Investors Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Sabre (NASDAQ:SABR)

Sabre Co. (NASDAQ:SABR) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock traders purchased 10,982 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 366% compared to the typical volume of 2,355 call options.

Sabre Stock Performance

Sabre stock traded down $0.25 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $2.57. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,178,161 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,511,092. Sabre has a 12-month low of $2.29 and a 12-month high of $4.63. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $3.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $3.58. The company has a market capitalization of $990.27 million, a P/E ratio of -3.56, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 1.62.

Sabre (NASDAQ:SABR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The information technology services provider reported ($0.10) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.07) by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $714.72 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $716.60 million. On average, research analysts predict that Sabre will post 0.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on SABR. StockNews.com upgraded Sabre from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $4.00 price target on shares of Sabre in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Sanford C. Bernstein raised Sabre from an “underperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $3.50 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Bank of America raised Sabre from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $4.50 to $6.10 in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th.

Institutional Trading of Sabre

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Sabre by 744.8% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 9,589 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 8,454 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sabre by 173.2% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 9,935 shares of the information technology services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 6,298 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management bought a new position in shares of Sabre during the 3rd quarter valued at $41,000. MML Investors Services LLC purchased a new position in Sabre in the 3rd quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV purchased a new position in Sabre in the 4th quarter worth $45,000. 89.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Sabre

Sabre Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as software and technology company for travel industry in the United States, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and internationally. It operates through two segments: Travel Solutions and Hospitality Solutions. The Travel Solutions segment operates a business-to-business travel marketplace that offers travel content, such as inventory, prices, and availability from a range of travel suppliers, including airlines, hotels, car rental brands, rail carriers, cruise lines, and tour operators with a network of travel buyers comprising online and offline travel agencies, travel management companies, and corporate travel departments.