Option bulls score quick profits in $AAPL

Option traders are scoring big profits on upside positions opened in Apple (AAPL) last session.

Yesterday, on Oct. 18, Market Rebellion’s Unusual Activity Service found that 42,000 Weekly $146 calls, expiring this Friday, were bought for $0.68 to $1.19 above open interest of 12,688 contracts with shares at $145.52.

Those calls traded for as much as $3.45 today, over 3.5 times their average purchase price. The stock rose 2.49% at the same time, underscoring 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.

AAPL was up by 1.51% to $148.76 at the close of today’s trade.