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JetBlue Airways Corporation (JBLU) is basking in the glow of strong traffic numbers
JetBlue Airways Corporation (NASDAQ:JBLU) puts have been preferred over calls in recent weeks at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX). During the last 10 trading days, the equity has amassed a put/call volume ratio of 0.28, which bests three-quarters of comparable readings from the previous year.
Puts continue to be popular today, running at seven times the typical intraday clip. However, on an absolute basis, twice as many calls are on the tape. In fact, JBLU's most active option is the in-the-money April 19 call, where speculators may be purchasing new positions to bet on extended gains north of the strike through Friday's close -- when the front-month contracts expire.
Prompting these bullish bets is a 5.3% jump in JBLU shares, which were last seen at $20.05 -- and earlier touched a decade-plus high of $20.25 -- thanks to encouraging passenger traffic patterns. Longer term, the stock has outperformed the broader S&P 500 Index (SPX) by 24.3 percentage points over the last three months.
One group that may be feeling the heat today is short sellers. A lofty 17.7% of JetBlue Airways Corporation's (NASDAQ:JBLU) float is sold short, which would take more than seven sessions to repurchase, at typical daily trading levels.