Trading Tips Blog

Bet on decline by year-end. The December 20th $6.00 put options on NovaGold Resources (NG) saw a 23-fold surge in trading, going from 158 open contracts to over 3,700. With shares of the gold mining operation at $6.30, it’s a bet that shares will decline by at least 5 percent between now and the end of the year. Shares of the company are up 65 percent year-to-date thanks to a strong rally in gold, so such a move is easily possible. At only ...
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CEO, director add to insider buys this year. CEO Amit Kumar and director Lewis Titterton have been buyers at Anixa Biosciences (ANIX). The CEO bought 10,000 shares, increasing his holdings in the company by 6 percent, paying over $41,000. The director bought 15,000 shares, increasing his holdings by 2 percent, paying over $61,000. Insiders, including other directors at the firm, have been steady buyers at the company in the past year, with no insider sales in the past year. Insiders have bought ...
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Bet on oil giant rallying more through Friday. Friday’s $41 call options on British Petroleum (BP) saw heavy trading as the oil market shot higher. With just three trading days until expiration, over 128,992 contracts of the option traded at an average price of $0.14. With an open interest of 3,500 contracts, this is a near-37-fold increase in volume on the trade. Shares of BP surged to $39 in trading, so the trade is a bet shares can move another $2, or ...
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Insiders make first buy in 14 months. Director William Albrecht recently added to his stake at Halliburton (HAL), with an 8,000 share buy. The purchase doubled his total stake to 16,000 shares, and cost over $154,000 to make the buy. This is the first insider buy at the company in 14 months, following a series of sales by insiders at prices anywhere from 28 to 49 percent higher than current prices. Halliburton provides various products and services to the oil and natural ...
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Bet on railroad firm getting back to 52-week high. The February 2020 $77.50 call options on CSX Corp. (CSX) saw 2,000 contracts trade, an 18-fold increase over the prior open interest of 114. With shares of the company around $72.21, the option will trade in-the-money if shares rise at least 7.3 percent between now and February. With a price of $2.53 per contract on average, the call buyer will need to see shares trade closer to $80 to make a profit come ...
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October put buying suggests shares will remain weak. The October 18th $12 put options on New York Community Bancorp (NYCB) saw an unusual amount of trading volume with over 8,700 contracts trade against a prior open interest of 268, a 32-fold rise in volume. With shares around $13.30, the $12 put option will close in-the-money if shares fall more than 10 percent in the next few weeks, making a sizeable percentage decline. New York Community Bancorp is a regional bank headquartered in New ...
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CEO makes six-figure buy. Thomas Vetter, president and CEO at Cars.com (CARS), picked up 11,000 shares recently, increasing his total share stake to just under 270,000 shares, making for a 4.5 percent increase in his total holdings at the company. At a price of around $9.60 per share, the buy came out to just over $105,000, a sizeable amount considering the company’s $650 million market cap. Cars.com operates a digital marketplace bringing together buyers and sellers of cars. The company has over 5 ...
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Bet on rally in Brazilian ore play in next month. The October 4th $12.50 call options in Vale (VALE) saw heavy trading recently. With shares around $11.80, the option is a bet on shares moving another 6 percent higher in the next 22 trading days before expiration. Over 3,750 contracts on this option traded against a prior open position of 100, making for a 37-fold surge in volume on the trade. With a cost of just $0.16, or $16 per contract, it’s an ...
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