Puts Sold on Pioneer Drilling (PDC)

Shares of Pioneer Drilling Co. PDC are higher on the session by 5.13%, currently trading $5.53. The stock has been drifting lower and lower over the past few weeks and is now firmly below the 50-day and 200-day moving averages. I have been tracking put volume, some very large, in the name for the past few weeks, but today I am seeing traders sell out of some of their protection. The December $7.50 and $5 puts were both sold on the bid 1,180 times today, the $7.50 for $2.10 and the $5 for $0.55. Open interest on both strikes exceeds volume. This suggests that worries about the name are abating somewhat; I would not initiate a long position yet though. Pioneer Drilling Company provides drilling and production services to oil and gas exploration and production companies throughout the United States and internationally in Colombia.