Unusual Options Activity Insight: Norwegian Cruise Line - Benzinga

cicingwos.blogspot.com

Shares of Norwegian Cruise Line (NYSE: NCLH) saw some unusual options activity on Friday. Following the unusual option alert, the stock price moved down to $13.58.

• Sentiment: BEARISH
• Option Type: SWEEP
• Trade Type: CALL
• Expiration Date: 2020-08-07
• Strike Price: $14.50
• Volume: 1388
• Open Interest: 626

3 Indications of Unusual Option Activity

One way option activity can be considered unusual is when volume is exceptionally high. The volume of options activity refers to the number of shares contracts traded for a day. Unsettled contracts that have been traded, but not yet closed, are called open interest. These contracts are not closed because a buyer has not purchased a contract, or a seller has not sold it.

A contract with an expiration date in the distant future is another tell of unusual activity. Generally, additional time until a contract expires increases the potential for it to reach its strike price and grow its time value. Time value is important in this context because it represents the difference between the strike price and the value of the underlying asset.

“Out of the money” contracts are unusual because they are purchased with a strike price far from the underlying asset price. “Out of the money” occurs when the underlying price is under the strike price on a call option, or above the strike price on a put option. Buyers and sellers try to take advantage of a large profit margin in these instances because they are expecting the value of the underlying asset to change dramatically in the future.

Bullish and Bearish Sentiments

• Options are “bullish” when a call is purchased at/near ask price or a put is sold at/near bid price
• Options are “bearish” when a call is sold at/near bid price or a put is bought at/near ask price

Although the activity is suggestive of these strategies, these observations are made without knowing the investor’s true intentions when purchasing these options contracts. An observer cannot be sure if the bettor is playing the contract outright or if they’re hedging a large underlying position in a common stock. For the latter case, the exposure a large investor has on their short position in common stock may be more meaningful than bullish option activity.

Trading Options With These Strategies

Unusual options activity is an advantageous strategy that may greatly reward an investor if they are highly skilled, but for the less experienced trader, it should remain as another tool to make an educated investment decision while taking other observations into account.

For more information to understand options alerts, visit https://pro.benzinga.help/en/articles/1769505-how-do-i-understand-options-alerts

© 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

"activity" - Google News
July 31, 2020 at 10:42PM
https://ift.tt/2Ds5pgz

Unusual Options Activity Insight: Norwegian Cruise Line - Benzinga
"activity" - Google News
https://ift.tt/3ddCXMh
https://ift.tt/2WkO13c

Bagikan Berita Ini