$CMCSA bulls double money

Option traders cashed in big profits on upside positions in Comcast today.

On Dec. 26, Investitute’s proprietary programs flagged the purchase of 5,000 February $35 calls for $0.92 to $1.08 with shares at $33.42. This was clearly fresh buying, as volume was more than double the strike’s open interest of 2,366 contracts at that time.

Those calls sold for $2.67 this morning, at least 2.5 times their purchase prices. The stock rose 11.7% in the same time period, illustrating the kind of leverage that can be achieved with options.

Long calls lock in the price where a stock can be purchased, gaining with a rally and providing leverage to the underlying shares. The contracts can quickly lose value if the stock stalls or pulls back but also carry less risk than owning the shares themselves.

CMCSA jumped 5.49% to $36.89 today. The cable giant beat earnings and revenue estimates before the market opened this morning.