Spotlight on Bank of America: Analyzing the Surge in Options Activity

Investors with a lot of money to spend have taken a bearish stance on Bank of America BAC.

And retail traders should know.

We noticed this today when the positions showed up on publicly available options history that we track here at Benzinga.

Whether these are institutions or just wealthy individuals, we don't know. But when something this big happens with BAC, it often means somebody knows something is about to happen.

Today, Benzinga's options scanner spotted 12 options trades for Bank of America.

This isn't normal.

The overall sentiment of these big-money traders is split between 8% bullish and 91%, bearish.

Out of all of the options we uncovered, there was 1 put, for a total amount of $55,055, and 11, calls, for a total amount of $919,984.

Predicted Price Range

Based on the trading activity, it appears that the significant investors are aiming for a price territory stretching from $27.0 to $33.0 for Bank of America over the recent three months.

Volume & Open Interest Trends

In terms of liquidity and interest, the mean open interest for Bank of America options trades today is 41368.8 with a total volume of 11,637.00.

In the following chart, we are able to follow the development of volume and open interest of call and put options for Bank of America's big money trades within a strike price range of $27.0 to $33.0 over the last 30 days.

Bank of America Option Volume And Open Interest Over Last 30 Days

Significant Options Trades Detected:

About Bank of America

Bank of America is one of the largest financial institutions in the United States, with more than $2.5 trillion in assets. It is organized into four major segments: consumer banking, global wealth and investment management, global banking, and global markets. Bank of America's consumer-facing lines of business include its network of branches and deposit-gathering operations, retail lending products, credit and debit cards, and small-business services. The company's Merrill Lynch operations provide brokerage and wealth-management services, as does its private bank. Wholesale lines of business include investment banking, corporate and commercial real estate lending, and capital markets operations. Bank of America has operations in several countries but is primarily U.S.-focused.

In light of the recent options history for Bank of America, it's now appropriate to focus on the company itself. We aim to explore its current performance.

Where Is Bank of America Standing Right Now?

• With a trading volume of 759,156, the price of BAC is down by -0.2%, reaching $29.95.
• Current RSI values indicate that the stock is may be overbought.
• Next earnings report is scheduled for 52 days from now.

What Analysts Are Saying About Bank of America

In the last month, 2 experts released ratings on this stock with an average target price of $40.5.

• Showing optimism, an analyst from Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgrades its rating to Market Perform with a revised price target of $30.
• Consistent in their evaluation, an analyst from Oppenheimer keeps a Outperform rating on Bank of America with a target price of $51.

Options trading presents higher risks and potential rewards. Astute traders manage these risks by continually educating themselves, adapting their strategies, monitoring multiple indicators, and keeping a close eye on market movements. Stay informed about the latest Bank of America options trades with real-time alerts from Benzinga Pro.