With earnings season in full swing, many investors are looking toward the options market to find ways to bet on big one-day moves for stocks when their latest results are revealed. But given the volatility of markets in recent weeks and the souring economic outlook, options could be expensive. “Single stock options suggest elevated fear is priced in: Options imply an +/-6.7% move on earnings-day for the average S & P 500 stock this quarter,” Goldman Sachs derivatives team said in a note to clients on Oct. 12. Still, Goldman analysts are well out of consensus on some stocks, making even those expensive options look attractive. One buy-rated company that reports earnings this week is Intuitive Surgical . Goldman analysts see the health tech name beating earnings estimates by 9% in its upcoming report on Tuesday. To play this upside, investors can use call options. Those contracts allow traders to buy a stock at a pre-set strike price. The benefit of purchasing call options instead of buying the stock outright is there is less risk, as losses are capped at the price of the option. Two big names that Goldman is bullish on report on Oct. 26: Meta Platforms and Boeing . The aerospace stock is one of Goldman’s boldest calls, as the bank’s earnings estimates are more than 20% above consensus. Meta, meanwhile, could be overdue for rebound. The Facebook-parent has seen its stock fall more than 60% this year as the outlook for advertising has soured and many investors are skeptical of its pivot to the metaverse. One opposite case is chipmaker Intel . Goldman’s earnings estimate is 20% below consensus for the company, and some industry rivals have already pre-announced weak results. This could make a put option an attractive plan for investors. A put option is the inverse of a call option, allowing the holder to sell a stock at a pre-set price. Intel is set to report its latest quarter on Oct. 27. — CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
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