Buzz Stocks: Hasbro, Inc., Morgan Stanley, and Netflix, Inc.

Today's stocks to watch in the news include Hasbro, Inc. (HAS), Morgan Stanley (MS), and Netflix, Inc. (NFLX)

Apr 18, 2016 at 9:44 AM

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U.S. stocks are lower this morning, as crude futures slide after a disappointment from Doha. Among equities in focus today are toymaker Hasbro, Inc. (NASDAQ:HAS), financial stock Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS), and streaming video provider Netflix, Inc. (NASDAQ:NFLX).

HAS reported better-than-expected first-quarter earnings -- thanks in part to solid sales of its Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS) products -- sending the shares to a record high of $88.00 out of the gate. At last check, HAS was up 4.4% at $86.06. Today's upside gap could put pressure on analysts to upwardly revise their ratings. Presently, 10 of 12 brokerage firms have doled out a tepid "hold" opinion. Likewise, short sellers could be forced to cover, as Hasbro, Inc.'s short-interest ratio stands at 6.00 -- indicating it would take more than a week for short sellers to cover their positions, at the stock's average trading volume.

MS is up 0.5% at $25.89, after reporting first-quarter earnings above analyst estimates. However -- similar to several of its sector peers -- Morgan Stanley saw its profit fall by 53% from the same period last year, due to slumping trading. Longer term, the shares are off 19% in 2016, and have been stuck trading in the $23.50-$26.50 range since late February. But option traders have been looking for a breakout -- the stock's 50-day call/put volume ratio at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) sits higher than 91% of the past year's readings, at 2.07.

NFLX is down 2.2% at $109.08, on news that Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) will offer a standalone video streaming subscription service for $8.99 per month. Currently, AMZN offers video streaming only to members of its Amazon Prime service. Heading into today's trading, Netflix, Inc. had been on upswing that began in early February, up 39.4%. Like option traders, the brokerage bunch has been largely optimistic of late, with 15 out of 26 calling NFLX a "buy" or better. Elsewhere, the company is due to report first-quarter earnings after the close tonight.

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