Sanofi Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:SNY)

Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY) saw unusually large options trading on Thursday. Traders acquired 4,046 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 74% compared to the average volume of 2,321 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Sanofi from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Sanofi from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 18th. Morgan Stanley set a $49.00 price target on Sanofi in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Sanofi in a report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Sanofi to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.50.

Sanofi Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:SNY traded down $3.01 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $41.84. 4,156,012 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,595,017. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 0.22 and a current ratio of 1.01. Sanofi has a one year low of $40.89 and a one year high of $52.68. The company has a market cap of $101.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.70, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.34. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $43.50 and a 200 day moving average of $45.27.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sanofi

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of SNY. Raymond James Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Sanofi by 81.3% in the second quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 5,879,894 shares of the company’s stock worth $284,058,000 after acquiring an additional 2,635,867 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors purchased a new position in shares of Sanofi during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $79,960,000. Morgan Stanley lifted its position in Sanofi by 20.4% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 9,102,196 shares of the company’s stock valued at $441,093,000 after purchasing an additional 1,540,271 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC lifted its position in Sanofi by 728,134.8% during the first quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC now owns 1,194,305 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,542,000 after purchasing an additional 1,194,141 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in Sanofi by 29.7% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 5,100,097 shares of the company’s stock worth $247,151,000 after purchasing an additional 1,168,339 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 14.03% of the company’s stock.

About Sanofi

Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY) is a multinational pharmaceutical company headquartered in France that researches, develops, manufactures and markets prescription medicines, vaccines and consumer healthcare products. The company operates across multiple therapeutic areas, including immunology, rare diseases, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, and vaccines through its Sanofi Pasteur division. Sanofi sells products to hospitals, clinics, governments and retail pharmacies, with a broad global footprint and significant presence in Europe, North America and emerging markets.

Key commercial offerings include specialty biologics and established small-molecule medicines.