The consumer good name missed fiscal fourth-quarter earnings estimates
Procter & Gamble Co (NYSE: PG) is down 3.5% at $142.89 at last check, after the consumer goods giant's fiscal fourth-quarter earnings came in slightly below estimates, while revenue beat expectations. The company noted demand for detergents and other homecare products remains strong despite higher prices, but still issued a downbeat full-year profit forecast due to ongoing struggles with surging transportation and commodity costs.
Volatility has haunted Procter & Gamble stock so far this year. Shares ran into a familiar ceiling at the $148 level after bouncing off their June 15, one-year low of $129.50, while the stock's latest surge once again lost steam near that region yesterday. Year-to-date, PG has shed 9.5%.
Options traders are overwhelmingly bearish. At the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), the security's 50-day put/call volume ratio of 1.19 sits higher than 97% of readings from the past year. In other words, these traders have been picking up puts at a much quicker-than-usual clip.
Options volume is already running at four times the intraday average, with 6,283 puts and 4,397 calls across the tape so far. Most popular is the August 237 put, followed by the 7/29 140 put, with positions being opened at the former.