Bulls Return To Tiffany & Co. Options Despite Post-Earnings Pullback
by Option Review - November 29th, 2011 2:00 pm
Today’s tickers: TIF, BAC, NGD & MWW
TIF - Tiffany & Co. – Investors sporting near-term bullish outlooks on the high-end jewelry retailer flocked to the options market following the sharp post-earnings pullback in the price of Tiffany & Co. shares. Traders gearing up for a rebound in the price of the underlying appear to be selling puts and snapping up calls on the stock. Shares in Tiffany fell as much as 13.1% to an intraday low of $63.98 this morning, and currently trade 9.2% lower on the day at $66.86 as of 12:20 PM in New York. Investors expecting the stock to rise in the next few weeks exchanged more than 4,000 calls at the Dec. $70 strike against previously existing open interest of 1,264 contracts. It looks like the majority of the calls were purchased for an average premium of $1.35 per contract. Call buyers profit if shares in Tiffany & Co. rally 6.7% over the current price of $66.86 to surpass the average breakeven point on the upside at $71.35 by expiration day next month. Meanwhile, put selling suggests some traders believe shares are unlikely to drop much lower in the near term. More than 5,300 puts changed hands at the Dec. $60 strike against open interest of 970 contracts. Investors sold most of these put options to pocket premium of $0.67 per contract, on average. Put sellers walk away with premium in hand at expiration in December as long as shares in Tiffany & Co. exceed $60.00. Investors selling puts may have shares in TIF put to them at an average price of $59.33 each in the event that shares in the jewelry company plunge 11.3% and the options land in-the-money at expiration day.
BAC - Bank of America Corp. – Shares in Bank of America dropped to a fresh two-year low of $5.10 at the start of the session, and the prognosis for the price of the underlying over the next six month period is bleak by the looks of one options strategy initiated in the May 2012 contract. One investor appears to have paid a net $0.18 in premium per contract for a put butterfly spread; buying 2,000 puts at the May $3.0 and $5.0 strikes at premiums of $0.28 and $0.94 apiece, and selling 4,000 puts at the May $4.0 strike for a premium of $0.52 each. The trader may profit if shares in BAC, which are…
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DiggLyondellBasell Bulls Dabble in Chemical Maker’s Call Options
by Option Review - May 17th, 2011 4:18 pm
Today’s tickers: LYB, EEM, JACK & MWW
LYB - LyondellBasell Industries NV – Two sizable bullish options trades on the chemical manufacturer indicate strategists expect shares in LyondellBasell Industries to rise significantly over the next four months. Shares in the Rotterdam-based company increased as much as 2.9% today to secure an intraday high of $39.22 on a positive note from analysts at Morgan Stanley. A ratio call spread in the September contract was one of the two bullish plays initiated on LYB during the first half of the session. The investor responsible for the transaction purchased 6,500 calls at the September $40 strike for a premium of $2.90 each, and sold 13,000 calls up at the September $46 strike at a premium of $0.95 apiece. The net cost of putting on the spread amounts to just $0.10 per contract. Profits are available on the position if shares in the chemical company rally another 2.2% over today’s high of $39.22 to surpass the average breakeven price of $40.10 by expiration day in September. Maximum potential profits of $5.90 per contract pad the investor’s wallet in the event that shares surge 17.3% to settle at $46.00 at expiration. Shares in LYB traded as high as $48.12 at the beginning of May, the highest since the company’s emergence from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2010. The short stance in twice as many September $46 strike calls lowers the net cost of the trade substantially, but also adds an element of risk for the investor. Losses on the uncovered calls kick in if the price of the underlying stock jumps 32.3% in the next several months to surpass the upper breakeven price of $51.90 at expiration. Next, it appears a different bullish strategist purchased 10,000 calls at the June $39 strike for a premium of $1.80 each, and sold the same number of calls out at the September $45 strike for an average premium of $1.275 a-pop. The trader paid a net premium of $0.525 per contract…
Short Straddle With a Side of Stock on Display at Liberty Media
by Option Review - March 29th, 2011 4:11 pm
Today’s tickers: LINTA, MWW, CVS & AEP
