Stocks are on the rise ahead of the early close today for U.S. markets. Three names making notable moves in the abbreviated session are coffee giant Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX), burger chain Shake Shack Inc (NYSE:SHAK), and gold miner Barrick Gold Corp (NYSE:GOLD). Here's how the shares of SBUX, SHAK, and GOLD are trading.

Stifel Note Sparks Another High for SBUX

SBUX shares are trading at fresh record highs today thanks to yet another bull note. Stifel lifted its price target to $86 from $65, predicting strong same-store sales growth going forward. Starbucks stock was last seen trading up 2.4%, right near the all-time peak of $87.57 it just tagged. It's been in an almost nonstop uptrend during the past year, adding close to 80% in the past 12 months. In the options pits today, new positions are opening at the weekly 7/5 86- and 87-strike puts.

Option Bulls Target SHAK

Stifel also weighed in on SHAK stock, upping its price target by $10 to $60 -- though this is still well below today's trading price of $71.72. The shares hit an annual high of $73.11 on Monday, and have gained 58% year-to-date. Options traders have been betting bullishly in the meantime, with Shake Shack's 10-day call/put volume ratio at the

International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) coming in at 3.83. This reading ranks in the 93rd annual percentile, showing a stronger-than-usual demand for long calls over puts recently.

BMO Upgrades Rating on Barrick Gold Stock

GOLD shares are trading up 1.1% at $15.77, after BMO upgraded its opinion to "outperform" from "market perform," and moved its price target up to $20 from $14.50. Barrick hit a 52-week high of $16.45 on June 25, and sports a solid gain of 11% in 2019. Those wishing to speculate either way with options should know that the equity's Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) of 27% ranks in the low 4th annual percentile, meaning near-term premiums appear muted at the moment.

The first full trading week of July will be relatively quiet on the earnings front, but there's plenty of action on the economic side. In addition to a pair of inflation updates, several central bank speakers -- including repeat performances from Fed Chair Jerome Powell -- and the Federal Open Market Committee's (FOMC) June meeting minutes will be in focus, as traders look for support for a potential July rate cut.

Below is a brief list of some key market events scheduled for the upcoming week. All earnings dates listed below are tentative and subject to change. Please check with each company's respective website for official reporting dates.

There are no notable economic reports slated for Monday, July 8. The earnings calendar is also bare.

The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) is due on Tuesday, July 9, while speeches from Fed Chair Jerome Powell, St. Louis Fed President James Bullard, and Fed Vice Chair Randal Quarles will also be in focus. PepsiCo (PEP) will report earnings.

The Fed will be front and center on Wednesday, July 10, with Powell and Bullard taking the stage again, and the minutes from the latest FOMC meeting expected mid-afternoon. The weekly crude inventories report will also be released. AngioDynamics (ANGO) and Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY) will step into the earnings confessional.

Thursday, July 11, brings the consumer price index (CPI) weekly jobless claims, and the Treasury budget are on tap, as is a speech from New York Fed President John Williams. Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari will take the mic after the close. Earnings from Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Fastenal (FAST) are due.

The producer price index (PPI) will be unveiled on Friday, July 12. Infosys (INFY) earnings will be released.

It's set to be a quiet day on Wall Street following the Fourth of July holiday, but a handful of stocks are making big moves in early action, including Swedish drugmaker Oasmia Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ:OASM), French biopharmaceutical name DBV  Technologies (NASDAQ:DBVT), and Tesla rival Nio Inc (NYSE:NIO). Here's a quick look at what's moving the shares of OASM, DBVT, and NIO.

Oasmia Pharmaceutical Climbs on Shareholder Buzz

Oasmia Pharmaceutical shares are up 52.9% in electronic trading, after the company's largest shareholder, Arwidsro, increased its stake in OASM. The penny stock has been charting a path lower since its mid-November peak north of $5, and hit a 17-month low of $0.94 on June 28. Today's pre-market pop puts the OASM on track to close above its 120-week moving average for the first time since mid-May.

DBV Technologies Spike Could Shock Shorts

DBV Technologies stock is set to open up 17.6%, though it's not entirely clear at this point what's lifting the shares. DBVT has been chopping higher since its late-December low of $3.60, and closed Wednesday below familiar resistance at the round $10 mark.

The shares seem poised to break out into double digits today, though, which could shake some of the weaker bearish hands loose. Short interest on DBVT spiked 23.8% in the two most recent reporting periods to 4.11 million shares, representing a healthy 9% of the security's available float.

Nio Stock Eyes Best Week Ever

Nio stock is trading 4.2% higher ahead of the bell, as buzz swirls over the Chinese electric automaker's potential entry into the European marketplace. Whatever the reason, the security is poised to build on Wednesday's nearly 11% gain to close at $3.13, boosted by upbeat Tesla (TSLA) news.

