Traders Seek Bearish Options In The iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM)

“As Wall Street awaits the release of several economic reports, options traders sought bearish positions in exchange-traded funds that track specific segments of the market. Among the most active names of the session was the iShares Russell 2000 Index Fund (IWM), an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that tracks small-cap stocks, including Human Genome Sciences Inc. (HGSI), UAL Corp.(UAUA), Tupperware Brands Corp. (TUP) and 3Com Corp (MMM),” Tennille Tracy Reports From The WSJ.

Trading in the iShares fund took on a cautious tone as investors adopted massive “put spreads” in the fund’s April contracts, buying April $68 puts and then selling April $65 puts to help offset the cost, according to Trade Alert.

“Since ETFs are often used as a hedge, the traders in this case could be looking to protect their stock portfolios against declines or speculating on such moves taking place. Currently priced at 80 cents, the put spread makes money if the iShares fund slips below $67.20, a level under which it hasn’t closed since March 9. The fund finished the day at $68.39, up 0.3%,” Tracy Reports.

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Here are some details on the iShares Russell 2000 Index ETF including a snapshot of the options activity mentioned.

The iShares Russell 2000 Index Fund (IWM) seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the small capitalization sector of the U.S. equity market as represented by the Russell 2000 Index. The index represents the approximately 2,000 smallest companies in the Russell 3000 Index.

Strike Symbol Last Chg Bid Ask Vol Open Int 46.00 IWM100417P00046000 0.03 0.00 N/A 0.01 0 66 47.00 IWM100417P00047000 0.03 0.00 N/A 0.01 0 615 48.00 IWM100417P00048000 0.01 0.00 N/A 0.01 0 430 49.00 IWM100417P00049000 0.02 0.00 N/A 0.01 0 757 50.00 IWM100417P00050000 0.05 0.00 N/A 0.01 0 633 51.00 IWM100417P00051000 0.02 0.00 N/A 0.01 0 377 52.00 IWM100417P00052000 0.03 0.00 N/A 0.02 0 10,889 53.00 IWM100417P00053000 0.03 0.00 0.01 0.02 0 3,268 54.00 IWM100417P00054000 0.03 0.00 0.01 0.02 614 9,294 55.00 IWM100417P00055000 0.02 0.01 0.02 0.03 1 42,448 56.00 IWM100417P00056000 0.02 0.00 0.02 0.03 1 24,544 57.00 DIW100417P00057000 0.03 0.00 0.03 0.04 20 13,645 58.00 DIW100417P00058000 0.05 0.01 0.04 0.05 4 18,600 59.00 DIW100417P00059000 0.04 0.00 0.05 0.06 2 11,748 60.00 DIW100417P00060000 0.07 0.00 0.07 0.08 127 109,765 61.00 DIW100417P00061000 0.07 0.01 0.09 0.10 16 29,605 62.00 DIW100417P00062000 0.11 0.02 0.12 0.13 290 49,910 63.00 DIW100417P00063000 0.15 0.01 0.17 0.18 2,325 60,627 64.00 DIW100417P00064000 0.25 0.05 0.24 0.25 14,338 168,525 65.00 DIW100417P00065000 0.36 0.09 0.35 0.36 4,759 184,402 66.00 DIW100417P00066000 0.55 0.13 0.53 0.55 9,133 145,061 67.00 DIW100417P00067000 0.82 0.14 0.81 0.82 14,288 177,638 68.00 DIW100417P00068000 1.20 0.21 1.20 1.21 48,012 161,574 69.00 DIW100417P00069000 1.74 0.30 1.75 1.77 11,276 42,034 70.00 DIW100417P00070000 2.46 0.41 2.42 2.44 7,716 27,034 71.00 DIW100417P00071000 3.08 0.17 3.27 3.32 639 4,838 72.00 IOW100417P00072000 4.16 0.65 4.17 4.22 82 6,419 73.00 IOW100417P00073000 4.71 0.33 5.13 5.20 126 2,734 74.00 IOW100417P00074000 5.70 0.01 6.12 6.19 4 2,770 75.00 IOW100417P00075000 6.49 0.15 7.13 7.19 237 3,677 76.00 IOW100417P00076000 7.70 0.00 8.05 8.24 27 3,318 77.00 IOW100417P00077000 8.46 0.00 9.01 9.19 200 2,570 78.00 IOW100417P00078000 10.00 0.00 10.03 10.23 1 1,130

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