IBM Puts Rise; Stocks Lower
Semiconductors are under pressure Wednesday following a sector downgrade by
Salomon Smith Barney that has helped move the broader averages into negative
territory. Biotechs and transportation issues are the top-performing sectors
while software has joined semis as the weakest sectors.
At mid-day, the VIX has increased 1.35 to 23.68.
The OEX 790 calls are down 4 3/8 to 14 7/8.
Among bigger movers on heavier-than-average volume:
IBM
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PowerRating) is down 5 3/4 to 103 3/4 as techs show weakness. The IBM July
100 puts are up 1 1/4 to 2 1/4 on quadruple average volume.
AOL
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PowerRating) has gained 1 to 54 5/8 on optimism about AOL’s upcoming
earnings report. The AOL July 55 calls are up 5/16 to 2 1/16 on triple the
average volume.
Novellus
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PowerRating) has sunk 5 7/16 to 53 1/2 while the Novellus July 55
calls have lost 2 11/16 to 2 15/16 on more than 3000 contracts.
Qwest
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PowerRating) has gained 2 7/16 to 54 3/16 while the Qwest July 50 calls have
added 1 1/8 to 5 on double the average volume.
Looking ahead, the next big economic news traders look toward are the
June employment numbers due out Friday at 8:30 AM ET.