Big Volume In Saks Options As Shares Rip Higher
by Option Review - May 22nd, 2013 8:36 pm
Today’s tickers: SKS, USG & PFE
SKS - Saks, Inc. – Timely bullish bets initiated in Saks options just seconds prior to the closing bell on Tuesday are generating sizable gains for at least one trader today, with shares in the high-end retailer up at the highest level since 2008. The stock closed Tuesday up 11% on the day at $13.67 after the company reported first-quarter revenue above average analyst expectations. Within minutes of the close shares in SKS moved sharply to the upside after the New York Post, citing a source familiar with the matter, reported that Saks has hired Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. to explore strategic options, including a potential sale of the company. Shares gained as much as 22% over yesterday’s close to touch $16.70 in the pre-market on Wednesday. The stock currently trades up 14% on the session at $15.59 as of 11:50 a.m. in New York. Options on SKS were active throughout Tuesday’s trading sessions, but it was the last-minute flurry of call buying at the Jun $13 and $14 strikes that look rather interesting in hindsight. It looks like some 1,339 calls were purchased at the Jun $14 strike for a premium of $0.30 each, all with a time stamp of 15:59:35. Volume of 347 of the Jun $13 strike calls changed hands at 15:59:29 yesterday and look to have been purchased at $0.85 per contract. As of midday on the East Coast, the value of the Jun $13 strike calls have tripled to $2.65 each, while premium on the $14 calls has risen six-fold overnight to $1.80 per contract. Meanwhile, trades initiated on Saks today are betting the shares continue move higher, with a block of 3,000 of the Jun $15 strike calls purchased for a premium of $1.10 per contract in the early going this morning. These contracts make money if shares in Saks rally another 3.3% over the current price of $15.59 to surpass the effective breakeven point at $16.10 by June expiration.
USG - USG Corp – Shares…
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Pre-Earnings Bullish Bets On Saks Pay Off As Retailer Rallies
by Option Review - May 21st, 2013 9:46 pm
Today’s tickers: SKS, HLF & ABFS
SKS - Saks, Inc. – High-end retailer, Saks, Inc., popped up on our ‘hot by options volume’ market scanner this morning on heavier than usual trading traffic in upside calls. Shares in Saks are up 10% on Tuesday morning at a new 52-week high of $13.54 after the company posted first-quarter earnings in line with analyst expectations on higher-than-expected quarterly revenue. Shares in Saks are up more than 30% since this time last year. Bullish positions initiated in SKS options ahead of the earnings release yesterday are seeing sizable overnight gains today as shares push to the highest levels since June of 2008. Traders yesterday picked up around 500 out-of-the-money calls at the Jun $13 strike for an average premium of $0.22 per contract. Today, the $13 calls are in the money and changing hands at $0.65 each, a near three-fold increase compared to the premium paid yesterday, as of 11:50 a.m. ET. Traders appear to be buying up the $13 calls against today, with more than 1,500 lots in play versus open interest of 887 contracts. Overall options volume on Saks is nearing 9,000 contracts as of the time of this writing, which is roughly four times the stock’s average daily level of around 1,900 contracts.
HLF - Herbalife, Ltd. – Shares in Herbalife have resumed trading this afternoon, currently up 3.0% at $50.69 as of 12:20 p.m. ET, after earlier being halted with news pending. The company announced today it has hired PricewaterhouseCoopers as its independent public accountant to replace KPMG. The stock was moving higher ahead of the halt in HLF shares today, rising as much as 7.0% in the early going to $52.84. Traders looking for the stock to potentially rise to fresh 52-week highs during the next few trading sessions purchased weekly calls on the stock, buying around 1,100 lots at the May $57.5 strike for an average premium of $0.77 each. Traders long the contracts stand ready to profit at expiration this week should shares in…
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ING US Call Buyers Look For Shares To Extend Post-IPO Rally
by Option Review - May 20th, 2013 6:06 pm
Today’s tickers: VOYA, GRPN & SIGM
VOYA - ING US, Inc. – Shares in ING Group’s U.S. retirement, investment and insurance business are up as much as 8.0% today to $26.98, the highest level since the company’s May 2nd IPO. ING US was rated new ‘buy’ at BTIG LLC with a 12-month target share price of $31.00 today. The stock has rallied nearly 40% over the IPO price of $19.50, and some options traders are positioning for the price of the underlying to extend gains during the second half of the year. November expiry options are the most active contracts by volume on VOYA today, with notable fresh interest in the Nov $25 and $30 calls. Traders appear to have purchased around 200 lots at each striking price for average premiums of $2.71 and $1.14 each, respectively. Call buyers stand ready to profit at November expiration should shares in ING US rally another 2.7% and 15% to surpass average breakeven prices of $27.71 and $31.14, respectively. Meanwhile, traders snapping up Nov $20 and $25 strike puts are positioned to make money in the event of a pullback in the price of the underlying through November expiration. The company is scheduled to report first-quarter earnings ahead of the open on Thursday. Overall options volume on VOYA is sizable, with more than 1,500 contracts in play as of 12:15 p.m. ET versus overall open interest on the stock of 190 contracts.
