ArcelorMittal (MT: sentiment, chart, options) was the center of attention among call traders on Thursday, after JPMorgan boosted its price target on the steel concern to $45 from $37. According to data from WhatsTrading.com, the security saw roughly 9,500 calls change hands yesterday, nearly tripling its average daily volume of about 3,600 contracts. The bullish bias echoes the sentiment among short-term speculators, as the stock's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 0.17 stands only three percentage points shy of an annual optimistic peak.

Most popular yesterday was the stock's July 35 call, which saw almost 5,900 contracts cross the tape. The out-of-the-money 35 strike is now home to peak call open interest in the front-month series, with 6,735 contracts in residence. However, digging deeper into the data, it appears that not all of yesterday's activity was of the bullish variety. At 9:43 a.m. Eastern time, a block of 2,800 calls traded at the bid price of $0.75, suggesting they were sold.

In order to retain the entire net credit of $210,000 ($0.75 x 100 shares x 2,800 contracts) received from selling the July 35 call, the shares of MT would need to remain beneath the $35 level by options expiration on Friday, July 17.

At last check, the security was flirting with breakeven at $33.31. From a longer-term perspective, MT is poised to close a second consecutive month atop its 10-month moving average for the first time since mid-2008.