Earnings Season Highlights

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A collection of noteworthy post-earnings reactions
Published on Jul 1, 2015 at 9:26 AM
Updated on Mar 19, 2021 at 7:15 AM
  • Analyst Downgrades

Analysts are weighing in today on java giant Starbucks Corporation (NASDAQ:SBUX), coal concern Peabody Energy Corporation (NYSE:BTU), and watch maker Fossil Group Inc (NASDAQ:FOSL). Here's a quick roundup of today's bearish brokerage notes on SBUX, BTU, and FOSL.

  • SBUX was removed from Goldman Sachs' "America's Conviction" list, despite its nearly 31% year-to-date lead. Also, at $53.62, the shares are approaching their record high of $54.75 from last Friday, helped by several bounces off their 20-day moving average. Amid Starbucks Corporation's uptrend, short selling has picked up -- spiking over 23% during the latest reporting period. A quick exit by these skeptics could further energize the technical outperformer.

  • Yesterday's current-quarter profit warning (subscription required) from BTU sank the shares 12.8%. That trend will likely continue today, with the stock down another 2.5% ahead of the bell following a price-target cut to $9 from $10 at Stifel. All told, it's been a brutal year for Peabody Energy Corporation, down nearly 72% in 2015 at $2.19. Nevertheless, six of 15 analysts still consider the shares worthy of a "buy" or better rating, with another six sitting on "hold" opinions. Plus, BTU's average 12-month price target of $6.90 is more than three times the current perch. This could pave the way for future downgrades and/or additional price-target reductions, resulting in headwinds.

  • Last night, KeyBanc cut its price target on FOSL to $65 from $68. The bearish note is warranted, considering the stock has tumbled 40% since its annual peak of $115.20 in November to trade at $69.36, and is now flirting with its two-year low of $68.55, touched in late May. Amid this downtrend, bears have been licking their chops. Fossil Group Inc's 10-day put/call volume ratio on the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) is 2.30 -- higher than nearly three-quarters of comparable readings from the past year. Also, over 24% of FOSL's float is sold short, equal to roughly 12 days of trading, given typical volumes.

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Published on Jul 1, 2015 at 9:29 AM
Updated on Mar 19, 2021 at 7:15 AM
  • Buzz Stocks

Futures are hinting at a sharply higher open, as optimism builds over a potential bailout agreement in Greece. Among specific equities in focus are insurance issue ACE Limited (NYSE:ACE), athletic apparel giant Nike Inc (NYSE:NKE), and freight equipment maker Greenbrier Companies Inc (NYSE:GBX).

  • Following yesterday's big M&A news in the insurance sector, shares of ACE are up 8% in electronic trading after the company said it will will buy Chubb Corp (NYSE:CB) in a cash-and-stock deal worth $28.3 billion. (CB, meanwhile, is poised to pop 33% out of the gate.) Heading into today's session, ACE was staring at an 11.5% year-to-date deficit, yet sentiment around the Street has been tilted toward the bullish side. For starters, just 1.1% of ACE Limited's float is sold short. Plus, 69% of covering analysts maintain a "buy" or better rating, and the consensus 12-month price target of $119.33 stands at a 17.4% premium to last night's close at $101.68 -- and in territory yet to be charted.

  • It's been a standout run for NKE, which has rallied more than 38% year-over-year to trade at $108.02 -- and is fresh off an earnings-induced record high of $110.34. It appears co-founder Phil Knight wants to go out on top, and last night said he will step down from the role of chairman. Knight has tapped President and CEO Mark Parker as his successor. Despite Nike Inc's success both on and off the charts, option traders have been bracing for a pullback. At the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), the stock's 50-day put/call volume ratio of 0.80 rests in the 90th percentile of its annual range. In other words, puts have been bought to open over calls at a near-annual-high clip.

  • Unlike its last turn in the earnings confessional, GBX's fiscal third-quarter profit fell short of analysts' estimate -- the first time this has happened in five quarters. The results have the shares about 1.4% lower ahead of the bell, and on pace to add to their nearly 13% year-to-date loss. Should Greenbrier Companies Inc continue to struggle, a round of downgrades and/or price-target cuts could be on the horizon. The majority of analysts covering the stock currently maintain a "strong buy" recommendation, while the consensus 12-month price target of $70.20 represents expected upside of 50% to Tuesday's settlement at $46.85.

