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Crude and gold are following stocks higher
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (INDEXDJX:DJI) is sitting slightly higher today, and following two days of epic Fed-induced gains, is poised for its second best week in almost two years. Despite a lack of notable economic data, traders are looking ahead to an early afternoon speech from Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker. Elsewhere, the rally in U.S. equities is spilling over to the commodities market, with crude and gold both trading solidly north of breakeven around midday. Additionally, the former may be getting a boost from short covering ahead of expiration.
Continue reading for more on today's market -- and don't miss:
Among the stocks with notable call volume is athletic apparel giant Nike Inc (NYSE:NKE), with the contracts trading at six times their typical intraday pace. On the charts, the shares are off nearly 4% at $93.32, as the company's global future orders update is spooking traders. As such, it appears option speculators are selling to close the January 2015 95-strike call, which is NKE's most active option.
For more midday statistics and stocks on the move, head to page 2.
Linux designer Red Hat Inc (NYSE:RHT) is one of the Big Board's major advancers -- up 11.4% at $68.52, following an earnings beat and subsequent round of bullish brokerage notes. More notable still, the shares hit a 14-year high of $70.13 out of the gate.
Therapeutics firm ImmunoGen, Inc. (NASDAQ:IMGN) is the Nasdaq's biggest loser, tumbling around 44% to $6.09 after its breast cancer drug failed a late-stage trial. The shares earlier bottomed at $5.36 -- their lowest level since September 2010. Meanwhile, Cowen and Company responded to the news by slashing its price target to $5.25 from $8.50, while reiterating its "market perform" rating.
The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) is off 0.4 point, or 2.4%, at 16.41, but earlier bounced off its 50-day moving average -- which roughly corresponds with the supportive 16 level.
Today's put/call volume ratio on the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) is 1.61, with puts outstripping calls by a healthy margin. At last check, SPY is up 0.6 point, or 0.3%, at $206.21.