LINTA - Liberty Media Interactive – A large stock and options combination play on the broadcasting and entertainment company appears to be the work of an investor hoping to see LINTA’s shares stagnate ahead of July expiration. Shares in the owner of QVC and Starz Entertainment are currently up 0.10% to stand at $15.80 as of 12:15pm in New York. The options player sold a sizable 15,000-lot July $15 strike straddle, taking in $1.40 per contract on the sale of the in-the-money calls, and pocketing $0.60 each on the sale of the put options. In conjunction with the short straddle, the trader purchased some 417,000 shares of the underlying at $15.80 each. The long stock position may be a way for the investor to guard against continued upward movement in the LINTA’s shares through expiration. Gross premium of $2.00 per contract, or $3 million, represents the maximum gain on the short straddle. The trader keeps the full premium if shares in Liberty drop to $15.00 and both the calls and the puts expire worthless at expiration in July. The investor will lose $0.80 per share on the long stock position, assuming he holds onto all legs of the trade, if the best-case scenario on the options leg of the transaction (shares trading at $15.00 each) is realized at expiration. The erosion of time value on the short options will work in his favor, as will declines in options implied volatility on LINTA.
MWW - Monster Worldwide, Inc. – Options traders employed bullish strategies on Monster Worldwide this morning with shares in the name rising as much as 1.7% to $15.55 as of 10:40am in New York. Call options on the global online resource that connects job seekers with hirers are in high demand thus…
Bulls Bulk Up on US Oil Fund Call Options
by Option Review - January 28th, 2011 4:28 pm
Today’s tickers: USO, MWW, AMCC & CLDX
USO - United States Oil Fund, LP – Crude oil rose Friday with traders finding more than a few excuses to support chasing the United States Oil Fund higher by as much as 4.75% to an intraday high of $37.64. The exchange traded security is meant to broadly track the price of oil and had fallen sharply at the outset of the week after OPEC’s leading producer, Saudi Arabia hinted strongly that it would accommodate rising demand with an increase in supply. Since then investors drove crude oil prices down almost $7 per barrel towards $85 leading some to possibly think that the decline might leave its price bank in the middle of a price range that Saudi and other cartel members would be content with. Friday’s third-quarter GDP report was restrained by inventories, without which the economy might have grown at a breakneck 7.1% pace for the fastest since 1984. Rising oil prices were also inspired by further unrest in the Middle East with headlines over the house arrest of an Egyptian government opponent and a clampdown on domestic Internet usage encouraging call option buying on the USO. Bullish players are binging on call options across several expiries today to support their view that USO shares will continue to rally. In options expiring next week, a whopping 20,500 calls changed hands at the February $38 strike on open interest of just 2,424 contracts. More than 15,150 of the calls were purchased for an average premium of $0.22 apiece. Similar buying patterns were seen in March contract calls. Oil-optimists even looked up to the April $44 strike to take ownership of some 2,100 calls for an average premium of $0.18 a-pop. More than 170,000 options have traded on the USO thus far today and the massive upswing in demand for the contracts helped lift the fund’s overall reading of options implied volatility 12.7% to 29.88% by 12:20pm in New York. Trading in USO calls is currently outpacing that of puts by roughly 5.3 contracts to 1.…
H&R Block Put Options in Play as Shares Drop
by Option Review - October 14th, 2010 5:59 pm
Today’s tickers: HRB, XRT, GRMN, HAL, F, MWW & BK
HRB - H&R Block, Inc. – Investors are bulking up on H&R Block put options this afternoon following reports the provider of tax services acquired tax-preparation firm 2SS Holdings for $287 million in cash. HRB’s shares dropped like a rock today, falling as much as 10.445% during the session to hit an intraday low of $12.26. Options traders basically ignored the existence of H&R Block calls and instead focused their efforts on buying up bearish put contracts across several expiries. More than 7.95 put options changed hands on HRB for each single call option in play on the stock as of 3:15 p.m. in New York trading. The sharp increase in demand for put options and the rapid descent in the price of the underlying shares fueled a 33.3% rise in the overall reading of options implied volatility on the stock to 70.39% late in the trading day. Pessimistic players picked up 5,600 now in-the-money puts at the October $12.5 strike for an average premium of $0.24 each. These contracts expire tomorrow, but investors may make money if HRB’s shares trade below the average