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Published on Jul 1, 2015 at 10:07 AM
Updated on Mar 19, 2021 at 7:15 AM
  • By the Numbers
Heading into this week's trading, it had been 132 days since the last 90/90 down day signal on the Desmond volume/price indicator -- with Monday's flash marking the first one of 2015. In other words, the S&P 500 Index (SPX) saw panic selling in which downside volume equaled 90% or more of the total upside volume plus downside volume, and the number of points lost equaled 90% or more of the total points gained and lost.

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So, what could this mean for the SPX going forward? Schaeffer's Quantitative Analyst Chris Prybal ran the numbers, and it appears a 90/90 down day signal may be a bullish indicator. Specifically, in the 68 other times this signal has occurred since 2000, the S&P 500 Index has averaged a five-day gain of 1%, and is positive 62% of the time. Going out 63 days, this return widens to 5.9%, with the benchmark positive 79% of the time.

Compare this to the SPX anytime average five-day gain of 0.1%, with a 55% chance of a positive return. While this average improves over the 63-day period, it still only returns 1%, and is positive just 62% of the time.

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Published on Jul 1, 2015 at 10:48 AM
Updated on Mar 19, 2021 at 7:15 AM
  • Stocks On the Move
Casino stocks are on fire for the second day in a row, following news that Macau gaming revenue fell less than expected in June, and that the country relaxed visa requirements for visitors from mainland China. Among the names capitalizing on these developments are Las Vegas Sands Corp. (NYSE:LVS), Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd (ADR) (NASDAQ:MPEL), and Wynn Resorts, Limited (NASDAQ:WYNN). Let's take a closer look at the these stocks, from a technical and sentiment perspective.

LVS is up 3% at $54.12, but remains a long-term dud. Since hitting a multi-year high of $88.28 in March 2014, the shares have plummeted 39%, pressured by their 100-day moving average -- which, at $54.38, has contained this morning's advance. Nevertheless, options traders have shown increased optimism toward Las Vegas Corp., buying to open 1.81 calls for every put during the last two weeks at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX). This ratio is higher than 88% of comparable readings from the previous 12 months.

MPEL has rallied an even more impressive 8.1% to $21.21, but remains 16.5% lower year-to-date. As with LVS, the stock's 100-day trendline has contained today's gains, sitting just above Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd's intraday peak of $21.49. On the sentiment front, analysts are tilted in a decisively bearish direction, with 70% rating the equity a "hold" or worse.

Finally, WYNN has jumped 5.5% to trade at $103.08, trimming its year-to-date decline to 30%. Currently, the shares are attempting to hurdle their 50-day moving average, which has acted as resistance since April 2014. Short sellers are likely hoping Wynn Resorts, Limited will get rejected and resume it long-term downtrend. In fact, short interest spiked 18% during the latest reporting period, and now accounts for more than one-tenth of the stock's total float. Elsewhere, analysts continue to be skeptical of WYNN, with two-thirds maintaining tepid "hold" assessments.
Published on Jul 1, 2015 at 11:36 AM
Updated on Mar 19, 2021 at 7:15 AM
  • Intraday Option Activity

Option activity on Fitbit Inc (NYSE:FIT) was mostly quiet for the first few days options were available. Volume has since picked up, though -- and in a big way.

It started yesterday, as overall option activity on FIT jumped to five times the expected intraday amount. Even though more than 15,000 calls crossed the tape, compared to just 6,317 puts, the most popular contract was the weekly 7/2 36-strike put. A total of 3,097 contracts were exchanged here, and the biggest transaction -- involving 400 contracts -- appears to have been tied to a block of 45,000 FIT shares. Overall, this weekly option strike added 1,719 contracts to open interest overnight.

Today, traders are again rushing to FIT's option pits, with approximately 11,000 calls crossing the tape so far. One strike seeing heavy activity is the July 45 call, where it appears traders are buying to open contracts in hopes of the shares breaking out above $45 -- all-time high territory -- by the close on Friday, July 17, when front-month options expire.

Looking at the charts, FIT is cruising today, adding 2.5% to trade at $39.20. Earlier, the shares touched an all-time high of $41.76 -- more than double the stock's initial public offering (IPO) price of $20. Fitbit Inc (NYSE:FIT) had a big day yesterday, as well, thanks to a bullish note from RBC.

Published on Jul 1, 2015 at 11:39 AM
Updated on Mar 19, 2021 at 7:15 AM
  • Stock Market News
A number of companies are making M&A headlines today, including telecom titan AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) and real estate investment trust (REIT) Chambers Street Properties (NYSE:CSG). Here's a quick look at the relevant news, its impact on the respective stocks, and how Wall Street may be reacting.

