BP Shares Hemorrhage, Options Activity Explodes

Today’s tickers: BP, ALKS, MO, NFLX, APC, MDCO, LVS, TIVO, CAR, MDRX & XLK BP - BP PLC – Options volume on beleaguered oil company, BP PLC, is fast approaching 750,000 contracts, fueling a more than 79.7% upward shift in the stock’s overall reading of options implied volatility to a 5-year high of 120.96%. Utter pandemonium erupted in BP options after the firm’s shares plunged 16.00%, crashing straight through the now defunct 52-week low of $34.15, to touch an intraday and new 5-year low of $29.13. Catalysts for the squall are not difficult to come by with analysts suggesting an increased probability BP will cut dividends to help pay for the disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. The first half of the trading day was relatively calm with shares increasing 1.62% over the opening price of $33.90 to an intraday high of $34.45. But, by noon time on the east coast, BP’s shares had already begun their descent. Options activity on the stock can easily be described as frenzied as volume continues to grow in both call and put options across multiple expiries. Investors are displaying a slight preference for put options, with roughly 1.35 put contracts exchanged to each single call option in play thus far in the trading day. Put buyers are out in full force, scooping up at least 1,600 of the bearish contracts at the June $17.5 strike for an average premium of $0.25 apiece. Buying interest in the front month is heaviest in now in-the-money puts at the June $30 strike where more than 43,000 contracts changed hands by 3:05 pm (ET). Investors buying these contracts now face an asking price of $2.85 apiece. Other pessimistic players cast doubts for a near-term recovery by selling call options. Less than 60 minutes remain in the current trading session. Option volume on BP has surpassed 710,000 contracts and continues to steadily rise. ALKS - Alkermes, Inc. – A three-legged bullish options combination trade enacted on biotechnology company, Alkermes, Inc., this afternoon indicates long-term optimism by one savvy strategist today. Alkermes’ shares are up 1.10% to $11.00 as of 3:12 pm (ET), but earlier rallied more than 4.75% to touch an intraday high of $11.40. The bullish player essentially sold short a chunk of put options in order to finance the purchase of a debit call spread in the November contract. The trader picked up 5,000 calls at the November $12.5 strike…