Market Whales and Their Recent Bets on USB Options

Author: Benzinga Insights | April 19, 2024 03:02pm

Investors with a lot of money to spend have taken a bullish stance on U.S. Bancorp (NYSE:USB).

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 USB, 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 15 uncommon options trades for U.S. Bancorp.

This isn't normal.

The overall sentiment of these big-money traders is split between 53% bullish and 46%, bearish.

Out of all of the special options we uncovered, 4 are puts, for a total amount of $118,483, and 11 are calls, for a total amount of $384,666.

Predicted Price Range

Taking into account the Volume and Open Interest on these contracts, it appears that whales have been targeting a price range from $35.0 to $50.0 for U.S. Bancorp over the last 3 months.

Insights into Volume & Open Interest

Looking at the volume and open interest is an insightful way to conduct due diligence on a stock.

This data can help you track the liquidity and interest for U.S. Bancorp's options for a given strike price.

Below, we can observe the evolution of the volume and open interest of calls and puts, respectively, for all of U.S. Bancorp's whale activity within a strike price range from $35.0 to $50.0 in the last 30 days.

U.S. Bancorp Option Volume And Open Interest Over Last 30 Days

Noteworthy Options Activity:

Symbol	PUT/CALL	Trade Type	Sentiment	Exp. Date	Ask	Bid	Price	Strike Price	Total Trade Price	Open Interest	Volume
USB	CALL	SWEEP	BEARISH	01/17/25	$7.3	$7.25	$7.25	$35.00	$97.8K	1.9K	136
USB	CALL	SWEEP	BULLISH	11/15/24	$2.76	$2.72	$2.76	$42.50	$34.7K	159	705
USB	PUT	SWEEP	BEARISH	09/20/24	$1.92	$1.89	$1.92	$37.50	$34.1K	569	712
USB	CALL	SWEEP	BEARISH	11/15/24	$2.8	$2.78	$2.78	$42.50	$32.2K	159	1.0K
USB	PUT	SWEEP	BULLISH	09/20/24	$1.89	$1.88	$1.88	$37.50	$31.2K	569	400

About U.S. Bancorp

As a diversified financial-services provider, U.S. Bancorp is one of the nation's largest regional banks, with branches in roughly 26 states, primarily in the Western and Midwestern United States. The bank offers many services, including retail banking, commercial banking, trust and wealth services, credit cards, mortgages, and other payments capabilities.

After a thorough review of the options trading surrounding U.S. Bancorp, we move to examine the company in more detail. This includes an assessment of its current market status and performance.

U.S. Bancorp's Current Market Status

• Trading volume stands at 7,094,270, with USB's price up by 1.48%, positioned at $40.02.
• RSI indicators show the stock to be may be approaching oversold.
• Earnings announcement expected in 89 days.

Expert Opinions on U.S. Bancorp

5 market experts have recently issued ratings for this stock, with a consensus target price of $49.6.

• Consistent in their evaluation, an analyst from UBS keeps a Neutral rating on U.S. Bancorp with a target price of $43.
• An analyst from Barclays persists with their Overweight rating on U.S. Bancorp, maintaining a target price of $52.
• Maintaining their stance, an analyst from Evercore ISI Group continues to hold a In-Line rating for U.S. Bancorp, targeting a price of $48.
• Maintaining their stance, an analyst from Keefe, Bruyette & Woods continues to hold a Outperform rating for U.S. Bancorp, targeting a price of $52.
• An analyst from HSBC has elevated its stance to Buy, setting a new price target at $53.

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 U.S. Bancorp with Benzinga Pro for real-time alerts.

Posted In: USB