Kicking things off, T's $48.5 billion buyout offer of DIRECTV (NASDAQ:DTV) is expected to receive regulatory approval next week. However, the impact on the former stock has been negligible, as it's currently in line with Tuesday's close at $35.52 -- though DTV is 1.1% higher at $93.83. Longer term, T sports a 5.7% year-to-date advance, but is on the verge of closing below its 10-day moving average for the first time since June 16.

Options traders are likely hoping AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) will make a more decisive move south. During the last 50 days at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), the equity has amassed a put/call volume ratio of 1.43 -- in the 83rd percentile. The same goes for short sellers. Nearly 311 million T shares are sold short, which would take two weeks to buy back, at the stock's average daily trading level.

Elsewhere on the M&A front, CSG announced plans to purchase fellow REIT Gramercy Property Trust Inc (NYSE:GPT), in an all-stock deal worth nearly $6 billion. Traders are panning the move, with CSG down 8.3% at $7.29, and fresh off a new annual low of $7.16. GPT is also struggling, shedding 2.5% at $22.80.

Chambers Street Properties' (NYSE:CSG) sell-off is rewarding a recent horde of short sellers. During the two most recent reporting periods, short interest spiked over 31%. Analysts have displayed skepticism toward the shares as well, doling out four "holds" versus two "strong buys."
Published on Jul 6, 2015 at 9:09 AM
Updated on Mar 19, 2021 at 7:15 AM
  • VIX and Volatility

I hope everyone had a fun week last week. As I noted recently, we were in a somewhat extended period since the last "Official" CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) Pop. But, since it was a pre-holiday week amidst the worst time of the year for volatility, I took a few days off. Hey, what are the chances the Vol Pop happens right before July 4th?

Apparently, about 100%. We've had Greek news and deadlines and threats and counter-threats and threats to the counter-threats for five years now. But this turned into The Big One.

There's no certainties to any of the "predictions" we all make. At least, there shouldn't be. In the real world, we deal more in probabilities. You will make money if you find situations where there's a disparity between the expected probability of an event and the probability the market assigns to that event. For the lion's share of the last six years, the market has consistently overpriced the odds of an imminent volatility pop. By and large, it pays to fade that overpricing. 

But that doesn't mean those Vol Pops don't happen. They always do, and clearly when I least expect them. I did expect one sometime in the next couple of months; I didn't expect one last week. 

Anyway, at least it gives us a good excuse to open up the VIX Pop Table! Just to refresh, I use "20% above the 10-day simple moving average (SMA)" on a closing basis as the official definition of an Overbought VIX. And below is a rundown of Overbought VIXes since 2009.

I include the one-month and three-month returns of a long initiated at the close of the first session VIX closed 20% above its SMA, as well as returns of a long that's closed after the first session where VIX closed below its 10-day SMA. Also, I note the duration of that trade (in trading days) as well as the duration from the first Overbought VIX until the nearest SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) bottom. If it's zero, the first day of the Overbought VIX was the bottom. I also include the mean and median one-month and three-month returns of trades initiated on any random day since 2009.

 

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As you can see, fading Overbought VIX has been a generally good idea over the last six years -- at least in the near term. Buying and holding until VIX closes back below the 10-day has had a median return of 0.84% with an average holding period of slightly over a week. Further, the trade "won" 12 of the last 15 times. 

Going a little further out, holding for a month has had a median return of 4.08% vs. 1.61% on randomly timed one-month holds. It's also on a nine-"game" win streak, albeit with the tiniest of wins last July. 

By three months, the Overbought VIX has no real impact on returns. I can take a rose-colored lens to that, though, and point out that anyone who tells you the VIX pop "predicts" future doom and gloom in the longer term needs to show some real data to back those assertions up. 

Oh, and a reminder: I don't want to double-count data, so the blanks on the table are to avoid overlaps. 

It's important to note that all of this looks back on an era that we know in hindsight was a bull market coupled with a low VIX "regime." We don't know that's the case going forward, of course. One of these VIX pops will "stick." Maybe it's this current one, though as always, it's way tougher to call a change in trend than it is to simply stay on the same path. 

