Too Many Options: $ABX, $BSX, $GM, $HAL, $GRPN, $P, $VIX

by Dan December 12, 2013 4:14 pm • Commentary

Here is a list of some large option block trades that caught our attention today:

1. VIX – more upside call buying today with one trader buying 40k Apr 22 calls for 1.28, break-even is above the highs of all of 2013.  There was also a buyer of 20k of the Jan 20/30 Call Spread paying .50 to open.

2. COP & MRO – within 20 mins of each other there was some upside call buying in the 2 oil names in Jan, both outright and both 10,000 contracts and low premiums.  First a trader bought 10k Mro Jan 39 calls for .22, and then COP bought 10k Jan 75 calls for .19, assuming same buyer, both were opening.

3. ABX – continues to see upside call buying for the third day in a row.  Today a trader sold 2k Feb 16 puts at 1.02 and used the proceeds to buy 6k of the Feb 19/22 call spread for .33, so premium neutral on the full package.  On Feb expiration if the stock is btwn 16 and 19 there is no loss or gain, if the stock is btwn 19 and 22 the trader can make up to 3 with the best case scenario the stock is above 22 and makes full three with the worst case the stock is 16 or below and the trader is put 200k shares of stock at 16.

3. RHT – company announced a partnership with DELL today briefly sending the shares up 1.5% before settling back a bit.  Up towards the highs of the day a trader bought 5k of the Dec 48/52.50 call spread to open paying 1.05.  The company reports fiscal Q3 earnings on Dec 19th after the close and the options market is implying about a 7% one day move vs the 4 qtr avg of only 4.5%.

5. GRPN – the stock has had a nice bounce the last 2 weeks, up more than 20%from the Dec 2nd low, a trader today closed a bullish position in Dec 9 calls selling 9k at 1.35, and it looks like they rolled up some Jan calls by selling 17k Jan 10 calls at .99 to close and bought 17k Jan 12 calls for .27 to open.

6. P – On Tuesday a trader bought 10k Pandora Dec 25 Puts for .15 when the stock was 29.20.  Just after noon the trader sold to close 5k at .35 when the stock was 26.74 and then in the afternoon as the stock rallied he sold the balance of 5k at .25, giving the trader an avg profit of .15 on 10k contracts netting a profit of $150,000 in 2 trading days.

7. BBRY – not a name that we have discussed much of late with the stock languishing at 10 year lows, but today a trader bought to close 13,000 Jan 2015 10 calls for .43 to close, there is 24k open interest in the strike.

8. GM – with the Govt officially out of its stake in the automaker, and the company just announced a new female CEO, the stock has apparently stalled out a bit, with $40 potentially being a magnet for near term consolidation.  A trader closed a bullish bet by selling the Jan 38/41 1×2 call spread, 2500 by 5,000x.

9. IWC – didn’t even know this one existed, but an etf on the Russell Microcap index.  A trader bought 10k Jan 73 calls to open for .525

10. BSX – Looked like a roll up and out in Dec and Feb calls.  Trader sold 17,500 Dec 12 calls at .04 to close, while 54,000 of the Feb 13 calls appear to be bought in lots btwn .20 and .26 to open

11. HAL – right on the bell a trader bought the Apr 60/65 call spread 35,000x paying .35 top open