BlackRock's Options Frenzy: What You Need to Know

Investors with a lot of money to spend have taken a bearish stance on BlackRock BLK.

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 BLK, 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 11 uncommon options trades for BlackRock.

This isn't normal.

The overall sentiment of these big-money traders is split between 27% bullish and 72%, bearish.

Out of all of the special options we uncovered, 5 are puts, for a total amount of $208,276, and 6 are calls, for a total amount of $424,778.

Expected Price Movements

After evaluating the trading volumes and Open Interest, it's evident that the major market movers are focusing on a price band between $380.0 and $830.0 for BlackRock, spanning the last three months.

Insights into Volume & Open Interest

In terms of liquidity and interest, the mean open interest for BlackRock options trades today is 69.33 with a total volume of 292.00.

In the following chart, we are able to follow the development of volume and open interest of call and put options for BlackRock's big money trades within a strike price range of $380.0 to $830.0 over the last 30 days.

BlackRock 30-Day Option Volume & Interest Snapshot

Largest Options Trades Observed:

About BlackRock

BlackRock is the largest asset manager in the world, with $9.101 trillion in AUM at the end of September 2023. Product mix is fairly diverse, with 52% of the firm's managed assets in equity strategies, 28% in fixed income, 9% in multi-asset class, 8% in money market funds, and 3% in alternatives. Passive strategies account for around two thirds of long-term AUM, with the company's ETF platform maintaining a leading market share domestically and on a global basis. Product distribution is weighted more toward institutional clients, which by our calculations account for around 80% of AUM. BlackRock is also geographically diverse, with clients in more than 100 countries and more than one third of managed assets coming from investors domiciled outside the U.S. and Canada.

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

Current Position of BlackRock

• Currently trading with a volume of 394,571, the BLK's price is down by -1.88%, now at $786.66.
• RSI readings suggest the stock is currently is currently neutral between overbought and oversold.
• Anticipated earnings release is in 59 days.

What Analysts Are Saying About BlackRock

Over the past month, 1 industry analysts have shared their insights on this stock, proposing an average target price of $938.0.

• An analyst from TD Cowen upgraded its action to Outperform with a price target of $938.

Trading options involves greater risks but also offers the potential for higher profits. Savvy traders mitigate these risks through ongoing education, strategic trade adjustments, utilizing various indicators, and staying attuned to market dynamics. Keep up with the latest options trades for BlackRock with Benzinga Pro for real-time alerts.