September 22, 2015 Market Wrap Up

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September 22, 2015 Market Wrap Up

The S&P 500 finished the day significantly lower, down over 1%. There was some weakness out of Europe that followed through into the US markets. Much of that was attributed to some news out of Volkswagen and allegations that they’ve been manipulating emission tests.

The biotech sector took a hit for a second straight day. Analysts will be closely listening to comments out of Presidential hopeful, Hillary Clinton. Her comments on twitter are what really drove the sector south.

The VIX was up over 11%, closing at 22.45. For now, it appears that 20 might be the new base level.

The energy sector was relatively flat today; the United States Oil Fund (USO) was down less than 1%.

On the options front, we saw bullish call buying in Crocs Inc (CROX). Options that saw bearish put buying were in Hewlett Packard Co (HPQ).

Here’s what’s on tap for the rest of the week:

Key Economic Data:
24 September 2015- Durable Goods Orders 8:30 AM ET, Jobless Claims 8:30 AM
25 September 2015- GDP 8:30 AM ET

Key Earnings:
24 September 2015- ACN, BBBY, JBL, KBH, NKE, PIR
25 September 2015- FINL

September 21, 2015 The Week Ahead

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September 21, 2015 The Week Ahead

The S&P 500 ended the day higher, however; volume was very light. With that said, we did get some form of relief after Friday’s sell off.

Despite the lackluster volume, the VIX sold off rather harshly, ending the day down nearly 10% at 20.14

Crude Oil futures were relatively strong, the United States Oil Fund (USO) was up nearly 3 percent.

On the options front, we saw bullish call buying take place in Etsy Inc. (ETSY). The bears were out in Valeant Pharmaceuticals International (VRX). In fact, the pharmaceutical space as a whole took a hit today after Presidential hopeful, Hillary Clinton, made some comments that were taken negatively amongst the sector.

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September 17, 2015 The Week Ahead

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September 17, 2015 The Week Ahead

The S&P 500 finished the day nearly flat after the much awaited FOMC meeting. Of course, there was a great deal of volatility, the S&P 500 had a range of 1986.73 to 2020.86. With the FED deciding to leave rates unchanged, we should continue to have uncertainty in the market.

With that said, what happens in other markets globally is back in play. Eyes will be shifted back to the European and Asian markets for early indications on how we’ll trade.

The VIX was actually below 18 at one point in time; however, it did rally back to 21.14 at the close.

The energy sector was relatively flat today; the United States Oil Fund (USO) was down less than 1%.

On the options front, we saw bullish call buying in United Continental Holdings (UAL). Options that saw bearish put buying were in Precision Castparts (PCP).

There are no major economic news or earnings tomorrow. However, we should see some interesting action towards the close, due to triple witching.

September 14, 2015 The Week Ahead

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September 14, 2015 The Week Ahead

The S&P 500 ended the week slightly higher, however; all eyes will be on the FOMC meeting, which is on Thursday. With that said, the markets might trade choppy on light volume. In addition, the Jewish New Year, begins Sunday night and ends Tuesday night.

It’s now been four straight Friday’s where the VIX has closed above 23.

Crude Oil futures were relatively flat last week. But, we’re less than $7 from the multi-year lows.

Here’s what else is on the schedule:

Key Economic Data:
15 September 2015- Retail Sales 8:30 AM ET, Industrial Production 9:15 AM
16 September 2015- Consumer Price Index 8:30 AM ET
17 September 2015- Housing Starts 8:30 AM ET, Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET, Philly Fed Survey 10:00 AM ET, FOMC Meeting Announcement 2:00 PM ET, FOMC Forecasts 2:00 PM, Fed Chair Press Conference 2:30 PM ET

Key Earnings:
16 September 2015- ARCW, ASNA, CBRL, FDX, ORCL
17 September 2015- ADBE, RAD

September 10, 2015 Market Wrap Up

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September 10, 2015 Market Wrap Up

The S&P 500 finished the day higher after experiencing a great deal of volatility. We went from positive to negative and then back positive. The market actually gapped up overnight, however; it lost a lot of steam. Especially, when rockstar hedge fund manager David Tepper got on CNBC and made some rather bearish comments about the market.

For now, it seems like the weight of what happens in the Asian markets have had less of an influence. Possibly because we’ve got an FOMC meeting next week. It appears that the market is waiting to hear what their next move will be.

The VIX closed at 24.37, down nearly two points on the day.

The energy sector caught a nice bounce, as the United States Oil Fund (USO) closed nearly 3% higher.

On the options front, we saw bullish call buying in Avon Products (AVP). Options that saw bearish put buying were in Ball Corporation (BLL).

Here’s what’s going on for tomorrow:

Key Economic Data:
11 September 2015- PPI 8:30 AM ET

Key Earnings:
11 September 2015- KR, MFRM

Key Events:
Morgan Stanley Industrial CEO Unplugged Conference
Bank of America Annual Canada Mining Conference

September 9, 2015 Market Wrap Up

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September 9, 2015 Market Wrap Up

The S&P 500 was not able to follow through after yesterday’s move higher. Now, for a large part of the day it looked like it was going to be smooth sailing; however, when it was all said and done we witnessed a 40 point swing with the market closing nearly 1.5% lower.

For some time, our focus has been on the Asian markets. They’ve had a huge influence on how we’ve traded here. In addition, the FED meeting is coming up in about a week or two. With that said, that’s what traders are waiting and watching.

