This whale alert can help traders discover the next big trading opportunities.

Whales are entities with large sums of money and we track their transactions here at Benzinga on our options activity scanner.

Traders often look for circumstances when the market estimation of an option diverges away from its normal worth. Abnormal amounts of trading activity could push option prices to hyperbolic or underperforming levels.

Below are some instances of options activity happening in the Health Care sector:

Symbol PUT/CALL Trade Type Sentiment Exp. Date Strike Price Total Trade Price Open Interest Volume
MRK PUT SWEEP BEARISH 02/16/24 $110.00 $74.1K 906 1.8K
PFE PUT SWEEP BULLISH 06/21/24 $30.00 $49.5K 24.2K 1.0K
TPST CALL TRADE BULLISH 04/19/24 $2.50 $49.0K 101 599
UNH CALL TRADE NEUTRAL 02/16/24 $540.00 $59.2K 936 549
HUM CALL TRADE BEARISH 02/16/24 $470.00 $29.6K 446 288
ILMN CALL SWEEP BEARISH 01/19/24 $140.00 $27.6K 3.4K 259
ARQT CALL SWEEP BEARISH 03/15/24 $2.50 $25.0K 890 200
IMCR CALL TRADE BEARISH 12/20/24 $95.00 $36.4K 2 81
KRYS PUT SWEEP BULLISH 12/20/24 $190.00 $361.5K 0 65
VRTX CALL TRADE BULLISH 02/16/24 $420.00 $27.1K 268 25

Explanation

These itemized elaborations have been created using the accompanying table.

• For MRK MRK, we notice a put option sweep that happens to be bearish, expiring in 31 day(s) on February 16, 2024. This event was a transfer of 1853 contract(s) at a $110.00 strike. This particular put needed to be split into 47 different trades to become filled. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $74.1K, with a price of $40.0 per contract. There were 906 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 1896 contract(s) were bought and sold.

• Regarding PFE PFE, we observe a put option sweep with bullish sentiment. It expires in 157 day(s) on June 21, 2024. Parties traded 167 contract(s) at a $30.00 strike. This particular put needed to be split into 7 different trades to become filled. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $49.5K, with a price of $297.0 per contract. There were 24207 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 1066 contract(s) were bought and sold.

• For TPST TPST, we notice a call option trade that happens to be bullish, expiring in 94 day(s) on April 19, 2024. This event was a transfer of 200 contract(s) at a $2.50 strike. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $49.0K, with a price of $245.0 per contract. There were 101 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 599 contract(s) were bought and sold.

• For UNH UNH, we notice a call option trade that happens to be neutral, expiring in 31 day(s) on February 16, 2024. This event was a transfer of 150 contract(s) at a $540.00 strike. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $59.2K, with a price of $395.0 per contract. There were 936 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 549 contract(s) were bought and sold.

• For HUM HUM, we notice a call option trade that happens to be bearish, expiring in 31 day(s) on February 16, 2024. This event was a transfer of 74 contract(s) at a $470.00 strike. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $29.6K, with a price of $400.0 per contract. There were 446 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 288 contract(s) were bought and sold.

• Regarding ILMN ILMN, we observe a call option sweep with bearish sentiment. It expires in 3 day(s) on January 19, 2024. Parties traded 230 contract(s) at a $140.00 strike. This particular call needed to be split into 18 different trades to become filled. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $27.6K, with a price of $120.0 per contract. There were 3441 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 259 contract(s) were bought and sold.

• Regarding ARQT ARQT, we observe a call option sweep with bearish sentiment. It expires in 59 day(s) on March 15, 2024. Parties traded 200 contract(s) at a $2.50 strike. This particular call needed to be split into 5 different trades to become filled. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $25.0K, with a price of $125.0 per contract. There were 890 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 200 contract(s) were bought and sold.

• For IMCR IMCR, we notice a call option trade that happens to be bearish, expiring in 339 day(s) on December 20, 2024. This event was a transfer of 81 contract(s) at a $95.00 strike. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $36.4K, with a price of $450.0 per contract. There were 2 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 81 contract(s) were bought and sold.

• Regarding KRYS KRYS, we observe a put option sweep with bullish sentiment. It expires in 339 day(s) on December 20, 2024. Parties traded 51 contract(s) at a $190.00 strike. This particular put needed to be split into 51 different trades to become filled. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $361.5K, with a price of $7090.0 per contract. There were 0 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 65 contract(s) were bought and sold.

• For VRTX VRTX, we notice a call option trade that happens to be bullish, expiring in 31 day(s) on February 16, 2024. This event was a transfer of 10 contract(s) at a $420.00 strike. The total cost received by the writing party (or parties) was $27.1K, with a price of $2715.0 per contract. There were 268 open contracts at this strike prior to today, and today 25 contract(s) were bought and sold.

Options Alert Terminology
- Call Contracts: The right to buy shares as indicated in the contract.
- Put Contracts: The right to sell shares as indicated in the contract.
- Expiration Date: When the contract expires. One must act on the contract by this date if one wants to use it.
- Premium/Option Price: The price of the contract.

For more information, visit our Guide to Understanding Options Alerts or read more about unusual options activity.

This article was generated by Benzinga's automated content engine and reviewed by an editor.

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