Of the 20 equities seeing the heaviest options volume in recent sessions, three names of notable interest this afternoon are Sprint Nextel Corporation (NYSE:S), American International Group Inc (NYSE:AIG), and The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG). Here is a quick look at today's interesting activity in these options pits.

Sprint Nextel Corporation's (NYSE:S) $7 mark has been a popular target of option players recently, and in today's session, traders are betting on a quick retreat south of this level. A healthy portion of the 4,621 June 7 puts that have traded have done so at the ask price, implied volatility has jumped 5.4 percentage points, and data from the International Securities Exchange (ISE) confirms that a number of positions have been bought to open. The volume-weighted average price (VWAP) for the out-of-the-money (OTM) calls is $0.05, meaning traders will begin to profit with each step south of $6.55 (strike price less VWAP) S takes through this Friday's close. S is presently priced at $7.25 and has not traded south of $7 on an intraday basis since April 15. Should the equity fail to breach the strike price, the most today's speculators have risked is the modest premium paid. Fundamentally, the company has scheduled a special shareholders' meeting for June 25 to vote on SoftBank's proposed $21.6 billion bid.

American International Group Inc (NYSE:AIG) has recently met its technical match near $45.50, prompting some speculators today to bet on a continued battle with this overhead level, at least in the short term. Of the 2,232 June 45.50 calls that have been exchanged, 63% have gone off at the bid price, and implied volatility is on the rise -- two indications of sell-to-open activity. Ideally, AIG will finish the week south of this mark, allowing the OTM calls to expire worthless, and the traders to retain the initial credit collected. According to Trade-Alert, the VWAP for the calls is $0.60. With AIG churning in the $43-$46 range since early May -- the stock is currently perched at $45.39 -- this could also be part of a larger covered-call strategy, in which shareholders are looking to increase their rate of return. Widening the scope reveals that using options as a hedge has been a popular strategy on AIG in recent weeks.

Puts are popular in The Procter & Gamble Company's (NYSE:PG) options pits today, although the stock has tacked on 1.6% to trade at $79.25. One of the more active strikes is PG's June 77.50 put, where 1,938 contracts have traded for a VWAP of $0.22. The vast majority of these positions have traded at the ask price, and implied volatility is up 4.3 percentage points, hinting at the initiation of new positions. Based on the VWAP, speculators will begin to profit with each notch south of $77.28 PG takes through week's end. Delta for the put is docked at negative 0.17, indicating a 17% chance the position will make its way into the money ahead of expiration. Today's penchant for puts only highlights the withstanding trend, as evidenced by data from the ISE, Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX). During the course of the past 10 sessions, traders at these exchanges have bought to open more than two puts for every call. What's more, the resultant put/call volume ratio of 2.35 ranks higher than 86% of similar readings taken in the past year, pointing to a bearishly skewed bias in PG's options pits.

The 20 stocks below have attracted the highest options volume -- in the front three-months' series -- during the past 10 trading days. The companies highlighted are those that are new to the list since the last time the study was run. Data is courtesy of Schaeffer's Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White.

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The Kroger Co. (NYSE:KR) is trending higher in parity with the broader market today, touching a new all-time high of $35.45 just before noon. As such, around 7,800 calls have changed hands thus far -- more than eight times the norm, and about 25 times the number of puts traded. A handful of these bulls are hoping the grocery chain will continue climbing north of the $35 level, while a group of longer-term call players are betting on even loftier new highs for KR.

Diving right in, the July 35 call has received the most attention, with 5,164 contracts crossing the tape at a volume-weighted average price (VWAP) of $1.28. The vast majority were exchanged at the ask price, suggesting they were bought. Since this strike holds open interest of just 671 contracts -- and implied volatility was last seen 1.8 percentage points higher -- it's likely that new positions are being added here. In other words, speculators are counting on KR to ascend past the $36.28 mark (strike price plus the VWAP) by back-month expiration. The delta for these options sits at 0.55, meaning they have a 55% chance of finishing in the money.

Also on the options radar is the October 37 call, which has seen 1,080 contracts trade during the course of the session -- almost all of them at the ask price, pointing to buyer-driven activity. Again, today's volume has surpassed current open interest levels, and implied volatility has ticked up since the opening bell, making it safe to assume that new bullish bets were established here, as well. In this case, however, traders will profit if KR conquers the breakeven level of $38.20 (strike price plus the VWAP of $1.20) by the close on Oct. 18. This represents an increase of 8.3% over the equity's present perch at $35.27.

This surge in call volume is a deviation from the stock's recent trend in the options pits. Data from the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) shows a 50-day put/call volume ratio of 1.15, indicating puts bought to open have outweighed calls during the past 10 weeks. This ratio ranks higher than 66% of similar annual readings, denoting a stronger-than-usual preference for puts over calls in recent months. An unwinding of these bearish bets -- particularly at the underfoot June 33 strike, which holds peak put open interest of almost 5,400 contracts -- could end up translating into options-related support as front-month expiration draws closer.