GRPN - Groupon, Inc. – A large trade in Groupon options in the early going on Monday looks for the price of the underlying to remain in the single-digits through January of 2014. Shares in GRPN are down 0.45% on the day at $6.94 as of 12:20 p.m. ET. The stock has increased roughly 30% since the company reported better-than-expected first-quarter revenue and a narrower-than-expected first-quarter loss on May 8th. It looks like one strategist betting shares in Groupon will trade below $10.00 through the start of 2014 sold around 50,000 calls at the Jan 2014 $10 strike for…
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Busy Day For Bristol-Myers Options As Shares Sprint Higher
by Option Review - May 15th, 2013 8:46 pm
Options brief will resume May 20th, 2013.
Today’s tickers: BMY, TIBX & WM
BMY - Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. – Shares in drug maker, Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., are ripping higher today, up 6.5% at $44.94, the highest level in more than a decade, ahead of the release of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) 2013 Annual Meeting abstracts tonight. The ASCO Annual Meeting begins on May 31st in Chicago. Options on BMY are far more active than usual today, with overall volume topping 64,000 contracts by 12:25 p.m. ET, versus average daily volume of around 11,400 contracts. Traders appear to be snapping up call options on the name, establishing near-term bullish positions on the stock to position for further gains in the price of the underlying. Front month calls are seeing most of the action, with intraday call volume well in excess of open interest across several striking prices. More than 7,000 calls have traded at the May $45 strike against open interest of 316 contracts, with roughly 3,600 calls purchased during the first half of the session for an average premium of $0.54 each. Call buyers make money if shares in BMY rally another 1.3% over the current level of $44.94 to settle above the average breakeven price of $45.54 by expiration this week. In and out of the money call options expiring June 21st are also seeing heavy volume in today’s session.
TIBX - TIBCO Software, Inc. – Upside call buying on software maker, TIBCO, suggests some traders are positioning for the price of the underlying to continue to gain ground in the near term. The stock is up 0.40% this morning at $20.91 as of 11:40 a.m. ET. Shares in TIBX, down roughly 30% since this time last year, have managed to rise 15% off a two-year low of $18.18 reached back on April 19th. Bullish options are changing hands at the Jun $20 strike today, with around 5,000 calls in play versus open interest of 2,742 contracts. Time and sales data indicates the bulk of…
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Sony Options Active As Shares Hit Fresh 52-Week High
by Option Review - May 13th, 2013 8:01 pm
Today’s tickers: SNE, ERF & MYGN
SNE - Sony Corp – Big prints in Sony Corp. call and put options this morning pushed the consumer electronics maker onto our ‘hot by options volume’ market scanner in the early going on Monday, with overall volume up above 21,000 contracts versus the stock’s average daily volume of roughly 8,000 contracts. Trading traffic in the June expiry options suggests one or more traders are near term bullish on the prospects for the price of the underlying shares. The stock is up nearly 5.0% on the day to stand at $18.78 as of 11:25 a.m. ET. The Jun $17 strike puts traded 8,900 times versus open interest of just 232 contracts during the first 20 minutes of the session. It looks like the puts were sold for a premium of $0.25 apiece. Similarly, roughly 2,090 of the Jun $16 strike puts appear to have been sold at the same time for a premium of $0.10 each. Maximum potential profits equal to premiums received on the transactions are available at June expiration as long as Sony’s shares exceed the stated striking prices. Meanwhile, less than 10 minutes after the puts traded, roughly 5,800 of the Jun $19 strike calls were purchased for an average premium of $0.80 per contract. The calls make money at expiration should shares in Sony Corp. rally another 5.4% to surpass the average premium price of $19.80.
