TSLA shares have been hit hard in the past month
Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) stock is down today after CEO Elon Musk sent out a tweet saying some customers may experience delivery delays. Plus, another company executive is leaving, something that's seemingly become an everyday occurrence. TSLA shares were last seen 0.5% lower at $289, which may be good news for some options traders.
As we pointed out earlier this month, options traders have been quite bearish on the electric automaker. Put buying has continued to outpace call buying at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), looking at the past 10 days, though only by a slim margin. Near-term options traders seem especially skeptical, since the Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) remains at 2.18, meaning put open interest more than doubles call open interest among contracts expiring within three months.
Elsewhere, short interest has actually been edging lower on TSLA, dipping 6.5% in the last reporting period. Of course, Tesla still has plenty of skeptics, illustrated by the fact that more than one-fourth of its float is held by short sellers.
Most analysts are bearish, too. There are seven "hold ratings, one "sell," and four "strong sells," compared to just four "strong buy" ratings. To be sure, the bears have been in control lately, with the stock down more than 16% in the past month.