Rocket Companies Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:RKT)

Rocket Companies, Inc. (NYSE:RKT) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Monday. Stock investors bought 90,488 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 38% compared to the typical daily volume of 65,427 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley set a $16.00 price objective on Rocket Companies and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 12th. Benchmark cut their target price on shares of Rocket Companies from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Rocket Companies from $12.50 to $13.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Rocket Companies from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $13.00 price target on shares of Rocket Companies and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $18.75.

Trending Headlines about Rocket Companies

Here are the key news stories impacting Rocket Companies this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Lower Treasury yields helped lift rate-sensitive housing shares, including Rocket, and Barclays reiterated a Buy rating. Article: Rocket Companies Jumps as Treasury Yields Retreat Article: Barclays Remains a Buy on Rocket Companies
• Neutral Sentiment: Traders bought 90,488 call options, about 38% above the average volume. This signals increased options activity, but does not establish whether the stock will rise or fall. Article: Rocket Companies Rating Upgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Coverage highlighted challenges in generating new loan originations and lingering valuation risk. RBC also cut its price target, adding a potential headwind. Article: Rocket Companies Struggling With New Originations Article: RBC Reduces Rocket Companies Price Target
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Jesse Bray sold 225,000 shares for about $3.1 million. The sale was made under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, and he continues to own roughly 7.5 million shares, which tempers the signal. SEC filing for CEO share sale

Rocket Companies Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of RKT opened at $13.79 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $39.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.64, a P/E/G ratio of 4.14 and a beta of 2.27. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $12.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $14.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 3.77 and a quick ratio of 4.85. Rocket Companies has a 1 year low of $10.18 and a 1 year high of $24.36.

Rocket Companies (NYSE:RKT) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $0.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.01. Rocket Companies had a net margin of 11.14% and a return on equity of 5.33%. The business had revenue of $2.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.07 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 37.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Rocket Companies will post 0.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Rocket Companies

In other news, CEO Jesse Bray sold 225,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $13.75, for a total transaction of $3,093,750.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 7,503,027 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $103,166,621.25. This represents a 2.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 675,000 shares of company stock worth $8,780,824. 57.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Rocket Companies

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Ethic Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Rocket Companies by 75.1% during the 3rd quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 23,792 shares of the company’s stock valued at $274,000 after purchasing an additional 10,203 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its position in shares of Rocket Companies by 14.4% in the 3rd quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 337,614 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,886,000 after purchasing an additional 42,570 shares in the last quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Rocket Companies in the 3rd quarter worth $179,000. CenterBook Partners LP grew its stake in Rocket Companies by 74.8% during the 3rd quarter. CenterBook Partners LP now owns 55,710 shares of the company’s stock worth $641,000 after buying an additional 23,834 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Rocket Companies during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors own 4.59% of the company’s stock.

About Rocket Companies

Rocket Companies, Inc is a Detroit-based financial technology company that operates a portfolio of consumer finance and real estate businesses. Its platform is designed to simplify the homeownership process through digital applications, automated workflows and online customer support.

The company’s principal business is Rocket Mortgage, a residential mortgage lender and servicer offering home purchase, refinance and home equity products. Its broader portfolio includes Rocket Homes, a real estate services platform; Rocket Money, a personal finance app that helps consumers manage subscriptions, budgets and bills; Rocket Loans, which provides personal loans; and Rocket Pro, which supports mortgage brokers and other partners.

Rocket Companies traces its history to 1985, when Dan Gilbert founded Rock Financial.