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UltraPro Short Dow30 (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SDOW#NYSE">SDOW</a>) shares experienced unusual options activity on Friday. The stock price moved up to $31.2 following the option alert. 
<ul>
<li>Sentiment: BEARISH</li>
<li>Option Type: SWEEP</li>
<li>Trade Type: CALL</li>
<li>Expiration Date: 2021-08-20</li>
<li>Strike Price: $31.00</li>
<li>Volume: 302</li>
<li>Open Interest: 895</li>
</ul>
<h2>Three Ways Options Activity Is ‘Unusual'</h2>
One way options market activity can be considered unusual is when volume is exceptionally higher than its historical average. The volume of options activity refers to the number of contracts traded over a given time period. The number of unsettled contracts that have been traded, but not yet closed, is called open interest. These contracts are not yet closed because a buyer has not purchased the contract, or a seller has not sold it.
Another indicator of unusual options activity is the trading of a contract with an expiration date in the distant future. Additional time until a contract expires generally increases the potential for it to grow its time value and reach its strike price. It is important to consider time value because it represents the difference between the strike price and the value of the underlying asset. 
"Out of the money" contracts are unusual because they are purchased with a strike price far from the underlying asset price. "Out of the money" occurs when the underlying price is under the strike price on a call option, or above the strike price on a put option. Buyers and sellers try to take advantage of a large profit margin in these instances because they are expecting the value of the underlying asset to change dramatically in the future. 
<h2>Understanding Sentiment</h2>
Options are "bullish" when a call is purchased at/near ask price or a put is sold at/near bid price. Options are "bearish" when a call is sold at/near bid price or a put is bought at/near ask price. 
Although the activity is suggestive of these strategies, these observations are made without knowing the investor's true intentions when purchasing these options contracts. An observer cannot be sure if the bettor is playing the contract outright or if they're hedging a large underlying position in a common stock. For the latter case, the exposure a large investor has on their short position in common stock may be more meaningful than bullish options activity. 
<h2>Using These Options Strategies</h2>
Unusual options activity is an advantageous strategy that may greatly reward an investor if they are highly skilled, but for the less experienced trader, it should remain as another tool to make an educated investment decision while taking other observations into account.
For more information to understand options alerts, visit <a href="https://pro.benzinga.help/en/articles/1769505-how-do-i-understand-options-alerts" title="https://pro.benzinga.help/en/articles/1769505-how-do-i-understand-options-alerts">https://pro.benzinga.help/en/articles/1769505-how-do-i-understand-options-alerts</a>

Movers

Understanding UltraPro Short Dow30's Unusual Options Activity

UltraPro Short Dow30 (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SDOW#NYSE">SDOW</a>) shares experienced unusual options activity on Thursday. The stock price moved down to $31.47 following the option alert. 
<ul>
<li>Sentiment: BEARISH</li>
<li>Option Type: TRADE</li>
<li>Trade Type: CALL</li>
<li>Expiration Date: 2021-12-17</li>
<li>Strike Price: $50.00</li>
<li>Volume: 400</li>
<li>Open Interest: 147</li>
</ul>
<h2>Three Signs Of Unusual Options Activity</h2>
Exceptionally large volume (compared to historical averages) is one reason for which options market activity can be considered unusual. The volume of options activity refers to the number of contracts traded over a given time period. Open interest is the number of unsettled contracts that have been traded but not yet closed by either counterparty. In other words, open interest represents the quantity of contracts that individual parties have written but not yet found a counterparty for (i.e. a buyer finding a seller, or a seller finding a buyer).
Another indicator of unusual options activity is the trading of a contract with an expiration date in the distant future. Additional time until a contract expires generally increases the potential for it to grow its time value and reach its strike price. It is important to consider time value because it represents the difference between the strike price and the value of the underlying asset. 
Contracts that are "out of the money" are also indicative of unusual options activity. "Out of the money" contracts occur when the underlying price is under the strike price on a call option, or above the strike price on a put option. These trades are made with the expectation that the value of the underlying asset is going to change dramatically in the future, and buyers and sellers will benefit from a greater profit margin. 
<h2>Understanding Sentiment</h2>
Options are "bullish" when a call is purchased at/near ask price or a put is sold at/near bid price. Options are "bearish" when a call is sold at/near bid price or a put is bought at/near ask price. 
Although the activity is suggestive of these strategies, these observations are made without knowing the investor's true intentions when purchasing these options contracts. An observer cannot be sure if the bettor is playing the contract outright or if they're hedging a large underlying position in a common stock. For the latter case, the exposure a large investor has on their short position in common stock may be more meaningful than bullish options activity. 
<h2>Using These Options Strategies</h2>
Unusual options activity is an advantageous strategy that may greatly reward an investor if they are highly skilled, but for the less experienced trader, it should remain as another tool to make an educated investment decision while taking other observations into account.
For more information to understand options alerts, visit <a href="https://pro.benzinga.help/en/articles/1769505-how-do-i-understand-options-alerts" title="https://pro.benzinga.help/en/articles/1769505-how-do-i-understand-options-alerts">https://pro.benzinga.help/en/articles/1769505-how-do-i-understand-options-alerts</a>

