The door is wide open for more bull notes to ROKU
Stocks are mostly quiet today, but the Nasdaq is barreling towards its eighth straight win. Among the stocks making moves higher are streaming names Spotify Technology (NYSE:SPOT) and Roku Inc (NASDAQ:ROKU), as well as hotel concern Belmond Ltd. (NYSE:BEL). Here's a closer look at what's driving shares of SPOT, ROKU, and BEL today.
SPOT Shares Set for Best Day Ever
At last check, Spotify stock was up 5.8% to trade at $189.98, thanks to a long-term partnership with Samsung. SPOT is on track for its best day ever, and now boasts a 40% return since bottoming near $135 back in April on its second day of trading. The shares nabbed a record high of $198.99 on July 26, and the subsequent pullback was contained by their 50-day moving average.
Traders looking to take advantage of the equity's uptrend may want to do so with near-term options, which are attractively priced at the moment. SPOT stock currently sports a Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) of 33%, which ranks in the 8th percentile of its annual range. This suggests that near-term options are pricing in relatively low volatility expectations at the moment, which could help maximize the benefit of leverage for premium buyers.
Earnings Beat Sending ROKU Near Top Of Nasdaq
Roku stock is up 19.7% to trade at $56.57, one of the best stocks on the Nasdaq today, after the streaming service reported second-quarter earnings and revenue above analyst forecasts, and increased its guidance for 2018. Three analysts have chimed in with bull notes, including a price-target hike to $59 from $50 at Oppenheimer. ROKU stock is within a chip-shot of its December 19 record high of $58.80, and has more than tripled since its own post-IPO low near $16 back in September.
Despite the string of bull notes today, analysts remain split over ROKU. Of the 10 brokerages in coverage, five rate it a tepid "hold." Furthermore, the security's consensus 12-month price target of $51.90 is an 8% discount to its current perch, implying there is still ample room aboard the bullish bandwagon.
Potential Sale Has BEL Stock Scaling NYSE
Belmond stock is up a more than 37% to trade at $16.20 -- a new 10-year high -- amid buzz that the company's board was exploring options to sell the hotel name. Meanwhile, the company also reported a second-quarter earnings beat after the close yesterday. BEL hadn't traded above the $15 level since early 2014, and thanks to today's move, it has blown past its year-to-date breakeven level.
Short sellers can't be happy with the price action today. Short interest increased by 20% in the most recent reporting period to 3.92 million shares, the most in over two years. This represents 6.7 times the average daily trading volume, meaning the security could benefit from a round of short covering.