Auxilium Pre-Data Options Trading (AUXL)

Auxilium Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: AUXL) is not your traditional options alert, but the trading is ahead of a conference presentation.  This has traded an odd spread that first traded for 2,500 contracts in a multi exchange sweep, and the trade has been emulated with more than 4,000 contracts trading.  Traders are buying the March $32.50 calls at the offer and selling the June $40 calls in a diagonal calendar spread that is bullish with shares at $29.50, trade costing $1 to put on that is profitable with shares above $35 in March, a 20% move from here.  Shares are currently near the lower end of its recent range, and the company will present at the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference on January 14th.  Auxilium is awaiting FDA approval of XIAFLEX for Dupuytren’s Contracture, expected soon.  Shares have a $42 target at Jefferies and there is a 10% short float, 10 days to cover.  Implied volatility recently touched near 1 year lows, making the trade a cheap way to take a bullish gamble in shares.  Data as of 2:21 PM EST.

Joe Kunkle, OptionsHawk.com

Immunomedics Stock/Option Spike on Patent (IMMU)

Immunomedics, Inc. (NASDAQ: IMMU) has spiked higher on a US patent #7,641,901 in a released titled “Potential Lupus Drug Gains U.S. Patent”…. After HGSI the lupus word is all thatw as needed.  The company already has 141 US patents and 302 worldwide patents…. Shares are off of highs already… Its $3.93 price is a gain of 20.2% after a $3.27 close yesterday and its 2.95 million shares as of 10:49 AM EST compares to average daily volume of 823,000 shares.  The market cap is $295.5 million after the gain, and the 52-week trading range is $0.84 to $7.17.

For whatever this is worth, the stock does trade options and the volume there has spiked up as well: the JAN10 $5 CALLS traded 1,499 contracts versus an open interest of 4,620 contracts.  The same strike for FEB10 traded 435 contracts versus 2,901 open interest.

JON C. OGG