Disclaimer: Mr. Warner's opinions expressed above do not necessarily represent the views of Schaeffer's Investment Research.
Published on Jul 6, 2015 at 9:32 AM
Updated on Mar 19, 2021 at 7:15 AM
  • Analyst Downgrades

Analysts are weighing in today on offshore drilling concern Transocean LTD (NYSE:RIG), coffee brewer Keurig Green Mountain Inc (NASDAQ:GMCR), and review site Yelp Inc (NYSE:YELP). Here's a quick roundup of today's bearish brokerage notes on RIG, GMCR, and YELP.

  • RIG is no stranger to bearish analyst attention, as every brokerage firm covering the stock says it's a "hold" or worse. Susquehanna is piling on the pessimistic outlook, lowering its price target to $13 from $14 while underscoring a "negative" rating. The shares have had a miserable time on the charts, losing 65% in the past 12 months, finishing last week at $15.59. Analysts certainly aren't the only ones wary of Transocean LTD. Almost 27% of the equity's float is sold short, which would take over 11 sessions to buy back, at normal daily volumes.

  • GMCR has struggled in 2015, and SunTrust Robinson is expecting more downside. The brokerage firm lowered its price target to $70 from $95, which would mark annual-low territory for the stock, and represents a discount to Thursday's close at $74.33. Elsewhere, option activity has turned bullish, with Keurig Green Mountain Inc's 10-day International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) call/put volume ratio of 1.57 sitting higher than three-fourths of readings from the past year. These traders may be on to something, too. GMCR's 14-day Relative Strength Index (RSI) is in oversold territory at 21.

  • YELP is set to fall 1% out of the gate, hurt by price-target cuts at Piper Jaffray and B. Riley. The former moved its price target down to $40, with the latter setting its mark at $30.50 -- territory the stock hasn't explored since June 2013. After being halted, Yelp Inc touched a two-year low of $36.10 on Thursday before closing at $38.18, and more losses could be forthcoming. Half of the analysts covering YELP say it's a "buy" or better still. Additional bearish brokerage notes could act as headwinds for the struggling stock. 

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Published on Jul 6, 2015 at 9:41 AM
Updated on Mar 19, 2021 at 7:15 AM
  • Analyst Upgrades

Analysts weighed in on medical device specialist Second Sight Medical Products Inc (NASDAQ:EYES), drugmaker Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX), and motorcycle maven Harley-Davidson Inc (NYSE:HOG). Here's a quick roundup of today's bullish brokerage notes on EYES, VRTX, and HOG.

  • Rodman & Renshaw initiated coverage on EYES with a "buy" rating and a $21 price target -- representing expected upside of 47% to current levels. The stock was last seen 1.7% higher at $14.29. Second Sight Medical Products Inc had already put in a strong performance on the charts in 2015, up nearly 37% coming into today. Short sellers, however, have had their doubts. Short interest surged 10.1% in the latest reporting period, and now accounts for a lofty 16.9% of EYES' available float.

  • Analysts were quick to weigh in on VRTX, after the company's cystic fibrosis drug, Orkambi, received a regulatory win on Thursday. Chiming in on the stock was Baird, which boosted its price target to $160, as well as Leerink and William Blair, which raised their target prices to $158 -- with the latter expecting the treatment to pull in peak annual global sales of roughly $5.9 billion. Morgan Stanley, JMP Securities, and BTIG, however, all lowered their price targets. Heading into today, Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated was up 10.5% on the year. More recently, the shares have been bouncing between $123 and $135 since late April, and were last seen 2.8% lower at $127.63. Short-term speculators have shown a preference for puts over calls, per VRTX's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 1.27, which rests in the 78th annual percentile.

  • Unlike the broader equities market, HOG is higher this morning, edging up 0.04% to $56.05, after a bullish write-up in Barron's over the weekend. "A return to peak motorcycle purchases could put earnings per share well over $6. Don’t count on that soon, but Wall Street predicts Harley will grind its way to over $5 in earnings by 2017. The lowest among nine estimates stands at $4.69. Using that, a 30% rise for shares over the next two years would close the stock’s discount to the S&P 500 by only about half." Generally speaking, the brokerage bunch is mixed toward a stock that's shed 15% year-to-date, and hit an annual low of $53.04 in mid-May. Eight analysts maintain a "buy" or better rating, while eight maintain a lukewarm "hold" recommendation. Meanwhile, the average 12-month price target of $65.15 stands at a 16.2% premium to current levels. 
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Published on Jul 6, 2015 at 9:58 AM
Updated on Mar 19, 2021 at 7:15 AM
  • Buzz Stocks

U.S. stocks are sharply lower this morning, after Greek citizens rejected bailout terms yesterday. Among specific equities in focus are healthcare company Humana Inc (NYSE: HUM), discount retailer Dollar Tree, Inc. (NASDAQ: DLTR), and weight management services provider Weight Watchers International, Inc. (NYSE: WTW).

