The security earlier broke through a technical ceiling
Moderna Inc (NASDAQ:MRNA) is up 23.6% at $204.04 at last check, after a mid-stage trial showed the combination of its experimental melanoma vaccine and Merck's (MRK) immunotherapy Keytruda lowered the risk of skin cancer's recurrence or death by 44%. In response, SVB Securities raised the stock's price target to $102 from $101.
Options are running red-hot today, with 103,000 calls and 64,000 puts traded so far, or five times the volume that's typically seen at this point. Most popular is the January 2023 220-strike call, followed by the 200-strike call in that series, with positions being opened at both.
This appetite for calls has been the norm lately. At the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), the equity's 10-day call/put volume ratio of 3.47 sits higher than 99% of readings from the past year. Echoing this, MRNA's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) ranks higher than only 4% of annual readings, meaning short-term traders have rarely been more call-biased.
The security is trading at its highest level since January, and burst through a ceiling at the $190 level earlier, after yesterday slipping below a recent floor at the $170 region. The shares are also eyeing their best day since March 2020, though year-over-year MRNA is still down 25.2%.
