Bulls triple their money in $EWZ

Option traders posted exponential gains today in the iShares MSCI Brazil Fund.

On Nov. 8, Investitute’s tracking systems found that 2,467 March $44 calls were purchased for $0.88 with shares at $39.60. This clearly was a new position, as volume was well above the strike’s open interest of 1,153 contracts.

Those calls traded for as much as $3.05 today, more than 3 times their purchase price. The stock rose 18% in the same time period, showing how options can far outperform their underlying shares.

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.

EWZ was up 1.17% to $48.74 today. The exchange-traded fund has seen growth on the back of a weaker U.S. dollar.