Traders Buy High Volume of Call Options on First Majestic Silver (NYSE:AG)

First Majestic Silver Corp. (NYSE:AG) (TSE:FR) saw some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Traders purchased 18,308 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 63% compared to the typical daily volume of 11,203 call options.

First Majestic Silver Price Performance

AG stock traded up $0.30 during trading on Thursday, reaching $5.88. The stock had a trading volume of 8,659,920 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,475,704. The company has a quick ratio of 2.04, a current ratio of 2.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $4.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $5.28. First Majestic Silver has a 52 week low of $4.17 and a 52 week high of $8.07.

First Majestic Silver (NYSE:AG) (TSE:FR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The mining company reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.01. First Majestic Silver had a negative return on equity of 1.85% and a negative net margin of 23.55%. The business had revenue of $136.95 million during the quarter. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned ($0.07) earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that First Majestic Silver will post -0.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

First Majestic Silver Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.0048 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $0.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.33%. This is a boost from First Majestic Silver’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.00. First Majestic Silver’s payout ratio is currently -4.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AG has been the subject of a number of research reports. StockNews.com raised First Majestic Silver to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, February 26th. HC Wainwright reduced their price target on First Majestic Silver from $12.00 to $6.75 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 19th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On First Majestic Silver

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in First Majestic Silver by 105,048.6% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 47,055,036 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $392,439,000 after acquiring an additional 47,010,285 shares during the period. Voloridge Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of First Majestic Silver by 449.3% during the fourth quarter. Voloridge Investment Management LLC now owns 1,537,675 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $9,457,000 after purchasing an additional 1,257,734 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of First Majestic Silver during the second quarter worth about $9,005,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in First Majestic Silver by 231.9% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 1,614,262 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $9,928,000 after purchasing an additional 1,127,952 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of First Majestic Silver by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 29,631,966 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $152,012,000 after acquiring an additional 1,079,150 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 27.16% of the company’s stock.

About First Majestic Silver

First Majestic Silver Corp. engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of mineral properties with a focus on silver and gold production in North America. Its projects include the San Dimas mine that consists of 119 individual concessions covering an area of 71,839 hectares located in Durango and Sinaloa States, México; the Santa Elena comprising 32 individual concessions that covers an area of 102,172 hectares located in Sonora State, México; and the La Encantada consists of 22 exploitation concessions covering an area of 4,076 hectares located in Coahuila State, México.