Volatility note draws bearish play
A large and long-term bearish trade is targeting the iPath S&P 500 VIX Short-Term Futures Note.
optionMONSTER systems detected the purchase of 62,745 January 2016 20 puts for $3.75. The trader is spending more than $23 million on the position, which is betting that the VXX will be cut by more than half in the next two years or so. (See our Education section)
Yesterday it saw a trade in the opposite direction, looking for a floor in the stock.
The VXX is composed of the two nearest-month VIX futures. Because they typically carry a premium to the spot volatility index, the VXX has a structure that ultimately makes it tends toward zero. As a result, it has already undergone three 4-to-1 reverse splits since its intiation in February 2009.
Today the VXX is down fractionally to $48.40, a new all time low. It can pop higher at a moment's notice, but the general trend is definitely lower.
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