Options

UltraPro Short Dow30 (NYSE:<a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/SDOW#NYSE">SDOW</a>) shares experienced unusual options activity on Monday. The stock price moved up to $8.54 following the option alert. 
<ul>
<li>Sentiment: BEARISH</li>
<li>Option Type: SWEEP</li>
<li>Trade Type: CALL</li>
<li>Expiration Date: 2021-06-18</li>
<li>Strike Price: $9.00</li>
<li>Volume: 3031</li>
<li>Open Interest: 10020</li>
</ul>
<h2>Three Signs Of Unusual Options Activity</h2>
One way options market activity can be considered unusual is when volume is exceptionally higher than its historical average. The volume of options activity refers to the number of contracts traded over a given time period. Open interest is the number of unsettled contracts that have been traded but not yet closed by either counterparty. In other words, open interest represents the quantity of contracts that individual parties have written but not yet found a counterparty for (i.e. a buyer finding a seller, or a seller finding a buyer).
Another indicator of unusual options activity is the trading of a contract with an expiration date in the distant future. Additional time until a contract expires generally increases the potential for it to grow its time value and reach its strike price. It is important to consider time value because it represents the difference between the strike price and the value of the underlying asset. 
Contracts with a strike price far from the underlying price are also considered unusual because they are defined as being "out of the money". This occurs when the underlying price is under the strike price on a call option, or above the strike price on a put option. These trades are made because the underlying asset value is expected to change dramatically in the future, and the buyer or seller can take advantage of a greater profit margin. 
<h2>Bullish And Bearish Sentiments</h2>
Options are "bullish" when a call is purchased at/near ask price or a put is sold at/near bid price. Options are "bearish" when a call is sold at/near bid price or a put is bought at/near ask price. 
These observations are made without knowing the investor's true intent by purchasing these options contracts. The activity is suggestive of these strategies, but an observer cannot be sure if a bettor is playing the contract outright or if the options bettor is hedging a large underlying position in common stock. For the latter case, bullish options activity may be less meaningful than the exposure a large investor has on their short position in common stock.
<h2>Trading Options With These Strategies</h2>
Unusual options activity is an advantageous strategy that may greatly reward an investor if they are highly skilled, but for the less experienced trader, it should remain as another tool to make an educated investment decision while taking other observations into account.
For more information to understand options alerts, visit <a href="https://pro.benzinga.help/en/articles/1769505-how-do-i-understand-options-alerts" title="https://pro.benzinga.help/en/articles/1769505-how-do-i-understand-options-alerts">https://pro.benzinga.help/en/articles/1769505-how-do-i-understand-options-alerts</a>

