Options Report

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Open Interest Updates From The Previous Trading Days Action

1. Athersys (ATHX)- July $3 call open interest went from 5,287 to 8,199 contracts (more buying on Friday).
2. Bank of New York Mellon (BK)- Mar 20 $40 call open interest went from 4,068 to 13,063 contracts (more buying).
3. Owens Corning (OC)- May $41 call open interest went from 2,778 to 4,722 contracts (more buying).

New Options Trades

1. Arcos Dorados (ARCO)- More than 5,000 Mar $5 puts were bought on March 9th for $0.50-$0.55 each. On average, only 55 puts trade per day and this activity was 2x the total put open interest at the time. Q4 earnings are due out on March 17th.
2. Bank of New York Mellon (BK)- Nearly 10,000 more Mar 20 $40 calls traded on March 9th for $0.44-$0.64 each, marking the third day of massive buying. Call activity was nearly 6x the average daily volume.
3. Celgene (CELG)- 2,587 Mar 20 $124 calls were purchased for $0.50 and 2,774 Mar 27 weekly $127 calls were purchased for $0.70 each on March 9th (over 9,000+ combined traded; vast majority bought).
4. Cliffs Natural Resources (CLF)- 20,000+ June $8 calls were purchased for $0.29-$0.30 each on March 9th. Call activity was 3x the average daily volume.
5. Continental Resources (CLR)- Roughly 3,400 Apr $40 puts were bought for $1.55-$1.65 each, against open interest of 1,451 contracts on March 9th.
6. Caesars Entertainment (CZR)- 5,000 Mar 27 weekly $10 calls were purchased for $0.40-$0.50 each, against open interest of 1 contract on March 9th. Call activity was over 3x the average daily volume and implied volatility rose 16% to 79.89.
7. Delta Air Lines (DAL)- Someone closed out 30,000 Mar 20 $49 calls ($0.15 credit) into 20,000 Apr 17 $49 calls ($0.78 debit) on March 9th. Volume was above the open interest in the Apr 17 $49 calls.
8. Guess? (GES)- 4,000 June $17 puts were purchased for $1.45-$1.50 each on March 9th. Typically trades 832 puts per day. Q4 earnings are due out March 18th.
9. Louisana-Pacific (LPX)- 2nd day of sizable buying in the May $16 puts since February 13th, this time 2,145 for $0.90 each as part of a rollout from the Mar $16 puts ($0.25 credit) on March 9th.
10. Macy’s (M)- The Apr $60/$62.50/$65 bull call spread risk reversal was put on 4,500 times for a $0.20 debit on March 9th.
11. Theravance (THRX)- Roughly 1,500 Mar $20 calls were purchased for $1.10 each, against open interest of 1,063 contracts on March 9th. Call activity was 14x the average daily volume and implied volatility rose 15.2% to 64.66.
12. SunTrust Banks (STI)- 2,000 July $45 calls were bought for $0.68 each, against open interest of 317 contracts on March 9th. Call activity was nearly 3x the average daily volume.
13. Constellation Brands (STZ)- Unusual buying in the Mar $115 and $120 calls on March 9th (started at $0.55-$0.60 on the $115’s). Volume was above the open interest in both options. Call activity was 7x the average daily volume and implied volatility increased 4.5% to 23.82.
14. Tyco International (TYC)- More than 11,000 Apr $45 calls traded on March 9th with the majority being purchased for $0.17-$0.30 each. Implied volatility jumped 14.6% to 20.71.
15. WPX Energy (WPX)- Nearly 4,000 Apr $10 calls were purchased for $1.75-$2.05 each, against open interest of 4,585 contracts on March 9th. All but 5 of that previous open interest was initiated on March 6th (big buying then as well).
16. Wal-Mart Stores (WMT)- On March 9th, someone rolled out 20,000 Mar 20 $85 calls ($0.12 credit) into 12,000+ Apr 17 $85 calls ($0.56 debit). Volume was above the open interest in the Apr 17 $85 calls.