The VIX closed at 26.23, up nearly five points from the day low.

The energy sector saw some heavy selling pressure, as the United States Oil Fund (USO) closed 3.4% higher.

On the options front, we saw bullish call buying in Autodesk Inc. (ADSK). Options that saw bearish put buying were in Tenet Healthcare (THC).

Here’s what’s going on for the rest of the week:

Key Economic Data:
10 September 2015- Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET
11 September 2015- PPI 8:30 AM ET

Key Earnings:
10 September 2015- LULU, FNSR, RH, ZMZ
11 September 2015- KR, MFRM

Key Events:
8 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Barclay’s CEO Energy Power Conference
8 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Barclay’s Global Consumer Staples Conference
8 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Citigroup Global Tech Conference
8 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- JPMorgan Small/Mid Cap Conference
8 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Morgan Stanley Healthcare Conference
9 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Bank of America 2015 Gaming and Lodging Conference
9 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Bank of America 2015 Media Communications & Equipment Conference
9 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Cowen Global Transport Conference
9 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Goldman Sachs Global Retail Conference
9 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Wells Fargo Healthcare Conference
9 September 2015 (runs til 9/11)- Morgan Stanley Industrial CEO Unplugged Conference
10 September 2015 (runs til 9/11)- Bank of America Annual Canada Mining Conference

September 8, 2015 The Week Ahead

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September 8, 2015 The Week Ahead

The S&P 500 ended down more than 3%. Poor economic numbers out of the U.S. and China attributed to the weakness. With that said, China has two cracks at the markets before we open, Monday night futures.

Just three weeks ago, the VIX was below 13, but it’s now been three straight Friday’s where it has closed above 25.

Crude Oil futures were relatively flat last week. But, we’re only $7 from the yearly lows.

Now, there isn’t a whole lot on the economic calendar, however; there are a decent amount of industry events that could move individual stocks.

Here’s what else is on the schedule:

Key Economic Data:
10 September 2015- Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET
11 September 2015- PPI 8:30 AM ET

Key Earnings:
8 September 2015- FCEL, PSUN, PLAY, TIVO
9 September 2015- BKS, CNSI, CONN, FRAN, HOV, KKD, PANW
10 September 2015- LULU, FNSR, RH, ZMZ
11 September 2015- KR, MFRM

Key Events:
8 September 2015 (runs til 9/9)- Barclay’s Back-to-School Consumer Conference
8 September 2015 (runs til 9/9)- Deutsche Bank Aircraft Finance & Leasing Conference
8 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Barclay’s CEO Energy Power Conference
8 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Barclay’s Global Consumer Staples Conference
8 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Citigroup Global Tech Conference
8 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- JPMorgan Small/Mid Cap Conference
8 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Morgan Stanley Healthcare Conference
9 September 2015- Apple Hardware product event.
9 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Bank of America 2015 Gaming and Lodging Conference
9 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Bank of America 2015 Media Communications & Equipment Conference
9 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Cowen Global Transport Conference
9 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Goldman Sachs Global Retail Conference
9 September 2015 (runs til 9/10)- Wells Fargo Healthcare Conference
9 September 2015 (runs til 9/11)- Morgan Stanley Industrial CEO Unplugged Conference
10 September 2015 (runs til 9/11)- Bank of America Annual Canada Mining Conference

September 3, 2015 Market Wrap Up

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September 3, 2015 Market Wrap Up

The S&P 500 was up modestly today, which was expected given that we’ve got a holiday coming up, while China is currently observing their own.

Before the opening bell, the ECB announced that they would be willing to inject further stimulus if there is continued weakness in the global economy. For the most part, the news was perceived as bullish by the market. However, early day gains were given back as we reached the close.

The VIX closed at 25.61, down nearly six points from the first of the month.

The energy sector saw modest recent gains, as the United States Oil Fund (USO) closed 1.67% higher.

Tomorrow is expected to be a slow day, as many traders will be taking part or the entire day off.

But here’s what’s going on:

Key Economic Data:
4 September 2015- Employment Situation 8:30 AM ET

September 1, 2015 Market Wrap Up

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September 1, 2015 Market Wrap Up

The S&P 500 got absolutely smoked today, down nearly 3 percent. The market was weak overnight because of poor data out of China, PMI was worse than expected. Interestingly, the SPY straddle going into Monday was implying a 2.6% move. With that said, not too many traders were expecting this kind of volatility heading into Labor Day.

The VIX closed at 31.40, up more than 10%. Not only that, but the VIX remains in backwardation. This is when near term futures are more expensive than farther dated futures.

VIX Futures Term Structure

The energy sector saw a big sell-off after seeing recent gains. The United States Oil Fund (USO) is down nearly 9%.

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August 31, 2015 The Week Ahead

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August 31, 2015 The Week Ahead

The S&P 500 ended Friday’s action on a mild note, something that was probably unexpected given all the fireworks we had during the week. The market recaptured all of it’s losses from Monday and Tuesday’s sell-off on Wednesday and Thursday. We went from a low of 1867 to closing at nearly 1990. A massive swing in prices and volatility.

Many believe the catalyst was fears of greater weakness out of China. However, over the last few days, it appears that fear was overemphasized.

Just two weeks ago, the VIX was below 13, but it’s now been two straight Friday’s where it has closed above 25.

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