The Option Block

Trading Block: Rally ho on the street.

• Fitbit IPO prices at $20 a share, above expectations. Fitbit Inc., the maker of wearable fitness-tracking devices, priced its initial public offering above its estimated range at $20 a share, raising $732 million. That makes it the biggest tech IPO this year and gives it a market cap of roughly $4 billion.
• Apple Bands - Apple (AAPL) shares are in focus in early trading. The tech giant is reportedly amassing major profits from its Apple Watch band. Reuters reports that nearly 22% percent of Apple Watch buyers purchase one or more spare bands. Apple has sold approximately 2.8 million watches since of mid-June, according to an estimate from research firm Slice Intelligence.
• Oracle tumbles - shares are tanking in early trading. Shares of Oracle tanked 7.6% in premarket action after the software company late Wednesday reported a drop in fourth-quarter earnings.

Odd Block: Calls trade in Williams Companies Inc. (WMB), calls trade in Toll Brothers Inc. (TOL), and puts trade in iShares MSCI EAFE Index Fund (EFA)

Mail Block: Listener questions and comments:

• Question from TennisGr8t - Longos Odd Block show. If technical analysis is not good for options how then do you get trade ideas? Are any of the newsletters that get hawked daily any good? I am leaning NO. Great show gents.
• Question from Anthony Sontakis - Hi, this message pertains to futures options. I currently trade futures options on Tradestation Futures+ platform. I was hoping someone might be able to recommend a Futures Options trading platform for a solo trader like myself. I need the ability to enter advanced orders like OCO and OSO based on the underlying price, and I need the ability for profit/loss graphs, neither of which features Tradestation platform supports right now. The only platform I have found that supports what I need is OptionsCity, but the pricing is for institutions ($2500/month) - that is cost prohibitive for me. Are there any good but affordable platforms out there to trade Futures Options for a little guy like me? Thanks, Anthony

Around the Block: Oracle, Rite-Aid earnings. Continuing to punt on the Fed. NASDAQ closes at record high. Another summit on the Greece bailout.

Trading Block: Trade bodies urge regulators to sort out derivatives reporting. Stocks to watch: CVS, Lumber Liquidators, Actavis. CBOE extends VIX and SPX options trading hours as global growth in VIX continues to build.

Odd Block: Puts trade in SPDR S&P Homebuilders ETF (XHB), calls trade in iShares MSCI Germany Index (EWG), and calls roll in TASER International, Inc. (TASR).

Strategy Block: Tosaw discusses hedging bond portfolios.

Option Pit Mystery Block: Sebastian discusses crisis management.

Around the Block: Earnings: Oracle, Rite Aid & FedEx Highlight Quiet Earnings Week.

Trading Block: Apples big meeting is a loser for investors - the Apple (AAPL) faithful are breathlessly awaiting the company's latest announcements at its confab starting Monday. But investors know better – it's a bust. VXX - closed the day at $18 (a change of -2.33%) at a relative volume of 0.95. Lululemon founder, Chip Wilson, files to sell his stake in the company.

Odd Block: Calls trade in iShares FTSE/Xinhua China (FXI), puts trade in iShares MSCI Germany Index (EWG), and big call buy in DISH Network Group (DISH)

Mail Block: Listener questions and comments

• Question from RJR 357: Are the Options Bootcamps worth it?
• Question from Mr. Fed: Can you explain how to use gamma around earnings.
• Question from Roger Lee: were the calls sold or bought for Tyco? There are about 14K calls that are expiring in July as well. I'm not sure if it was a buy or sell as well.

Around the Block: Earnings: Sears, Lululemon.

Trading Block: Down day on the market: weekend coming in; selloff. TSLA up $7, but why? What is going on with Greece? If they can get out of their debt, why not the rest of the EU? Theta vs. delta. Could AAPL go over the trillion dollar market cap level? AVP rumor redux: making up stories to manipulate the market & SEC.

Odd Block: Puts trade in TUR, puts trade in AU, and calls trade in CCL.

Strategy Block: Ratio spreads on bonds.

Around the Block: Shaking fists at Greece. Vol blip. LULU earnings leak?

Trading Block: A pronounced selloff across the market today. The IMF calls out the Fed - says rates should be not raised until 2016. Goldman is long puts in USO and XLE - saying volatility is just too low.

Odd Block: Puts trade in Ocwen Financial Group (OCN), puts trade in Intel Corp. (INTC), and Aug calls trade in Cisco Systems, Inc. (CSCO)

Mail Block: Listener questions and comments

• Question from Value Investrader: Question for you regarding unusual options activity, when Vol & OI increase, how do we know whether they were bought vs sold?
• Question from Tom_Inc: What is a good intraday options trading strategy for SPY?
• Question from Sin City: Why do you not use hashtags for each of the show to sort out the questions? For example: #OptionBlock, #VolatilityViews, etc.

