Америка сегодня. Доходность казначейских векселей.

• Palomar Specialty Insurance Company announced the launch of Flood Guard, a private flood program in California that uses a highly advanced and granular proprietary rating system. Palomar used catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide's probabilistic flood model for the United States in its rate filing. AIR Worldwide is a Verisk Analytics (VRSK) business.
• Liberty Media Corporation (LSXMA) announced that it intends to launch a process to refinance its $3,145 million term loan under the syndicated first lien facilities agreement executed by certain subsidiaries of Delta Topco Limited, the Liberty Media subsidiary which holds all of its interests in Formula 1, the iconic global motorsports business. The contemplated transaction will be net leverage neutral and the refinanced term loan will remain non-recourse to Liberty Media. Concurrent with the financing, the relevant subsidiaries of Delta Topco Limited intend to repay up to $300 million of the term loan under the first lien facilities agreement using excess cash on the balance sheet.
• Opus Bank (OPB) announced that it has received a stock permit from the California Commissioner of the Department of Business Oversight for the previously announced sale of $53 million of its common stock in a private placement. The private placement is expected to close on February 15, 2017, subject to the completion of customary closing conditions.
• NanoViricides (NNVC) reported that a substantial portion of its Series B Convertible Debentures, with a maturity date of January 31, 2017, have been converted into restricted common stock, effectively retaining $5 million in cash for the Company.

Major European indices trade in the green with the UK's FTSE (+0.1%) struggling to keep pace with its peers. In Spain, caretaker Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy was re-elected to a fourth term as the head of the Popular Party. Separately, Greece has remained in the headlines with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker saying the third aid program to Greece is on shaky ground due to the magnitude of the problem. In addition, Mr. Juncker said he will not seek a second term in 2019.

• Economic data was limited:
  • Germany's January Wholesale Price Index +0.8% month-over-month (expected 0.3%; last 1.2%); +4.0% year-over-year (last 2.8%)

---Equity Markets---

• UK's FTSE is higher by 0.1%. Miners trade among the leaders while consumer names lag. Glencore, Anglo American, Rio Tinto, Antofagasta, and BHP Billiton have added between 1.5% and 2.5% while Paddy Power, Next, Marks & Spencer, Unilever, Imperial Brands, and Tesco show losses between 0.5% and 1.4%.
• Germany's DAX has climbed 0.9%. The index has approached its January high with Volkswagen leading the advance. The stock has jumped 1.9% while peers BMW and Daimler are up 1.4% and 1.1%, respectively. Deutsche Bank also trades in the green, rising 0.7%, while Commerzbank is down 1.1%.
• France's CAC trades up 1.2% with all but two components in the green. ArcelorMittal is the top performer, spiking 4.3%, while exporters Renault and Peugeot are both up near 3.5%. Financials BNP Paribas, Societe Generale, and Credit Agricole are up between 0.9% and 2.5%.

Treasuries Start Week in Red

• U.S. Treasuries are moving lower this morning in a curve-steepening trade following sharp declines on Thursday and Friday of last week. Overnight, Japanese GDP growth for the fourth quarter fell short of expectations and that is weighing on the yen and supporting European equities. Fed Chair Yellen is set to testify in front of the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday and the House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday. While the FOMC participants had a median forecast of three 25-basis point rate hikes in 2017 at the December 14-15 FOMC meeting, Yellen will likely try to preserve flexibility to react to changes in fiscal policy. The S&P 500 is set to open up 0.15% to 2,319.4 and the U.S. Dollar Index is losing 0.04% to 100.76. WTI crude is off by 0.37% to $53.66/bbl. and gold is down 0.42% to $1,230.7/troy oz.
• Yield Check:
  
  • 2-yr: +2 bps to 1.21%
  • 5-yr: +2 bps to 1.91%
  • 10-yr: +3 bps to 2.44%
  • 30-yr: +2 bps to 3.03%

• International News:
  
  • Fed Vice Chair Stanley Fischer said on Saturday that there is «significant uncertainty» about how fiscal policy is going to evolve and that the Fed will just focus on «maintaining full employment and getting inflation to 2%»
    • Fischer went on to say that he does not think Dodd-Frank as a whole will be repealed and that he hopes capital requirements are not significantly reduced
  • In Japan, GDP grew by 0.2% q/q in the fourth quarter (1.0% y/y), missing expectations for a continuation of Q3's 0.3% growth
  • India's consumer price index increased by 3.17% y/y in January, missing forecasts and slowing from December's 3.41% pace
  • Germany's wholesale price index rose 0.8% m/m in January (4.0% y/y), beating forecasts but slowing from December's 1.2% pace
    
    • The year-on-year pace was the highest since 2011. CPI inflation in Germany is running at 1.9% y/y and PPI growth is 1.0%. The European Central Bank is set to taper its asset purchases by EUR20 bln/month to EUR60 bln/month on April 1

• Data out Today:
  
  • (no market-moving events)

