Traders Buy Large Volume of Brookfield Put Options (NYSE:BN)

Brookfield Corporation (NYSE:BN) saw unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Stock investors bought 5,612 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 185% compared to the average daily volume of 1,967 put options.

Brookfield Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of BN traded up $0.07 on Friday, hitting $36.84. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 883,215 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,089,603. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $40.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.52. Brookfield has a fifty-two week low of $35.69 and a fifty-two week high of $49.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 66.97 and a beta of 1.56.

Brookfield (NYSE:BN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 13th. The company reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.04. Brookfield had a net margin of 1.85% and a return on equity of 3.93%. The firm had revenue of $1.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.66 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that Brookfield will post 2.93 EPS for the current year.

Brookfield Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Investors of record on Monday, September 14th were given a $0.07 dividend. This represents a $0.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 14th. Brookfield’s payout ratio is currently 50.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on BN. Scotia increased their price objective on shares of Brookfield from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. TD upped their target price on shares of Brookfield from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 14th. Scotiabank reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $54.00 price target (up from $53.00) on shares of Brookfield in a research note on Friday, August 14th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Brookfield to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Brookfield in a report on Monday, September 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $57.40.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Brookfield

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Brookfield by 40.5% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 113,652,306 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,215,504,000 after acquiring an additional 32,760,558 shares in the last quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC. grew its position in Brookfield by 47.5% in the fourth quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC. now owns 23,795,141 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,093,985,000 after purchasing an additional 7,662,565 shares in the last quarter. Akre Capital Management LLC grew its position in Brookfield by 39.7% in the fourth quarter. Akre Capital Management LLC now owns 26,843,633 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,231,854,000 after purchasing an additional 7,627,692 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its stake in Brookfield by 223.9% in the 4th quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 6,332,685 shares of the company’s stock valued at $290,767,000 after buying an additional 4,377,785 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alberta Investment Management Corp acquired a new stake in Brookfield in the 4th quarter valued at $159,079,000. 61.60% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Brookfield Company Profile

Brookfield Corporation (NYSE: BN) is a global investment and asset management company with interests in real assets and related operating businesses. Through its platforms and affiliates, the company invests in and manages assets across renewable power and energy transition, infrastructure, real estate, private equity, and other alternative investment strategies.

Brookfield’s businesses develop, own, operate, and finance essential assets, including renewable energy facilities, utilities, transportation networks, data infrastructure, commercial and residential real estate, and industrial and business services companies.