ERF - Enerplus Corp – Shares in North American independent energy company, Enerplus Corp, are up more than 5.0% on Monday to stand at $15.84 as of 11:45 a.m. ET. The operator of oil and gas properties in Canada and the U.S. was upgraded to ‘Outperform’ from ‘Market Perform’ at Raymond James today. Options activity on Enerplus this morning indicates at least one strategist is positioning for shares in the name to rally to the highest level since October of 2012 during the next couple of months. The July $17 strike calls have traded around 1,100 times as of midday in New…
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Fusion-io Calls Change Hands As Shares Rebound
by Option Review - May 10th, 2013 2:53 pm
Today’s tickers: FIO, EXPE & BID
FIO - Fusion-io, Inc. – Shares in the provider of big data storage solutions are in recovery mode on Friday, up 3.3% at $14.70 as of 11:10 a.m. ET, on the heels of a sharp selloff earlier in the week. The stock dropped 27%, the most ever, to a record low of $13.13 on Wednesday after Fusion-io’s CEO, David Flynn, and co-founder, Rick White, resigned. The company issued a press release on Wednesday announcing the management changes, naming former EVP and Chief Strategy and Technology Officer at Hewlett-Packard Co., Shane Robison, Fusion-io’s new Chairman and CEO. Options changing hands on FIO this morning indicates some traders are positioning for shares in the name to continue to recover in the near term. The most actively traded contracts as measured by volume are the Jun $16 strike calls, with volume currently topping 13,000 contracts versus open interest of 2,713 lots. Most of the $16 strike calls appear to have been purchased during the first 30 minutes of the trading session for an average premium of $0.65 each. Buyers of the upside calls stand ready to profit at expiration should shares in FIO rally more than 13% over the current price of $14.70 to surpass the average breakeven point at $16.65.
EXPE - Expedia, Inc. – Options in play on online travel company, Expedia, Inc., today are looking for shares in the name to rally substantially during the next couple of months. The stock, which advanced 3.4% to $57.89 by 11:30 a.m. in New York, is down roughly 15% off a record high of $68.09 achieved back in February. EXPE shares at the current level are still up more than 40% since this time last year. A sizable print in Expedia calls straight out of the gate this morning positions one strategist to benefit from continued gains in the price of the underlying. It looks like the trader purchased 3,000 calls at the July $59.48 strike for a premium of $2.05 per contract. The position…
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News Corp Options Active After Earnings
by Option Review - May 9th, 2013 6:14 pm
Today’s tickers: NWSA, IYR & CTRP
NWSA - News Corporation – Trading traffic in News Corp call options in the early going on Thursday indicate some traders are positioning for the price of the underlying to continue marching to fresh record highs in the near term. The stock today increased as much as 6.8%, hitting a new all-time high of $34.04 after the global media company reported third-quarter net income that topped average analyst estimates. Traders looking for the up-trend to extend into next week snapped up front month calls, picking up around 200 calls at the May $34 strike at a premium of $0.25 each, and buying roughly 500 calls at the May $35 strike for an average premium of $0.15 per contract. Call buyers stand ready to profit at expiration next week should shares in News Corp rally another 3.8% and 6.5% over the current price of $33.00 to surpass average breakeven points at $34.25 and $35.15, respectively. Shares in News Corp, which plans to split into two companies, are up roughly 65% since this time last year.
IYR - iShares Dow Jones U.S. Real Estate Index ETF – Shares in the IYR, an ETF that provides exposure to U.S. real estate stocks and REITs, slipped 0.40% today to $73.90, after earlier this week trading up to a record high of $74.31 on the heels of a more than 15% rally since this time last year. The fund popped up on our ‘most active by options volume’ market scanner during the first half hour of the session following a large trade in the June expiry put options. It looks like one strategist purchased a block of 25,000 puts at the Jun $72 strike for a premium of $0.55 apiece. The trade makes money if shares in the IYR decline more than 3.0% from the current level to trade below the effective breakeven price of $71.45 by June expiration. The Jun $72 strike puts were active last week as well, with roughly 10,000 contracts purchased last Wednesday…
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Options In Play On Genworth Financial Eye Further Upside
by Option Review - May 8th, 2013 6:36 pm
Today’s tickers: GNW, M & VCLK
GNW - Genworth Financial, Inc. – Bursts of activity in Genworth Financial call options in the early going on Wednesday appears to be the work of one or more traders betting the price of the underlying stock pushes toward multi-year highs during the next several months. Shares in the insurer kicked off the trading session in rally mode, initially rising 1.2% to a near two-year high of $11.02, before reversing course to trade down 1.85% on the day at $10.69 as of 11:15 a.m. ET. The stock was cut to ‘Neutral’ from ‘Buy’ at BTIG today. Shares in Genworth Financial are up roughly 170% off the 52-week low of $4.06 set back in August of 2012. Options volume in GNW is heaviest out at the Sep $13 strike, where 5,000 calls changed hands against open interest of 472 contracts. It looks like most of the volume was purchased for an average premium of $0.42 each. Buyers of these contracts stand ready to profit at September expiration should shares in GNW rally 25% over the current price of $10.69 to top the average breakeven point at $13.42. The Sep $12 strike calls are also active today, with around 1,000 lots purchased at an average premium of $0.69 apiece just before 10:00 a.m. ET this morning. Time and sales data suggests roughly 1,000 of the Sep $12 strike calls were purchased on Tuesday morning at around the same time for a premium of $0.62 each.
