Harman International Industries Inc (HAR) and Mentor Graphics Corp (MENT) are trading at new highs following M&A deals
As the Dow chases a
sixth straight day of gains -- not to mention fresh record highs -- a pair of major M&A deals are also grabbing headlines. Specifically, South Korea's Samsung Electronics has
agreed to buy Connecticut-based automotive supplier
Harman International Industries Inc (NYSE:HAR) for $8 billion, or $112 per share. Meanwhile, Germany's Siemens AG is
buying Mentor Graphics Corp (NASDAQ:MENT) for $37.25 per share, valuing the all-cash deal at roughly $4.5 billion. Below, we'll take a look at sentiment data on HAR and MENT stock to see how the deals could be affecting traders across Wall Street.
So far today, HAR has jumped 25.2% to $109.73, and earlier hit an annual high of $110.43. Looking back, this price level, not to mention Samsung's buyout offer, are still well below the stock's record high $149.12 from April 2015. Still, HAR stock had been showing some signs of life prior to today, up 10% in November as of Friday's close -- bolstered by a positive earnings reaction on Nov. 3.
Many across Wall Street already had high hopes for HAR, too. The majority of covering brokerage firms have issued a "strong buy" recommendation, and options traders have been call-skewed in recent weeks -- albeit amid relatively low volumes. Looking at data from the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), Harman International Industries Inc's 10-day call/put volume ratio comes in at 30.82, which is just 2 percentage points from a 12-month high.
Turning to MENT, the shares earlier tagged an all-time best of $36.55, and were last seen 18.5% higher at $36.35. The stock had been performing well even before today, boasting a year-to-date lead of 66.6% as of Friday's close.
Like HAR, MENT's options pits have been almost entirely focused on call buying. During the past two weeks at the ISE, CBOE, and PHLX, the stock has accumulated a crazy call/put volume ratio of 65.83. Analysts have been more skeptical, though. Just one of five brokerage firms recommends buying Mentor Graphics Corp, and its average 12-month price target of $29.55 sits below the stock's pre-buyout closing price from Friday.
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