Holiday Spending Plot Twist As Traders Buck Data
According to Mastercard SpendingPulse, online spending for the expanded holiday season from October 11 to December 24 increased 49% from last year. That’s a significant but not exactly surprising shift from traditional brick and mortar, in-store spending. The online spending realities helped lift Amazon, Inc (NASDAQ: AMZN) nearly 4% on Monday. While shoppers shopped early…
Santa Claus Rally for Auld Lang Syne
The Santa Claus rally has a long tradition dating back to 1969. This the period from the last week of December to the first two trading days of January. The bullish tradition has been long-standing, and the question remains about what 2020 will bring. Many are hoping for that tradition to continue for old times…
Option Traders Find Bullish Stocking Stuffers to End 2020
Christmas Unusual Option Activity Report As Christmas fast approaches and 2021 is almost a reality, option traders are doing last minute shopping. These “stocking stuffers’ are plays that are looking for a positive move by New Year’s Eve. While it’s impossible to know which publicly traded companies are on Santa’s list, these large option trades…
UAL Fades as Fiscal Stimulus Trumped by COVID Concern
UAL Unusual Option Activity What will 2021 bring for the travel industry and especially the airline industry and especially United Airlines Holdings Inc (NASDAQ: UAL)? There are the transitory factors like COVID-19, but there is also the potential for more permanent changes in how people travel. For example, will business travel return to pre-COVID levels?…
Oil Stocks Find Option Bulls as Crude Finds Backwardation
Oil Stock Unusual Option Activity Report If you follow the oil market, there is so much to digest right now. Between stimulus, draconian COVID measures and the possibility that a more virulent version of COVID is muddying the waters. If you’ve read the blog, I’ve been pretty bullish on oil and energy stocks since early…
Tesla Now In the S&P 500, What's Next?
Share of electric automaker, Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA), was officially added to the S&P 500. The response from the stock may be surprising, it was down 5.4% at the time of this writing. Being added to the S&P 500 is a major milestone for the company, but will the company have more impact on the…
Cisco Call Option Buyers Look to Make Old Things New
Cisco Unusual Option Activity Report I brought up Cisco Systems, Inc (NASDAQ: CSCO) during my daily session on the TheoTrade llive chat today. One of the replies from someone watching was that the company isn’t relevant anymore. Believe me, I understand the desire to look beyond the old stodgy companies that provide little to no…
BarkBox IPO: The Next Chewy or Charlie Brown?
I had never heard of BarkBox before today’s announcement that they were doing a SPAC merger with Northern Star Acquisitions Corp (STIC.U). Upon learning of the merger, I went to the company’s website and saw Snoopy and Charlie Brown prominently displayed as part of a limited-edition box. Apparently, there’s a special bonus of a Peanuts-themed…
Liquid State to Solid State: The Next EV Transformation
There has been a tremendous amount of interest surrounding the electric vehicle (EV) space and prices of these stocks have gotten a bit crazy. Many of these stocks have had single day turnovers of their float, which is a major indication of a top. While the frenzy has been palpable, where is the opportunity? Many…
Silver Stocks Find Second Day of Bullish Option Activity
Silver Unusual Option Activity Report This morning I posted on the significant option activity surrounding gold and silver. In that post, I gave a little history lesson that gold doesn’t always perform well during times when the Fed is expanding policy. The example I gave was from 2012 to 2014. Today, it’s a different environment…