The Dow is down roughly 1.5% at midday
U.S. stocks are getting hammered once again, as fear continues to grip Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) and its index peers are all falling fast, last seen near session lows, putting the Dow and S&P 500 Index (SPX) in territory not seen since early May. The financial sector is leading the downturn, while energy shares are also getting whacked, As such, the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) is surging, flirting with its highest close since late October.
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- A sentiment signal seen in March 2009 just flashed again.
- The drug stock one analyst thinks can rally more than 300%.
- Plus, more put activity on Ford; artificial intelligence stock could have a buyer; and Signet shares sink again.
One name once again seeing unusual options trading is Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F), as put traders seem to be replicating activity seen last week. More specifically, Trade-Alert notes heavy activity at the January 2019 8-strike put, a contract that saw buy-to-open activity last week. More buying at this strike would suggest traders continue to bet on more downside for F shares, which were last seen trading down 3.7% at $8.49, on pace for a fourth straight loss.
Looking at today's winningest stocks, one name standing out on the Nasdaq is Veritone Inc (NASDAQ:VERI). The shares of the artificial intelligence expert have jumped 18.9% to trade at $6.69, after Apis Capital offered to buy the company for $10.26 per share. This adds VERI to the long list of names rising on M&A news today, and briefly had the stock trading atop the 50-day moving average for the first since June.
Signet Jewelers Ltd. (NYSE:SIG) is one of the worst stocks on the New York Stock Exchange today, last seen trading 8.2% below breakeven at $35.39, following a price-target cut to $42 from $62 at Nomura. This is just more of the same for SIG stock, which suffered a huge post-earnings bear gap last Thursday.