• CGI (GIB) has signed a new comprehensive outsourcing agreement with Swedish insurer Alecta to modernize its IT environment, including its infrastructure services. CGI will deliver new technology, including a cloud-based self-service portal, increased automation, and improved service-level agreement (SLA) management. The estimated value of the five-year agreement, which includes an option to renew for two years, is 315 million Swedish crowns (approx. CAD $50 million).
• Pacific Biosciences of California (PACB) announced that data using its Single Molecule, Real-Time Sequencing technology, including results from its Sequel System, will be featured in more than 35 presentations at the Advances in Genome Biology & Technology  conference taking place February 13-16 in Hollywood Beach, Florida.
• Lukoil (LUKOY) stated that, based on the geological exploration results and the revision of previous estimates, it added 0.7 billion barrels of oil equivalent to its proved reserves in 2016. The reserve replacement ratio reached 81% for proved hydrocarbon reserves, including 85% for crude oil. This performance was achieved despite the average annual oil price sliding to its minimum in 13 years and an increased tax burden. As of December 31, 2016, the Company's proved hydrocarbon reserves under the SEC standards totaled 16.4 billion barrels of oil equivalent, of which 76% was crude oil. The Company's proved hydrocarbon reserves life is 20 years based on 2016 production volume.
• Smith & Nephew (SNN) announced that it will now commence its Quarterly Buy Back programme of 1,299,491 of its Ordinary shares of US 20¢ each through the Bank of America. These shares were used in connection with employee share schemes in Quarter 4 2016 and will be purchased at the prevailing market price.
• CAE (CAE) announced that Airbus (EADSY) Defence and Space has awarded CAE a contract for a comprehensive C295W aircrew and maintenance training solution to support the Royal Canadian Air Force's (RCAF) Fixed-Wing Search and Rescue (FWSAR) program. The contract is worth approximately C$200 million over the next 11 years and includes options to extend an additional 15 years that would take the value to more than C$300 million.
• Oceaneering International (OII) announced that it has entered into a long-term agreement with Mærsk (AMKBY) Supply Service A/S to provide eight work-class remotely operated vehicles, survey and associated services, including subsea tooling, engineering, communication and data solutions, to support Mærsk's global operations. These ROVs will be installed onboard six Mærsk newbuild vessels, comprising of two Stingray-class Subsea Intervention Vessels and four Starfish-class Anchor Handling Tug Supply Vessels, which are scheduled for delivery through 2017.

FY17 guidance assumes no generic Copaxone competition — potential impact of 1-2 generic competitors to Copaxone 40 mg launching in Feb 17 in the U.S: Revenues decrease $1.0 — $1.3 billion (from 1.0-1.2 bln); EPS decrease $0.75 — $0.95 (up from $0.65-0.80).

Q1 will be the lowest of the four quarters; 40% of 2017 EPS will be generated in Q1-Q2; 60% in Q3-Q4; majority of U.S. Gx launches expected only in the second half of 2017

Copaxone accounted for 36% of profit in Q4

Gapping up
In reaction to strong earnings/guidance:

• ON +7.9%, VSM +4.8%, TSEM +3.7%, TEVA +3.6%, NSP +2.9%, FDC +2.4%, QSR +1.6%, WEX +0.6%

M&A news:

• ELOS +4.3% (in talks to be acquired by Apax Partners, according to Calcalist)

Select metal producer stocks trading higher:

• VALE +4.9%, MT +4.8%, X +2.4%, CLF +2.4%, FCX +1.6%, RIO +1.6%, BBL +1.5%, BHP +1.1%

Other news:

• IMMU +7.8% (venBio comments on Immunomedics partnership announcement with Seattle Genetics (SGEN))
• PLUG +7.6% (continued strength following Firday's move)
• INO +7.5% (enters into a collaboration and license agreement providing ApolloBio with the exclusive right to develop and commercialize VGX-3100 within Greater China)
• AXON +4.6% (announces preliminary results from the planned interim analysis of the first 11 patients to complete its Phase 2 study of nelotanserin)
• SHLD +2% (continued strength following Friday's move higher)
• M +1.8% (Barron's profiles positive view on Macy's)
• MYL +1.6% (in sympathy with TEVA)
• PRGO +1.3% (in sympathy with TEVA)
• PSTI +0.9% (provides clinical updates; study initiation of the pivotal Phase III trial in CLI received clearance from regulatory authorities in the US, UK, and Germany)

Analyst comments:

• CMRE +4.7% (upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Wells Fargo)
• JCP +2.2% (upgraded to Equal-Weight from Underweight at Morgan Stanley)
• PBR +1.8% (upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JP Morgan)

Equity indices are on track to open the week higher as the S&P 500 futures trade six points above fair value.