Notable List Of Equities/ETFs I’m Tracking With Unusual Options Activity

1. ACHILLION PHARMACEUTICALS (ACHN)- The Sep/Jan 2016 $15 call calendar was put on 7,500 times for a $1.20 debit on March 6th. He/she sees the stock approaching the $15 level by the fall, but not exceeding that price until after September options expiration (lowers the cost of the trade by selling Sep $15 calls).
2. Applied Materials (AMAT)- Massive open interest in the Apr 17 (monthly expiration) $23-$27 calls due to call purchases and bull call spreads in recent months. A buyer of 13,300 Apr 17 $25 calls for $0.75 each on February 3rd sent open interest above the 100,000 mark.
3. Air Products & Chemicals (APD)- A rollout from 2,460 June $145 calls ($13.70 credit) into 2,460 Sep $155 calls ($9.50 debit) on February 25th. Trader took profits on the June calls, but still sees upside north of $165 by September options expiration.
4. Burlington Stores (BURL)- 2,500 Mar $55 calls were purchased for $3.20 each on March 6th. There remains 14,000+ in the Mar $50 calls from buying in the previous few months (sitting on a profit). Q4 earnings are due out on March 18th.
5. Boardwalk Pipeline Partners (BWP)- A rollout from 125,000 Mar $17 calls ($0.65 credit) into 45,000 Sep $18 calls ($1.70 debit) on February 19th and a rollout from 15,000 Jan 2015 $16 calls ($0.75 credit) into 15,000 June $16 calls ($1.80 debit) on December 1st, 2014. Both traders see a high $10’s/low $20’s stock price later this year.
6. Diamond Offshore Drilling (DO)- A rollout from 6,200 Mar $30 puts ($1.30 credit) into 6,200 Apr $25/$30 bear put spreads ($1.78 debit) on March 4th. The trader wants to extend his/her bearish position by an additional months; sees potential downside risk to $25 by April options expiration (breakeven of $28.22).
7. Epizyme (EPZM)- The Mar $17.50/$22.50 bear put spread was put on 5,000 times for a $1.60 debit on March 6th. Prior to this trade total option open interest was 547 contracts. Q4 earnings are due out on March 12th and the stock has 23.59% short interest.
8. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX)- Jan 2016 $20 put open interest rose to 26,172 from 9,775 contracts during March 3rd-6th (started paying $2.79 during this streak).
9. Kulicke and Soffa Industries (KLIC)- Someone sold their 620 Apr $13 calls ($3.40 credit) and purchased 620 Apr $15 calls for $1.60 each. The Apr $16 calls also had some buyers in late January/early February for $0.75 each. Total call open interest is about 3.5x the size of total put open interest.
10. Macerich (MAC)- Large Mar $90 call buying on several days in February (open interest 16K+). On March 6th, someone bought the Apr $95/$105 bull call spread 1,700 times for a $1.75 debit. The trader sees upside to $105 by April options expiration (Macerich is a M&A target).
11. Marvell Technology Group (MRVL)- Apr 17 $17 call open interest increased by 10,000+ contracts from buying on March 4th and 5th for $0.30-$0.42 each (stood at 15,405 contracts on March 6th).
12. Nike (NKE)- Nearly 5,000 Mar 13 weekly $98 calls were purchased for $0.83 each on March 4th. Nike doesn’t report earnings until March 19th, but February retails sales and earnings from Hibbett Sports (HIBB) are due out prior to Mar 13 weekly options expiration.
13. Olin (OLN)- On February 9th, 12,000+ May $30 calls were bought for $0.45-$0.60 each. On average, just 644 calls trade per day. Despite having more than a triple in paper gains, he/she remains content with holding the position.
14. PMC-Sierra (PMCS)- On February 12th, there was a roll from 10,000 Feb $7 calls ($2.15 credit) and Feb $8 calls ($1.15-$1.20 credit) into 24,000 Jan 2016 $10 calls ($0.90-$1.00 debit). He/she took some profits near February options expiration, but continues to see this year beyond $11.
15. Qorvo (QRVO)- The May $70/$80 bull call spread was put on 7,000 times for a $2.15 debit on February 20th. On March 3rd, 2,000 May $80 calls were purchased for $1.90 each (took open interest up to 9,214 from 7,229 contracts the next day).
16. Regions Financial (RF)- 30,000+ Mar $10 calls and 11,000+ Apr $10 calls remain in open interest. Both have had buyers step up in size starting in late February, possibly on the increased chance of a Fed Funds rate hike.
17. Rosetta Resources (ROSE)- A rollout from 5,000 Mar $22.50 puts ($4.40 credit) into 10,000 Mar $17.50 puts ($0.85 debit) on March 6th. The trader is taking profits on the Mar $22.50 puts (initially purchased for $1.80-$2.25 each), but still sees more downside to come in the near-term.
18. RSP Permian (RSPP)- The June $25/$30/$35 bull call spread risk reversal was put on 2,000 times for a $0.30 credit on March 5th. Q4 earnings are due out on March 17th.
19. Salix Pharmaceuticals (SLXP)- Since February 23rd, open interest rose from 2,868 in the Apr $160 calls to 59,574 contracts as of March 6th. A move above $160 would be above Valeant Pharmaceutical’s offer of $10B for the company.
20. Westlake Chemical (WLK)- Big buying on February 19th, February 23rd, and March 5th took open interest in the Mar $70 calls from 17 to 9,493 contracts (started paying $1.10 each). This activity accounts for nearly half of all call open interest in Westlake Chemical.
21. WPX Energy (WPX)- Nearly 4,500 Apr $10 calls were bought for $1.46-$1.70 each on March 6th. Call activity was 9x the average daily volume. This action is by far the largest OI of any WPX Energy option.
22. Zogenix (ZGNX)- The Oct $2/$4 bull call spread was put on 20,000 times for a $0.40-$0.45 debit on March 6th. On average, only 1,098 calls trade per day. Q4 earnings are due out on March 10th.

APD BURL DAL M MAC NKE Options Reports PMCS STI WMT