The retailer hiked dividends to $1.10 per share
Target Corp (NYSE:TGT) stock is up 2% at $135.97 this morning, after the retailer said it will hike dividends to $1.10 per share, or 1.9%. Target has been engulfed in controversy of late, after pulling some of its LGBTQ-themed products from stores amid customer backlash.
The security is bouncing off a June 12, three-year low of $125.08, and pacing for its third-straight daily win. The 20-day moving average is still keeping a lid on today's rally, though, and TGT has shed 17.6% in the past nine months.
Options bulls are chiming in, with 66,000 calls across the tape so far -- four time the intraday average -- compared to 16,000 puts. Most popular is the June 140 call, with positions being opened there. This means traders expect more upside for TGT before tomorrow's close, when these contracts expire.
This penchant for bullish bets has been the norm lately, per the stock's 10-day call/put volume ratio of 1.90 over at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), which sits higher than 89% of readings from the past year.
Now could be a good opportunity to weigh on Target stock's next moves with options, per its Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) of 29%, which ranks at the 7th percentile of readings in its annual range.