Weekly options bulls are all over Tesla Motors Inc (TSLA) today
Call buyers have been flocking to
Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) at a rapid-fire rate during the past two weeks. In fact, the electric automaker boasts a 10-day International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) call/put volume ratio of 1.65. This reading -- which shows almost twice as many calls as puts have been bought to open -- stands higher than all others from the past year. Said simply, there's been a bigger-than-normal appetite for long TSLA calls recently.
It's more of the same today, with calls crossing at twice the average intraday pace. It appears traders are taking a relatively short-term approach, considering the
weekly 12/31 series accounts for the seven most popular strikes today. Leading the way are the 240-, 242.50-, and 245-strike calls, with data suggesting buy-to-open activity. If traders are in fact opening fresh bullish positions at these strikes, they're betting on TSLA to explore more upside before tomorrow's close, when the weekly series expires.
Short-term bulls may be looking to take advantage of relatively low premiums on the electric car stock's near-term options. TSLA's Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) sits at 40%, which is lower than three-quarters of readings from the past year. This tells us that, from a volatility standpoint, the stock's options can be
had for a relative bargain at the moment.
Yesterday we highlighted the
growing skepticism surrounding TSLA in other areas of Wall Street -- a strange fact, since the shares have beat out the S&P 500 Index (SPX) by more than 12 percentage points during the past two months. And Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) is moving higher again today, gaining 1.6% at $240.99, on a research note indicating the company is in line to
meet its current-quarter and full-year delivery goals.