Nike is the best Dow stock so far today
U.S. stocks are mixed at midday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) modestly lower after Apple (AAPL) stock erased its earlier gains. This comes after BofA-Merrill Lynch suggested iPhone prices could rise 20% should production move back to the U.S., as suggested in a weekend tweet from President Donald Trump, and is offsetting impressive gains from a handful of blue-chips such as Nike (NKE) and Home Depot (HD). However, the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) and S&P 500 Index (SPX) are higher, on track to end a four-session losing streak.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- One analyst is targeting nearly 200% upside for this retail stock.
- The Dow stock plunging on an analyst downgrade.
- Plus, VFC's call options surge; Eros International lands licensing deal; and the plunging biotech.
The North Face parent VF Corp (NYSE:VFC) is sporting unusual options volume today, ahead of the company's Vans Brand investor meeting this Wednesday, Sept. 12. VFC is up 0.7% at $90.08, with roughly 8,000 calls -- compared to fewer than 350 puts --- on the tape so far, seven times the average intraday pace.The September 90.50 and 92.50 calls are most active, due to what could possibly be the initiation of a call ratio spread. On the charts, VFC has picked up nearly 22% year-to-date.
One of the top stocks on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) today is Eros International Plc (NYSE:EROS), after the entertainment production company announced a licensing deal with Chinese video streaming service iQiyi (IQ). EROS has gapped 5.4% higher to trade at $11.65, recovering slightly from Friday's four-month low of $10.55. Eros stock has shed over 21% from its late-June peak, and is just below breakeven year-over-year.
One stock sitting near the bottom of the Nasdaq today is Acorda Therapeutics Inc (NASDAQ:ACOR), after the biotech's appeal to revive its Ampyra patents was denied. The stock has plunged 15.9% to $23.18, trading back below its 320-day trendline for the first time since late April. But despite falling 29% over the past three months, ACOR stock continues to cling onto an 8% year-to-date gain.