M - Macy’s, Inc. – Shares in department store operator, Macy’s, Inc., are up 1.3% today at a new all-time high of $47.12. Options changing hands on the retailer today indicate some strategists are positioning for the price of the underlying to extend gains in the near term. One trader appears to be rolling a bullish position in front month calls up to a higher striking price ahead of the company’s first-quarter earnings report next Wednesday before the open. The options player appears to have sold roughly 1,000 calls…
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Bearish Options Active On Gold Miners ETF
by Option Review - May 7th, 2013 6:25 pm
Today’s tickers: GDX, PCRX & ARUN
GDX - Market Vectors Gold Miners Index ETF – Big prints in GDX put options on Tuesday morning indicate some traders are positioning for shares in the Market Vectors Gold Miners Index ETF to potentially drop to the lowest level since December of 2008. Shares in the ETF are off 3.0% today at $28.85 as of midday in New York. Volume in GDX options is heaviest in the Jun $27 strike puts where nearly 40,000 puts have traded versus open interest of 16,819 contracts. It looks like the bulk of the volume was purchased for an average premium of $0.89 per contract. Put buyers stand ready to profit at June expiration should the price of the underlying plunge 9.5% from the current level to trade below the average breakeven price of $26.11 by expiration. Sizable prints in the Jun $27 puts helped push the put/call ratio on GDX above 4.4 during the first half of the session.
PCRX - Pacira Pharmaceuticals, Inc. – Shares in specialty pharmaceutical company, Pacira Pharmaceuticals, Inc., are bouncing around on Tuesday, rising as much as 2.0% in the early going, before reversing gains to trade down 2.0% at $27.84 by 12:25 p.m. ET. The company reports first-quarter earnings ahead of the opening bell tomorrow. Options changing hands on Pacira this morning suggest one trader is positioning for PCRX shares to approach record highs in the near term. It looks like more than 1,000 of the May $30 strike calls were purchased for an average premium of $0.90 each. The bullish strategy makes money if shares in the pharmaceutical company rally 11% over the current price of $27.84 to top the average breakeven price of $30.90 by expiration next week. Shares in PCRX are up more than 180% since this time last year.
ARUN - Aruba Networks, Inc. – The provider of network access solutions for mobile enterprise networks released preliminary…
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Bullish Options In Play On Disney Ahead Of Earnings
by Option Review - May 7th, 2013 6:58 am
Today’s tickers: DIS, VMED & MS
DIS - Walt Disney Co. – Front month call options changing hands on Disney today suggest some traders are positioning for shares in the name to break well above recent all-time highs in the near future. The stock, up some 50% since this time last year, increased 0.45% near the open this morning to touch a record high of $65.09 after Iron Man 3, produced by Marvel Studios, a division of the Walt Disney Co., earned more than $175 million in its opening weekend in North America. Traders betting the stock pushes to fresh highs snapped up roughly 2,800 calls at the May $67.5 strike for an average premium of $0.48 apiece during the first half of the session. Call buyers make money at expiration if shares in Disney surge 4.4% over today’s high of $65.09 to top the average breakeven point at $67.98. Walt Disney Co. reports second-quarter earnings after the closing bell tomorrow.
VMED - Virgin Media, Inc. – Big prints in Virgin Media put options on Monday morning indicates at least one trader is bracing for shares in the name to potentially pull back off recent record highs. Shares in Virgin earlier today rallied 0.40% to touch a fresh all-time high of $50.31. The stock has more than doubled since this time last year and is up roughly 1600% since touching down at a 2008 financial-crisis low of $2.96. The May $50 strike put contracts traded approximately 5,000 times by midday in New York versus open interest of just 15 contracts. It looks like most of the volume was purchased at a premium of $0.55 each, thus positioning buyers to profit in the event that VMED’s shares slip 1.7% from today’s high of $50.31 to breach the effective breakeven point on the downside at $49.45 by expiration next week.
MS - Morgan Stanley – Shares in Morgan Stanley are on the rise…
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Philip R. Davis is a founder Phil's Stock World, a stock and options trading site that teaches the art of options trading to newcomers and devises advanced strategies for expert traders...
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