Technically, The Kroger Co. has gained nearly 36% year-to-date, and more than 54% on a year-over-year basis. On the charts, the stock continues to trade north of its 10-week moving average, which has served as a nearly impenetrable layer of support since last August.

It also bears mentioning that the grocer is on tap to reveal quarterly earnings ahead of the open this Thursday. Analysts are expecting a profit of 88 cents per share.

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Groupon Inc (NASDAQ:GRPN) shares are on pace to notch a year-to-date closing high, up 1.1% at $7.73. Nevertheless, puts are the options of choice today, with roughly 22,000 contracts exchanged -- more than double the norm. Most notably, traders are circling the out-of-the-money July 6 put, either to bet bearishly or to protect a long stock position.

More than 8,600 July 6 puts have crossed the tape thus far -- 99% at the ask price, suggesting they were bought. Plus, implied volatility is trending notably higher, hinting at fresh initiations.

By purchasing the puts at a volume-weighted average price (VWAP) of $0.08, the bears will make money if GRPN breaches $5.92 (strike price minus VWAP) by July 19, when the options expire. From current levels, this represents expected downside of 23%. Risk, on the other hand, is capped at the initial premium paid for the puts.

As alluded to earlier, the put buyers could be GRPN bulls in disguise. Assuming the traders own shares of Groupon Inc, their primary goal remains for the stock to extend its long-term uptrend. The protective puts simply lock in an acceptable price at which to unload their stake -- $6 apiece -- should GRPN take a turn for the worse in the short term. In other words, the puts could be options "insurance."

Technically speaking, GRPN has advanced more than 59% in 2013, ushered higher atop its 10-week and 20-week moving averages. Despite all that, puts have been picked up at a faster-than-usual clip during the past two weeks on the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), as the stock's 10-day put/call volume ratio of 0.67 ranks in the 78th percentile of its annual range. Likewise, just two out of 23 analysts deem GRPN worthy of a "buy" or better endorsement.

Should the bearish holdouts hit the exits, an unwinding of pessimism in the options pits, or a round of bullish brokerage notes, could translate into a contrarian boon for Groupon.

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Although Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) hit its highest perch since July 2010 today, put volume has accelerated. At last check, roughly 23,000 puts have crossed the tape, representing a 13% mark-up to their average intraday volume. Bearish option traders are targeting the June 24.50 put, where 5,200 contracts have traded for a volume-weighted average price (VWAP) of $0.17. The majority of these out-of-the-money puts have gone off on the ask side, implied volatility has surged 5.6 percentage points, and only 313 contracts make up open interest here, pointing to buy-to-open activity.

By purchasing these puts, traders expect CSCO to retreat south of the $24.50 mark by Friday's close, when front-month options expire. More specifically, the puts will become profitable with each step below $24.33 (strike less VWAP) the stock takes. This breakeven mark represents expected downside of 2% from the stock's current price of $24.83. Delta for the option is docked at negative 0.32, or 32%, meaning for every dollar CSCO sheds ahead of expiration, the put will gain $0.32. Conversely, for every dollar CSCO adds, the put will lose $0.32.

Widening the scope reveals a healthier-than-usual appetite for long puts of late. At the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), the equity's 10-day put/call volume ratio of 0.98 ranks in the 99th percentile of its annual range. In simpler terms, puts have been bought to open over calls at a quicker pace just 1% of the time within the last year.

This bearishly skewed bias is a bit surprising given CSCO's impressive technical showing. Year-to-date, the stock is up nearly 27%, while a longer-term view shows that Cisco Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:CSCO) has advanced 45.5% throughout the past 52 weeks.

In light of this positive price action, the uptick in put volume could simply represent shareholders picking up the contracts to protect their portfolio. In fact, using options to cushion the blow of a potential pullback has been a common occurrence among Cisco Systems investors in recent weeks.

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The shares of DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. (NASDAQ:DWA) are up 4.8% at $23.91, after earlier tagging a two-year high of $24.75. In the wake of the company's deal with Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX), option bulls are having a field day, with DWA calls flying off the shelves at 51 times the normal rate.

More specifically, DWA has seen close to 2,100 calls change hands, compared to its average intraday volume of about 40 calls. Garnering the most attention has been the July 25 call, which has seen nearly 1,200 contracts cross the tape on open interest of fewer than 500 contracts, pointing to a heap of new positions. Plus, 83% of the calls traded on the ask side, suggesting they were bought.

By purchasing the calls at a volume-weighted average price (VWAP) of $0.60, the buyers will begin to profit if DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. conquers $25.60 (strike price plus VWAP) by July 19, when soon-to-be front-month options expire. Should the equity take a breather from its rally and remain beneath the $25 level, the most the buyers can lose is the initial premium paid for the calls.

Prior to today, the sentiment surrounding DWA was decisively bearish. Just two out of 12 analysts deemed the stock worthy of a "buy" or better rating, and the equity's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 1.74 sat just 5 percentage points from an annual pessimistic peak. Plus, short interest accounts for 30% of DWA's total available float, representing nearly 36 sessions' worth of pent-up buying demand, at the stock's average pace of trading.

An unwinding of skepticism on the Street could add contrarian fuel to DWA's fire.

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