Lesser-known Uruguayan fintech stock dLocal Ltd (NASDAQ:DLO) is one of the best stocks on Wall Street today, last seen up 13.4% to trade at $11.59. The company's first-quarter earnings and revenue both topped estimates, prompting a price-target hike from Susquehanna to $18 from $16. DLO has now reclaimed its year-to-date breakeven level and is 17% higher in the last 12 months. How does this stack up against its more prominent sector peers?

LendingClub Corp (NYSE:LC) -- a Top Stock Pick of 2025 -- is down 4% to trade at $10.66, and is now down 34% in 2025. The shares are still up nearly 10% in May alone, but the rally has been stopped short at their 80-day moving average.

Robinhood Markets Inc (NASDAQ:HOOD) is in a different sphere of fintech, but still falls under the sector. The stock was last seen down 2.8% to trade at $59.68, but yesterday made a run at its four-year high of $66.91 on February 13. HOOD boasts a 60% year-to-date gain, with support stepping up at its 200-day moving average.

Affirm Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:AFRM) is down 6.8% to trade at $52.68, and is now down 13% year-to-date. The shares yesterday ran head-first into their 126-day moving average, but longer-term remain up 63% in the last 12 months. 

DLO has the most contrarian potential of the four. Of the seven brokerages covering the stock, five are on the sidelines with "hold" ratings. Amongst short sellers, nearly 15% of the equity's total available float is sold short, indicating dLocal could have room to run on the charts.

Palantir Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:PLTR) stock is facing rejection at its peak call open interest (OI) level and February highs, after the company reported first-quarter results last week. The security’s post-earnings rebound stalled around the 50% year-to-date level and the 78.6% Fibonacci retracement, setting the stage for lower highs.

Short interest makes up just 2.3% of the equity’s available float and is sitting at its lowest level since March, leaving plenty of room for short sellers to build their positions. What’s more, peak call OI at the 125-strike emerged as resistance, and a push below $115 could lead the 100-strike to become a magnet for the shares.
 
Finally, the stock's Schaeffer's Volatility Scorecard (SVS) of 83 out of 100 indicates it has exceeded options traders' volatility expectations over the past year. Our recommended June put option has a leverage ratio of 5.5 and will double on a 15.8% drop in the underlying security.

As the world’s largest chip-equipment maker, the success of Applied Materials Inc (NASDAQ:AMAT) on the charts is tied to how U.S.-China trade tensions thaw out. After the close today, the company steps into the earnings confessional for its second-quarter report, where analysts expect revenue of $7.13 billion and earnings of $2.31 per share, both within the company’s previously issued guidance.

AMAT has a history of negative post-earnings reactions, with declines in three of its last four next-day sessions -- including an 8.2% drawdown in February -- and six of the last eight overall. Over the past eight reports, AMAT averages a 4.6% move, regardless of direction, but for tomorrow's trading the options market is pricing in a 7.9% swing.

Last seen up 0.8% at $175.46, Applied Materials stock is pacing for a fourth-straight gain, extending its year-to-date lead to 7.9%. On Monday, the shares reclaimed their 126-day moving average and are now testing their 200-day trendline, poised to clear the latter on a closing basis for the first time since October.

Options traders are leaning bullish ahead of the event. At the session’s halfway mark, more than 16,000 calls have changed hands, roughly double the average intraday volume. The most popular contract is the June 2027 175-strike call, where new positions are being opened.

Puts have been much more popular than usual, though. AMAT's 10-day put/call volume ratio of 0.95 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) ranks higher than 81% of readings from the past year. So while calls still outflank puts on an absolute basis, the high percentile suggests the ratio is on an uptick that nears an annual high rate.

Stocks are struggling for direction midday, following an onslaught of economic data. The producer price index (PPI) dropped 0.5% for April, below the expected 0.3% rise. Jobs data remained stagnant, while retail sales rose of 0.1%, a steep pullback from March's 1.7% increase. The Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) is off 90 points at last check, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) is marginally higher, both having pared earlier triple-digit drops. The S&P 500 Index (SPX) is trading just above breakeven, both for the day and the year.

