Hanesbrands' fourth-quarter earnings and revenue topped analysts' expectations
Hanesbrands Inc. (NYSE:HBI) is getting a boost this morning, following the company's strong fourth-quarter results. The apparel manufacturer reported earnings and revenue that exceeded analysts' expectations, citing solid growth for its Champion brand and its Innerwear unit in the U.S., adding that it's looking to continue expanding the latter to European markets. What's more, Hanesbrands' current-quarter forecast topped estimates.
At last check, HBI is up 20.4% to trade at a fresh two-year high of $19.22, breaking past overhead pressure at the $16 mark, which has acted as a ceiling on the charts since an early November bear gap. What's more, the security just closed said bear gap, and now sports a nine-month lead of over 119%, with support from its 160-day moving average.
The brokerage bunch is still approaching the security with caution. Just three of the eight analysts in coverage call HBI a "buy" or better, while five say "hold" or worse. Adding to this, the 12-month consensus price target of $15.31 is an 19.3% discount to the stock's current perch. This leaves Hanesbrands stock ripe for upgrades, should this positive price action continue.
An unwinding of pessimism could propel HBI higher, too. For instance, short sellers have been building their positions. Now, the 28.68 million shares sold short make up 8.4% of the stock's available float, and would take over a week to cover, at HBI's average daily pace of trading.
The options pits have been equally bearish. At the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), the equity sports a 10-day put/call volume ratio of 2.20, which stands higher than 95% of readings from the past year. This means puts are being picked up at a much quicker-than-usual pace.
The tide seems to be shifting today, however. So far, over 4,500 calls have already crossed the tape, which is 16 times what is typically seen at this point. Most popular is the weekly 2/12 16-strike call, followed by the monthly March 20 call, with new positions being opened at the latter.