The Jun ’14 $39 strike calls traded more than 7,000 times near the start of the session against open interest of 1,185 contracts, and it looks like most of the volume was likely purchased at a premium of $1.40 each. Call buyers stand ready to profit at June expiration should shares in HIG rally another 14% over the current price of $35.56 to exceed the breakeven point at $40.40. Shares in HIG last traded above $40.40 back in September of 2008.
COF – Capital One Financial Corp. – U.S. stocks are moving higher on Friday, with the S&P 500 Index hitting new all-time highs on the heels of data that showed GDP rose at a faster than estimated 4.1% annualized rate in the third quarter. Capital One shares is among the gainers, rising 0.85% during morning trading to $74.27, the highest level since July of 2007.
Activity in Mar ’14 expiry calls options on COF during the first 20 minutes of the session seems to indicate one options player may be positioning for the price of the underlying to extend gains during the first few months of the New Year. The most traded contracts on Capital One by volume this morning are the Mar ’14 $75 strike calls, with more than 4,000 lots in play versus open interest of 1,720 contracts.…
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