Option traders are showing a bullish bias toward Hancock Holding Co. (HBHC). The implied volatility level for HBHC calls is at 32.23, while the implied volatility level for HBHC puts is at 27.37---giving the stock a volatility skew of 1.18.

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Any time we see a volatility skew above 1.00---like we are seeing for HBHC---it is an indication that HBHC calls are more expensive than HBHC puts. Typically, when calls are more expensive than puts, it means the demand for calls is greater than the demand for puts because investors believe the stock is going to rise in the future and they want to take advantage of that movement by buying calls. The volatility skew for HBHC is especially compelling because a reading of 1.18 shows that option traders are pushing prices to the extremes.

Seeing that HBHC's volatility skew is showing a bullish bias, you may want to look at employing one of the following strategies:

- Buying a call

- Selling a naked put

- Buy a vertical call spread

If you are looking for other potential options trades that are similar to the ones you may be looking at on HBHC, you may want to look at a few of the other stocks in the Regional - Southeast Banks industry. Oftentimes, stocks within the same industry group are affected by the same fundamental factors and tend to move together. Republic Bancorp Inc. (RBCAA) and F.N.B. Corporation (FNB)---which are both part of the Regional - Southeast Banks industry---may also be interesting to look at.

Of course, the volatility skew for HBHC may only be showing a bullish bias due to forces that only affect this stock. In that case, you may want to look at doing a pairs trade---buying a call on one stock and buying a put on the other stock---between HBHC and RBCAA or between HBHC and FNB to hedge some of the risk you may take on by trading HBHC alone.

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