FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX) has been a solid performer in 2017. Analysts are starting to take notice too, with the global delivery service stock subject to upbeat analyst attention today. Here's a quick look at FDX stock, and how options traders are playing the equity.
Earlier today, FDX received a price-target hike to $265 from $245 at BMO. Echoing this sentiment, analysts at Barclays see "plenty of upside potential in FedEx," as the global package company is the brokerage firms' top pick among transportation companies. The analyst attention is well deserved, since FDX stock has added 24% year-to-date, and touched an all-time high of $233.88 yesterday, following strong support from the 100-day moving average throughout November. Still, the shares are down 0.2% at $231.11 today.
A short squeeze could be fueling FDX's ascent. Short interest decreased by 24% during the last reporting period to 4 million shares, the lowest point since mid-March. However, it would still take four days for shorts to fully cover these positions, at FedEx's average daily trading volume.
In the options pits, the tone is distinctly bullish. This is according to the security's 10-day call/put volume ratio of 1.76 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), which ranks in the 92nd percentile of its annual range. However, a word of caution for potential buyers: in December, FedEx stock tends to underperform, looking at the past 10 years' worth of data.