Nautilus (NYSE: NLS), a marketer, developer and manufacturer of health fitness equipment, is recently up 85 cents to $6.45. NLS is holding a special meeting today for shareholders to vote on Sherborne Investors LP's proposal calling for the replacement of four existing NLS board members with four Sherborne nominees. NLS call option volume of 5,614 contracts compares to put volume of 220 contracts. NLS January option implied volatility of 120 is above its 26-week average of 61 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price fluctuations.

Options Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com

Countrywide Financial Corp (NYSE: CFC) September volatility at 116 prior to BAC preferred stock purchase.

CFC, a U.S. home mortgage lender, is recently trading at $25.85 in pre-open trading, above its close of $21.82 yesterday. Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) purchased $2 billion of preferred stock from CFC. Goldman Sachs says this is "a vote of confidence from BAC, but earnings prospects unchanged." CFC September option implied volatility of 116 is above its 26-week average of 59 according to Track Data, indicating larger price fluctuations.

Daily options Update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com.

More Countrywide Financial news

Peter Cohan: Is Bank of America's (BAC) purchase of Countrwide Financial (CFC) a good bet?
Georges Yared: Bank of America (BAC) makes strategic investment in Countrywide Financial (CFC)
Douglas McIntyre: Will Berkshire Hathaway (BRK) buy parts of Countrywide Financial (CFC)?
Douglas McIntyre: New lay-offs signal Countrywide (CFC) is not out of the woods
Peter Cohan: What the mortgage meltdown means to you
Eric Buscemi: George Bailey, meet Angelo Mozilo
Peter Cohan: Countrywide (CFC) meltdown continues
Michael Fowlkes: Countrywide Financial (CFC) adds to subprime panic
Peter Cohan: Could Countrywide Financial (CFC) be put down?

Marriott International, Inc. (NYSE: MAR) -- rallies on takeover Chatter. MAR is recently up $0.59 to $47.25 on speculation a pension fund will make an offer for MAR. MAR has a market cap of $17.8 billion with long term debt of $2.3 billion. MAR call option volume of 5,079 contracts compares to put volume of 186 contracts. MAR June 50 calls are bid 35 cents above its theoretical value of 12 cents. MAR July option implied volatility of 30 is above its 26-week average of 24 according to Track Data, suggesting larger risk.

Rackable Systems (NASDAQ: RACK) -- volatility flat on heavy call volume on renewed Speculation. RACK, a provider of servers and storage products, is recently up $0.77 to $12.86 on renewed takeover speculation. RACK call option volume of 3,175 contracts compares to put volume of 62 contracts. RACK July option implied volatility of 57 is near its 26-week average of 55 according to Track Data, suggesting non-directional price risk.

Cadence Design Systems (NASDAQ: CDNS) -- volatility & volume up on New York Times report. CDNS develops electronic design automation software and hardware. CDNS is recently up $1.52 to $24.52 after The New York Times reported CDNS is in talks for possible sale. CDNS call option volume of 2,099 contracts compares to put volume of 599 contracts. CDNS June 25 calls are bid 60 cents, above its theoretical value of 19 cents. CDNS July option implied volatility of 34 is above its 26-week average of 24 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price fluctuations.

Option volume leaders today are: Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) and Wal-Mart Stores (NYSE: WMT).

Daily Option Update is provided by Stock Options Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com.

Note: The Daily Option Update is provided by Stock Options Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com.

Volatility Index S&P 500 Options-VIX up 1.99 to 15.98

Countrywide Financial Corp. (NYSE:CFC) implied volatility and put volume Aggressive on Hedging.

CFC, the largest U.S. home mortgage lender, is recently down $0.80 to $34.33. KBWI has an Underperform rating with a price target of $36 on CFC. CFC call option volume of 13,126 contracts compares to put volume of 22,720 contracts. CFC April option implied volatility of 69 is above last night's close of 52 and above its 26-week average of 35 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price fluctuations.

National City Corp. (NYSE:NCC) option implied volatility and put volume Elevated on Hedging.

NCC operates a banking network in Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan & Pennsylvania with total assets of $140 billion. NCC is recently down $0.76 to $36.35. KBWI has a Market Perform rating and $35 price target on NCC. NCC call option volume of 4,597 contracts compares to put volume of 6,780 contracts. NCC April option implied volatility of 24 is above its 26-week average of 20 according to Track Data, suggesting larger price fluctuations.