Today’s tickers: DSW, BKS & FOSL
DSW - DSW Inc. – Shares in the footwear retailer are up 3.05% in early-afternoon trade to stand at $43.19, and options activity in the April expiry calls and puts suggests the stock may continue to march higher during the next four months. One strategist appears to have sold put options on DSW to offset the cost of buying a bull call spread, a position that yields maximum possible profits in the event of a more than 15.0% rally in the shares. The investor likely sold roughly 400 puts at the April $38 strike in order to purchase a roughly 400-lot April $43/$50 call spread, done at an average net credit of $0.40 per contract. The trader walks away with the net credit in hand as long as DSW’s shares exceed $38.00 at expiration day in April. Additional gains accumulate on the upside above the breakeven price of $43.00, with maximum potential profits of $7.40 per contract – including the $0.40 net credit – available on the trade if the stock soars 15.8% to top $50.00 at expiration in April. Shares in DSW last traded above $50.00 in mid-November 2011.
BKS - Barnes & Noble, Inc. – Bookseller Barnes & Noble forecast a wider-than-expected fiscal 2012 loss in a statement today, pushing shares in the name down as much as 31.0% to an intraday low of $9.35, and driving up demand for BKS options. Put options in the front month are most active, but it appears much of the volume was generated by sellers. Investors selling puts on the name receive premium in exchange for bearing the risk that the bookseller’s shares continue to hemorrhage in the next couple of weeks to January expiration. The Jan. $7.5, $9.0 and $10 strike put options attracted the heaviest volume. One block…
