Buzz Stocks: SUPERVALU INC., Bank of America Corp, and Omeros Corporation

Today's stocks to watch in the news include SUPERVALU INC. (NYSE:SVU), Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC), and Omeros Corporation (NASDAQ:OMER)

Oct 17, 2016 at 9:32 AM

U.S. stocks are down as traders prepare for earnings season to pick up steam. Among equities in focus today are grocery stock SUPERVALU INC. (NYSE:SVU), financial firm Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC), and biotech Omeros Corporation (NASDAQ:OMER).

SVU is up 3.2% at $5.17, after announcing the $1.37 billion sale of its Save-A-Lot business to private equity firm Onex Corp. Today's boost is a welcomed change of pace for SVU, which is still down over 23% since the beginning of the year, and has run out of steam several times in the $6.00-$6.20 range. In the option pits, SUPERVALU INC. sports a Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) OF 0.20, which sits in just the 12th percentile of its annual range, suggesting near-term option players have rarely been more call-skewed over the last 12 months.
BAC is trading 1% higher at $16.16, thanks to a well-received earnings report. Bank of America Corp shares have added 47% since their February low, and have spent the last several weeks near the $16 level, which has worked as a magnet for the shares. There's probably some option bears kicking rocks after BAC's earnings win, given BAC's 10-day put/call volume ratio at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) of 0.38 sits higher than 78% of all other readings, indicating traders have been more bearish than usual in BAC's option pits.
OMER is flying high, up 18.5% at $8.70, thanks to positive Phase 2 test results for its kidney disease drug. This is a much-needed win for the biotech, with Omeros Corporation hitting an annual low of $7.26 on Friday. There's likely some short sellers hitting the bricks after this latest move; even though OMER's short interest is down 3.3% over the last reporting period, shorted shares still account for nearly a quarter of OMER's float, which would take traders a whopping 37.5 days -- almost two months of trading -- to cover, at OMER's average daily volume.

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