Today’s tickers: JAH, AMTD & YHOO
JAH – Jarden Corp. – Shares in consumer products company, Jarden Corp., are off their highest level of the session, up 2.75% at $62.96 just before midday in New York. The stock had rallied nearly 6.0% this morning to a new all-time high of $64.87 after the company announced an increase in its authorized share repurchase program to $500 million. Options traders positioning for shares in Jarden to extend gains snapped up calls across several expiries this morning. Near-term bullish bets are accumulating at the Mar. $65 strike price, where upwards of 2,300 contracts changed hands against open interest of 1,161 lots. Traders appear to have purchased most of these contracts at an average premium of $0.62 apiece, and may profit at expiration in two weeks should Jarden’s shares rise 4% over the current price of $62.96 to top the average breakeven point at $65.62. Traders looked out the April $70 strike call options expiring in April and July as well; snapping up around 1,200 of the April $70 strike calls for an average premium of $0.34 each, and picking up 410 lots at the July $70 strike at a premium of $1.45 per contract. Options players long the $70 calls expiring in April and July stand ready to profit should JAH shares surge 11.7% and 13.5% to top average breakeven points at $70.34 and $71.45, respectively, by expiration.
AMTD – TD Ameritrade Holding Corp. – The online broker popped up on our ‘most active by options volume’ market scanner early in the trading session on Thursday after a large block of call options changed hands in the August expiry. Shares in TD Ameritrade are down 0.20% at $19.08 as of 12:55 p.m. ET. Volume in the Aug. $23 strike calls is greater than 41,000 contracts this afternoon, versus open interest of just 483 contracts. The calls appear to have been purchased this morning at a premium of $0.25 each, a sizable bullish bet that shares in Ameritrade may soar more than 20% by August expiration. The transaction makes money at expiration if shares in AMTD settle above the effective breakeven price of $23.25.
YHOO – Yahoo! Inc. – Weekly call options on Yahoo are looking for shares in the name to extend gains during the next six trading sessions. The stock is up 1.65% at a new 52-week high of $21.51 this afternoon, having rallied more than 7.0% year-to-date and nearly 40% since the company hired President and CEO, Marissa Mayer, back in July of 2012. Interest in the Mar. 08 ’13 $22 strike calls jumped today, with more than 3,200 contracts changing hands against zero open positions. Time and sales data suggests most of the volume was purchased in the early going for an average premium of $0.11 per contract. Call buyers may profit at expiration next week should YHOO shares rally another 2.8% to surpass the average breakeven price of $22.11, the highest level since July 2008.
Caitlin Duffy
Equity Options Analyst
