Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) has found itself all over the news this week. Yesterday, an analyst at J.P. Morgan Securities predicted build for the iPhone X might be down as much as 50% this quarter. Today, the tech titan noted that medical records could be featured on the Apple Watch, and new battery features were being implemented after its much-publicized slowdown controversy. Given the flurry of news, we decided check in on the FAANG stock's options activity.
At last check, AAPL stock was down 1.5% to trade at $174.35, on track for its worst single-day session of the new year. However, the equity has still managed to tack on 45% year-over-year, and the dip today appears to be contained by the 50-day moving average, a trendline of support since late October.
In the options pits, traders remain upbeat toward AAPL. Data from the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) shows the stock's 10-day call/put volume ratio at 2.48 ranks in the 85th percentile of its annual range. This suggests that calls have been bought over puts at a faster-than-usual clip during the past two weeks.
Shifting gears to today, call buying has picked up. Over 383,000 calls have crossed the tape today, nearly double the intraday pace. In the lead are the weekly 1/26 175- and 177-strike calls, and it looks like AAPL options traders are purchasing new positions here. However, these options will expire prior to Apple's turn in the earnings confessional next Thursday.