The Dow is up over 440 points
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) is continuing its surge after a triple-digit open, expanding on Friday's weekly win for indexes. The Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) and S&P 500 Index (SPX) are also in the black, after social distancing measures were extended to April 30 by U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday. Bracing for another volatile week, sentiment was also boosted by Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) announcing a lead vaccine candidate for the coronavirus, and an impressive lead out of tech giants Alphabet (GOOGL), Amazon (AMZN), and Microsoft (MSFT).
Continue reading for more on today's market, including:
- The beauty retailer in the spotlight.
- How Johnson & Johnson stock is topping the market.
- Plus, OMI's option volume surge; the rising REIT; and the gaming and hospitality name falling.
One stock seeing an options volume surge today is Owens & Minor Inc (NYSE:OMI), last seen up 46.2% to trade at $8.05, earlier touching a fresh annual high of $8.94. So far the healthcare services name has seen 7,000 calls and 1,400 puts cross the tape -- eight times the usual daily volume. Most popular is the April 10 call, where new positions are being opened. The surge comes after the company announced it has ramped up the production of surgical masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE) due to increased domestic demand.
One stock moving up on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) today is Power REIT (NYSE:PW), up 6.6% to trade at $10.97 at last check. Though the reason for today's rise is unclear, though the real estate investment trust announced earlier this month that it was acquiring greenhouse property for cannabis cultivation and processing. Also earlier this month, the equity pulled back to the $7 level, eventually bouncing off its 320-day moving average.
Meanwhile, towards the bottom of the Nasdaq today is Eldorado Resorts Inc (NASDAQ: ERI), down 25.2% to trade at $11.32 at last check. The gaming and hospitality company is continuing its recent struggle on the charts, like many casino names, hit by coronavirus headwinds. Further out, the security is down 80.4% year-to-date, and recently touched a multi-year low of $6.02 on March 18.