breakeven price of $12.26 ahead of expiration. Put volume is most significant in the November contract. It looks like investors picked up 9,300 puts at the November $10 strike at a premium of $0.38 each, coveted another 10,300 contracts at the November $11 strike for premium of $0.57 apiece, and purchased approximately 2,500 puts at the November $12 strike for a premium of $0.81 a-pop. Volume in put options generated at each of the strikes described outweighs previously existing open interest at each one many times over. Put players may be scrambling to secure downside protection on existing positions in the underlying shares, or could be enacting outright bearish bets on the stock. HRB’s shares are down 9.50% at $12.39 with 35 minutes remaining in the trading session.…
Investor Optimism Apparent in Yahoo! Options Action
by Option Review - July 8th, 2010 5:59 pm
Today’s tickers: YHOO, PG, MWW, PWER, IYR, HRB, ANF, CSC & EWH
YHOO – Yahoo!, Inc. – The online media company made an appearance on our ‘most active by options volume’ market scanner after one investor initiated a long-term bullish stance on the stock. Yahoo’s shares increased 1.10% to stand at $14.56 by 3:05 pm (ET). Optimism on the operator of one of the most heavily trafficked Internet destinations was perhaps inspired by words from the firm’s CFO, Tim Morse, who intends to end the company’s pattern of poor M&A decisions. Morse addressed Yahoo’s history of overpaying for acquisitions and later selling those assets at a disadvantageous price by announcing plans to improve the company’s return on invested capital to 18% to 24% in 2013 from approximately 5% in 2009. One optimistic options trader opted to purchase a plain-vanilla debit call spread on Yahoo! in order to position for share price appreciation through expiration in January 2011. The investor picked up 5,000 in-the-money calls at the January 2011 $14 strike for a premium of $1.92 apiece, and sold the same number of calls at the higher January 2011 $17.5 strike for a premium of $0.58 each. Net premium paid to establish the spread amounts to $1.34 per contract. Thus, the bullish trader makes money if Yahoo’s shares rally 5.35% to trade above the effective breakeven point on the spread at $15.34 by expiration day in January 2011. The investor exits with maximum potential profits of $2.16 per contract if the online media company’s shares surge 20.2% over the current price of $14.56 to trade above $17.50 by expiration.
PG – The Proctor & Gamble Co. – Investor demand for call options on the global provider of branded packaged consumer goods surged during afternoon trading with options participants exchanging more than 4.4 calls on the stock to each single put option in play thus far in the session. PG’s shares rallied 1.7% to $61.85 by 3:30 pm (ET). It looks like bullish players expecting Proctor & Gamble’s shares to trade at a new 52-week high by August expiration purchased at least 17,900 calls options at the August $65 strike for an average premium of $0.21 per contract. Call buyers are poised to profit should shares of the underlying stock jump 5.4%, surpass the stock’s current 52-week high of $64.10, and trade above the average breakeven price of $65.21 by August expiration.…
Bears Bombard Blackberry-Maker, Research in Motion
by Option Review - March 1st, 2010 5:00 pm
Today’s tickers: RIMM, CAT, MGM, F, SLM, FRX, FXI, MWW & AIG
RIMM – Research in Motion Limited – Blackberry maker, Research in Motion, attracted bearish options strategists even though the firm’s target share price was upped to $100.00 this morning from $95.00 at Canaccord Adams. RIMM opened the session higher, but slipped slightly in afternoon trading by 0.05% to $70.85. One bearish tactic employed today was the use of a plain-vanilla put spread in the March contract. The trader responsible for the transaction purchased 4,400 puts at the March $65 strike for a premium of $0.54 apiece and sold the same number of puts at the lower March $60 strike for $0.20 each. The net cost of the spread amounts to $0.34 per contract. Maximum potential profits of $4.66 per contract are available to the investor if RIMM’s share price slumps 15.30% beneath the current value to $60.00 by expiration. We note that the mobile device manufacturer’s shares last traded below $60.00 on December 4, 2009. The bearish risk reversal is another pessimistic tactic utilized today. One trader sold 5,000 calls at the April $75 strike for a premium of $2.66 each in order to purchase 5,000 puts at the lower April $70 strike for $3.80 apiece. The net cost of the reversal play amounts to $1.14 per contract. The investor stands ready to accrue profits to the downside if shares of the underlying stock trade beneath the effective breakeven point at $68.86 by expiration in April.
