Traders Buy High Volume of Harmony Gold Mining Call Options (NYSE:HMY)

Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited (NYSE:HMY) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Stock traders purchased 4,248 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 177% compared to the typical daily volume of 1,531 call options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Harmony Gold Mining

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co acquired a new position in Harmony Gold Mining during the fourth quarter worth about $2,452,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Harmony Gold Mining by 12.0% during the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,599,913 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $13,135,000 after purchasing an additional 171,136 shares during the last quarter. Towarzystwo Funduszy Inwestycyjnych Allianz Polska S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Harmony Gold Mining in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $539,000. GTS Securities LLC purchased a new position in Harmony Gold Mining during the fourth quarter worth approximately $492,000. Finally, Vise Technologies Inc. acquired a new position in Harmony Gold Mining during the fourth quarter worth $130,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 31.79% of the company’s stock.

Harmony Gold Mining Stock Performance

HMY stock traded up $1.18 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $14.02. 6,781,437 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,177,134. Harmony Gold Mining has a 1-year low of $7.97 and a 1-year high of $14.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The firm has a market cap of $8.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.31, a PEG ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.85. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $11.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $10.25.

Harmony Gold Mining Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 21st. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be paid a $0.1245 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This represents a yield of 0.9%. This is a boost from Harmony Gold Mining’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.04. Harmony Gold Mining’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 11.24%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com raised Harmony Gold Mining from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th.

Harmony Gold Mining Company Profile

Harmony Gold Mining Company Limited engages in the exploration, extraction, and processing of gold. The company explores for uranium, silver, copper, and molybdenum deposits. It has eight underground operations in the Witwatersrand Basin; an open-pit mine on the Kraaipan Greenstone Belt; and various surface source operations in South Africa.