NIO could be on track for its biggest weekly gain ever, and options traders may be cheering. Over the past 10 days at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), speculators have bought to open 4.48 Nio calls for each put.

The shares of Karyopharm Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:KPTI) are up 15.9% to trade at $10.31 today, as analysts react to Wednesday's news that the company won accelerated approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Xpovio, their treatment for blood cancer.

No fewer than six brokerages have hiked their price targets since the approval, the highest coming from H.C. Wainwright to $32 from $29. The analyst at RBC said the approval "bodes well for the drug's label expansion into a broader population." 

What a week it's been for Karyopharm stock -- on track for its best since June 2014 --  gapping higher 15.6% on Tuesday, and 36% on Wednesday after the FDA approval broke. Wednesday's surge put the shares above their 200-day moving average on a closing basis for the first time since October. And while KPTI has toppled its year-to-date breakeven point today, it is still staring at a 45% year-over-year deficit.

A short squeeze could power more gains. Short interest increased by 34% in the two most recent reporting periods to a record high 8.96 million shares. This accounts for 19% of KTPI's total available float, and almost two weeks' worth of pent-up buying power, at the stock's average pace of trading.  

On the options front, calls look to be extremely popular among traders. This is per data from the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), which shows KPTI sporting a 10-day call/put volume ratio of 3.74. Given the amount of short interest tied up into the stock, it's possible some of this call buying could be shorts hedging against any additional upside.

Shares of online powerhouse Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) are down 0.5% at $1,928.63. Pressuring the stock is news a British competition regulator sent an initial enforcement order to Amazon, requiring it to pause its minority investment in U.K.-based mobile delivery service Deliveroo on concerns the two companies have "ceased to be distinct." In a statement, Amazon said the investment would "enable Deliveroo to expand its services, benefiting consumers through increased choice and creating new jobs as more restaurants gain access to the service."

Today's pullback is only a minor dent in the FAANG stock's long-term uptrend. Specifically, Amazon stock has added 29% year-to-date, with its rising 10-day moving average containing its recent-but-brief bout of choppiness. A bounce off this trendline from earlier this week has AMZN within striking distance of its 2019 high of $1,964.40 from early May.

While they have yet to react to today's news, analysts have not been shy about their optimism surrounding AMZN. An overwhelming 27 of 28 covering firms sport a "buy" or "strong buy" rating on the stock, with not a single "sell" on the books. Plus, the equity's average 12-month price target of $2,246.89 comes in 16.5% above current levels. 

Amazon options are looking to be attractively priced, too. This is per the stock's Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) of 17%, which stands in the 1st percentile of its annual range, suggesting short-term options are pricing in relatively low volatility expectations at the moment.

There's not a lot of buzz on Wall Street today following the Fourth of July holiday on Thursday, but automakers General Motors Company (NYSE:GM) and Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) have grabbed some headlines. Data showed the companies posted another quarterly decline in sales in China amid the U.S.-China trade dispute. This news has the shares of GM and F in the red in early trading.

GM is trading down 0.8% at $37.86, extending its volatile run on the charts in recent months. After the $40 area served as a ceiling for the equity from January through April, the shares fell to an early July bottom around $33 -- but have quickly battled back. Right now, they're trading just above the 100-day moving average.

In the meantime, call buying has remained popular at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), where 1.71 long calls have crossed for every put in the past 10 days. Volatility expectations appears muted at the moment, too, based on the Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) of 19%, which ranks in the low 8th annual percentile.

Ford stock is trading 0.8% lower at $10.10, though it's holding above recent support at the 50-day moving average and around $10 mark. The shares sport a year-to-date gain of 33%. As for options data, call buying has also been popular on Ford, with the 10-day call/put volume ratio at the ISE, CBOE, and PHLX coming in at 2.88, good enough to rank in the top quartile of its annual range. Plus, F's SVI of 21% also ranks in the 8th annual percentile.

Gold futures are trading lower today as the U.S. dollar strengthens following this morning's jobs report, putting the August-dated contract on track to snap its two-week win streak. However, the commodity tagged a five-year peak on Wednesday, and the recent run up in gold has boosted several mining stocks, including AngloGold Ashanti Limited (NYSE:AU), Gold Fields Limited (NYSE:GFI), and Harmony Gold Mining Co. (NYSE:HMY) -- all of which received price-target hikes at J.P. Morgan Securities overnight.

Overbought AngloGold Ashanti Retreats After Bull Note

The brokerage firm boosted its AngloGold Ashanti price target to $22.90 from $16.50, representing expected upside of 28.7% to Wednesday's close at $17.79. J.P. Morgan Securities also tapped AU as one of its top gold picks. Nevertheless, the shares are trading down 3.6% at $17.15 today.

