Bulls score again in $ZNGA

Option traders have more than doubled their money on upside positions in Zynga.

On Jan. 10, Investitute’s market scanners identified the purchase of 5,700 June $4.50 calls for $0.35 to $0.44 with shares at $4.29. This was was clearly a new position, as volume was more than twice the strike’s existing open interest of 2,561 contracts. Investitute co-founder Jon Najarian cited the unusual activity at that time on CNBC’s “Halftime Report.”

Those calls traded for as much as $0.98 today, 2.5 times their average purchase price. The stock rose 24.94% in the same time, a large move but still far below that of its options on a relative basis.

It is the second winning trade in the name posted on Investitute in as many sessions.

Long calls lock in the price where investors can buy a stock, letting them position for a rally at limited cost with the potential for significant leverage. They carry less risk than owning shares because the most that can be lost is the price of the options no matter how far the stock might fall.

ZNGA ended today’s session of 0.37% at $5.35. The social-game developer has rallied this year with positive quarterly results.