Earnings Preview: Micron Technology, Inc.

Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) is up 0.2% to $27.17 this morning, as the firm prepares to release its fiscal second-quarter earnings report tonight after the close. Looking back, MU has been sliding, with the shares down roughly 25.7% since notching an almost 13-year high of $36.59 on Dec. 8. Accordingly, put buying has reached fever pitch in the equity's options pits.

MU's 50-day International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) put/call volume ratio of 0.51 ranks higher than all equivalent readings taken over the past year, showing that puts have never been bought-to-open at a faster clip over this time frame. Echoing this indicator is the stock's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 0.62, which stands in the 63rd percentile of its annual range. Simply stated, short-term traders have rarely been this put-skewed over the past 12 months.

Looking elsewhere, the brokerage bunch has been mostly bullish on MU. Specifically, 82% of covering analysts have doled out "buy" or better ratings on the equity. Not to mention, MU's consensus 12-month price target of $41.20 is a lofty 51.6% premium to current trading levels -- and sits in territory not charted since August 2001.

However, speculators banking on post-earnings downside for Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) are going against history. In the session immediately following its last eight earnings reports, MU has gained an average of 1.4%. Additionally, options traders have been paying historically fair prices for their near-term bets on the equity, as its Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) of 49% rests in the 55th percentile of its annual range.