The shares of blue-chip energy concern Chevron Corp (NYSE:CVX) are down 1.3% in premarket trading after the company missed fourth-quarter earnings estimates. Weakness in its refining business drove the decline, with its first loss in four years. However, revenue surpassed expectations with ease.

Coming into today, CVX boasts modest leads on a year-to-date and year-over-year basis, up 7.9% and 6%, respectively. The equity is on track for a monthly win, but is now poised to turn in a loss for the week. Set to open near $154.25, Chevron stock could slip below key support at $155, though support at its 80-day moving average may limit further downside.

Analysts could feel compelled to adjust their outlooks. Of the 22 brokerages covering CVX, 17 rate it a "buy" or better. The stock’s average 12-month price target of $176.43 represents a 12.9% premium to yesterday's close, leaving plenty of room for downgrades and/or price-target cuts.

Meanwhile, options traders are showing heightened bearish sentiment. Chevron stock’s 50-day put/call volume ratio over at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) ranks in the 100th percentile of the past year.

Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) reported a top- and bottom-line beat for its fiscal first quarter after yesterday's close. The tech giant also shared a strong sales growth outlook, pointing to recovering iPhone sales amid the rollout of artificial intelligence (AI) features. No fewer than 14 analysts lifted their price targets, including Goldman Sachs to $294 from $280.

Coming into today, 15 of the 36 analysts covering Apple stock still rate it a tepid "hold" or worse. This means there's still plenty of room for upgrades amongst the brokerage bunch.

AAPL is up 4.2% to trade at $247.60 in premarket trading. Should gains hold, the equity will mark its fourth win in the last five days, and notch their best day since June. The shares are also on track for their first weekly gain in five as they extend a bounce off $220 and boast a 28.8% year-over-year lead.

While calls still outpace puts in the options pits, options traders have been more bearish than usual of late. At the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), the equity's 50-day call/put volume ratio sits higher than 80% of annual readings. An unwinding of this pessimism could boost AAPL.

It's worth noting the security has a history of exceeding volatility expectations, as evidenced by its Schaeffer's Volatility Scorecard (SVS) rating of 77 out of 100. In simpler terms, now may be a good time to weigh in on Apple stock's next more with options.

Fortinet Inc (NASDAQ:FTNT) hit a record high of $102.17 today after breaking past recent pressure at the $100 level. The software name could soon extend those highs, too, considering it's the best stock to own in February, historically. 

More specifically, FTNT took the top spot on Schaeffer's Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White's list of the best stocks to own next month. Over the last 10 years, the equity has finished February higher nine times, averaging an impressive 9% gain. A move of similar magnitude would put the shares above $111, adding to its roughly 55% year-over-year gain. 

An unwinding of pessimism could provide tailwinds as well. Despite the stock's outperformance, 23 of the 37 analysts in coverage carry a "hold" or worse rating, while the 12-month consensus price target of $98.84 sits at a slim discount to current levels. 

Furthermore, puts have been much more popular than usual in the options pits. FTNT's 10-day put/call volume ratio of 1.79 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) ranks higher than 91% of readings from the past year. 

Traders can expect some volatility from the company's earnings report, due out after the close on Thursday, Feb. 6. FTNT's recent post-earnings history is reasonably encouraging, however. The stock closed higher after three of its quarterly reports last year, including a large 25.4% pop in August. 

The earnings docket is in focus amid a slew of megacap reports, with a handful of Dow components stepping into the confessional as well. Caterpillar Inc (NYSE:CAT) and Microsoft Corp (NASDAQ:MSFT) are among them, and as both securities tumble after reporting results, now looks like a good time to check in.

Microsoft Stock's Worst Day Since October

MSFT is down 6% to trade at $416.03 at last glance, pacing for its fourth daily loss in five and worst day since October, but a floor at $410 looks ready to contain this pullback. The tech giant beat top- and bottom-line estimates during its fiscal second quarter, but it also issued a dismal cloud growth outlook and defended increased spending on artificial intelligence (AI) despite DeepSeek pressure. 

The equity attracted six price-target cuts in response, the worst from BMO to $500 from $510. The biggest loser on the Dow today, MSFT is also the second most-traded stock in the options pits with triple the intraday average volume. Most popular by far is the weekly 1/31 420-strike call, where positions are being opened.

Caterpillar's Lackluster Sales Forecast

CAT is also struggling, last seen down 4.3% at $376.12, brushing off a fourth-quarter profit beat after the heavy equipment name also reported a revenue miss and cut its 2025 sales forecast. Caterpillar stock failed to conquer the $410 region in the previous session, which also enacted pressure in November. Despite eyeing its worst single-day percentage drop since September, CAT still sports a 25.5% year-over-year lead.

