$SQ call prices double intraday

Option traders have run up fast profits intraday in Square (SQ) calls.

Just this morning, on Aug. 2, Market Rebellion’s Unusual Activity programs detected the the purchase 6,800 Weekly $270 calls, expiring this Friday, for $1.70 to $6.75  with shares at $251.01. Open interest in the contract before the trade occurred was just 1,191, showing that this was a new position.

Those calls have traded up to $12.18 today, about double their purchase prices. The stock rose 11.84% in the same time period, illustrating the kind of leverage that can be achieved quickly 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.

SQ was last up 10.81% at $273.83 this afternoon. The electronic-payment service topped earnings expectations and announced it would acquire Afterpay (AFTPF) in a $29 billion all-stock deal.