  • Late Thursday, DLTR was given the okay by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to purchase Family Dollar Stores, Inc. (NYSE: FDO). This announcement puts to bed a year-long saga which saw FDO reject an earlier offer from Dollar General Corp. (NYSE: DG). Dollar Tree, Inc. -- which expects the deal to close today -- is currently up 0.4% at $80.10.   
  • According to The New York Post, WTW has drawn the attention of "at least one suitor," despite dropping 80% of its value in 2015. The article notes that the suitor is an "activist hedge fund." Against this backdrop, Weight Watchers International, Inc. has popped 20.8% to sit at $4.94. Short sellers could be getting spooked, as 43.27% of its float is sold short.

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Published on Jul 6, 2015 at 11:44 AM
Updated on Mar 19, 2021 at 7:15 AM
  • Bernie's Content

The following is a reprint of the market commentary from the July 2015 edition of The Option Advisor, published on June 25. For more information or to subscribe to The Option Advisor, click here.

"Bubble-spotting" has become a favorite pastime on Wall Street, with fund managers, analysts, journalists, and even the Federal Reserve racing to point out the next unsustainable asset surge. In fact, it was just last summer that the Fed made headlines by citing "substantially stretched" valuations for social media and biotech stocks in its biannual report.

The Fed -- and namely, Chair Janet Yellen -- took plenty of heat for weighing in on equity valuations, with many armchair critics calling for the central bank to stay in its lane, and quite a few market-watchers on Finance Twitter making snarky references to the latest "research note" from "Yellen Macroprudential," or citing the latest returns for the "Double Inverse Yellen Fund."

However, less than a year later, it seems the Fed's warning of a potential biotech bubble has become the accepted consensus opinion. A Google News search for "biotech bubble 2015" yields just shy of 48,000 results -- and the results aren't limited to financial news outlets, with mainstream publications such as TIME, The Globe and Mail, and even Gawker jumping on the trend.

Just this week, in fact, The Wall Street Journal pointed to the launch of two new, triple-leveraged exchange-traded funds (ETFs) on the sector as "fuel for the biotech-stock frenzy," and warned that investors may get "burned." (We will not argue with the thesis that one should proceed with extreme caution when considering leveraged ETF products, though this particular development may be more indicative of a looming bubble in the "specialized ETF" space, rather than in biotech itself.)

Meanwhile, Bloomberg reported that "demand for options tied to declines in an exchange-traded fund tracking [biotech] companies rose to the highest level in three years relative to bullish ones." The article also cites an unusually high skew for biotech options -- meaning puts are markedly more expensive to buy than calls -- along with a relatively high level of short interest levied against the sector. One analyst is quoted as saying that biotech has "the most bubble-like characteristics" of any area of the market.

All of which begs the question: If everyone agrees there's a "bubble" in danger of popping, aren't we missing one of the key contrarian ingredients (euphoria) necessary for the formation of a top? But before we get too far ahead of ourselves, let's defer to the most crucial indicator -- the price action.

From 2004 to 2006, the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (IBB) traded sideways between $70 and $85. It wasn't until 2011 that IBB finally broke out above decisively above this sideways channel. Since then, multiples of the $85 level have been significant for the ETF. Specifically, $170 and $255 have acted as speed bumps in recent years, while the $340 level gave IBB only a moment's pause before emerging as support, with this price point defining the lower boundary of a recent range. By this logic, $425 would be the next likely resistance area, representing upside of about 13% from IBB's closing price of $375.84 on June 25.

Additionally, IBB recently took out the $360 area, which coincides with a 20% year-to-date return, and which had acted as resistance since mid-March. Closer at hand, another key level worth noting is $375, as this area will represent a 50% year-over-year gain until early August (as the IBB essentially flat-lined from this time until early August last year). Sometimes, these 50% year-over-year levels will act as speed bumps, though the fund has spent the past week or so solidifying a foothold above this area.

