Buzz Stocks: JPMorgan Chase, Groupon, and Nokia

U.S. securities are edging higher this morning, as traders react to positive earnings from several blue-chip firms, including JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM). In other company news, today's stocks to watch include coupon king Groupon Inc (NASDAQ:GRPN) and mobile phone maker Nokia Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:NOK).

• The shares of JPM are 0.3% higher ahead of the bell -- and could approach decade-plus highs -- after the financial firm posted a first-quarter earnings beat. On the charts, the shares of JPMorgan Chase & Co. have rebounded 14.4% from their Feb. 2 year-to-date low of $54.27, to finish Monday at $62.07. Accordingly, call activity has been prominent in the options pits. Over the past 10 days at International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), 1.58 JPM calls have been bought to open for every put, which is a higher ratio than 69% of all similar readings taken over the past year. The brokerage bunch is mostly bullish on the stock as well, as 84% of covering analysts rate it a "buy" or "strong buy."


• According to The Wall Street Journal, GRPN is nearing an agreement to sell its stake in South Korean company Ticket Monster to a handful of investors, including KKR & Co. L.P. (NYSE:KKR), in a deal worth almost $800 million (subscription required). After closing at $7.25 yesterday, Groupon Inc is poised to put a dent in its 12.2% year-to-date deficit, up 2.2% in electronic trading. Looking to the options pits, traders have been more bearish than usual, as GRPN's 10-day ISE/CBOE/PHLX put/call volume ratio of 0.23 stands in the 69th percentile of its annual range. Meanwhile, 12.5% of the equity's available float is sold short, which would take nearly two weeks to cover, at average trading volumes.


• News that NOK might be taking over Alcatel Lucent SA (ADR) (NYSE:ALU) has the shares of Nokia Corporation (ADR) 3% lower in electronic trading. Looking back, NOK has been a technical outperformer, with the shares up 13% year-over-year to close yesterday at $8.30, a year-to-date high. Calls -- and M&A chatter -- have been extremely popular heading into today's session, as NOK's 10-day ISE/CBOE/PHLX call/put volume ratio of 75.19 is in the 95th percentile of its annual range.