Derivatives traders pilling on the short side of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) options are being blamed for overall stock market volatility, say observers. But after significantly outperforming the general market, up 28 percent year to date and the stock diverting from is statistical relative value range, hedge funds are more likely to be locking in profits on the trade rather than betting the stock is going lower. Apple stock’s impact on the equity market value Bloomberg notes that put options, derivatives contracts that are designed to provide portfolio insurance in case of a falling stock price, have been selling at the…
Is Unusual Activity in Apple Inc. Put Options About Insurance?
Mark Melin
Mark Melin is an alternative investment practitioner whose specialty is recognizing the impact of beta market environment on a technical trading strategy. A portfolio and industry consultant, wrote or edited three books including High Performance Managed Futures (Wiley 2010) and The Chicago Board of Trade’s Handbook of Futures and Options (McGraw-Hill 2008) and taught a course at Northwestern University's executive education program.