FedEx Stock Eyes New Low After Downgrade

Last week was FDX's worst week since 2009

The shares of FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX) are down 1.2% in electronic trading, after BofA-Merrill Lynch downgraded the shipping name to "neutral" from "buy," while slashing its price target to $220 from $304. The analyst in coverage waxed pessimist on the company's management shakeup last week, namely thedeparture of the head of the company's Express unit. In short, the brokerage firm sees this as a possible signal of adelay in the company achieving its profit target.

FedEx stock is on track to open at a new annual low. The shares gapped lower last week after Morgan Stanley warned of "the risk Amazon Air poses," culminating in a Dec. 7 bottom of $200.12. As a result, last week was FDX's worst weekly performance since March 2009, bringing its 2018 deficit to 19%.

Despite two bear notes in as many weeks, analysts on the whole are still quite bullish on FDX. Of the 19 brokerages covering the security, 16 rate it a "buy" or "strong buy," with zero "sells" on the books. What's more, the stock's consensus 12-month price target of $284.11 is a 41% premium to Friday's closing perch.

As far as options, puts have become popular in recent weeks. Data from the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) shows FDX with a 10-day put/call volume ratio of 0.96. This ratio registers in the 83rd percentile of its annual range, pointing to a healthier-than-usual appetite for bearish bets lately.