With last Friday&#39;s 4.55% slide, the Dow Jones Industrial Average erased all of the gains accrued since President Trump won the 2016 election. Using the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/dia#NYSE">DIA</a>) as the guide, the blue-chip index enters Monday 35.14% below its 52-week high.
Traders considering bearish and inverse leveraged exchange traded funds on the Dow would clearly be onto something, particularly with <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/government/20/03/15625661/dow-jones-s-p-futures-hit-limit-low-as-trumps-economic-stimulus-hits-senate-roadblock">Dow futures swooning again Sunday evening</a>. Things are so bad in fact for the index to start 2020 that each of the benchmark&#39;s 30 components are in the red and 25 of those stocks are down 20% or more.
That could be a sign the once beloved Dow could be in for more near-term downside, bringing with it opportunity in the following bearish ETFs.
See Also: <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/analyst-ratings/analyst-color/20/03/15579781/the-most-shorted-etfs-amid-the-coronavirus-market-crash">The Most Shorted ETFs Amid The Coronavirus Market Crash</a>
<h2>ProShares Short Dow30 (DOG)</h2>
The ProShares Short Dow30 (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/dog#NYSE">DOG</a>) is a good idea for risk-averse investors that are looking for <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/trading-ideas/long-ideas/20/03/15587661/gold-etfs-betray-safe-haven-reputation-in-march-market-meltdown">short-term hedges</a> or to participate in some of the broader market&#39;s downside. DOG is an inverse though not leveraged fund, meaning it should deliver a gain of 1% on a day in which the Dow loses 1%.
With Boeing&#39;s (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ba#NYSE">BA</a>) rapid fall from grace, DOG is now an interesting way of hedging long bets in stocks such as Apple (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/aapl#NASDAQ">AAPL</a>) and UnitedHealth (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/unh#NYSE">UNH</a>), which are now the Dow&#39;s top two stocks.
Remember that the Dow is a price-weighted, not a cap-weighted index, meaning the stock with the largest price tag takes on the largest weight in the in benchmark.
<h2>ProShares UltraPro Short Dow30 (SDOW)</h2>
Some <a href="https://www.benzinga.com/trading-ideas/long-ideas/20/03/15555152/3-leveraged-etfs-for-the-feds-move-to-near-zero">bearish leveraged ETFs are thriving</a> in the current environment and the ProShares UltraPro Short Dow30 (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/sdow#NYSE">SDOW</a>) is certainly part of that club. Last Friday, SDOW gain 12.83% on nearly double the average daily volume, meaning the bearish Dow fund has more than doubled just this month. That&#39;s tempting, but traders should still treat SDOG as they would any other leveraged ETF.
&ldquo;Due to the <a href="https://www.proshares.com/funds/performance/the_universal_effects_of_compounding.html">compounding</a> of daily returns, holding periods of greater than one day can result in returns that are significantly different than the target return and ProShares&#39; returns over periods other than one day will likely differ in amount and possibly direction from the target return for the same period,&rdquo; <a href="https://www.proshares.com/funds/sdow.html">according to ProShares</a>.
<h2>Direxion Daily Technology Bear 3X Shares (TECS)</h2>
Clearly, the first two bearish ETFs highlighted here are dedicated Dow plays. Obviously, the Direxion Daily Technology Bear 3X Shares (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/tecs#NYSE">TECS</a>) is an inverse technology play and not focused on the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
However, there are relevant tie ins. With Boeing&#39;s slide, the industrial sector is losing prominence in the Dow while tech is now the benchmark&#39;s biggest sector weight at 24.44%.
TECS looks to deliver triple the daily inverse returns of the Technology Select Sector Index, a benchmark that devotes almost 40% of its weight to Apple and Microsoft (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/msft#NASDAQ">MSFT</a>). That index is also home to four more Dow components:&nbsp;Visa (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/v#NYSE">V</a>), Intel (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/intc#NASDAQ">INTC</a>), Cisco (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/csco#NYSE">CSCO</a>) and IBM (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="https://www.benzinga.com/stock/ibm#NYSE">IBM</a>).
So yes, TECS is a fine way for active traders to put on short-term, bearish Dow positions.

June is almost here and if history repeats, the arrival of the sixth month of the year isn&#39;t good news for equities. Over the past 20 years, the S&amp;P 500 has averaged June declines of 0.5 percent, making June the <a href="https://charts.equityclock.com/sp-500-index-seasonal-chart">fourth-worst month</a> of the year for the benchmark domestic equity gauge.
While June is also the fourth-worst month of the year for the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the blue-chip index&#39;s average June decline is worse than the S&amp;P 500&#39;s <a href="https://charts.equityclock.com/dow-jones-industrial-average-seasonal-chart">at 0.9 percent</a>.
<h3>
	What Happened</h3>
Year-to-date, the SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/dia#NYSE">DIA</a>), the largest exchange traded fund tracking the Dow, is up 0.6 percent, including dividends paid.
However, that statistic belies weakness in most of the index as 20 of the Dow&#39;s 30 components are lower year-to-date. Six of those 20 stocks, including Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/gs#NYSE">GS</a>) and Procter &amp; Gamble (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/pg#NYSE">PG</a>) are down at least 10 percent.
&ldquo;According to the Stock Trader&rsquo;s Almanac, June ranks among the worst months of the year for major indexes. The results are especially poor in midterm election years, as is 2018,&rdquo; <a href="https://www.marketwatch.com/story/dont-get-burned-june-is-the-second-worst-month-of-the-year-for-the-dow-2018-05-25">reports MarketWatch</a>.
<h3>
	Why It&#39;s Important </h3>
Traders looking to profit from potential June declines by the Dow have some options to consider, including the ProShares Short Dow30 (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/dog#NYSE">DOG</a>). DOG is an inverse, though not leveraged ETF. That means if the Dow falls 1 percent on a particular day, DOG should rise by 1 percent.
&ldquo;Due to the <a href="http://www.proshares.com/funds/performance/the_universal_effects_of_compounding.html">compounding</a> of daily returns, ProShares&#39; returns over periods other than one day will likely differ in amount and possibly direction from the target return for the same period,&rdquo; <a href="http://www.proshares.com/funds/dog.html">said the issuer.</a>
The Dow allocates nearly 24 percent of its weight to industrial stocks while the technology and financial services sectors combine for 34.3 percent of the index&#39;s weight.
<h3>
	What&#39;s Next</h3>
For traders looking to get truly aggressive with their bearish Dow bets in June, there is the ProShares UltraPro Short Dow30 (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/sdow#NYSE">SDOW</a>). That ETF is designed to deliver triple the daily inverse performance of the blue-chip index.
Triple-leveraged ETFs, bullish or bearish, should be used as short-term instruments and not held over lengthy time frames.
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<a href="https://www.benzinga.com/markets/cryptocurrency/18/05/11784169/kevin-olearys-oshares-is-planning-five-new-etfs-including-ai-a">O&#39;Shares Plans 5 New ETFs</a>

