Oil & Gas
National Oilwell Varco Inc (NOV) $67.21 +0.96%
National Oilwell (NOV) adds 35 cents to $66.92 and a 9400-lot of May 85 calls is bought on the oil driller for 23 cents per contract. 11,180 now traded against 590 in open interest. 1,876 May 75 calls also changed hands. NOV saw interest in its May calls Tuesday as well (see 2/5 color). The [...]
Noble Energy Inc (NBL) $112.50 +0.52%
Noble Energy (NBL) adds 58 cents to $112.50 and it looks like one investor expects the stock to see a considerable move higher though mid-August. An Aug 130-140-150 call butterfly spread is opened on the Houston, TX oil and gas company for 90 cents, 2500X. The spread seems to be targeting a move to $140 [...]
Patterson UTI Energy Inc (PTEN) $20.73 +0.75%
The “Puzzling Trade of the Year” award goes out to today’s 2000-lot buyer of PTEN Feb 24 calls for a nickel per contract. There’s no open interest and the contract is 16 percent OTM with a .04 delta. The company reports earnings tomorrow, but doesn’t have a track record for big earnings moves. Average daily [...]
National Oilwell Varco Inc (NOV) $68.27 -2.71%
National Oilwell (NOV) drops $1.90 to $68.27 and options volume is 3X the daily average after Bernstein downgraded the stock to Market Perform from Out Perform. The order flow doesn’t seem bearish, however, as 40,000 calls and 9,600 puts traded on the oil driller. One player sold 4,000 May 77.5 calls and 1,000 May 65 [...]
Sandridge Energy Inc (SD) $6.15 -2.07%
Additional color on Sandridge (SD). June 4 puts are now the most actives in the name after an investor bought-to-close 24,600 contracts for 22 cents per contract. It probably covers some of the positions opened in mid-December when the stock was 7.2 percent above current levels and 15,000 Jun 7 puts were bought on the [...]
Encana Corporation (ECA) $19.10 +0.15%
Encana (ECA) is up a penny to $19.08 and a sweep of 8050 Feb 19 calls trades on the Canadian energy company for 45 cents per contract. An investor bought, to open, according to data from the all-electronic ISE. 9,646 now traded against 709 in open interest and will probably create the largest block of [...]
Weatherford International Ltd (WFT) $13.37 +0.75%
Heavy bullish flow in Oilfield svcs co Weatherford Intl this morning with 15K calls trading in the first 30min (vs 40 puts) and upside April 14 calls the focus, as a buyer paid 72cents for several thousand and then 73cents for 10,000 contracts as shares traded near 13.39. Same contract was busy on 1/30 when [...]
Bears Circle Sandridge (SD) After Analyst Downgrade
Sandridge (SD) drops 25 cents to $6.03 in active trading of 3.5 million shares after JP Morgan downgraded the stock to UnderWeight from OverWeight. Recent options trades on the Oklahoma City, OK oil and gas company include a buyer of 3500 Sep 7 puts for an average of $1.755 per contract. Looks opening. Separately, 1300 [...]
Copano Energy LLC (CPNO) $38.75 +0.10%
Copano Energy (CPNO) adds 4 cents to $38.75 and a 4,700-lot of May 29 puts trades on the stock for a nickel per contract. Open interest is 5,627, the largest in the Houston, TX oil and gas pipeline company, and the trade probably closes a position opened on Jan 2, when a 4700-lot of May [...]
Energy Transfer Partners LP (ETP) $47.15 +0.21%
Unrelated to the dividend (goes Ex 89cents tomorrow), we are seeting heavy call buying in ETP, including a sweep of more than 2500 Feb 47.5 calls at the 15cent ask, opening, as shares traded at 47.07.
