Nokia Attracts Strong Call Buying

By Mike Yamamoto, managing editor of OptionMonster

ESPOO, Finland (TheStreet) -- Nokia (NOK Quote) attracted upside options activity Monday after industry figures showed that its smartphones are gaining international market share.

The bullish trading was focused on the December 14 contracts, at which 5,688 calls changed hands in a strong buying pattern above open interest of 3,638. That dwarfed the average volume of just 267 calls a day for the last month, according to OptionMonster's proprietary tracking systems.

The stock rose 2.73% Monday to close at $13.57. The handset maker has been trading mostly between $12 and $16 since the start of April, including an 11% gap lower on Oct. 15 after reporting a financial loss.

The largest blocks of December 14 calls were bought for 51 cents Monday. For those contracts to profit, Nokia's stock would need to rise roughly 7% or more before the options expire on Dec. 17.

The buying took place after industry researcher IDC reported that Nokia's global market share in smartphones grew in the third quarter from the same period last year. Although headlines have focused on competing handsets from Apple(AAPL Quote), Palm(PALM Quote), Research In Motion(RIMM Quote), and most recently Motorola(MOT Quote), IDC said Nokia maintains a commanding 37.9% of the market.