Gap Options Trading: A Deep Dive into Market Sentiment

Investors with a lot of money to spend have taken a bullish stance on Gap GPS.

And retail traders should know.

We noticed this today when the trades showed up on publicly available options history that we track here at Benzinga.

Whether these are institutions or just wealthy individuals, we don't know. But when something this big happens with GPS, it often means somebody knows something is about to happen.

So how do we know what these investors just did?

Today, Benzinga's options scanner spotted 11 uncommon options trades for Gap.

This isn't normal.

The overall sentiment of these big-money traders is split between 63% bullish and 36%, bearish.

Out of all of the special options we uncovered, 9 are puts, for a total amount of $571,490, and 2 are calls, for a total amount of $69,093.

Expected Price Movements

Based on the trading activity, it appears that the significant investors are aiming for a price territory stretching from $30.0 to $35.0 for Gap over the recent three months.

Analyzing Volume & Open Interest

Assessing the volume and open interest is a strategic step in options trading. These metrics shed light on the liquidity and investor interest in Gap's options at specified strike prices. The forthcoming data visualizes the fluctuation in volume and open interest for both calls and puts, linked to Gap's substantial trades, within a strike price spectrum from $30.0 to $35.0 over the preceding 30 days.

Gap Call and Put Volume: 30-Day Overview

Significant Options Trades Detected:

About Gap

Gap retails apparel, accessories, and personal-care products under the Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic, and Athleta brands. Old Navy generates more than half of Gap's sales. The firm also operates e-commerce sites, outlet stores, and specialty stores under various Gap names. Gap operates approximately 2,600 stores in North America, Europe, and Asia and franchises more than 900 stores in Asia, Europe, Latin America, and other regions. Gap was founded in 1969 and is based in San Francisco.

Following our analysis of the options activities associated with Gap, we pivot to a closer look at the company's own performance.

Present Market Standing of Gap

• Currently trading with a volume of 3,892,569, the GPS's price is up by 0.14%, now at $28.12.
• RSI readings suggest the stock is currently may be overbought.
• Anticipated earnings release is in 59 days.

What The Experts Say On Gap

In the last month, 5 experts released ratings on this stock with an average target price of $22.04.

• An analyst from KGI Securities upgraded its action to Outperform with a price target of $25.
• Consistent in their evaluation, an analyst from Goldman Sachs keeps a Buy rating on Gap with a target price of $24.
• An analyst from BMO Capital persists with their Market Perform rating on Gap, maintaining a target price of $18.
• An analyst from B of A Securities persists with their Underperform rating on Gap, maintaining a target price of $15.
• Maintaining their stance, an analyst from Barclays continues to hold a Overweight rating for Gap, targeting a price of $28.

Options trading presents higher risks and potential rewards. Astute traders manage these risks by continually educating themselves, adapting their strategies, monitoring multiple indicators, and keeping a close eye on market movements. Stay informed about the latest Gap options trades with real-time alerts from Benzinga Pro.