The DJIA added more than 130 points at its intraday high
After soaring more than 130 points shortly after the open, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) has slightly pared its gains, even as oil prices continue to climb. Specifically, crude futures are rallying on reports that major producers may be nearing a deal to stabilize prices, as well as clashes in Libya that could disrupt exports. At last check, October-dated crude oil was up 2.4%, at $44.05 per barrel. Meanwhile, central banks remain in the spotlight, as stock traders looks ahead to this week's Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) and Bank of Japan (BoJ) policy meetings.
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Among the stocks with unusual options volume at midday is visual computing specialist NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA). The stock is up 2.3% at $64.30 today, after touching a new all-time high of $65.26 earlier, and both calls and puts are changing hands at double the expected intraday rate. Not everyone is in NVDA's bullish corner, however, and some option bears have a familiar target in mind. The most active option so far today is the October 50 put, where it looks like new positions are being bought to open. Buyers of the put are betting on NVDA sliding back below $50 -- last seen in early July -- before the front month option expires on Friday, Oct. 21.
The top performer on the Nasdaq at midday is biotech concern Sarepta Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:SRPT). The stock has surged 77.7% to $50.01 following long-awaited news the company's Duchenne muscular dystrophy treatment was granted accelerated approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The shares popped as much as 85.8% following the announcement, touching a fresh two-year high of $52.30 along the way.
Social media stock
Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) is among the worst performers on the Big Board so far today. The shares have shed 2.7% to $18.59 so far,
extending their year-over-year losses to 33%, following news the company is being sued for misleading investors with certain growth projection metrics. Meanwhile, TWTR users are sharing mixed reactions after the service sent out an emergency alert relating to the suspect in the New York City bombing early this morning.
The
CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) is down 0.4 point, or 2.3%, at 15.02.
Today's put/call volume ratio on the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) is 1.28, with puts outpacing calls. SPY was last seen up 1.1 points, or 0.5%, at $214.46.
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