And our internal sentiment data confirms Bloomberg's reporting by revealing a hefty dose of skepticism levied against this outperforming sector. We track 69 stocks under the "Biomedics/Genetics" umbrella, and 78% of those are currently trading above their 80-day moving averages, with an average 52-week return of 52.8%. And over this same 52-week time frame, short interest on these stocks has jumped by 11.8%. The average short interest-to-float ratio of the group is a hefty 17.2%, which translates to a short interest ratio of 10.1 days to cover -- a rather healthy supply of sideline cash.

Likewise, Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) for IBB arrives at 2.53, with puts more than doubling calls among options set to expire within three months. This SOIR outranks 83% of other such readings from the last year, indicating a stronger-than-usual skew toward puts over calls among speculative players.

Against this backdrop, a hesitation or mild pullback by IBB to its 80-day moving average would mark a potential buying opportunity, according to our quantified data. Since 2009, IBB has met up with this trendline on 20 occasions. Looking out 63 days after these signals -- roughly three months' worth of trading -- IBB has been positive 84% of the time, sporting an average gain of 10.3%, and a median return of 9.3%. (The most recent signal, in late April, has not yet closed, but early returns look good almost two months in.) As of this writing, IBB's 80-day moving average was docked at $356.36 -- which, it should be noted, means a retreat to this level would put some of the aforementioned levels of possible resistance back into play.

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While the onslaught of doomsday headlines, high levels of short interest, and recently bearish option activity seem to suggest that the biotech rally has not yet reached the euphoric heights traditionally associated with bubbles, we would be remiss not to acknowledge the possibility of volatile price action for IBB. Biotech companies are notorious for having somewhat lopsided or speculative product pipelines, which means unfavorable FDA rulings or the emergence of a competitive drug can spark drastic sell-offs. But that's why call options are an ideal vehicle for this kind of trade -- they require less upfront capital commitment than buying shares outright, and the potential loss is clearly defined and capped by the premium paid.

All of that said, eager bubble-spotters may wish to turn their gaze to China. A recent New Yorker piece noted that, while the fundamentals of the Chinese economy have been slowing, the stock market has been pushed higher by "a flood of new money, much of it from inexperienced investors." Even more troubling, a rally in Shanghai was sparked earlier this week by bullish headlines from state-run media outlets. With investors eagerly biting on upbeat propaganda -- even as the Deutsche X-Trackers Harvest CSI 300 China A-Shares ETF (ASHR) breaks down below short-term support -- it looks as though the next bubble to burst may be in Beijing.

Published on Jul 6, 2015 at 11:46 AM
Updated on Mar 19, 2021 at 7:15 AM
  • Most Active Weekly Options
The 20 stocks listed in the table below have attracted the highest total weekly options volume during the past 10 trading days. Names highlighted are new to the list since the last time the study was run, and data is courtesy of Schaeffer's Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White. Two names of notable interest are blue-chip energy issues Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) and Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM).

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CVX has put in a dismal showing on the charts, and since topping out at a record high of $135.10 last July, the shares have surrendered nearly 30%. This technical slump is in full swing today, thanks to a broader overseas-related sell-off in crude oil. In fact, the security tagged a fresh three-year low of $94.48 earlier -- following a price-target cut to $104 from $114 at J.P. Morgan Securities -- but was last seen down 0.8% at $95.03.

Against this backdrop, put players have been piling into CVX's options pits in recent months. The stock's 50-day put/call volume ratio across the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) sits at 1.54 -- in the 95th percentile of its annual range. In other words, puts have been bought to open over calls with more rapidity just 5% of the time within the past year.

In the weekly 7/10 series -- which expires at this Friday's close -- put traders have been particularly fond of the 93.50 strike, where 7,830 contracts are currently in residence. For those buying to open the puts, the goal is for Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) to breach the $93.50 mark for the first time since November 2011.

J.P. Morgan Securities also lowered its price target on XOM to $92 from $93, although this still represents expected upside of 11.1% to XOM's current perch at $82.85. The equity has also been in a long-term slump, down roughly 21% from its record high of $104.76, tagged July 29. Today, the shares are off 0.4%, after the company announced it will no longer be exploring for oil in Madagascar, due to disappointing findings.

Like CVX, XOM has seen accelerated put activity in its options pits. During the course of the past 10 sessions, speculators at the ISE, CBOE, and PHLX have bought to open 3.29 puts for each call. What's more, this ratio ranks higher than 94% of all similar readings taken in the past year.

Drilling down on the weekly 7/10 series, peak put open interest of nearly 1,700 contracts can be found at the 83 strike. For those who initiated long puts, the expectation is for Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) to extend its trek south of $83 through week's end.

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