Archive for March 5th, 2008
United States Oil Fund LP (USO) $83.30 +4.68%
Crude settles up $4.93 to record $104.45 a barrel on OPEC’s non-decision and suprise drop in stockpiles. The US Oil Fund is up $3.46 to $82.85, but sentiment is decidedly neutral, as some bold traders seem to be betting on a reversal with long March and April puts on the fund.
Monster Worldwide Inc (MNST) $27.11 +5.09%
Sentiment is bulllish and volume is running 6 times normal. Strength in the share price is being attributed to RENEWED takeover chatter. This one has been around for awhile. chart
Discover Financial Services (DFS) $14.72 -0.07%
options hit 12x average daily volume this morning on several very large blocks that traded on the ISE in what was likely a complex legged transaction in Jan-09 options. Just before 10am 10,000 Jan 12.5 Puts traded were crossed on the $2.40 bid, followed 20minutes later by 5000 of the Jan 17.5 Calls at mid [...]
TIBCO Software (TIBX) $7.53 +6.64%
Tibco is seeing three times normal volume after Citi analysts said this morning that there is a better than 50/50 chance it will be acquired in next 12 months.
iShares Trust Lehman 20 Year Treasury Bond Fund (TLT) $91.62 -1.21%
Bonds are taking a hit as flight to safety moves out of Treasurys and soaring crude heightens inflation risk. The benchmark ten-year Treasury Bond is down 24/32nd. Like the VIX, the iShares Long-term Bond fund is down three days straight, now off 90 cents to $91.83 a share. Fear is falling. One player appears to [...]
CBOE Volatility Index (.VIX) $24.60 -3.74%
risk perceptions are lower as a stronger ISM Services Index (49.3 vs. 47.3 consensus) overshadowed other mixed economic data. With stocks broadly higher, the CBOE Volatility Index is down for a third day, from an intraday high of 28.13 on Monday to 24.36 midday Wednesday.
Ambac Financial Group (ABK) $8.70 -23.22%
Ambac is halted on pending news about a rights offering. Seeing increasing interest in puts on some of the other lenders including WM, NLY, FRE
Ambac Financial Group (ABK) $8.70 -23.22%
Ambac is halted. Seeing action in PMI, MBI as investors await the news
SPDR S&P Homebuilders (XHB) $19.99 -0.70%
Short strangle play. Players sold the XHB September 14 puts and September 27 calls for a credit of $2.05 per strangle. This exchange-traded fund holds shares in 21 different housing and homebuilding companies. Premiums (implied vols) are high for obvious reasons. However, the short strangle seems to have a relatively high probability of success, because [...]
Interactive Brokers Group Inc (IBKR) $30.97 +2.23%
Options on IBKR typically trade fewer than 2000 contracts per day, but spiked yesterday when a large block of 11000 March 35 Calls were sold on the PHLX for 5 cents and crossed by the executing broker. These calls did not create new open interest and appear to close a long-call position established on Dec [...]
