The FOMC announcement is expected at 2 p.m. ET
Stocks are modestly higher in afternoon trading as investors continue to await an expected Fed rate hike, with the central bank slated to emerge from its two-day policy meeting around 2 p.m. ET. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) is comfortably higher, as blue chip IBM (IBM) continues to outperform on the back of a rare analyst upgrade. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 Index (SPX) and Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) are also in the black, the latter benefiting from a lift in FAANG stocks.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
GoPro Inc (NASDAQ:GPRO) is sporting unusual options volume today, after Oppenheimer
upgraded the camera stock to "outperform" from "market perform." Currently 26,000 calls have crossed the tape -- 10 times the average intraday pace. Most active has been the soon-to-expire weekly 9/28 7- and 7.50-strike calls, with over 7,000 contracts traded combined -- and data pointing to buy-to-open activity. Today's bullish analyst attention and a fresh bounce off the supportive 80-day moving average have eased GPRO's year-to-date loss to 5%. At last glance, GPRO is up 7% at $7.08.
Jones Energy Inc (NYSE:JONE) is near the top of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) today, after Stifel hiked its price target six-fold, to $14 from $2. The firm said the hike reflects JONE's 1-for-20 reverse stock split, which went into effect on Sept. 10. Despite being last seen 5% higher at $7.34, JONE has been in a long-term downtrend since its 2016 highs. Further, the energy name has shed 66% year-to-date.
Tellurian Inc (NASDAQ:TELL) is one of the Nasdaq's worst performers today, after Cowen and Company downgraded the oil name to "market perform" from "outperform," and slashed its price target to $9 from $14. TELL has had a volatile year, most recently struggling to break above the $10 ceiling of resistance. The shares have fallen 24% over the past 12 months, and on the day are down 9% at $8.27, at last check.