ProShares, the largest issuer of inverse and leveraged ETFs, announced 2-for-1 splits for two of its ETFs and reverse splits for nine of its funds. The ProShares Ultra Nasdaq Biotechnology (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/bib#NASDAQ">BIB</a>) and the ProShares Short VIX Short-Term Futures ETF (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/svxy#NYSE">SVXY</a>) will be split 2-for-1.

All splits will apply to shareholders of record as of the close of the markets on October 2, 2012, payable after the close of the markets on October 4, 2012. The funds will trade at their post-split price on October 5, 2012, according to a statement issued by ProShares.

Nine ProShares ETFs will be reverse split on a 1-for-4 basis. Those funds are as follows: ProShares UltraShort 20+ Year Treasury (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/tbt#NYSE">TBT</a>), the ProShares UltraShort S&amp;P500 (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/sds#NYSE">SDS</a>), the ProShares UltraShort Gold (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/gll#NYSE">GLL</a>), the ProShares UltraPro Short Dow30 (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/sdow#NYSE">SDOW</a>), the ProShares UltraShort Basic Materials (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/smn#NYSE">SMN</a>), the ProShares Ultra MSCI Brazil (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/ubr#NYSE">UBR</a>), the ProShares UltraShort Health Care (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/rxd#NYSE">RXD</a>), the ProShares UltraShort Nasdaq Biotech (NASDAQ: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/bis#NASDAQ">BIS</a>) and the ProShares UltraShort Consumer Goods (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/szk#NYSE">SZK</a>).

Those funds will also trade at their post-split prices on October 5.

For more on ETFs, click <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/etfs">here</a>.

Direxion, the second-largest issuer of inverse and leveraged ETFs, has filed plans with the Securities and Exchange Commission to (possibly) introduce six new leveraged funds. The news comes less than two weeks after the firm announced it will <a href="http://www.benzinga.com/news/12/08/2805032/direxion-to-shutter-9-etfs">shutter nine of its funds because those products have failed to attract sufficient assets</a>.

Direxion has <a href="http://www.indexuniverse.com/sections/news/12889-direxion-adds-dow-etfs-to-plans.html">filed plans for four geared Dow Jones Industrial Average ETFs</a>. The funds are the Direxion Daily Dow 30 Bull 2X Shares, the Direxion Daily Dow 30 Bear 2X Shares, the Direxion Daily Dow 30 Bull 3X Shares and the Direxion Daily Dow 30 Bear 3X Shares.

The firm has also filed plans for the Direxion Daily European Equity Bull 3X Shares and the Direxion Daily European Equity Bear 3X Shares. Direxion's European funds will compete with the ProShares UltraShort MSCI Europe (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/epv#NYSE">EPV</a>) and the ProShares Ultra MSCI Europe (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/upv#NYSE">UPV</a>).

The new Dow funds from Direxion would compete with the ProShares UltraPro Short Dow30 (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/sdow#NYSE">SDOW</a>) and the ProShares Ultra Dow30 (NYSE: <a class="ticker" href="/stock/ddm#NYSE">DDM</a>). Direxion's new funds would charge 0.75 percent per year, according to IndexUniverse. That might give the firm an advantage over ProShares, which charges 0.95 percent for DDM and SDOW.

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