Trading Tips Blog

Shares of oil and gas equipment company NOV (NOV) have been generally heading higher over the past year, with a number of healthy pullbacks along the way. However, one trader sees the possibility for another move higher in the next few months. That’s based on the November $14 calls. With 102 days until expiration, over 10,450 contracts traded against an open interest of 148, for a 71-fold rise in volume. The buyer of the calls paid about $1.13 to make the ...
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The semiconductor shortage continues to wreak havoc on a number of industries. But other key tech components, and the companies that manufacture them, are also performing strongly right now. That includes everything from server components to hard drives. There’s been a tug of war between those two businesses over the years, based on falling, and now rising, PC sales. The Covid-driven boom in PC sales has been particularly good for hard drives. That’s where Western Digital (WDC) has been a winner. The ...
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CD&R Investment Associates IX, a major holder at Beacon Roofing Supply (BECN), recently added 108,056 shares. The buy increased the fund’s stake by 0.75 percent, and came to a total price of just over $6 million. This marks the second buy from this fund this year, constituting the sole insider buys. Otherwise, company insiders, including directors and executives, have largely been sellers of shares, although their sales are far less than this fund’s purchases. Overall, company executives and directors own just ...
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Shares of gambling and gaming company International Game Technology (IGT) have been trending down over the past few weeks as the threat of further economic lockdowns has risen. However, one trader sees the possibility for a rally higher. That’s based on the January $27 calls. With 168 days until expiration, over 10,055 contracts traded against a prior open interest of 101, a 99.5-fold jump in volume. The buyer of the calls paid about $0.48. Shares last traded around $18, so they’d need ...
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Price is what you pay, value is what you get. For some companies, it’s hard to get an exceptional value. Consumer goods companies, which tend to have solid profit margins thanks to brand loyalties, tend to be expensive to buy into, although they may be worth it over time. With inflation fears picking off individual stocks right now, however, a few buying opportunities in this space are emerging with an eye for a rebound in the months ahead. For instance, Clorox (CLX) ...
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Karole Lloyd, a director at Aflac Inc (AFL), recently bought another 1,000 shares. The buy increased her stake by just under 3 percent, and came to a total cost of just over $55,000. This marks the second buy from a company insider this year, following another director buy back in early June. However, company insiders, including directors and executives, have overall been large sellers of shares over the past 3 years. While robust sellers of shares, company insiders still own over ...
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Shares of credit card giant MasterCard (MA) have been heading gradually higher over the past few months, but recently slumped following lackluster earnings. One trader sees a rebound in shares in the coming months. That’s based on the November $375 calls. With 106 days until expiration, over 9,140 contracts traded against a prior open interest of 173, for a 53-fold rise in volume. The buyer of the calls paid about $10.50 to make the trade. With shares recently down to around $368, ...
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Investors are catching on to the video game sector, which already topped box office sales before the pandemic hit. The space is as popular as ever, and the latest generation of consoles are driving sales and new games. Video games also hit that sweet spot of software where development costs are fixed, and exceeding sales expectations can lead to big profits. That’s great news for a number of companies, even if the market isn’t always ready to acknowledge that. Case in point? ...
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