Bulls triple their money in $SLV

The iShares Silver Trust (SLV) has risen with the recent rally in precious metals, yielding significant gains on upside option positions.

On Jul. 17, Investitute’s tracking systems found that 21,000 August $16 calls were purchased in one print for $0.11 with shares at $14.95. Volume was well above the strike’s open interest of 8,170 contracts before that session began, showing that this was a new position.

Those August $16 calls have traded up to $0.31 so far today, nearly triple their purchase price. The stock has risen 7% 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.

SLV is currently up 4.1% today at $16.01. Investors have flocked to silver, gold, and their exchange-traded funds as relative safe havens during market volatility.