring an additional 1,311 shares during the period. 90.25% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on WWW shares. UBS Group dropped their price target on Wolverine World Wide from $29.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Stifel Nicolaus raised shares of Wolverine World Wide from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $21.00 to $29.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Wolverine World Wide from $21.00 to $18.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Wolverine World Wide from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated a “market perform” rating and set a $23.00 target price on shares of Wolverine World Wide in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $21.50.

Wolverine World Wide Company Profile

Wolverine World Wide, Inc designs, manufactures, sources, markets, licenses, and distributes footwear, apparel, and accessories in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, Canada and Latin America. It operates through Active Group and Work Group segments. The company offers casual footwear and apparel; performance outdoor and athletic footwear and apparel; kids' footwear; industrial work boots and apparel; and uniform shoes and boots.