Stocks are attempting to walk back this morning’s losses tied to escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine. The S&P 500 Index (SPX) is flat this afternoon, and the Nasdaq Composite (IXIC) sports a solid lead after flipping into positive territory thanks to Nvidia’s (NVDA) pre-earnings surge. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) still carries a 172-point loss despite Walmart’s (WMT) blowout results, while the Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) — also known as Wall Street’s “fear gauge” — reclaimed 17 earlier.
Options traders are blasting Walmart Inc(NYSE: WMT) stock after the retail giant’s better-than-expected third-quarter results and raised guidance. So far today, 121,000 calls and 105,000 puts have traded hands, which is seven times the volume normally seen at this point. The most popular contract is the weekly 11/22 90-strike call, where new positions are being opened. WMT was last seen 4.2% higher to trade at a record high of $87.56. After staging a bounce off its 20-day moving average, the shares now sport a 64.7% year-to-date lead.
Albemarle Corporation (NYSE: ALB) stock is near the top of the SPX today, up 2.7% to trade at $106.88 at last glance. UBS earlier hiked its price objective on ALB to $108 from $102. The shares are still struggling with a newly formed ceiling at the $110 level, which rejected two rallies this month, but are eyeing their fourth gain in the past five sessions. For 2024, ALB carries a 25.6% deficit.Down 11.6% to trade at $68.06 at last check, Incyte Corp (Nasdaq: INCY) stock is leading the SPX lower. Today’s losses come after the pharmaceutical name paused a mid-stage trial of its experimental drug to treat a chronic skin condition due to safety concerns. Shares are pacing for their biggest single-day percentage drop since April 2018 and sixth loss in the last seven sessions, but still sport a 24.3% year-over-year lead.More By This Author:Nasdaq Bolstered Triple Digits On Tech Surge Tech, Tesla Helping Wall Street HigherWall Street Wraps Up Volatile Week With Big Losses