$INTC bulls triple their money

Option traders posted huge gains in Intel today thanks to strong quarterly results.

On April 4, Investitute’s tracking systems detected the purchase of 10,000 May $55 calls for $0.58. The position was part of a bullish spread with shares $49.47.

Those calls traded for $1.99 today, about 3.5 times their purchase price. The stock rose 12.8% in the same time frame, underscoring how quickly options can far outperform their underlying shares. Investitute co-founder Pete Najarian picked Intel as his final trade on CNBC’s “Fast Money” on Wednesday evening, before the company reported earnings.

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.

INTC reached a multi-decade high of $55.78 right after the opening bell but pulled back and closed at $52.73, off 0.6% on today’s session. The chip giant beat easily beat estimates on the top and bottom lines yesterday afternoon.