It actually could be a great time to strike on near-term AMZN options
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is trading 0.3% higher today at $1,710, after brokerage firm D.A. Robinson raised its price target to $2,100 from $1,900. AMZN shares would need to rally about 23% to reach this level, which is well above the Wall Street average. By the numbers, the average analyst price target for the e-commerce giant is $1,837.65. The stock reached an all-time high of $1714.50 just last week.
Taking at peak at recent AMZN options activity, sentiment has been bullish. The equity's 10-day call/put volume ratio of 1.27 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) shows strong demand for long calls, especially since this reading ranks in the 82nd annual percentile. Overall, open interest for Amazon stands just 3 percentage points from a 12-month high.
Options data also suggests the FAANG stock could be a promising target for premium buyers. For one, its Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) is 20%, putting it in the 12th annual percentile, hinting at lower-than-usual volatility expectations for near-term contracts. And with a Schaeffer's Volatility Scorecard (SVS) of 94, AMZN has already shown a strong tendency to blow past volatility expectations in the past year.
But back on the fundamental front, the company will now have to potentially deal with competition to its Amazon Go business -- or at least for the technology behind the model.
Reuters is reporting that Microsoft (MSFT) is working on technology that would eliminate the need for
checkout lines at stores. MSFT is trading up 0.4% at $101.20 in early trading.