Bull Charges Into Fairchild Semiconductor

By Mike Yamamoto, managing editor of OptionMonster

NEW YORK -- Bullish activity at a single strike made up all the option volume in Fairchild Semiconductor (FCS) on Friday.

OptionMonster's tracking systems show that 4,036 February 13 calls were bought in less than two minutes on Friday afternoon, led by a print of 2,559 that went for $1.54. The volume compares with open interest of only 189 contracts at the start of the day, so this is fresh buying.

Fairchild rose 0.58% on Friday to finish the week at $13.98. The chipmaker bounced sharply just below the $12 level on Nov. 16 and hit a three-month high of $14.23 last Wednesday, a session before Citigroup reiterated its buy rating on the name and raised its price target to $20 from $15.

Friday's calls, which lock in the price where the trader can buy the stock, are looking for Fairchild shares to gain more than 4% by expiration in mid-February. Total option volume in the name was 26 times its daily average in the last month.

Yamamoto has no positions in FCS.

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