Around the Block: Greek deadline coming up. Non-farm payrolls. Fed Watch: June.

Trading Block: Embrace options in the TWTR stock fire sale. Intel to buy Altera in nearly $17B cash deal. Euronext to launch volatility contracts.

Odd Block: Calls and puts trade in CSX Corp (CSX), puts trade in IAMGOLD Corp (IAG), and calls trade in EV Energy Partners LP (EVEP)

Strategy Block: Anything you can do with stock, I can do with options.

Around the Block: June kicks off the close of earnings season.

Trading Block: Wall Street is using the power of Dodd-Frank against itself. Shake Shacks (SHAK) unhedgeable risk. Chipotle (CMG) stock rallying following higher analyst rating. Google (GOOGL) tech deals on pace to surpass 1999.

Odd Block: Calls trade in CONSOL Energy Inc. (CNX), calls trade in McDonalds Corp (MCD), and puts trade in iPath S&P 500 VIX Short Term ETN (VXX).

Mail Block: Listener questions and comments

• Question from Gerry Engle - Hola fellows. Like the programs especially Option Block and Volatility Views. I noticed you guys do not talk much about technicals. The few times you have mentioned them you seem to take a dim view of them. Why is that? Are there no technicals that you feel are useful for options traders to pay attention to?
• Question from Calls vs Puts - Why is there not just one product that you can sell and buy to express your bullish or bearish outlook instead of two - calls and puts? Is that not a bit of overkill?
• Question from Georges Sinclair - Why are iron condors so popular? Seems like many other strategies can offer similar performance. Why has that one strategy become so dominant?

Around the Block: Early summer doldrums? Any action in anything anytime soon?

Option Block 434: Buy SPY Calls and Go Away

Trading Block: Buying SPY for the summer. The absence of fear - How low can the VIX go? Stocks rise to near records; oil jumps above $60. Someone made a quick buck trading cable mergers - Cablevision soared 18 percent on Wednesday

Odd Block: Calls trade in Sphere 3D corp. (ANY), calls trade in TYCO Intl PLC (TYC), and calls trade in Advance Auto Parts, Inc. (AAP)

Mail Block: Listener questions and comments

• Question from David S. - I think Apple is writing/buying options. Check my blog post for an option oddity: - http://bravo0123.tumblr.com. Why would they do this? I do not know, it’s only 6 million shares for Apple. Can I profit off this guess? Not sure.

Around the Block: Earnings: Big-box retailers step into the spotlight for earnings this week - i.e. Best Buy.

Trading Block: Icahn says "dramatically undervalued" Apple should trade at $240.

AccuShares is set to list a couple of interesting products on Tuesday: AccuShares Spot CBOE VIX Fund Up Shares (VXUP) and AccuShares Spot CBOE VIX Fund Down Shares (VXDN).

Odd Block: Calls and puts trading in CBRE Group Inc. (CBRE), puts trade in DSW Inc. (DSW), and calls trade in Molson Coors Brewing Company (TAP)

Strategy Block: Uncle Mike Tosaw discusses trading in SPY

Around the Block: Earnings: Consensus estimates from Wall Street analysts call for year-on-year earnings growth from big-box retailers Home Depot Inc. and Target Corporation, but for earnings declines from Best Buy Co Inc., Staples, Inc. and Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. when they report this week.

Trading Block: Rally ho on the market today. Is Avon in play? Stock halted after rallying over 20%. ADV 11k contracts - today over 75k! Avon Products Inc. said it never received a takeover bid from PTG Capital Partners Ltd., a firm listed in a securities filing as offering $18.75 a share for the struggling cosmetics company.

Odd Block: Calls trade in Michael Kors Holdings (KORS), calls trade in PowerShares DB Agriculture (DBA), and puts trade in Healthcare SPDR (XLV)

Mail Block: Listener questions and comments

• Question from Dmitry Shesterin ‏- @Options Some equities have more active options than others, why is $BAC so disproportionately more active? Some contracts beat $SPY, $VIX.
• Question from Fred Decker - Mark, I am nearing the end of reading Natenberg - I have even been going back to some basic concepts in the earlier chapters to refresh myself. While I like the book, I do not see much of a trading edge in Natenberg. The market models he uses assume frictionless trades and that volatility is constant. Is Natenberg a good book to get an edge in the market, or do you have another secret book to add to the trader's arsenal?

Around the Block: Earnings: Major retailers highlight this week's earnings outlook.