GE Options Headlines from BusinessWeek & Forbes

GE Options Traders Boost Bullish Bets Before Earnings
Trading of bullish General Electric Co. options rose to more than triple the four-week average as investors boosted bets that the shares will keep rising from a 17-month high tomorrow after the company reports earnings. More than 310,000 calls giving the right to buy the stock changed hands at 4 p.m. New York time as the shares climbed a fourth day, adding 0.8 percent to $19.50. The most-active contracts were April $20 calls, which rose 50 percent to 15 cents for the fourth-biggest gain among GE options. Almost two calls changed hands today for each put option to sell the stock. This month’s options expire at tomorrow’s close.

Bulls Rush Into Ford, GE And Bank Of America
General Electric: Bullish players flooded the options arena on diverse conglomerate, General Electric Company, Thursday amid a more than 1.5% rally in the price of its shares to a new 52-week high of $19.69. Investors are positioning for continued upward momentum in the price of the underlying stock by coveting call options in the April and May contracts. Bullish traders purchased more than 42,600 calls at the April $20 strike for an average premium of $0.16 per contract. GE's share price must surpass the average breakeven point on the calls at $20.16 ahead of expiration tomorrow in order for call-buyers to accumulate profits on the call contracts. Buying interest spread to the May $20 strike where more than 12,200 calls were picked up for an average premium of $0.47 a-pop. These optimistic individuals make money as long as General Electric's shares rally approximately 4% from the new 52-week high of $19.69 to exceed the average breakeven price of $20.47 by May expiration. The overall reading of options implied volatility on GE is up 11.5% to 29.58% just after noon.