Spotlight on Wells Fargo: Analyzing the Surge in Options Activity

Investors with a lot of money to spend have taken a bearish stance on Wells Fargo WFC.

And retail traders should know.

We noticed this today when the trades 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 WFC, it often means somebody knows something is about to happen.

So how do we know what these investors just did?

Today, Benzinga's options scanner spotted 29 uncommon options trades for Wells Fargo.

This isn't normal.

The overall sentiment of these big-money traders is split between 48% bullish and 51%, bearish.

Out of all of the special options we uncovered, 23 are puts, for a total amount of $1,895,589, and 6 are calls, for a total amount of $204,964.

Predicted Price Range

Based on the trading activity, it appears that the significant investors are aiming for a price territory stretching from $35.0 to $55.0 for Wells Fargo over the recent three months.

Volume & Open Interest Trends

In today's trading context, the average open interest for options of Wells Fargo stands at 6168.0, with a total volume reaching 9,858.00. The accompanying chart delineates the progression of both call and put option volume and open interest for high-value trades in Wells Fargo, situated within the strike price corridor from $35.0 to $55.0, throughout the last 30 days.

Wells Fargo Option Volume And Open Interest Over Last 30 Days

Noteworthy Options Activity:

About Wells Fargo

Wells Fargo is one of the largest banks in the United States, with approximately $1.9 trillion in balance sheet assets. The company has four primary segments: consumer banking, commercial banking, corporate and investment banking, and wealth and investment management. It is almost entirely focused on the U.S.

Present Market Standing of Wells Fargo

• Currently trading with a volume of 8,241,605, the WFC's price is down by -1.45%, now at $49.2.
• RSI readings suggest the stock is currently may be approaching overbought.
• Anticipated earnings release is in 3 days.

What The Experts Say On Wells Fargo

A total of 4 professional analysts have given their take on this stock in the last 30 days, setting an average price target of $57.019999999999996.

• Reflecting concerns, an analyst from Deutsche Bank lowers its rating to Hold with a new price target of $51.
• Showing optimism, an analyst from Odeon Capital upgrades its rating to Buy with a revised price target of $56.
• An analyst from Baird downgraded its action to Neutral with a price target of $55.
• An analyst from Barclays persists with their Overweight rating on Wells Fargo, maintaining a target price of $66.

Options are a riskier asset compared to just trading the stock, but they have higher profit potential. Serious options traders manage this risk by educating themselves daily, scaling in and out of trades, following more than one indicator, and following the markets closely.

If you want to stay updated on the latest options trades for Wells Fargo, Benzinga Pro gives you real-time options trades alerts.