It's shaping up to be another day of losses on the U.S. exchanges, thanks to disappointing retail sales and ugly earnings from a blue-chip tech titan. Among the equities in focus are retailer J C Penney Company Inc (NYSE:JCP), pharmaceutical interest Mylan NV (NASDAQ:MYL), and genetic analysis issue Illumina, Inc. (NASDAQ:ILMN).
ILMN is up 5.5% this morning, last seen trading at $163.90, on the news that the stock will be listed on the S&P 500 Index (SPX) as of next Wednesday's close, replacing Sigma-Aldrich Corporation (NASDAQ:SIAL). Illumina, Inc. shares fell to an annual low of $130 in early October, after the company issued lackluster guidance, but have rebounded 26.1% since then. Option buyers have turned bullish over the last several weeks, as ILMN's 10-day call/put volume ratio on the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) sits at 3.62 -- higher than 94% of readings from the past year.
