Buzz Stocks: Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc., QUALCOMM, Inc., and Fairchild Semiconductor Intl Inc

Today's stocks to watch include Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (CMG), QUALCOMM, Inc. (QCOM), and Fairchild Semiconductor Intl Inc (FCS)

Dec 8, 2015 at 9:30 AM

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FCS
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CMG

Continued losses in oil and disappointing data out of China have U.S. stocks pointed lower again this morning. Among the equities in focus are restaurant interest Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (NYSE:CMG), wireless tech specialist QUALCOMM, Inc. (NASDAQ:QCOM), and chipmaker Fairchild Semiconductor Intl Inc (NASDAQ:FCS).

CMG is pointed 4.1% lower from Monday's close of $551.75, and could explore new lows, after more than 20 students from Boston College reported gastrointestinal symptoms after eating at Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. While the restaurant chain has reported that there is no evidence connecting this case to the earlier E.coli incident, the students' illness does seem to be linked to Chipotle. The shares touched an annual low of $515 just yesterday, after receiving a fresh price-target cut in the wake of downwardly revised guidance. Meanwhile, options traders have continued to place bearish bets on the troubled stock. At the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), CMG's 10-day put/call volume ratio is now 1.27 -- in the 71st percentile of readings from the past year.

QCOM is set to drop 3.5% at the open, as the company is being hit with accusations out of Europe and Asia. Taiwan's Fair Trade Commission launched an investigation into QUALCOMM, Inc.'s patent licensing arrangements, while EU antitrust regulators said the company may have practiced predatory pricing, and unfairly pushed out smaller competitors. The shares have been struggling on the charts this year, but bounced last week after receiving a bullish brokerage note on Friday. Options traders were optimistic, too, as the stock's 10-day call/put volume ratio at the ISE, CBOE, and PHLX of 2.01 is higher than 90% of readings in the last 12 months. QCOM closed at $52.43 on Monday.

FCS is sitting 7.6% higher in electronic trading, after receiving an unsolicited buyout bid from an unnamed company. The new $2.46 billion offer trumps an earlier offer of $2.4 billion from ON Semiconductor Corp (NASDAQ:ON), valuing each share at $21.70, compared to Monday's closing price of $19.53. Fairchild Semiconductor Intl Inc says its board will consider the new bid, but still supports the prior agreement with ON.