Box, Roku Options Trading Erupts During Huge Stock Rallies

Options action on 2 of today's biggest winners

Box Inc (NYSE:BOX) is one of the best stocks today, rallying 11.8% to $16.60, aiming to take out its 50-day moving average for the first time since mid-May. Sparking the rally is news that activist hedge fund Starboard Value has taken a 7.5% stake in the cloud concern. In response, options trading on BOX is through the roof.

At last check, more than 11,000 calls had been traded, compared to just 2,117 on average. In fact, this call volume is good enough to rank in the 98th annual percentile. A few of the most popular positions are the September 15, 16, and 17 calls, while new positions are also opening at the October 18 call. Peak front-month open interest was at the September 15 call coming into today, followed by the 17 call.

As for Roku Inc (NASDAQ:ROKU), the shares have gained 6.2% to trade at $166.67, after another positive analyst note. This time it was D.A. Davidson that weighed in by raising its price target to $185 from $135, the highest of all ROKU analysts. The shares hit an all-time high of $169.61 earlier, and have taken off like a rocket since beginning the year around $30.

Meanwhile, weekly options activity is booming, with tons of new positions in the 9/6 series. The 165- and 170-strike calls are most popular, and the 160-strike has seen the most action on the put side. As for the weekly 9/13 series, the 167.50-strike could be seeing some buying activity. None of this is too surprising, though, since weekly options traders have enjoyed the ride in Roku stock.