Bull with Butterfly Wings Envisions Brighter Days Ahead for Equinix

  Today’s tickers: EQIX, XLF, XING & AVP EQIX  - Equinix, Inc. –  A large bullish butterfly has taken up residence in June 2011 contract calls this afternoon. It looks like the investor responsible for the spread’s construction expects shares in the provider of global data center services to rally significantly in the next six months to expiration. EQIX shares are currently down slightly by 0.25% to arrive at $79.72 as of 1:00pm in New York. The firm is scheduled to present at Citigroup’s Global Entertainment, Media and Telecommunications Conference in Phoenix, Arizona, on January 5, 2011. The bullish player purchased 15,000 calls at the June 2011 $85 strike for a premium of $5.50 each, sold 30,000 calls at the June 2011 $100 strike at a premium of $1.50 apiece, and picked up 15,000 calls at the higher June 2011 $115 strike for a premium of $0.60 a-pop. The net cost of the spread amounts to $3.10 per contract, or a total of $4.65 million. The legs of the butterfly spread represent fresh positioning in June contract calls on Equinix, as there are less than 170 contracts comprising previously existing open interest at each of the strikes described. Establishing the bullish spread prepares the investor to make money if the price of the underlying stock rallies 10.5% to trade above the effective breakeven point at $88.10 by expiration day in June. Maximum potential profits of $11.90 per contract, or total gains of $17.85 million, are available to the options strategist should shares in Equinix surge 25.4% in the next six months to settle at $100.00 at expiration. The trader only ever risks losing $3.10 per contract on the transaction, but stands prepared to accrue 3.8 times that amount, or $11.90 apiece in the best case scenario. Shares in Equinix traded as high as $105.01 as recently as October 5, 2010, and reached a 52-week high of $110.57 just under one year ago on January 6, 2010. The butterfly spread positions the investor to bank serious profits if the trade comes good before the call options expire in June. Equinix is slated to report fourth-quarter earnings after the market closes on February 9, 2011. …