A bullish bias is lingering today, with futures on all three
major market indexes pointed modestly higher in pre-market trading.
Heading into the session, the
S&P 500 Index (
SPX
)
and the
Nasdaq Composite (COMP)
are on pace to solidify their respective perches atop the
supportive
1,400 and 3,000
marks.
-
Four material stocks
Equities Analyst Bryan Sapp will be watching today.
-
Bullish sentiment
among financial advisers creeped back into the market.
- Breaking down the
play potential
of five differing sectors.
Among equities in focus,
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR )
is staring at a staggering post-earnings plunge; calls were the
options of choice on
JDS Uniphase (JDSU )
in the weeks leading up to last night's announcement; and
Whole Foods Market (WFM )
may benefit from bullish brokerage notes following its quarterly
results.
And now, on to the numbers...
Market Statistics
Equity option activity on the Chicago Board Options Exchange (
CBOE
) saw 1,078,798 call contracts traded on Wednesday, compared to
809,725 put contracts. The resultant single-session put/call ratio
arrived at 0.75, while the 21-day moving average was 0.63.
From the Trading Floor
In today's session, Bryan Sapp's focus will be on "
Materials names
. There are a few coal and oil stocks --Walter Energy (
WLT
), Continental Resources (
CLR
), Concho Resources (
CXO
), and
Alpha Natural Resources
(ANR) -- that reported earnings after last night's close and before
this morning's open, and those share prices typically coincide with
the outlook for the global economy. Coal has really been in the
tank lately, and a big bounce and/or beat post-earnings could be a
positive sign going forward."
Sapp continued, "The European Central Bank (ECB) rate decision,
jobless claims, productivity numbers, and ISM non-manufacturing
index all have the potential to really move the intraday market
activity. It seems that most traders are waiting for
Friday's big jobs number
, though."
Currencies and Commodities
- The
U.S. dollar index
continues to gain ground
, with the greenback up 0.2% at $79.25.
-
Crude oil
is headed south, with the front-month contract 0.4% lower at
$104.83 per barrel.
-
Gold futures
are poised for a drop, as well, with the malleable metal down
0.6% at $1,644.80 an ounce.
In earnings news,
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters' (GMCR - 49.52)
fiscal second-quarter profit soared 42% to $93 million, or 58 cents
per share. Excluding items, earnings rose to 64 cents, while
revenue jumped 37% to $885.1 million. The results were mixed, with
analysts calling for adjusted earnings of 64 cents on $971.7
million in sales. GMCR slashed its full-year outlook, with the
coffee concern projecting a profit range of $2.40 to $2.50 per
share on $3.8 billion to $4 billion in sales, well below Wall
Street's forecast for a per-share profit of $2.67 on revenue of
$4.27 billion.
Near-term puts
were the options
du jour
on GMCR ahead of earnings, with the stock's Schaeffer's put/call
open interest ratio (SOIR) sitting at a lofty 1.38. GMCR is looking
at a 39% plunge right out of the gate.
JDS Uniphase (JDSU - 12.04)
swallowed a fiscal third-quarter loss of $17.4 million, or 8 cents
per share, while revenue declined 9.9% to $409.2 million. On an
adjusted basis, JDSU earned 11 cents per share. Analysts, by
comparison, expected earnings of 11 cents per share on $420 million
in revenue. Looking ahead, JDSU anticipates fourth-quarter revenue
of $415 million to $435 million, well below the average analyst
estimate of $457 million. In the 10 sessions prior to last night's
announcement, traders on the International Securities Exchange
(ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (
CBOE
), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) bought to open 3.79 calls for every
put. JDSU has pulled back 4.5% ahead of the bell.
Whole Foods Market (WFM - 84.31)
banked a fiscal second-quarter profit of $117.7 million, or 64
cents per share -- representing a 31% year-over-year improvement,
and topping Wall Street's forecast for earnings of 59 cents per
share. Sales improved 14% to $2.67 billion, with same-store sales
increasing 9.5%. WFM raised its full-year profit forecast to a
range between $2.44 and $2.47 per share, blowing past the consensus
prediction of $2.34 per share. With the stock staring at a 4%
post-earnings pop, WFM could be poised for some upgrades and/or
price target hikes, as 35% of analysts still maintain a tepid
"hold" rating, and the average 12-month price target of $86.78 is
just a stone's throw from yesterday's close.
Earnings and Economic Data
Jobs data continues to roll in today, when we'll hear the latest
weekly jobless claims, as well as the ISM services index.
ANR
, American International Group (AIG),
Corinthian Colleges (COCO)
, Fuel Systems Solutions (FSYS),
James River Coal (JRCC)
, Kodiak Oil & Gas (KOG),
Level 3 Communications (LVLT)
, MGM Resorts (MGM),
Randgold Resources (GOLD)
, Royal Gold (RGLD),
Southwestern Energy (SWN)
, SunPower (SPWR), and
Western Refining (WNR)
will all release their respective earnings.
Overseas Trading
Stocks in Asia edged mostly lower today, following suit with
Wednesday's lackluster finish on Wall Street. Traders were rattled
by weak employment reports from the U.S. and euro zone, while a
downturn in gold prices weighed on mining issues. Meanwhile,
sellers targeted financial stocks after Singapore's Temasek
Holdings unloaded substantial stakes in China Construction Bank and
Bank of China at a relative discount. By the close, Hong Kong's
Hang Seng shed 0.3%, South Korea's Kospi declined 0.2%, and China's
Shanghai Composite eked out a gain of 0.07%. Markets in Japan are
closed through the end of the week for holidays.
European markets are clinging to modest gains at midday, after
the ECB opted to stand pat on interest rates. Investors will now be
looking ahead to a press conference with ECB President Mario
Draghi, who is expected to provide some clues as to whether
policymakers are considering additional easing measures. At last
check, London's FTSE 100 is up 0.5%, the German DAX has gained 1%,
and the French CAC 40 is 1.4% higher.
Unusual Put and Call Activity:
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topics on
Option Volume
and
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.
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