Downside Purchased on Brookdale Senior Living (BKD)

Shares of Brookdale Senior Living Inc. BKD are higher on the session by 1.39%, currently trading at $14.63. The stock has been moving largely lower over the past five months, off from recent highs near $22.00. The stock has found support around the $13.00 level, though; shares are now at a key pivot point. Options traders are buying puts on the name today. The January 2011 $10.00 put was purchased 1,750 times, on the offer, for $0.35 a short while ago; open interest on the strike is 1,755 contracts. This may indicate that a short put position was closed, thus negating some of the inherent bearish of a trade like this. Put volume is running at 6.68x the daily average. Brookdale Senior Living Inc. is an operator of senior living communities in the United States based on total capacity, with 565 communities in 35 states and the ability to serve approximately 53,600 residents. As of December 31, 2009, the company operated in four business segments: retirement centers, assisted living, continuing care retirement communities and management services.