Today’s tickers: DNDN, EW, IO & CCI

DNDN – Dendreon Corp. – The biotechnology company today announced the U.S. FDA approved its cancer immunotherapy manufacturing facility in Los Angeles. The approval allows the company to increase the availability of its prostate cancer treatment, Provenge. Shares in the biotechnology company are off their lows of the session, but are still down 0.90% on the day to stand at $40.14 as of 12:20 pm ET. Dendreon options are a-buzz with bearish activity today despite the approval of the Los Angeles facility. Calls and puts are active, particularly in the front month. Trading patterns in put options paint a pessimistic picture of Dendreon’s share price performance in the near-term, while trading in calls suggests investors hold mixed opinions. Volume in DNDN options in heaviest at the July $38 strike where more than 4,600 puts changed hands against open interest of 1,465 contracts. It looks like most of the put options were purchased for an average premium of $1.07 apiece. Put buyers at this strike profit if shares in Dendreon Corp. drop 8.0% to breach the average breakeven point on the downside at $36.93 at expiration next month. Bears purchased puts at the July $40 and $39 strikes, as well. Lighter volume in deep out-of-the-money puts expiring in July also appears to be largely driven by traders initiating bearish stances on the stock. Dendreon is scheduled to report second-quarter earnings on August 2 after the bell. Options implied volatility on the stock rose 5.3% to 48.09% in early afternoon trade.

EW – Edwards Lifesciences Corp. – Options activity on the world’s biggest maker of heart valves suggests shares in Edwards Lifesciences Corp. may be on track to appreciate in the next couple of months. The price of the underlying stock currently trades 0.80% higher on…
continue reading