Over at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), CAT's 50-day call/put volume ratio of 1.54 sits higher than all other annual readings. This indicates options traders have favored calls over the last 10 weeks.

As January winds down, Wall Street is set to notch its first monthly win of 2025, carrying strong momentum into February. However, not all stocks are poised to benefit from the bullish sentiment.

Schaeffer’s Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White has identified the 25 worst-performing S&P 500 Index (SPX) stocks in February over the past decade -- one of which is Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc (NASDAQ:TTWO). According to White’s research, TTWO has averaged a 6.7% loss in February over the past 10 years, managing a monthly gain only twice during that period. From its current perch, a drop of this magnitude would put the equity below $180.

Despite this historical weakness, Take-Two Interactive stock has had a solid start to 2025, up 4% year-to-date. The video game giant was last seen 0.8% higher at $191.56, after earlier touching $192.50 -- its highest level since November 2021.

However, an unwinding of optimism in the options market could present headwinds. TTWO’s 50-day call/put volume ratio of 5.11 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) ranks in the 88th percentile of the past year. If traders begin to unwind this bullish sentiment, Take-Two Interactive stock could face additional downside pressure.

United Parcel Service Inc (NYSE:UPS) -- which is on Schaeffer's Senior Quantitative Analyst Rocky White's list of the worst stocks to own in January -- is plummeting today, down 15.4% at $113.16 at last glance. The stock is brushing off a fourth-quarter earnings beat after its revenue missed estimates and a downbeat full-year forecast. UPS also announced an agreement with Amazon.com (AMZN) to cut back its deliveries, catching several analysts by surprise. 

Today's bear gap has UPS falling to more than four-year lows and its largest single-day percentage drop in history. The equity is on the short sell restricted (SSR) list amid the volatility, and sports a 30% year-over-year deficit. 

Over in the options pits, 52,000 calls and 38,000 puts have been exchanged so far today, representing 10 times UPS' average daily options volume. The soon-to-expire, weekly 1/31 110-strike put is the most popular, where new positions are being bought to open. 

Over the last 10 weeks, however, calls have been much more popular than usual. This is per UPS' 50-day call/put volume ratio of 2.88 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), which ranks higher than 90% of readings from the past year. 

Big Tech is hitting the earnings confessional hard, with reports from Meta Platforms (META) and Microsoft (MSFT) to unpack. Both IBM (NYSE:IBM) and Wolfspeed Inc (NYSE:WOLF) just announced their own quarterly results as well.

IBM handily beat fourth-quarter earnings estimates, as customers rushed to invest in cloud infrastructure that supports artificial intelligence (AI) technology. The stock also attracted no fewer than nine price-target hikes, including one from BMO to $280 from $260. Shares are up 12.6% to trade at a record high $257.44 at last check, eyeing their best day ever while sporting a 52.6% nine-month lead.

Wolfspeed announced a smaller-than-expected loss for the fiscal second quarter and beat revenue expectations, citing "significant progress" on its new operating plan. Nevertheless, analysts chimed in with four price-target cuts, including one from Mizuho to $5 from $7.50. Last seen down 0.6% at $5.97, WOLF has struggled with overhead pressure at its 40-day moving average since November, and carries an 81.8% year-over-year deficit. 

Both equities are attracting options volume today. IBM has seen 14 times the options volume typically seen at this point, while WOLF has seen double. For the former, the most active contract is the February 230 call, while for the latter it's the weekly 1/31 5-strike put.

Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:META) stock is up 2.5% in premarket trading after the social media giant exceeded earnings and revenue expectations. The company reported fourth-quarter earnings of $8.02 per share on $48.39 billion in revenue, surpassing consensus estimates of $6.77 per share and $47.04 billion, according to LSEG.

Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal reported President Donald Trump signed a settlement agreement requiring Meta to pay around $25 million to resolve a 2021 lawsuit he filed after the platform suspended his accounts on the heels of the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol attack. Of that amount, $22 million will fund Trump’s presidential library, while the remainder will cover legal fees and other plaintiffs. Meta will not admit wrongdoing as part of the settlement.

Heading into today, META had already climbed 15.5% in 2025 and was up 69.1% year over year. If premarket gains hold, the stock will open at $693.70, surpassing its Jan. 28, all-time high of $674.33. This would also mark its ninth-straight daily win, putting it on track for a third consecutive monthly gain.

Following the updates, no less than 20 analysts hiked their price targets on Meta Platforms stock. BMO took it a step further, upgrading the security to "buy" from "hold."