$CCL call prices turn 5-fold

Bullish Carnival Corp (CCL) option traders who opened upside positions last week are making gains today.

On Dec. 16, Market Rebellion’s Unusual Activity scanners identified the purchase of 4,500 Weekly $19 calls, expiring tomorrow, for $0.25 to $0.40 with shares at $17.75. This was clearly a new position, as volume was clearly above the strike’s previous open interest of 3,109 contracts.

Those calls have traded for as much as $2.12 today, at least 5 times their purchase prices. The stock rose by as much as 18.87% in the same time frame, illustrating how quickly 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.

CCL was last trading up on the session by 3.04% at $21.17.