Juniper Networks has been quietly coming to life, and yesterday the bulls piled in.
optionMONSTER's Heat Seeker tracking system detected unusual call volume in the network-technology name. Traders snapped up more than 6,000 Weekly 22.50s expiring this Friday, Jan. 9, mostly for $0.30. They also bought the February 23s for $0.82 and the January 23.50s for $0.16 to $0.20.
These long calls lock in the price where traders can buy the stock, letting them play for a rally at limited cost. The contracts can also generate significant leverage if shares move higher. (See our Education section)
JNPR ended the session up 2.24 percent to $22.38. The stock has been making higher lows along its 50-day moving and outperforming the S&P 500. Earnings are due Jan. 27.
Total option volume in the name was 11 times its daily average for the last month, with calls outnumbering puts by almost 12 to 1.
(A version of this post appeared on InsideOptions Pro yesterday.)
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