Middle East tensions are driving oil prices higher
It's a record-setting session on Wall Street, with the S&P 500 Index (SPX) running to a new record intraday high this morning, as stocks continue to react to Wednesday's dovish Fed comments. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) is surging, too, coming within 190 points of its Oct. 3 all-time peak earlier, while the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) is also comfortably higher at midday.
Oil prices are rallying, too, after Iran shot down a U.S. drone near the Strait of Hormuz -- a move that drew a "very big mistake" tweet from President Donald Trump. At last check, crude for July delivery was up 5.4% at $56.64 per barrel.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- A record-setting sales event puts Alibaba shorts on notice.
- Why Goldman slashed its Tesla price target.
- Plus, Newmont call options pop as gold prices climb; another hot new stock on Wall Street; and the biotech that's more than doubled today.
Newmont Goldcorp Corp (NYSE:NEM) is seeing interesting options activity today, with 20,000 calls and 6,500 puts exchanged -- four times what's typically seen at this point. NEM stock is up 3.7% at $37.69, fresh off a 13-month peak at $38.47, as gold prices pop on rate-cut chatter. Some options traders are targeting even more upside for the mining shares, with buy-to-open activity detected at the weekly 6/28 39-strike call.
Tufin Software Technologies Ltd (NYSE:TUFN) is near the top of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) today, up 18% at $26.18, earlier hitting a record high of $27.20. The Israel-based cybersecurity name priced its initial public offering (IPO) at $14 per share in mid-April, and opened for trading at $18.05 on April 11.
Edesa Biotech Inc (NASDAQ:EDSA) is one of the best Nasdaq stocks at midday, after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a mid-stage trial for the company's contact dermititis topical treatment, EB01. EDSA stock is up 119.2% at $9.27, but is running into familiar resistance at its 320-day moving average.
