Is McGraw-Hill Topped Out? (MHP)

Shares of McGraw-Hill (MHP) are trading lower on the session by 0.30%, at $55.71. The stock has been moving solidly higher over the past six months, pushing to fresh 52-week highs earlier in the week.

Despite the positive momentum in the name, a fresh short position is being put on this afternoon.

A short while ago, the May 2013 $55 call was purchased 10,000 times, on the offer, for $4.20. While this would be an enormously bullish trade in isolation, it was bundled with 500,000 shares of MHP common that was sold for $55.55. This makes the trade net short, voicing the opinion that the stock is near a top.

The trade has pushed overall call volume to 30x normal volume with 10,060 contracts traded. 99% of all trades have been purchases on the offer.

30-day implied volatility is up 1.4% today to 23.85%. 10-day historical vol is at just 9.89%.

The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. is a global information services provider serving the financial, education, commercial and commodities markets. 

About Michael Zerinskas

Originally from Chicago, Michael J. Zerinskas began his career as an intern for a small high-frequency trading firm based at the CME; he then moved on to become Chief Options Strategist at Benzinga.com. Michael is now Unusual Activity Editor at The Options Insider, specializing in VIX, volatility, and flagging unusual activity.