Buzz Stocks: Tesla Motors Inc, Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc, and Baxalta Inc

Today's stocks to watch include Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA), Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc (NYSE:VRX), and Baxalta Inc (NYSE:BXLT)

Josh Selway

Jan 4, 2016 at 9:36 AM

Futures are signaling a rocky start to 2016, after stocks in China were halted. Among the equities in focus are electric automaker Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA), as well as drugmakers Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc (NYSE:VRX) and Baxalta Inc (NYSE:BXLT).

TSLA has officially announced that it met its current-quarter delivery goal, albeit barely. The electric car company delivered roughly 17,400 cars over the previous three month, but said it delivered only 208 Model X cars. The shares are down 3.8% at $230.87, and option bulls could be feeling the pressure. For instance, Tesla Motors Inc's 10-day call/put volume ratio at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) comes in at an annual high of 1.66, meaning call buying has been much more popular than normal lately. TSLA closed 7.9% higher for 2015.

VRX is 2.5% lower at $99.07, after activist investor Bill Ackman disclosed he sold about 5 million of the company's shares, with the goal of generating a tax loss for those investing in his firm, Pershing Square Capital Management. Valeant Pharmaceuticals Intl Inc took a hit last week on unfortunate news from the C-suite, ending 2015 15.5% lower. More trouble could be in store for VRX if analysts shift from their bullish stances. Specifically, nine out of 14 covering brokerage firms call the shares a "buy" or better, and there's not one "sell" rating to be found across the Street.

BXLT is bucking the broad-market drop, up 3.3% at $40.31, following news of a collaboration with private biopharmaceutical company Symphogen. In addition, Shire PLC (NYSE:SHPG) is reportedly close to offering up to $48 per share for BXLT. The stock has been strong recently, outpacing the S&P 500 Index (SPX) by over 23 percentage points during the past three months. It's not a surprise, then, to see option traders position themselves so bullishly. Nearly four Baxalta Inc calls have been bought to open for each put over the past two weeks at the ISE, CBOE, and PHLX.

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