Tuesday’s Options Alerts
The markets ended mixed today after an early afternoon
run. The Dow and S&P ended higher while the Nasdaq barely ended
lower. In absence of major economic news, stocks held up despite rising tension
in the Middle East, a downgrade of IBM, and negative Barron’s articles. For more information on today’s action, please refer to
the market
recap.
The VIX
(
$VIX.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) gapped up and
opened near
its highs and closed in the lower half of its range. This shift in intraday sentiment suggests
that fear is dropping. Both a CVR I buy and a CVR II sell were triggered today.
Due to conflicting signals, there is no directional bias. Therefore, pass the
trade. The VXN
(
$VXN.X |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) also gapped up, opened near its high, and
closed near its low. This intraday shift in sentiment also suggests fear is
dropping. No CVR signals were triggered by the VXN.
Points of Significance:
Electronics For Imaging
(
EFII |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
dropped 20% on almost triple its average volume. The company drastically cut
their first quarter earnings outlook from 16 cents a share to 3 cents a share.
There is heavy activity in the April 25 puts.
Application software maker Retek
(
RETK |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating)
jumped 11% on double its average volume. The shares bounced solidly off its
200-day moving average. Its implied volatility is very low and could warrant
call buying on a pullback.
Cubist Pharmaceuticals
(
CBST |
Quote |
Chart |
News |
PowerRating) gained over
6% on below average volume. The shares are staging a counter trend rally after
its recent plunge. The shares did meet resistance at its .382 retracement
level.
| Volatility Index |
Close | Net Change |
Signals/Direction | % Above/Below 10 Day Moving Average |
Significance |
| VIX | 22.37 | UP 0.76 |
CVR I BUY, CVR II SELL |
0 % Below |
Not at Extreme |
| VXN | 42.05 | UP 0.43 |
NONE | 2.68 % Below |
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 |
| Electronics For Imaging |
EFII | – 19.98 |
4035 | 191 |
| Intersil Holdings |
ISIL | – 14.95 |
3644 | 1674 |
| Elantec Semiconductor |
ELNT | + 11.09 |
456 | 144 |
| Retek Inc. |
RETK | + 11.65 |
791 | 355 |
| Cubist Pharmaceuticals |
CBST | + 6.01 |
1119 | 303 |
| Celgene | CELG | + 3.02 |
1412 | 664 |
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 |
| Miller Herman |
MLHR | 38.1 | 29.3 | 45.5 | 30.4 |
| Gilead Sciences |
GILD | 57 | 49.2 | 79.1 | 51.5 |
| TRW Inc. |
TRW | 24.2 | 20.9 | 49.1 | 22.7 |
| Intersil Holdings |
ISIL | 74.9 | 65.2 | 111.2 | 68.9 |
| Glaxosmithkline | GSK | 25.6 | 22.3 | 35.2 | 21.1 |
| Electronics For Imaging |
EFII | 56.2 | 50 | 79.3 | 48.1 |
Spike Down
| Name | Symbol | IV | Previous IV |
High IV |
Low IV |
| CYTYC | CYTC | 56.1 | 68 | 69.3 | 50 |
| Elantec Semiconductor |
ELNT | 57.4 | 69.2 | 95.4 | 70.6 |
| Ameripath | PATH | 60 | 71.8 | 46.3 | 40.1 |
| Compass Bancshares |
CBSS | 23.3 | 27.2 | 34.9 | 22.9 |
| Expedia Inc. |
EXPE | 76.3 | 88.4 | 100.2 | 44.7 |
| Seachange Int’l |
SEAC | 87.8 | 98.2 | 100.2 | 66.6 |
Please use stops on every trade!