CAT – Caterpillar, Inc. – February marked the seventh consecutive month of manufacturing expansion in the United States; this fact, coupled with today’s jump in equities’ prices, inspired bullish options trading on machine-maker, Caterpillar. CAT’s shares rallied 1.50% during the session to $57.92 after its earnings forecast through the year 2012 were increased by analysts at Morgan Stanley. MS maintains an ‘overweight’ rating on CAT and a $70 share price target, at present. Bullish options activity appeared on the put side of the field where one investor established a credit spread. The trader sold roughly 16,300 puts at the April $55 strike for a premium of $1.38 apiece, and purchased the same number of puts at the lower April $50 strike for $0.47 each. The investor pockets a net credit of $0.91 per contract, and keeps the full amount as long as Caterpillar’s share price remains above $55.00 through expiration day in…
Option traders see Harley dropping a gear
by Option Review - April 13th, 2009 4:25 pm
Today’s tickers: HOG, GE, GM, MWW, MAR, YHOO, ALL & C
HOG Harley-Davidson, Inc. – The motorcycle company’s shares have dipped by more than 2% to $17.64 today and have motivated investors to shop for downside protection on the stock. HOG appeared on our ‘most active by options volume’ market scanner after one trader purchased 11,800 puts at the May 15 strike price for a premium of 88 cents per contract. This lot of purchased-puts represents nearly twice the amount of existing open interest at that strike. Should shares fall below the breakeven point at $14.12 by expiration next month the trader will begin to amass profits as shares move lower. From today’s current price, shares would need to fall by another 20% in order to breach the breakeven point described.
GE General Electric – Shares of the Connecticut-based company have rallied by more than 8% to $12.25. Option investors were observed making a mixture of bearish and bullish moves on GE. At the April 12 strike price, 20,000 calls were sold for a premium of 63 cents apiece while the April 12 puts were purchased 24,000 times for an average price of 57 cents per contract. Perhaps investors are banking gains by selling in-the-money calls ahead of expiration on Friday, but also picking up downside protection in case shares reverse direction in the next 4 days. The May 10 strike price witnessed the sale of nearly 16,000 puts for 46 cents and indicates that some traders do not see shares dipping below the breakeven point at $9.54 by next month’s expiration. Finally, the June 13 strike price saw the purchase of 4,600 calls for a premium of 1.06 apiece as some investors are hopeful that shares will breach $14.06 in June. Bullish traders even looked to the June 20 strike price where 2,600 calls were picked up for about 8 cents each. GE’s shares have not traded above $14.06 since January 14th, and have not been above $20.00 since November 4, 2008, but option traders appear to be chomping at the bit – hungry for a meatier GE share price.
GM General Motors, Corp. – Shares are off by more than 16% to $1.70 amid news that the U.S. Treasury has directed the failing automaker to prepare for a bankruptcy filing by June 1, 2009. Option implied volatility has exploded to 324% from Thursday’s reading of 197% as…
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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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