Schaeffer's Daily Option Blog
By Andrea Kramer - 3/31/2014 9:40 AM
Apple Inc. (AAPL) Bearish Betting Hits Fever Pitch
Stocks quoted in this article: AAPL
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) -- which kicks off its second courtroom showdown with Samsung
Electronics today -- has been popular among put buyers recently. In fact, on the International Securities
Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), the
equity's 10-day put/call volume ratio sits at an annual high of 0.78. In other words, options traders have
purchased AAPL puts over calls at a much faster-than-usual clip during the past couple of weeks.
Furthermore, the equity's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) is on the rise, and now stands
at 0.81 -- just 4 percentage points from a 52-week peak. In simpler terms, near-term options players have
rarely been more put-skewed during the past year.
Echoing that, AAPL saw roughly 164,000 puts change hands on Friday, representing a 14% mark-up to
its average daily volume. The May 530 put was the most active option not expiring at the closing bell, with
almost 7,850 contracts exchanged. Sixty-nine percent of the puts traded on the ask side, suggesting they
were bought, and open interest rose by more than 6,350 contracts over the weekend -- the most of any strike.
More at: schaeffersresearch.com
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