ZNGA Zooms to 8-Year High on Billion-Dollar Deal

ZNGA is planning to buy Peak for $1.8 billion

The shares of Zynga Inc (NASDAQ:ZNGA) are up over 3.2% at $9.44 this morning, marking a fresh eight-year high after announcing its acquisition of mobile-game maker Peak for $1.8 billion. This deal will mark the largest purchase of a Turkish startup on record, and will include about $900 million in cash and $900 million in stock. On Zynga's end, the company expects to have 60% more daily active users after the deal closes in the third quarter.

Today's pop has ZNGA continuing its rally on the charts, extending Friday's gain,s and now sporting a 54% year-to-date lead. Despite the broader-market's coronavirus-induced selloff, Zynga stock has closed the past four months in the black. Now with a slew of moving averages providing support, the stock is now eyeing its third straight daily win.

Analysts are, for the most part, leaning bullish, with 14 out of the 18 in coverage sporting a "buy" or better. This upbeat sentiment is echoed in the options pits, where calls heavily outweigh puts. At the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), a whopping 14.37 calls have been bought for every put in the past 10 days. This ratio sits in the 78th percentile of its annual range, suggesting a higher appetite for calls than usual.