The DoJ is reportedly preparing to sue the Ticketmaster parent
Live Nation Entertainment Inc (NYSE:LYV) stock is down 6.7% to trade at $92.80 at last check, after the Wall Street Journal yesterday reported the Department of Justice (DoJ) is getting ready to file an antitrust lawsuit against the Ticketmaster parent over the next few weeks, alleging it used its market prominence to stifle competition for live ticketed events.
LYV is today gapping below the 60-day moving average for the first time since February, as it pulls back from a March 28, 52-week high of $107.24. The security is on track for its third-straight daily loss and worst day since July, and currently trading below its year-to-date breakeven.
So far, LYV's normally quiet options pits have seen 3,142 calls and 2,810 puts have cross the tape, which is 20 times the intraday average volume. Most popular is the May 140 call, where positions are being opened, followed by the April 100 put.
Over at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), LYV's 10-day put/call volume ratio of 6.38 ranks higher than all readings from the past year. This means puts have been much more popular than usual in the last two weeks.
Short sellers are also firmly in command. Short interest rose 9.4% in the past two reporting periods, and the 13.77 million shares sold short make up 8.8% of the stock's available float, or more than one week's worth of pent-up buying power.