Continue reading for more on today's market, including: 

• More economic data is on the way.
• Billion-dollar M&A bolsters Foot Locker stock.
• Plus, bulls circle Cisco; retail stock's post-earnings pop; and UnitedHealth's latest scandal. 

Options traders are flocking toward Cisco Systems Inc (NASDAQ:CSCO), after the tech company posted a fiscal third-quarter earnings and revenue beat. At last check, the equity is trading up 6% at $65.44, trading back near its February highs. So far, 173,000 calls and 41,000 puts have been exchanged, nine times the average daily volume. Most popular are the May 64 and 65 calls, where new positions are being bought to open. For 2025, CSCO sports a 10% lead.

Retailer Boot Barn Holdings Inc (NYSE:BOOT) is one of the top stocks on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) today, up 19.8% at $158.15, the footwear concern brushed off a fiscal fourth-quarter earnings miss. An increase in quarterly sales is instead driving share price today. BOOT is eyeing its best daily pop since 2020 and is now back above its year-to-date breakeven mark.

On the flip side of the NYSE is insurance provider UnitedHealth Group Inc (NYSE:UNH) is down 18.6% at $250.63, after the Wall Street Journal broke news of a probe against the company regarding Medicare fraud. This will mark the stock's eighth-straight session in the red, and is pushing the shares below the round 50% year-to-date mark.

At first glance, options and futures seem to have a lot in common. Both vehicles give you the opportunity to bet on the future performance of an underlying asset. Plus, both options and futures are based on a predetermined quantity of the underlying, and have a set expiration date. They can be used either to speculate or to hedge.

That said, there are some key differences between options and futures. The most crucial distinction is the obligation involved. An options contract gives you the right to buy or sell the underlying asset upon its expiration, but not the obligation. Conversely, holding a futures contract imposes the obligation to fulfill its terms.

In fact, whereas traders shell out a premium to buy an option contract, futures buyers pay what's called an "initial margin," which is essentially a down payment. The initial margin is then applied toward the total cost of the underlying asset at the appropriate time.

At expiration, a long options position can be exited by either selling to close, or exercising if the option is in the money. Meanwhile, an expiring futures contract can be settled by either physical delivery of the asset, or with cash. However, a short futures position can be used to offset a long futures position and exit the trade, just as with long and short option trades.

Sneaker retailer Foot Locker Inc (NYSE:FL) is surging this morning, up 82% at $23.49 at last check, after news broke that peer Dick's Sporting Goods (DKS) will be buying the chain. The unanimous $2.4 billion -- or $24 per share deal -- implies an 86% upside to Foot Locker stock's current trading price. On the heels of the news, DKS is down 14% at $179.62.

Foot Locker has been trading at nearly 15-year lows in recent weeks, still sporting a nine-month, 28% deficit, even after today's impressive lift. The 20-day moving average moved in as a level of support this past week, however, aiding in a small boost in FL shares. Today's surge puts the equity toward its best single-day percentage pop ever.

Short interest has risen 7.8% during the past two reporting periods, which now accounts for more than 16% of the stock's total available float. At the stock's average pace of daily trading, it would take shorts three days to buy back their bearish bets.

Walmart Inc (NYSE:WMT) stock is falling this morning, last seen 3.8% lower at $93.20 even after the retail giant beat quarterly earnings expectations and delivered its first-ever profitable quarter for e-commerce operations. Revenue for the three-month period landed just shy of estimates, while executives warned that recently lowered tariffs remain “too high” and could still drive consumer prices higher by June. Despite the uncertainty, Walmart reaffirmed its full-year sales and earnings guidance.

The options pits are buzzing with activity. Already, 92,000 calls and 76,000 puts have exchanged hands today, which is 4 times the average volume typical for this point in trading. The most popular contract by far is the June 110 call, followed by the May 90 put, which expires at the conclusion of tomorrow's session.

WMT opened the session near the $92 mark but has since bounced off its morning lows. The equity is working to recover from its early April slide below $80 -- a drop triggered by President Donald Trump’s initial tariff rollout -- and now has technical support from its 40-day moving average. Despite today’s pullback, Walmart stock is still clinging to a 2% year-to-date lead.