Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Teck Resources Call Options (NYSE:TECK)

Teck Resources Limited (NYSE:TECK) (TSE:TECK) was the target of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Traders bought 13,650 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 128% compared to the typical volume of 5,986 call options.

Teck Resources Price Performance

NYSE:TECK opened at $48.57 on Friday. Teck Resources has a one year low of $34.38 and a one year high of $50.30. The stock has a market cap of $24.79 billion, a PE ratio of 14.16, a P/E/G ratio of 6.60 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 1.10. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $41.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $39.91.

Teck Resources (NYSE:TECK) (TSE:TECK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The basic materials company reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.01. Teck Resources had a return on equity of 9.67% and a net margin of 16.21%. The company had revenue of $3.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.11 billion. Equities research analysts expect that Teck Resources will post 3.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Teck Resources Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.0925 per share. This represents a $0.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Teck Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.79%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on TECK shares. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Teck Resources in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Teck Resources in a report on Tuesday, January 16th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Finally, Benchmark boosted their target price on shares of Teck Resources from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $65.21.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Teck Resources

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of TECK. Wetherby Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Teck Resources by 0.7% in the first quarter. Wetherby Asset Management Inc. now owns 39,655 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $1,447,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the period. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Teck Resources by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 7,910 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $341,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. Wealthsource Partners LLC lifted its position in Teck Resources by 4.0% in the third quarter. Wealthsource Partners LLC now owns 7,747 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $334,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. First Hawaiian Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Teck Resources by 6.0% in the 1st quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 5,552 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $254,000 after acquiring an additional 313 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in Teck Resources by 4.4% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 8,067 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $327,000 after purchasing an additional 341 shares in the last quarter. 78.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Teck Resources

Teck Resources Limited engages in exploring for, acquiring, developing, and producing natural resources in Asia, Europe, and North America. The company operates through Steelmaking Coal, Copper, Zinc, and Energy segments. Its principal products include copper, zinc, steelmaking coal, and blended bitumen.