Tuesday’s Options Alerts
The markets showed good follow
through today after last week’s oversold conditions.
With the expectation of gold and software issues, stocks were modestly higher
across the board. The Dow
(
$INDU |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) was the strongest
performing index as it was boosted by United Technologies’
(
UTX |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)reaffirmation of its
2002 targets and Dupont’s
(
DD |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) restructuring announcement. For more information on today’s action, please refer to
the
market recap.
The VIX
(
$VIX.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) opened near its highs of the day and
closed right on its lows. This intraday shift in
sentiment suggests that fear is continuing to decline after hitting extreme
levels last week. No CVR signals were triggered today. The VXN
(
$VXN.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
showed similar action to the VIX as it too opened near its highs and closed near
its lows. This intraday shift in sentiment also suggests that fear
is declining. The VXN did not trigger any CVR signals.
Points of Significance:
Pacificare Health Systems
(
PHSY |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) fell 10% on
over six times its average volume today. No specific news was announced but the
company is scheduled to report earnings this Wednesday after the close. The
shares did manage to bounce off the convergence of its 200-day moving average and
its .618 retracement level.
Despite the announcement that the Japanese
Internet investment company Softbank’s plan to sell 10 million shares of its
common shares today, UTSI actually gained almost 9%. The shares broke
back above its 200-day moving average and appears to be heading for the area
near of its neckline and its 50% retracement level.
One day before it’s scheduled to report its
fourth quarter and fiscal 2001 earnings, Flir Systems
(
FLIR |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) broke out of a
base on over double its average volume. Flir’s volatility is low, which makes it
suitable for option buying.
Express Scripts
(
ESRX |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) gained 6% on
over double its average volume. The shares are continuing to move out of a four-month base. There is somewhat heavy activity in the March 55 calls. Volatility
is also low.
| Volatility Index |
Close | Net Change |
Signals/Direction | % Above/Below 10 Day Moving Average |
Significance |
| VIX | 23.27 | DOWN 2.23 |
NONE | 8.78 % Under |
Not at Extreme |
| VXN | 46.41 | DOWN 2.87 |
NONE | .002 % Above |
Not at Extreme |
Abnormal Options Volume With Price Movement —
Abnormal options volume (calls and puts) with stock price movement
| Name | Symbol | Net % Change |
Volume | Avg. Volume |
| Pacificare Health Systems |
PHSY | – 10.64 | 7585 | 544 |
| UT Starcom |
UTSI | + 8.88 |
3177 | 1497 |
| Andrx Corporation |
ADRX | – 8.10 | 9525 | 2661 |
| AT&T Canada |
ATTC | – 6.96 |
2026 | 825 |
| Flir Systems | FLIR | + 6.71 | 417 | 164 |
| Express Scripts |
ESRX | + 6.15 |
1566 | 301 |
Stocks With Biggest Spikes in Implied
Volatility — Stocks with biggest increases or decreases in implied
volatility compared to previous day
Spike Up
| Name | Symbol | IV | Previous IV |
High IV |
Low IV |
| Pacificare Health Systems |
PHSY | 95.6 | 68.4 | 89.8 | 63.8 |
| Tenet Healthcare |
THC | 34.4 | 27.2 | 41.2 | 23.9 |
| Amazon.com | AMZN | 99.8 | 82.4 | 108.5 | 73.2 |
| Energy Sector SPDRs |
XLE | 24.4 | 20.4 | 32.7 | 20.6 |
| BP P.L.C | BP | 26.9 | 22.7 | 38.8 | 22.4 |
| Unilever | UN | 23.1 | 19.7 | 36.2 | 19.9 |
Spike Down
| Name | Symbol | IV | Previous IV |
High IV |
Low IV |
| McDermott Int’l |
MDR | 79.7 | 124.8 | 119.6 | 65.3 |
| Qualcomm | QCOM | 61.3 | 49.1 | 80.5 | 53.2 |
| Old Republic Int’l |
ORI | 22.7 | 28.4 | 36.6 | 27.6 |
| C H Robinson |
CHRW | 24.4 | 20.4 | 32.7 | 20.6 |
| SPX Corp. | SPW | 64.6 | 74.4 | 79.5 | 34.6 |
| Orthodontic Centers |
OCA | 37.7 | 45.4 | 57.9 | 35.3 |
Please use stops on every trade!