This is a little old, but maybe still useful:
Reuters, 09/1/2000 13:18
U.S. Options-Transkaryotic vols pop, volume up
CHICAGO, Sept. 1 (Reuters) - Implied volatility nearly doubled and volume rose on Friday in pre-holiday trading in options on biopharmaceutical company Transkaryotic Therapies Inc. (NASDAQ:TKTX) as the stock lost ground.
Implied vols for the near-the-money options popped upward to around 265 percent, nearly twice Thursday's 135 percent closing level. The stock's one-month historical volatility stood at roughly 81 percent.
"It's (implied volatility) probably up almost 100 (vol points) from yesterday," said a designated primary market maker with TradeNet at the Chicago Board Options Exchange. "We've seen some buying of premium in September."
He said traders the last couple of days have bought September 45 and 50 calls, but he also saw buyers of puts at lower strikes as well.
The DPM said the increased options activity suggested the market expects a "significant" move in the stock in either direction as it weighs the potential for a resolution soon in the patent infringement trial between Amgen Inc. (NASDAQ:AMGN) and Transkaryotic over Amgen's Epogen anemia drug.
The trial recessed on July 31 and is expected to resume on Sept. 5 at the earliest.
Amgen sued TKT in 1997 seeking to defend its patents covering the making and selling of Epogen, a drug that uses erythropoietin to boost red blood cells and combat anemia.
Options volume also increased by late Friday morning to its highest level in at least one trading month, with some 935 calls and 170 puts already traded on the CBOE and American Stock Exchange combined.
That compared to an average daily turnover during the last month of about 190 contract options contracts.
Stock of Massachusetts-based Transkaryotic had risen since early August, when it hovered in the upper-$20 area.
At 11:40 a.m. CDT (1640 GMT) on Friday, the stock was down 4 at 39-3/8 on Nasdaq market volume of 200,500 shares.
chicago.derivatives.newsroom@reuters.com))
Copyright 2000, Reuters News Service |
