Pfizer and BioNTech's vaccine data has stocks soaring
After a busy weekend that saw Vice President Joe Biden named president-elect of the United States, stocks are building off of last week's impressive gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) and S&P 500 (SPX) opened at new record highs after Pfizer (PFE) and BioNTech's (BNTX) announcement that their COVID-19 vaccine candidate is more than 90% effective. The blue-chip index is currently up over 1,100 points as "reopening" stocks surge, and is on track for its best single-session gain since March 26.
The Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) is trading higher as well, though bigger gains may have been pared by the underperforming "stay-at-home" stocks such as Netflix (NFLX) and Amazon (AMZN). With the Senate party majority undecided until Georgia's two runoff races in January, investors still have reason to stay politically minded, though President Donald Trump's failure to concede the election has done little to sway the market's positive sentiment today. Elsewhere, Wall Street's "fear gauge," the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX), is heading toward its sixth-straight loss and lowest close since Aug. 25.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- Check out this homebuilder stock's earnings history ahead of tomorrow's report.
- F5 Networks stock jumps on investment buzz.
- Plus, movie theater stock boosted by vaccine news; biotech stock soars on trial results; and BIIB plummets after FDA rejection.
One stock seeing notable options activity on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) today is AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc (NYSE:AMC), up 44.6% at $3.60 at last check. The stock received a price-target cut from Citigroup to $2 from $3, however, today's vaccine news has this post-pandemic stock booming, but running out of steam below their 80- and 100-day moving averages. So far today, 63,000 calls and 41,000 puts have crossed the tape -- seven times what's typically seen at this point. Most popular is the November 3 put, followed by the weekly 11/13 4-strike put, with new positions being opened at both.
Meanwhile, Aptevo Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:APVO) is up a whopping 99% at $45.24 at last check, after the company's second complete remission in its ongoing Apvo436 clinical trial, which targets acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS). Now up 382% year-to-date, APVO earlier hit a two-year high of $60.
Elsewhere, Biogen Inc (NASDAQ:BIIB) is down 28.5% at $235.17 after a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) panel voted against the company's Alzheimer's drug. Furthermore, no fewer than six analysts cut their price targets, including Mizuho down to $244 from $282. Plummeting to a fresh two-year low, BIIB is down 21.1% year-to-date.