Someone with a lot of money to spend has taken a bearish stance on IBM (NYSE:IBM).

And retail traders should know.

We noticed this today when the big position showed up on publicly available options history that we track here at Benzinga.

Whether this is an institution or just a wealthy individual, we don't know. But when something this big happens with IBM, it often means somebody knows something is about to happen.

So how do we know what this whale just did?

Today, Benzinga's options scanner spotted 13 uncommon options trades for IBM.

This isn't normal.

The overall sentiment of these big-money traders is split between 30% bullish and 69%, bearish.

Out of all of the special options we uncovered, 6 are puts, for a total amount of $392,973, and 7 are calls, for a total amount of $286,620.

What's The Price Target?

Taking into account the Volume and Open Interest on these contracts, it appears that whales have been targeting a price range from $80.0 to $150.0 for IBM over the last 3 months.

Volume & Open Interest Development

Looking at the volume and open interest is a powerful move while trading options. This data can help you track the liquidity and interest for IBM's options for a given strike price. Below, we can observe the evolution of the volume and open interest of calls and puts, respectively, for all of IBM's whale trades within a strike price range from $80.0 to $150.0 in the last 30 days.

IBM Option Volume And Open Interest Over Last 30 Days

Biggest Options Spotted:

Where Is IBM Standing Right Now?

• With a volume of 1,656,600, the price of IBM is down -2.5% at $129.3.
• RSI indicators hint that the underlying stock may be approaching oversold.
• Next earnings are expected to be released in 71 days.

What The Experts Say On IBM:

• Morgan Stanley has decided to maintain their Overweight rating on IBM, which currently sits at a price target of $155.
• BMO Capital has decided to maintain their Market Perform rating on IBM, which currently sits at a price target of $148.
• Credit Suisse has decided to maintain their Outperform rating on IBM, which currently sits at a price target of $156.

Options are a riskier asset compared to just trading the stock, but they have higher profit potential. Serious options traders manage this risk by educating themselves daily, scaling in and out of trades, following more than one indicator, and following the markets closely.

If you want to stay updated on the latest options trades for IBM, Benzinga Pro gives you real-time options trades alerts.