Micron Calls Rise; Stocks Sink

Election worries and weaker-than-expected earnings from Hewlett Packard
helped weigh on stocks again Monday, as all three indexes finished lower.
Semiconductors and forest and paper products were the day’s top-performing
sector while biotechnology was the weakest.

At the close, the VIX had decreased .82 to 31.68.

The OEX 740 calls finished down 2 1/4 to 1 3/4.

Among bigger-movers on heavier-than-average volume:

In the semiconductor group, big gains were had by Micron
(
MU |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
, which
gained 2 1/4 to 32 3/8. The MU November 30 calls gained 1 7/8 to 3 3/4 on more
than 12,000 contracts.

Also in the semis, Texas Instruments
(
TXN |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
gained 3 9/16 to 42 5/16 while
the Texas Instruments November 40 calls rose 2 to 3 3/8 on more than 9000
contracts.

Dell Computer
(
DELL |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
avoided the selloff and gained 1 1/8 to 24 1/8
while the Dell January 01 22 1/2 calls rose 7/8 to 3 7/8.

In the biotechs, Millennium Pharmaceuticals
(
MLNM |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
plunged 10 15/16 to
60 15/16. The MLNM November 70 puts jumped 10 9/16 to 13 on heavier-than-average
volume.