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Consumer electronics industry

Midday Options Update: Market Trends and Notable Stock Activity

Strategic Insights

— 2 min read

The market is experiencing a notable surge on Monday, with the Nasdaq Composite leading the way with a gain of over one percent. Boeing's CEO Harry Stonecipher has been ousted due to an affair with a female executive, slowings the Dow's gains. Meanwhile, Sony has replaced two of its top executives and appointed Sir Howard Stringer as its new chairman and CEO. The company's U.S. operations head will assume the top job, marking the first time a Westerner will lead the firm.

Key Takeaways:

  • Boeing's CEO Harry Stonecipher has been ousted due to an affair with a female executive, causing the Dow's gains to slow down.
  • Sony has replaced two of its top executives and appointed Sir Howard Stringer as its new chairman and CEO, with the U.S. operations head assuming the top job.
  • The market is experiencing a notable surge on Monday, with the Nasdaq Composite leading the way with a gain of over one percent.
  • Cablevision Systems is the center of some heavy call trading this afternoon, with over 12,800 contracts changing hands at the equity's March 30 strike.
  • QUALCOMM has tacked on more than four percent this morning after it raised its second-quarter earnings forecast to 26-28 cents per share.
  • Executive Deputy President Ryoji Chubachi will replace president Kunitake Ando at Sony.
  • Capital One Financial is acquiring Hibernia in a cash and stock deal valued at $5.3 billion.
  • Rockwell Collins is buying German military aviation electronic products group Teldix GmbH from Northrop Grumman in a deal valuing Teldix at $94 million.
  • The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) is up 0.19 percent at 10,961.7, while the S&P 500 Index (SPX) has rallied 0.37 percent.
  • The Nasdaq Composite is higher by 1.11 percent.

Statistics:

  • 2,100,734 calls and 1,398,388 puts traded for a composite put/call ratio across all six exchanges of 0.66.
  • The CBOE put/call volume ratio for equity options weighed in at 0.69.
  • Cablevision Systems (NYSE: CVC) provides cable TV service to about 2.9 million customers in and around New York City.
  • Short interest dropped by 20 percent in February to a multi-year low of 12.3 million shares (or 5.16 percent of the equity's total float).
  • The stock's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) sits near the middle of its annual range at 0.86 (in the 46th percentile).

Sources:

  • Schaeffer's Investment Research (www.SchaeffersResearch.com)
  • Forbes
  • Barron's
  • Zacks
  • http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/redirect.aspx?CODE=PROB1M&PAGE=1
  • http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/wire?ID=12667&obspage=2
  • http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/method

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