Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Put Options on AES (NYSE:AES)

The AES Corporation (NYSE:AES) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Investors bought 17,270 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 36% compared to the typical volume of 12,745 put options.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC boosted its position in shares of AES by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 14,658 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $210,000 after acquiring an additional 671 shares during the period. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board increased its holdings in AES by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 32,922 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $472,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT increased its holdings in AES by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT now owns 28,581 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $410,000 after acquiring an additional 852 shares during the period. S&CO Inc. boosted its holdings in AES by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. S&CO Inc. now owns 17,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $243,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in AES by 50.8% in the 3rd quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 3,401 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 1,146 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on AES. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and issued a $15.00 price objective (down from $23.00) on shares of AES in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Argus lowered shares of AES from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Mizuho cut shares of AES from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of AES in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised AES from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AES presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $24.27.

AES News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting AES this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Maximo (an AES incubated business) completed a 100 MW robotic solar installation at AES’ Bellefield site — a tangible execution milestone that can lower O&M costs and demonstrate scalable, capital?efficient deployment for AES’ renewables pipeline. Maximo Completes 100 MW of Robotic Solar Installation
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts note AES has 8.2 GW of signed PPAs for data centers, deepening revenue visibility and customer ties (including large tech partners), which supports the company’s long?term growth and cash?flow outlook. Can AES Capitalize on Surging Data Center Energy Demand?
• Neutral Sentiment: AES extended the expiration of its consent solicitation for the 2028 notes while consents for its 2030 and 2031 notes expired — an ongoing debt?holder process that investors should monitor for potential covenant or indenture changes but that doesn’t immediately change operations. AES Announces Extension of Consent Solicitation for its 2028 Notes…
• Neutral Sentiment: A political/opinion piece revisited the controversy around the AES sale process; such coverage can create headline risk but is commentary rather than new company action. Republicans could’ve stopped the AES sale. They chose not to. | Opinion
• Negative Sentiment: Argus downgraded AES from “buy” to “hold,” a near?term negative for sentiment that can reduce buying pressure from income/growth investors who follow the firm. Argus Downgrades AES to Hold
• Negative Sentiment: Unusual options activity: investors purchased ~17,270 AES put contracts (about 36% above average), signaling elevated short?term bearish bets that can amplify downside moves.

AES Stock Performance

NYSE:AES traded down $0.05 during trading on Thursday, reaching $14.02. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 18,810,982 shares, compared to its average volume of 20,335,100. AES has a 12 month low of $9.46 and a 12 month high of $17.65. The firm has a market cap of $9.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 0.95. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $15.05 and a 200-day moving average of $14.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.94, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.77.

AES (NYSE:AES) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The utilities provider reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.13. AES had a net margin of 7.40% and a return on equity of 19.93%. The company had revenue of $3.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.07 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.54 EPS. Research analysts expect that AES will post 1.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AES Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.176 per share. This represents a $0.70 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 1st. AES’s dividend payout ratio is 55.56%.

About AES

AES Corporation is a global energy company focused on the generation and distribution of electricity across diversified markets. Headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, AES develops, builds and operates power plants and distribution systems that serve residential, industrial and commercial customers. The company’s portfolio includes thermal, renewable and battery energy storage facilities designed to deliver reliable and sustainable electricity solutions.

Through its subsidiaries, AES operates a balanced mix of power generation assets, including natural gas, coal and renewables such as solar and wind.