Heading into today's trading, AU stock was up nearly 58% from its mid-May lows near $11.30, and hit a two-year peak at $18.01 on June 28. As such, the security's 14-day Relative Strength Index (RSI) closed at 71 on Wednesday, in overbought territory at 71, suggesting a short-term pullback may have been in the cards.

Most analysts are already bullish on AngloGold Ashanti, with three of five brokerages maintaining a "buy" or better rating. However, the average 12-month price target of $17.28 is in line with current levels, meaning there's room for more upwardly revised price targets to come down the pike.

Gold Fields Stock Finds Support

J.P. Morgan Securities lifted its price target on Gold Fields to $5.50 from $4.20, a slim 6.2% premium to Wednesday's settlement  at $5.18. Today, the shares are down 3.6% at $4.99, but remain 47.2% higher on a year-to-date basis. And while GFI stock has shed 13.2% from its June 25 two-year high at $5.75, its 30-day moving average is emerging as potential support.

Analysts are overwhelmingly bearish on GFI shares, though, with all four in coverage calling the stock a "hold" or worse. Meanwhile, the consensus 12-month price target of $5 is a slight discount to Gold Fields stock's current price.

Analysts See New Highs for Harmony Gold Mining

Harmony Gold Mining was also named as one of J.P. Morgan Securities' top gold picks, with the brokerage firm raising its price target on the shares to $3.80 from $1.80 -- a nearly 69% premium to Wednesday's close at $2.25. Sector headwinds have HMY shares down 2% today at $2.20, but they remain 25.7% higher year-to-date.

The shares tapped an annual high of $2.31 on June 25, and the brokerage bunch sees higher highs for the gold stock. Specifically, the average 12-month price target for HMY is $2.57, in territory not charted since April 2017. Meanwhile, two-thirds of covering analysts say the equity is a "strong buy."

Mining concern Freeport-McMoRan Inc (NYSE:FCX) is edging lower today, along with other sector peers, as copper prices come under pressure. The equity is down 0.2% at $11.28, and earlier slipped beneath the $11 region, which it has been testing in recent weeks.

Looking more broadly, the equity has been attempting a bounce off its two-year low of $9.47 from May, but was met with stiff resistance at its 180-day moving average. Still, the stock boasts a 9.5% year-to-date gain.

In the options pits, traders have been speculating on more downside for FCX. The security currently sports a 50-day put/call volume ratio of 0.35 on the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) that sits in the 98th percentile of its annual range. This suggests that options players have had a healthier-than-usual appetite for puts of late. 

The brokerage bunch has echoed this bearish sentiment, with seven "hold" or worse ratings on the table, compared to only four "strong buy" ratings. The consensus 12-month target price, however, is at a 27.4% premium to current levels, which could make FCX prone to price-target cuts, should some of this negative action hold on the charts.

Should investors choose to speculate on Freeport-McMoRan's next move, options are attractively priced right now. The stock's Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) of 33% sits near a 52-week low. This means near-term options traders are pricing in relatively low volatility expectations. 

Stocks are in the red today in a quiet post-holiday session. Two names making notable moves are video game producer Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:EA) and clinical-stage cancer therapeutics specialist Tyme Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:TYME). Below we'll take a quick look at how the shares of EA and TYME are trading.

More Headwinds Hit EA Stock

EA stock is down 4.5% today at $93.71, setting it up for its worst day in months, seemingly due to concerns surrounding the company's latest update to "Apex Legends" (paywall). This move puts the shares back below the 200-day moving average, as they also were hit with sharp losses on Wednesday. Options activity has picked up in the meantime, with new positions opening at the weekly 7/12 90-strike put and 93-strike call. Today's price action could be bad news for a number of other options traders, since peak open interest of almost 12,000 contracts sits at the July 100 call.

Drug Data Sends TYME Stock Higher

TYME shares, meanwhile, have jumped 22.9% to $1.50, as the penny stock soars thanks to positive data for the company's pancreatic cancer treatment. The equity came into 2019 trading just below $4, so it still has a long ways to go to make up its year-to-date deficits, but it is on pace to close atop its 50-day moving average for the first time since February. Also, analysts are bullish on Tyme Technologies, with all three in coverage handing out "buy" and "strong buy" recommendations, while the average 12-month price target of $8.50 represents territory not seen in almost two years.

It was a solid week for stocks, with the Fourth of July holiday offering an abbreviated start to the new month. The Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq used early-week trade truce momentum to nab weekly wins, surging to record-high closes on Wednesday before the holiday break on Thursday.

