Campbell Soup stock will announce its quarterly report before the open, tomorrow
Campbell Soup Co (NYSE:CPB) is set to report fiscal second-quarter results before the open tomorrow, March 9, in which analysts anticipate the company to post profits of 69 cents per share. CPB is down 5.9% at $42.85 ahead of the event, sitting out today's broad-market rally.
Ahead of the event, the options pits are pricing in a post-earnings swing of 8.9%, regardless of direction, which is higher than the average 4.8% move following Campbell Soup's last eight reports. Of these eight, four post-earnings sessions finished positive, including the two most recent.
Today, options traders are overwhelmingly pessimistic, with 17,000 puts crossing the tape so far -- 16 times the intraday average -- in comparison to 3,993 calls. The weekly 3/11 45-strike put is the most popular today, where new positions are being bought to open, followed by the 47-strike put in the same weekly series.
This bearish sentiment has been prevalent lately, per CPB's 10-day put/call volume ratio of 6.22 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX). This ratio stands higher than all other readings from the past year, underscoring an enormous preference for puts.
It's not just options traders. Analysts are similarly negative, as all eight in coverage carry a "hold" or worse rating on the stock. Plus, short interest is up 10% in the most recent reporting period, and makes up 8.9% of Campbell Soup stock's available float.
On the charts, CPB has struggled with recent pressure at the $46 level, an area that's only been toppled three times on a closing basis since June. Currently, the shares are down 1.3% year-to-date, and nearly 10% in the last 12 months.