Today, a Barchart report showed unusually heavy trading in deep out-of-the-money (OTM) put options on Howard Hughes Holdings (HHH). Investors are happy to buy HHH at a 25% lower strike price, expiring in 45 days.
This shows they are positive on the shift to a more asset-light model and Chairman Bill Ackman's vision for the Texas-based company.
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HHH is at $73.97 in midday trading today, up 3.2%. In the last two and a half weeks, HHH stock has skyrocketed $13.75 from a trough of $60.22 on Sept. 18, +22.8%.
HHH stock - last 3 months - Barchart - Oct. 6, 2026 This could be a result of the company's recent insider buying as well as the new board elected on Sept. 30. In June, the company purchased a specialty insurer and reinsurer, Vantage.
In addition, HHH is freeing up its heavy investments in real estate to become a more Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-A) type investment company.
As a result, investors have become bullish on HHH stock. One type of play is to sell short out-of-the-money (OTM) puts. That can be seen in today's unusual trading.
Unusual Put Options Volume
The Barchart Unusual Stock Options Activity Report today shows that over 5,300 puts expiring Nov. 20, 2026, have traded at the $55.00 strike price. That volume is over 53x the prior number of puts outstanding.
HHH puts expiring Nov. 20, 2026 - Barchart Unusual Stock Options Activity Report - Oct. 6, 2026 The premium paid by buyers was $0.10. But this also means that short-sellers collected that income, for a 45-day yield of 0.181% (i.e., $0.10/$55.00).
That's not much, but it still means that some investors are willing to buy HHH at a huge discount should it fall by over 25.5%.
In fact, that possibility is not very high, given that the delta ratio is only -0.0179. That implies there is a 98.2% chance of success that the short-sellers will not be obligated to buy shares at $55.00.
Investors Bullish on HHH
In effect, this could be a form of insurance by existing investors to lower their average cost. They are getting paid an annual rate of 1.475% (0.18% x 8.1), assuming this play can be repeated 8 times during the year (every 45 days).
Since HHH does not pay a dividend, it is also a way for existing investors to generate income. This could be based on their existing HHH holdings (i.e., after posting collateral, which could include margin from existing shares).
Moreover, analysts seem bullish on the company, with much higher price targets (PTs). For example, Yahoo! Finance's survey of 3 analysts has an average PT of $89.67. That's 21% above today's price.
The bottom line is that investors seem very bullish now on the company's change in strategy.
On the date of publication, Mark R. Hake, CFA did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
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