$PINS bulls triple their money

Option traders scored big profits today on upside positions in Pinterest (PINS) with shares at fresh highs.

On Aug. 24, Market Rebellion’s Unusual Activity tracking systems detected the purchase of 15,012 November $35 calls as part of a bullish roll for $3.75 with shares at $32.68. Volume was well above the strike’s previous open interest of 4,007 contracts, showing that this was fresh interest.

Those calls traded for as much as $11.82 today, over 3 times their purchase price. The stock rose 40.61% in the same time frame, showing 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.

PINS was last up 2.72% to $45.26 this afternoon. The social networking service printed a new all-time high of $46.35 today and is scheduled to report earnings on Oct. 28 after the closing bell.