Monday’s Vital Data: Micron Technology, Inc. (MU), Apple Inc. (AAPL) and Nike Inc (NKE)

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U.S. stock futures are pointing toward a solid open for the first trading day of the third quarter, as Wall Street prepares for a run into the second half of 2017. What’s more, barring any major developments, today should be an up-day with light trading, as the NYSE closes early and will remain closed tomorrow due to the Fourth of July holiday.

Monday’s Vital Data: Micron Technology, Inc. (MU), Apple Inc. (AAPL) and Nike Inc (NKE)Heading into the open, futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average are up 0.54%, S&P 500 futures have gained 0.35% and Nasdaq-100 futures have added 0.29%%.

On the options front, Friday’s total volume arrived in line with the three-week average, though down sharply from Thursday’s deluge as some traders entered positions early in preparation for a long holiday weekend. Overall, about 15.1 million calls and 14.1 million puts changed hands on Friday. On the CBOE, the single-session equity put/call volume ratio faltered, dipping to 0.67, while the 10-day moving average held at 0.63.

Diving into Friday’s options activity, Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) plunged more than 5% due to a sell-on-the-news event, but the drop was matched by heavy call volume on the session. Meanwhile, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) continued to tread water amid underwhelming call activity as traders deal with a “peak smartphone” market. Finally, Nike Inc (NYSE:NKE) surged more than 10% and drew heavy call options activity on strong earnings and a deal with Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN).

Monday’s Vital Options Data: Micron Technology, Inc. (MU), Apple Inc. (AAPL) and Nike Inc (NKE)

Micron Technology, Inc. (MU)

MU stock shed 5.12% on Friday, as profit taking dominated the shares following a stronger-than-expected third-quarter earnings report. While MU hasn’t been as high-profile as Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) or Nvidia Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) the stock has still surged roughly 170% in the past year-and-a-half, placing it among the hottest in the semiconductor sector.

Meanwhile, analysts at Hudson River Capital Research also noted that hedge funds and other institutional traders were likely ditching MU stock to reduce exposure. However, the research firm believes that fundamentals have not changed, and that MU is very buyable on this dip — which has held at MU stock’s 50-day moving average.

Options traders, meanwhile, focused heavily on MU calls on Friday. Volume on the session topped 1.17 million contracts, with calls snapping up 69% of the day’s take. Judging from MU’s July put/call open interest ratio, however, much of this activity was likely profit taking as well. Specifically, the ratio rose from Friday’s perch at 0.4 to today’s reading of 0.43, with much of Friday’s call activity probably related to the closure of existing positions.

Apple Inc. (AAPL)

After leading the Dow Jones higher for much of 2017, AAPL stock has practically gone nowhere for the past two months. The shares are hovering near $145, a region they have occupied since the June 9 flash-crash in tech. What’s more, traders are reluctant to push AAPL much higher until demand for the new iPhone 8 can accurately be gauged, with many in the industry now worried about “peak smartphone” market saturation.

AAPL sentiment is certainly taking a hit, as a result. On Friday, AAPL options volume came in at 820,000 contracts, with calls making up a below average 57% of the day’s take.

AAPL call option volume typically makes up between 62% and 63% activity on a given day. What’s more, the July put/call OI ratio has been on the rise of late, settling at 0.67 on Friday as puts are added at a faster rate than calls among front-month options. A continuation of this trend could have bearish implications for AAPL stock.

Nike Inc (NKE)

NKE stock went gangbusters on Friday, surging nearly 11% following blowout fourth-quarter earnings that topped the Street’s estimates by 10 cents per share. What’s more, Nike announced a partnership with Amazon to sell some of its limited-edition products through the e-commerce site. While investors cheered the deal, some analysts believe that the Amazon partnership may do more harm to Nike than good.

NKE options traders, meanwhile, were content to chase the stock higher on Friday. Volume arrived at more than 542,000 contracts, with calls claiming an above-average 62% of the day’s take. Despite the surge in call volume on Friday, however, front-month NKE options traders remain more than a little cautious on the shares.

Specifically, the July put/call OI ratio rests at 1.01, with puts outnumbering calls for the series — and this is after Friday’s influx of call options. In fact, many NKE traders may be fading the stock’s post-earnings rally, looking to profit from a decline in the wake of an overbought surge.

As of this writing, Joseph Hargett did not hold a position in any of the aforementioned securities.


Article printed from InvestorPlace Media, https://investorplace.com/2017/07/monday-vital-data-micron-technology-inc-mu-apple-inc-aapl-nike-inc-nke/.

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