The DJIA has added triple digits, as oil prices and energy stocks soar
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) boomed to a triple-digit lead shortly after the open -- erasing last week's losses to edge back into positive fourth-quarter territory -- as trader continue to digest last night's presidential debate. Energy stocks are among the day's biggest gainers so far, as oil prices fly higher. Specifically, November-dated crude futures have added 2.9% to trade at $51.25 per barrel -- nearing a 2016 intraday high -- after Russian President Vladimir Putin said his country is prepared to join the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in cutting crude production. Additionally, Saudi Arabia's energy minister said it wasn't "unthinkable" for crude oil prices to hit $60 per barrel this year.
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Drugmaker Bristol-Myers Squibb Co (NYSE:BMY) is among the stocks with unusual options volume at midday. The stock has shed 9.5% to $50.15 -- earlier tapping a fresh two-year low of $49.88 -- following a bearish brokerage note and contrasting drug results with rival Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK). But BMY calls are trading at six times their typical intraday rate. Leading the action is the November 52.50 call, where more than 12,000 contracts have traded and some buy-to-open activity has been confirmed. Buyers of the call expect BMY to bounce back above the $52.50 level by Friday, Nov. 18, when the back-month option expires.
Among the top performer on the Nasdaq so far today is biotech issue Exelixis, Inc. (NASDAQ:EXEL). The stock has added 1.5% to $13.13, after results from a mid-stage trial of its kidney cancer drug outperformed a similar treatment from competitor Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE). Today's pop brings EXEL's year-to-date gains to a jaw-dropping 135%.
Social media stock Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR) is among the worst performers on the New York Stock Exchange, slipping 14.1% to $17.04, as rumors continue to swirl that major suitors will not be making a bid for the company. TWTR has now given back all of its buyout-related gains, and fallen below recent support at its 200-day moving average.
The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) is off 0.1 point, or 1%, at 13.35.
Today's put/call volume ratio on the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) is 1.72, with puts outnumbering calls. SPY was last seen up 1.4 points, or 0.7%, at $216.47.
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