Cboe Blogs

Happy "Year of the Sheep" to those following the Chinese calendar. One astrologer said  markets might be volatile this summer but would stabilize by the end of the year.  We'll see.  Option volume decent this morning, as ~9.6 mm contracts trade.  SPX with ~540K, VIX options 140K, AAPL clocked 400K. Stocks hit a new intra-day record (S&P 500) before giving up those gains. CAT, XOM, WMT & AXP all drop more than $1, while IBM and BA more than $1 to the plus side. [...]

Pitchers and Catchers Report (to Spring Training).  This should have warmed up traders this morning with the temperature -8 degrees in Chicago but stock futures lower. Oil getting hammered on inventory build and no signs of world economies improving.  Greece proposal on bail-in is said to be rejected,  WMT reported earnings which beat (lower tax rate helped) but guided lower (from $1.10 to $0.90 to $1.10 range) and is off $1.20.  Overseas markets flat with European stocks watching[...]

Traders watching Europe warily this morning.  Greece situation unclear and Ukraine cease-fire being ignored by rebels.  Producer Prices drop 0.8%, X-Food & Energy fell 0.1% (-0.3% and +0.1% expected).  January Housing Starts and Permits came in less than expected, and Mortgage Apps fell 13%.  CAT accounting under review by Feds, Soft opening expected. Volatility as an asset class Hilton (HLT) is down $0.70 to $27.95 in premarket as lodging company sees FY15 adjusted EPS 78c-83c,[...]

Stocks regained their footing and are now on the plus side.  Stories out of Europe of Greece taking a softer stance in negotiations with the EU are being told.   But reports of Ukraine truce in jeopardy putting damper on rally.  Economic numbers released this morning on weak side. Goodyear Tire (GT) is up $0.68 to $26.59 after reporting Q4 EPS excl items 59c, compared to consensus 58c. February call option implied volatility is at 37, March is at 27, April is at 30; compared to its[...]

After a strong move into the long weekend, stocks are retreating.  Talks collapsing in Greece are being blamed. Empire State business conditions fell over two points to 7.75, below estimates.  WM & MDT earnings bottom line beat expectations.  Oil and metals off fractionally, 10-year 2.03%. Volatility as an asset class: National Bank of Greece (NBG) is down 24c to $1.37 on Greek bailout talks with the EU. Overall option implied volatility of 136 compares to its 26-week average of[...]

The Weekly News Roundup is your weekly recap of CBOE features, options industry news and VIX and volatility-related articles from print, broadcast and online and social media outlets. A Key to Success: Education 2015 marks the 30th anniversary of The Options Institute, the educational arm of CBOE.  The exchange’s current advertising campaign shines a light on CBOE’s ongoing commitment to  helping customers better understand options trading. “How CBOE Educated Investors[...]

After an abbreviated trip into record territory, markets have given up most of the morning gains.  ~10.5mm options contracts trade by mid-day, with SPX (643K) and VIX (371K) leading the Index volume at CBOE.  RUT recorded over 51K option contracts, with SPY at 1.1mm and AAPL checked in with over 600K. The energy sector has shown the most strength in the morning session, with Utilities showing the least spark.  BIDU halts its recent slide and is up $6, GOOG adds $4.50, AMZN $3 to the[...]

// Apple officially dominates the world in terms of market cap and it’s a major play in weekly options. I’m Angela Miles reporting today on weekly options expiring this Friday, the 13th. Next Friday is a traditional options expiration. Traders and investors are taking a shine to Apple this week as the stock breaks out to new highs. Today AAPL is trading around $126. Plenty of call buyers are moving into the market[...]

Stocks push higher on calming of tensions in Ukraine.  Gold and Oil off fractionally, 10-year yield off 2-basis points.  European equities closed higher, FTSE up 9.96 points. Option activity picked in the first half of todays session.  With ~10.2 mm options contracts trading, SPX with 555K, VIX options showed 290K, 1.4mm SPY options change hands.  AAPL traded 1.25m contracts, BIDU, CSCO and GOOG options fairly busy. Baidu (BIDU) is down $9.98 to $204.72 after the Chinese internet[...]

Futures markets ignore the weak January Retail Sales report (off 0.8%, X-autos down 0.9%, December also lower by  0.9% the month before) and  move modestly higher. Weekly Claims above 300 K again. Mixed signals on Greece.  Expedia plans an offer for Orbitz.  Several earnings reports this morning.  Volatility as an asset class Tesla (TSLA) is down $15.85 to $196.87 in the premarket after reporting deliveries fell short, problems affected production. Q4 EPS of ($0.13), $0.44[...]

Markets lower on Oil retreat and uncertainty in Europe.  Small business optimism droped 2.5% in January, but is still at a high level.  Option volume slightly below average at noon CT, ~8.2 mm contracts trade.  SPX with 388K, AAPL trades roughly 1 million option contracts.  GS loses $2 points, NKE off $1.50. on the NASDAQ BIDU off $4, AAPL adds $2. AOL (AOL) is down $4.83 to $40 after reporting less than expected Q4 results and the digital content portal sees 1H15 revenue impacted[...]

Meetings in Brussels and Minsk overshadowing Q1 earnings today.  US stock futures mixed to lower, overseas markets much the same.  10-year unchanged.  Baltic Dry hitting a record low and this disturbing level starting to get attention. AOL earnings beat, revenues missed. Volatility as an asset class: PepsiCo (PEP) is up $2.86 to $101.40 in the premarket after reporting Q4 core EPS $1.12, compared to consensus $1.08. February weekly call option implied volatility is at 31, February[...]

Overseas markets mixed to higher.  Bonds firm.  Oil down 1%.  GPS lower by $0.68 on lower sales, ARO lost less than expected and has added $0.40 in early action.  Watch the Greeks and Oil.  Volatility as an asset class: Urban Outfitters (URBN) is up $2.54 to $39.05 in the premarket after reporting Q4 revenue of $1B, compared to consensus $997M. Q4 comparable Retail segment net sales increased 6%. Overall option implied volatility of 31 compares to its 26-week average of 30. Qualcomm[...]

AAPL (up $0.50) & MSFT (higher by $0.20) keeping the NASDAQ from joining the DJIA and SPX in a minor selloff.  The energy sector (Oil up $1.00), airlines down.  Gold and Grains doing well. President Obama and Chancellor Merkel in joint press conference, traders unsure what they agreed on.  Option volume at 7.2mm fairly light.  SPX volume at 355K and AAPL options trade 340K mid-day. McDonald's (MCD) is down $1.00 to $92.99  on global comparable sales decreased 1.8% in[...]

The usual coming in to trading today.  Weakness in China economy, Greece possible exit from Euro and Ukraine talk collapse.  DAX off 1.6%, NIKKEI only overseas market in the green.  Oil higher in early session.  Volatility as an asset class Today begins a crucial week of high-stakes diplomacy on the Ukraine crisis. Germany's Angela Merkel has given Russian President Vladimir Putin until February 11 to agree to a road map to end the fighting in eastern Ukraine. iShares MSCI Germany[...]