NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA) and FLIR Systems, Inc. (FLIR) are two names to watch at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES)
The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) officially kicks off tomorrow in Las Vegas, and
various tech stocks could be thrust into the spotlight as a result. Two names to watch today are visual computing specialist
NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) and thermal imaging fanatic
FLIR Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:FLIR). Below, we'll take a closer look at the technical and sentiment backdrops for these two tech stocks.
Starting with
NVDA, the shares are 2.7% higher today at $33.26, after the company revealed a
new super-computer designed for self-driving cars. The positive price action is just more of the same for the stock, which has gained over 73% in the past 12 months, and has outpaced the broader S&P 500 Index (SPX) by almost 24 percentage points in the past 60 sessions. Moreover, the shares have been consolidating between $32 and $34 since late November, and appear to have found support near their rising 30-day moving average.
On the sentiment front, though, many have failed to give NVDA the credit it deserves. For one,
short sellers continue to target the stock, with short interest increasing by 6.5% during the most recent reporting period. Going by average daily volumes, it would take bears over a week to cover their positions.
The majority of analysts are bearish, too. Over half of the 21 brokerage firms that track NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) say it's a "hold" or worse, while the stock's consensus 12-month price target of $31.46 sits below current levels. If any of this pessimism on Wall Street unwinds, NVDA could
add to its long-term gains.
Moving on, FLIR
debuted the Flir Scout TK at CES today, a miniature handheld thermal camera capable of picking up heat signals from 100 yards away. The stock has since picked up 5% at $30.19 -- and earlier touched $31.42, its highest point since early August. The shares are now on pace to close above their 200-day moving average for the first time since Dec. 4.
Looking at data from the
International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), today's pop may be pleasing to many option traders. FLIR's 50-day call/put volume ratio across these exchanges stands at 11.35 -- above three-fourths of readings from the past year. This means call buying has been more popular than what's normally seen.
Elsewhere, most analysts are believers in the stock. Specifically, four of the six that cover FLIR Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:FLIR) call it a "buy" or better, without a single "sell" to be found. In fact, Raymond James just upgraded the stock to "strong buy" from "outperform" this morning.