Implied Volatility Mover
Implied volatility in the options on EZChip Semiconductor (EZCH) is moving up, as shares fell to 52-week lows early but then rallied into midday. The stock is now up 53 cents to 59 cents to $24.38 in relatively active trading of 1.3 million shares, up 11.8 percent from session lows. It’s not clear what motivated the turnaround, but options on the Israeli chip-maker are busy as well. 8,045 puts and 1,995 calls so far, and 30-day at-the-money implied volatility in EZCH options jumped 40 percent to 59.5.
Volume Signals
Genworth (GNW) options volume is running 4.5X the (22-day) average, with 69,000 contracts traded and call volume accounting for 66 percent of the volume.
EMC options volume is 2.5X, the average daily, with 62,000 contracts traded and call volume representing 82 percent of the activity.
Starwood Hotels (HOT) options volume is running 4.5X the average daily, with 19,000 contracts traded and call volume accounting for 92 percent of the activity.
Increasing options activity is also being seen in Whiting Petroleum (WLL), Chimera Investments (CIM), and MannKind (MNKD).
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