Trade tensions remain a major market catalyst; even after the U.S. and China struck a trade truce, President Donald Trump kept investors on edge after threatening additional import duties against the European Union. Wall Street took a breather to close the week out though, as an encouraging jobs report doused cold water on the prospects of a 50-basis point interest rate cut. 

Chip & Tech Stocks Ride Trade Tailwinds

The semiconductor sector was red-hot early in the week thanks to trade tailwinds, as Trump signaled easing restrictions on the Huawei ban. This meant frenzied options trading for Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and Micron (MU). And in the wider tech world, Roku (ROKU) picked up a downgrade, 3D Systems (DDD) sounded a bearish alarm, and Symantec (SYMC) soared on a possible Broadcom buyout. 

Big Week For Medical Stocks

Several drug and healthcare stocks made big moves on the charts this week. Biogen (BIIB) got back some encouraging data on its spinal muscular dystrophy drug. One analysts expects political headwinds to blow over for this hospital stock, while Merck (MRK) picked up another bull note. Lastly, this cardiovascular disease specialist is toying with a key trendline. 

Emerging Markets, Autos in Play

Options bulls have been targeting the emerging markets ETF on trade headlines, while surging gold prices resulted in boosted price-targets for gold stocks. And over in the auto sector, Tesla (TSLA) announced some big delivery news that had the stock popping earlier in the week, while Detroit auto stocks were in focus after a China sales update.

Fed Minutes Ahead Next Week

Next week will have a decidedly Fed-themed flavor to it, with the minutes from last month's meeting set for release, along with speeches from Chair Jerome Powell. And looking even further ahead, there's reason to believe stocks could have another big six months coming up -- with one possible catch from this rare VIX signal in the short term. 

Rosenblatt Securities downgraded Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) to "sell" from "neutral," saying "there is less reward for owning Apple stock," following its recent buyback-related boost. And while it doesn't think the equity is "a short," it does see "fundamental deterioration" in the iPhone maker over the next year. The brokerage firm maintained its $150 AAPL price target, a 26% discount to last Friday's close at $204.23.

This marks a rare bear note for the tech titan. Prior to today, 14 analysts maintained a "buy" or better rating on Apple, compared to 13 "holds," and not a single "sell." Plus, the average 12-month price target of $212.03 sits in territory not charted since early May.

Skepticism toward AAPL is growing in other corners of the Street, too, though. At the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), the stock's 10-day put/call volume ratio of 0.78 ranks in the 92nd annual percentile. So while calls have outnumbered puts on an absolute basis, the rate of put buying relative to call buying has been accelerated.

Drilling down, the July 185 put is home to peak front-month open interest on Apple stock, with nearly 58,000 contracts outstanding. Data from the major options exchanges confirms significant buy-to-open activity here, indicating options traders are bracing for a swift move below $185.

Apple shares were trading south of here as recently as early June, just as they were starting to recover from their June 3 intraday low of $170.27. Since hitting this short-term bottom, AAPL is up 20% -- brushing off recent headwinds related to Sir Jony Ive's exit. The equity looks set to pare some of these gains today, though, down 1.6% ahead of the bell.

J.P. Morgan Securities upgraded its view on industrial stocks Johnson Controls International PLC (NYSE:JCI) and Lennox International Inc. (NYSE:LII). Let's take a brief look at how the brokerage firm is viewing the shares of JCI and LII.

For JCI, the covering analyst Stephen Tusa, more known for his General Electric commentary, raised his rating to "neutral" from "underweight," while also lifting his price target to $35 from $31. Despite this seemingly bullish view, Tusa added that he and his colleagues are somewhat skeptical that organic growth can remain strong for the company.

To be sure, the skeptical outlook is the norm for the equity, as many on Wall Street are bearish on the outperformer. Most analysts have "hold" or worse recommendations right now, and put buying has remained more popular than call buying in recent weeks at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX).

But the security is up over 41% in 2019, currently trading right near two-year-high territory, last quoted at $41.87. As such, Johnson Controls stock could benefit from an unwinding of bearishness.

LII shares were hit with a downgrade from J.P. Morgan Securities, however, dropped to "underweight" from "neutral." Like its sector peer JCI, the stock has been strong in 2019, adding 31.6% this year to trade at $288.05, and hitting an all-time high of $288.86 on July 3.

Amazingly, just two of the 15 covering analysts recommend buying Lennox International, with three of them handing out "strong sell" ratings. Also, the average 12-month price target of $251.36 sits well below current trading levels.

And despite very limited activity in the options pits, those who have picked up LII options have been decidedly put-skewed. For instance, the security's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) comes in at 3.22, which ranks in the 94th annual percentile.