Markets rallied on Wednesday, with the S&P adding over 1% while the Nasdaq rose over 2%. Asia markets closed mostly higher overnight while Europe stocks are in the green this morning. U.S. futures are pointing to a flat open, while the Dollar, Oil, Gold, and Yields are all lower.
And this is what UPB is reading this morning:
The big news this morning is that Elon Musk has put a bid in to take TWTR private at $54.20 a share. I spoke about it on Mondays rant from the 1 min 30 second mark, where I thought he was frustrated with the pace of how the directors were looking to move and may add to his stake: https://www.optionmillionaires.com/jb-afternoon-rant-april-13th-2022/
Unfortunately the last of my freebie calls will likely have minimal value at the open despite the spike. The entire leadership team at TWTR is horrendous so would not be surprised to see them turn down the offer. TWTR will be off my watchlist for the forceable future. If TWTR spurn Musk look at him to create his own platform and TWTR to tank, so PUTS maybe a play.
It is BPT ex-divy day so the stock will open 1.08 lower. Think we can see some FOMO again and work back up to 52 week highs next week. Will continue to look to close some of my calls out to cover costs hold the rest and may start looking at later dated strikes:
CMG received another PT upgrade this morning with KeyBanc taking their PT to $1900 from $1850. The premiums were still elevated yesterday but maybe playable today. Also, their is a tight Bollinger band setup in the chart, When Bollinger bands are tight it usually precedes a large move. Think CMG can break into the low to mid $1600s today so may look at some $1620 or $1625 lotto calls today and possibly some later dated strikes for a move over $1700:
EDIT announced a new President and CEO this morning, coming from SRPT. A great sign and think the stock is ready to start trading back into the $20s and beyond. May look to add some May strikes today. Also has a tight Bollie setup:
APPS is back on watch as well. If markets can at least churn here next few weeks, APPS should head back over $50. They will likely report earnings the second week of May. Will look for calls to encompass that:
Still looking to add some later dated strikes on WOW and will be watching SPOT, TWLO, and ZS for some lotto positions today.
The S&P is still down nearly 1% for the week. Despite that, think it will bode well if it can hold the $440s heading into next week:
Don't forget, markets are closed tomorrow.
Here are the analyst changes of note for today:
| Chipotle price target raised to $1,900 from $1,850 at KeyBanc | |
| KeyBanc analyst Eric Gonzalez raised the firm's price target on Chipotle to $1,900 from $1,850 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares. The analyst notes Chipotle remains among his key ideas for 2022. He views the stock's underperformance since the start of the year as a compelling entry point for what is a best-in-class fast casual restaurant chain | |
| BlackRock price target lowered to $734 from $755 at BMO Capital | |
| BMO Capital analyst James Fotheringham lowered the firm's price target on BlackRock to $734 from $755 and keeps a Market Perform rating on the shares. The analyst is cutting his FY22 EPS view by 99c to $40.21 after the company's "low quality" Q1 earnings beat, though he still sees BlackRock as "well positioned for growth" across a broad array of products and themes. Fotheringham adds that the company will continue to steal share from its traditional asset management peers, but its multiple has "limited upside | |
| Netflix price hikes to offset slowing user growth, says Wedbush | |
| Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter believes Netflix appears to be nearing a ceiling on UCAN subscribers, and is pulling new levers to lower churn. Subscription price increases in the West should fuel additional content production and growth in other regions, and the analyst's bias is that cash flow will turn positive in 2022 and beyond, as management has guided. However, subscriber growth will likely occur primarily in less developed regions at lower subscription prices, with Western subscribers paying higher rates to fund new content, Pachter adds. Content dumps, where all episodes of a new season are delivered at the same instant, will likely keep churn high, as price conscious consumers can swap out of Netflix and shift to a competitor service after viewing the content they desire, the analyst contends. Pachter believes sustainable profit growth should continue so long as Netflix is able to continue raising subscription prices, but competition may limit future price increases. He has a Neutral rating and a price target of $342 on the shares | |
| Alphabet price target lowered to $3,300 from $3,375 at MKM Partners | |
| MKM Partners analyst Rohit Kulkarni lowered the firm's price target on Alphabet Class A to $3,300 from $3,375 but keeps a Buy rating on the shares as part of a broader research note. The analyst states that heading into Q1 results, he is turning more cautious on the macro-exposed online advertising sector given the direct impact of Russia-Ukraine war, the indirect impact and potential contagion of war spreading into Europe driving reduced consumer spending due to inflation, and the "soft" brand advertising spend around geopolitical conten | |
| PayPal price target lowered to $115 from $130 at Truist | |
| Truist analyst Andrew Jeffrey lowered the firm's price target on PayPal to $115 from $130 and keeps a Hold rating on the shares. The company is losing its eCommerce share and its long-term organic revevenue growth expectations are too high, the analyst tells investors in a research note. PayPal has a foot in legacy and digital worlds, but it is approaching share saturation and facing increased competition from "new buy buttons", Jeffrey adds | |
And here is what I am watching today: EDIT, CMG, WOW, BPT, TWLO, SPOT, ZS, APPS, AVAV, VRTX, REGN, POOL, and SITE.
Let's have a great day!
-JB