It’s time to review several stocks that had unusual options activity over the last week. Although traders can never be sure why these trades take place (and who’s making them), I believe it’s important to be aware of notable options activity as an indicator for directional bias.
Here’s a weekly recap of 10 stocks that had unusual options activity and what, if any, significance these trades may have.
Unusual Options Activity: 10 Stocks With Notable Trades
Monday
Red Hat (RHT) – 2,000 July $80 calls were bought for $2.85-$3.10. Earnings are due out on June 18th (shares have moved higher on 3 out of the last 4 reports).
Tuesday
Whole Foods Market (WFM) – 3,500+ June 19 $40 calls were purchased for $0.44-$0.69. Implied volatility rose 6% to 21.41. WFM’s stock is trading back at November levels, down $17 from the Feb highs. On June 11th, Whole Foods announced a new sister chain called “365”, which offer lower priced organic food targeted toward millennials.
Wednesday
LendingClub (LC)- 3,200 Jan 2016 $12 puts were bought for $0.45. Shares have been trading in a downtrend since going public in December.
Progenics Pharmaceuticals (PGNX) – 1,100 July $7 calls were purchased for $0.35-$0.55. Call activity was 9x the average daily volume. On May 26th, BTIG Research initiated the stock with a buy rating and a $12 price target.
Voya Financial (VOYA) – A rollout from 3,960 June $45 calls ($2.15 credit) into 5,000 July $48 calls ($0.80 debit). The BOYA June $45 calls were bought for $1.05 on May 11th.
Thursday
BlackBerry (BBRY) – A rollout from 7,000 June 19 $11 puts ($1.74 credit) into 10,000 July 17 $10 puts ($1.06 debit). There were similar BBRY put rollouts the before too. Blackberry’s earnings are due out on June 23rd.
Rambus (RMBS) – A rollout from 2,800+ June $16 calls ($0.06-$0.07 credit) into 2,800+ July $16 calls ($0.36 debit). RMBS is poised to breakout above the $15.50 resistance level. On June 10th, Citigroup upped their price target to $17.50 from $15.
Friday
Duke Energy (DUK) – There was bullish options in DUK on June 12th. There was sizable buying in the July $75 calls (6,900 traded), July $77.50 calls (6,800+ traded) and selling in the July $72.50 puts (5,300+ traded). The stock is down 17%+ since January on rising interest rate concerns (dividend yield is now 4.38%).
Enterprise Products Partners (EPD) – 4,000+ July $32.50 calls were purchased for $0.30-$0.35. Call activity was 4x the average daily volume. Last week, they acquired a Texan pipeline unit for $2.15B from Pioneer Natural Resources. On June 2nd, Oppenheimer reiterated their outperform rating and a $39 price target.
Hilton Worldwide (HLT) – 5,000+ July $30 calls were bought for $0.30-$0.40. Back in April, 23,000+ Jan 2016 $35 calls were purchased and 5,000 Oct $29 calls were purchased on May 21st. I’d look for more hotel deals to be made (they sold the Waldorf Astoria New York for $1.95B this year), possibly a big M&A deal involving Hilton. HLT has been on my radar for a while.
Thanks for reading and have a great week!
Twitter: @MitchellKWarren
No position in any of the securities mentioned at the time of publication. Any opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author, and do not in any way represent the views or opinions of any other person or entity.
