options posts
FeedPosted Nov 20th 2009 1:40PM by Sheldon Liber (RSS feed)
Filed under: Rumors, Market matters, Bank of America (BAC), Charles Schwab Corp (SCHW), TD AmeriTrade Holding (AMTD), Options, Wells Fargo (WFC), Chasing Value, E*TRADE (ETFC)

Look before you leap! All year long rumors have been swirling around that E*TRADE (
ETFC) was on the auction block being prepared for an acquisition by a bigger fish interested in its customers and superior trading platform. I have not used E-TRADE so I do not have first hand experience. However, this has been acknowledged broadly and I have received very positive comments from regular users when I have written about it.
The leading suitor seems to be TD AmeriTrade Holding (
AMTD), with Charles Schwab Corp (
SCHW) mentioned as perhaps having similar but less conspicuous interest. For Schwab it may be as much about keeping E-TRADE out of a competitors hands as chasing the business.
Continue reading Chasing Value: E-Trade, a word of caution
Posted Nov 20th 2009 1:00PM by Brent Archer (RSS feed)
Filed under: Major movement, Earnings reports, Forecasts, Bad news, Options, Technical Analysis

ADC Telecommunications (
ADCT -
option chain) stock is trading lower today after
the company posted a fourth-quarter loss last night of $19.8 million, or 20 cents per share, on revenue of $183.9 million. ADCT also forecast a first-quarter adjusted loss of 10 to 0 cents per share on revenue of $250 million to $275 million. Analysts are forecasting a profit of 11 cents per share on revenue of $274 million. If you think this stock won't be rising too far in the coming months, then it could be a good time to look at a bearish hedged play on ADCT.
This morning, ADCT opened at $5.46. So far today the stock has hit a high of $5.93 and a low of $5.35. As of 12:05, ADCT is trading at $5.71, down 93 cents (-14.0%). The chart for ADCT looks bullish and
S&P gives ADCT a positive 5 STARS (out of 5) strong buy ranking.
Continue reading ADC Telecom (ADCT) drops sharply on Q4 loss, Q1 forecast
Posted Nov 19th 2009 1:40PM by Brent Archer (RSS feed)
Filed under: Major movement, Deals, Industry, Options, Technical Analysis

CF Industries (
CF -
option chain) stock is trading lower today after
the situation surrounding two takeover deals continues to get murkier. Agrium (
AGU) announced this morning that CF's stockholders tendered 62% of their shares into a hostile takeover offer launched by AGU. AGU extended the offer, which originally was to expire yesterday, to December 18. Meanwhile, CF's board said that it does not believe that the tender results reflect stockholder support for Agrium's offer. At the same time, Terra Industries (
TRA) is fending off a hostile bid made by CF. The uncertainty surrounding this situation is holding back CF shares and if you think this stock won't be rising too far in the coming months, then it could be a good time to look at a bearish hedged play on the stock.
This morning, CF opened at $83.60. So far today the stock has hit a high of $82.50 and a low of $84.48. As of 11:50, TRA is trading at $82.71, down $3.58 (-4.2%). The chart for CF looks neutral and
S&P gives CF a neutral 3 STARS (out of 5) hold ranking.
Continue reading CF Industries (CF) falls as takeover drama continues
Posted Nov 16th 2009 2:00PM by Elizabeth Harrow (RSS feed)
Filed under: Major movement, Analyst reports, Analyst upgrades and downgrades, Good news, Sprint Nextel Corp (S), Options, Technical Analysis

Sprint Nextel (
S) reported this morning that it
paid off an outstanding loan worth $1 billion on its $4.5 billion revolving credit facility. As a result, the wireless company no longer has an outstanding balance on its revolving credit facility. At the end of the third quarter, Sprint had $5.9 billion on hand in cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments, plus $1.6 billion in borrowing capacity under its revolving bank credit facility.
In other Sprint news this morning, Sprint shares were upped from "neutral" to "outperform" at Credit Suisse. Analyst Jonathan Chaplin set his price target at $6, asserting that the company will benefit from cost cutting, stronger sales of prepaid service, and improved customer retention trends. Sprint's stock settled Friday at $3.10, so Chaplin's price target implies expected upside of nearly 94%.
Continue reading Sprint Nextel scores upgrade, pays off $1B loan
Posted Nov 13th 2009 12:00PM by Elizabeth Harrow (RSS feed)
Filed under: International markets, Earnings reports, China, Options, Technical Analysis
Yingli Green Energy (YGE) traded sharply higher Friday in the wake of its third-quarter results. The solar issue reported that its quarterly earnings contracted 18% to $17.7 million, or 12 cents per American depositary share (ADS). Excluding items, such as stock compensation, earnings weighed in at 18 cents per ADS. Revenue for the period edged 0.7% higher to arrive at $325.9 million.
Ahead of the report, analysts were looking for a profit of 16 cents per ADS on $331 million in revenue. Despite the revenue miss, YGE surged into the black right out of the gate. In addition to the stronger-than-expected profit number, traders were no doubt enthused by an 80% jump in shipments from second-quarter levels.
Continue reading Yingli Green Energy bounces higher on solid 3Q earnings
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