Today’s tickers: HPQ, FXI, WFC, UNP, MGM, LVS, INFY, VIX, TXT & F
HPQ Hewlett-Packard Company – The world’s largest technology company has seen its shares decline by more than 1.5% to stand at $33.53. Despite the dip in shares today, HPQ received very good news regarding EDS, an HP company. EDS, a leading IT outsourcing firm and a global technology services provider, was selected by the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) to “provide information technology (IT) solutions for all federal government agencies under the GSA Alliant contract”. EDS will be vying for task orders along with 59 other companies under the $50 billion contract. In line with the bullish news, though not necessarily inspired by it, one investor established a bull call spread in the January 2010 contract. At the January 40 strike price 10,000 calls were purchased for 2.80 apiece and spread against the sale of 10,000 calls at the January 50 strike for a premium of 75 cents each. The net cost of the call spread amounts to 2.05 and yields a maximum potential profit of 7.95 if shares can rally all the way up to $50.00 by expiration next year. In order to achieve such a rise shares would need to jump by 49% over the next nine months. Shares of HPQ have not traded above $50.00 since December 31, 2007.
FXI iShares FTSE/Xinhua China 25 Index Fund – The Chinese ETF appeared on our ‘most active by options volume’ market scanner this afternoon amid a 1% dip in shares to $30.55. Despite the fact that shares are off slightly, one trader initiated a bullish calendar spread. This optimistic investor sold 8,500 calls at the May 32 strike price for an average premium of 1.60 and repurchased 8,500 calls at the January 2010 40 strike price for 1.70 each. The trader receives a credit of 10 cents for rolling his position forward by about 8 months while bearing the risk that shares rise above $32.00 as he is short 8,500 calls at the May 32 strike. This trade implies that the investor does not see shares rallying above $32.00 by expiration in May, but does want to see shares rise by 31% to break through the January 40 strike by January’s expiration. Elsewhere, option traders purchased 15,000 puts at the May 25 strike price for 60 cents apiece along with some 10,000 put options which traded to the middle of…
