Traders Buy Large Volume of Put Options on ResMed (NYSE:RMD)

ResMed Inc. (NYSE:RMD) saw some unusual options trading on Thursday. Traders bought 11,473 put options on the stock. This is an increase of 1,297% compared to the typical volume of 821 put options.

ResMed Stock Performance

NYSE:RMD traded down $2.85 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $242.14. The stock had a trading volume of 223,418 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,015,891. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.47, a PEG ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.87. ResMed has a 1-year low of $199.92 and a 1-year high of $293.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 3.44 and a quick ratio of 2.53. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $264.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $263.15.

ResMed (NYSE:RMD) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The medical equipment provider reported $2.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.49 by $0.06. ResMed had a return on equity of 25.62% and a net margin of 27.22%.The firm had revenue of $1.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.20 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that ResMed will post 9.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ResMed Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 18th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 13th will be given a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 13th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. ResMed’s payout ratio is 24.56%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Witte Jan De sold 487 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $250.25, for a total transaction of $121,871.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 5,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,331,079.75. The trade was a 8.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Peter C. Farrell sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $252.05, for a total transaction of $504,100.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 66,110 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,663,025.50. The trade was a 2.94% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 18,607 shares of company stock valued at $4,919,501. 0.65% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ResMed

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of RMD. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in ResMed by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 19,040,440 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $5,211,940,000 after purchasing an additional 293,515 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of ResMed by 1.0% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,615,852 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $1,706,890,000 after buying an additional 64,448 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in ResMed by 2.4% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,215,145 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock worth $1,083,409,000 after buying an additional 98,717 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in ResMed by 2.5% during the first quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,744,541 shares of the medical equipment provider’s stock valued at $390,516,000 after acquiring an additional 41,951 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in ResMed during the second quarter valued at about $306,452,000. 54.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

RMD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. William Blair raised ResMed to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. CLSA upgraded ResMed from a “hold” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of ResMed from $320.00 to $300.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Morgan Stanley set a $305.00 target price on shares of ResMed in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of ResMed from $248.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $297.45.

About ResMed

ResMed Inc develops, manufactures, distributes, and markets medical devices and cloud-based software applications for the healthcare markets. The company operates in two segments, Sleep and Respiratory Care, and Software as a Service. It offers various products and solutions for a range of respiratory disorders, including ApneaLink Air, a portable diagnostic device that measures oximetry, respiratory effort, pulse, nasal flow, and snoring; and NightOwl, a portable, cloud-connected, and disposable diagnostic device that measures AHI based on derived peripheral arterial tone, actigraphy, and oximetry over several nights.