Today’s tickers: FDO, BBBY & RIO
FDO – Family Dollar Stores, Inc. – Call buyers flocked to Family Dollar Stores today, with shares in the operator of general merchandise retail discount stores trading up as much as 4.6% to a record high of $62.84 on the heels of encouraging consumer sentiment and spending data. The stock posted big gains in the month of March, gaining 15.5% in the past four weeks, and it looks like some traders are positioning for the good times to continue. Bullish trading in the front month calls is heaviest at the April $65 strike where more than 5,000 calls have changed hands against open interest of 324 contracts, as of 12:50 p.m. in New York. It looks like the majority of the $65 calls were purchased for an average premium of $0.45 apiece, thus positioning buyers to profit in the event that shares in FDO add another 4.2% to top $65.45 by expiration next month. Lighter-volume call buying spread to the May $60, $62.5 and $65 strikes, as well as the July $65 strike calls. Nearly 10,000 option contracts are in play on Family Dollar Stores this afternoon, a more than ten-fold increase over the stock’s 90-day average options volume of 925 contracts.
BBBY – Bed Bath & Beyond, Inc. – Shares in the operator of retail chain stores Bed Bath & Beyond, Christmas Tree Shops and others, kicked off the final trading session of the week in positive territory, but have since surrendered earlier gains to trade 0.60% lower on the session at $66.30 as of 11:30 a.m. in New York. Call volume on Bed Bath & Beyond spiked this morning after one strategist initiated a ratio spread in the May expiry. The trader appears to have purchased 2,000 calls at the May…
