WMT is leading the Dow higher after a solid report on quarterly earnings and revenue
U.S. stocks are trading higher this morning, thanks to positive blue-chip earnings. Among the stocks making moves today are retail giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc (NYSE:WMT), electronics retailer Best Buy Co Inc (NYSE:BBY), and media content company Time Inc (NYSE:TIME). Here's a closer look at what's moving shares of WMT, BBY, and TIME.
Wal-Mart Soars on Earnings Beat
Shares of Wal-Mart are soaring after the Dow component announced a fiscal third-quarter earnings beat, along with same-store sales that topped expectations on strong hurricane-related demand. WMT is up 6.8% at $95.97 to lead the Dow, and earlier set a fresh record high of $96.07. Wal-Mart stock has now gained nearly 39% on the year.
Ahead of earnings, WMT options traders were upbeat. Data from the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) shows WMT with a 10-day call/put volume ratio of 1.75, which ranks in the 76th percentile of its annual range. This suggests that calls have been bought to open over puts at a faster-than-usual rate during the past two weeks.
BBY Takes a Dive After Earnings Miss
Best Buy stock is falling after the retailer's holiday-quarter forecast fell short of analysts' expectations. BBY is down 6.1% at $53.83 at last check, backing away from another unsuccessful attempt to reclaim a foothold above former support at its 120-day moving average. The retail stock is now testing the waters above its 200-day trendline.
Ahead of Best Buy's earnings, options traders were pessimistic. BBY's 10-day ISE/CBOE/PHLX put/call volume ratio of 1.23 ranks in the 74th percentile of its annual range. In other words, bearish bets were bought to open over bullish at a faster-than-usual clip during the past two weeks.
TIME Soars on Talks with Meredith
Shares of TIME have skyrocketed in response to reports that the company is once again in talks with Meredith to sell itself in a deal backed by Koch Brothers. TIME stock is up 25.3% at $15.85, with the shares gapping well above recent resistance at their falling 80-day moving average -- and on pace to close above the $15 mark for the first time since early May.
Total open interest on the media stock is fairly light -- but among the speculators who have established positions on TIME, calls are the options of choice. TIME's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) of 0.32 ranks in just the 5th percentile of its annual range. This indicates that short-term calls have rarely been more popular, relative to puts, in the past year.