GE HealthCare Technologies (NASDAQ:GEHC) Stock Sees Heavy Call Option Buying

GE HealthCare Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:GEHC) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Monday. Stock traders bought 4,463 call options on the company. This is an increase of 74% compared to the typical daily volume of 2,572 call options.

GE HealthCare Technologies Price Performance

GEHC traded up $1.13 on Tuesday, hitting $68.87. 1,425,385 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,252,198. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.80, a PEG ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.97. GE HealthCare Technologies has a 12 month low of $58.75 and a 12 month high of $89.77. The business has a 50-day moving average of $68.64 and a two-hundred day moving average of $66.81.

GE HealthCare Technologies (NASDAQ:GEHC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.04 by $0.09. GE HealthCare Technologies had a net margin of 9.33% and a return on equity of 20.12%. The firm had revenue of $5.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.26 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.06 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that GE HealthCare Technologies will post 4.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

GE HealthCare Technologies Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Investors of record on Friday, October 23rd will be paid a $0.04 dividend. This represents a $0.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.2%. This is a positive change from GE HealthCare Technologies’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.0350. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 23rd. GE HealthCare Technologies’s payout ratio is 3.67%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GEHC. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of GE HealthCare Technologies in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. NBH Bank bought a new position in GE HealthCare Technologies in the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. MidFirst Bank acquired a new position in GE HealthCare Technologies during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in GE HealthCare Technologies by 60.4% during the 1st quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 433 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Reflection Asset Management bought a new stake in GE HealthCare Technologies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. 82.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler reissued a “buy” rating on shares of GE HealthCare Technologies in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. BTIG Research lowered their target price on shares of GE HealthCare Technologies from $79.00 to $75.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of GE HealthCare Technologies from $67.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $93.00 price target on shares of GE HealthCare Technologies in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of GE HealthCare Technologies in a research report on Monday, October 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $78.35.

About GE HealthCare Technologies

GE HealthCare Technologies Inc is a global medical technology and healthcare services company that develops, manufactures and supports products used by hospitals, clinicians and researchers. Its offerings are designed to assist with disease detection, diagnosis, treatment, patient monitoring and clinical workflow management.

The company’s portfolio includes computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, X-ray and molecular imaging systems; ultrasound equipment; patient monitoring and anesthesia delivery technologies; and pharmaceutical diagnostics, including contrast agents used in medical imaging.