Earnings news has been relatively quiet this morning, but will pick up later in the week with Express Scripts (ESRX 68.13, -0.28), PepsiCo (PEP 106.20, +0.10), AIG (AIG 65.70, +0.09), Cisco Systems (CSCO 31.59, +0.08), T-Mobile US (TMUS 61.15, -1.24), Kraft Heinz (KHC 90.20, 0.00), Duke Energy (DUK 78.10, 0.00), Marriott (MAR 86.45, 0.00), Pacific Gas & Electric  (PCG 63.35, +0.46), Deere (DE 110.10, -0.14), CBS (CBS 64.40, 0.00), and DaVita HealthCare (DVA 64.87, +0.12) all scheduled to report.

The same can be said on the data front. Investors will not receive any economic data today, but January PPI (Briefing.com consensus 0.3%), January CPI (Briefing.com consensus 0.3%), January Retail Sales (Briefing.com consensus 0.1%), January Industrial Production (Briefing.com consensus 0.0%), and January Housing Starts (Briefing.com consensus 1220K) are scheduled to be released later in the week, among others.

Gapping down
In reaction to disappointing earnings/guidance:

• STNG -7.8%, LNCE -3%, KNL -1.9%, STB -1.7%

Other news:

• HAIN -10.2% (files to delay its 10-Q)
• PSIX -7.2% (announces receipt of Nasdaq listing determination — to request hearing; appoints Frazier & Deeter as new audit firm)
• NAKD -4.9% (entered into an At The Market Offering Agreement — may sell from time to time, up to an aggregate of $5,000,000 of shares of the common stock)
• ADXS -3.4% (files for $250 mln common stock offering)
• T -1.2% (AT&T and Communications Workers of America have not reached settlement; negotiations continue)

Analyst comments:

• INOV -2.9% (downgraded to Underperform at BofA/Merrill)

• Steel stocks showing strength pre-market include: X +3.0%, NUE +2.5%, STLD +1.3%, AKS +1.1%

• Raytheon Company (RTN) has begun work on enhancements to the combat-proven Patriot Air and Missile Defense System that will make the system more capable, and improve Patriot's already high readiness. The U.S. Army Contracting Command issued the contract, which was funded by the 13 nations that rely on Patriot for their defense. It was announced by the Department of Defense on Feb 1, and will sustain more than 500 highly skilled jobs across four U.S. states.
• Xplore Technologies (XPLR) fulfilled an initial $1.3 million order for its XSLATE D10 tablet PCs and is in the process of deploying them as part of the first rugged tablet-based vehicle safety and emissions system ever built for a public or private-sector emissions safety program. The completely mobile system, which is also the first to leverage an Android device, exclusively relies on Xplore XSLATE D10 fully rugged tablet PCs to power the field and back-office workflows of vehicle safety and emissions programs across the United States.
• OncoMed Pharmaceuticals (OMED) announced it has enrolled and dosed the first patient in a Phase 1b clinical trial of its anti-DLL4/VEGF bispecific antibody (OMP-305B83) in combination with paclitaxel in patients with platinum-resistant ovarian cancer. OncoMed's anti-DLL4/VEGF bispecific antibody is designed to have anti-angiogenic, anti-cancer stem cell and immuno-modulatory activity.
• Zogenix, Inc. (ZGNX) announced the initiation of the clinical efficacy portion of Study 1504 for ZX008 in patients with Dravet syndrome. Study 1504 is a multi-center, two-cohort study to initially assess the pharmacokinetic and safety profile of single doses of ZX008 (fenfluramine hydrochloride), clobazam and valproate when added to stiripentol, followed by a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled parallel group evaluation of the efficacy, safety and tolerability of ZX008 as adjunctive antiepileptic therapy to a drug regimen that includes stiripentol, clobazam and valproate. Stiripentol in combination with clobazam and valproate is approved for the treatment of seizures in Dravet syndrome in Europe, Canada, Australia, and Japan.
• Piper Jameson will join Universal Technical Institute (UTI), as executive vice president and chief marketing officer effective February 14. She replaces Jeff May, who is leaving the company by mutual agreement.
• i-team Global and Tennant Company (TNC) of Minneapolis, Minnesota, U.S.A. (through its Dutch subsidiary Tennant Netherland Holding B.V.), recently formed i-team North America B.V., a joint venture that will operate as the distributor of the i-mop, a heavy-duty scrubber that combines the cleaning performance of an autoscrubber with the agility of a flat mop, in North America. i-team North America will begin selling and servicing the i-mop starting April 3, 2017.
• DelMar Pharmaceuticals (DMPI) announced that patient dosing has commenced in a Phase 2 clinical study of its investigational drug VAL-083 (dianhydrogalactitol) for MGMT-unmethylated Avastin (bevacizumab)-naïve recurrent glioblastoma. 

• New positions in: FCX (~10.94 mln shares — also has calls), TRN (~1.7 mln), SALT (~1.47 mln), LPI (~1.21 mln), JNUG (~1.06 mln), SUM (~1.05 mln), VALE (~0.82 mln), DOW (~0.79 mln), TXT (~0.78 mln)
• Increased positions in: RIO (to ~4.42 mln shares from ~3.36 mln shares), HES (to ~1.08 mln from ~0.45 mln), SU (to ~0.71 mln from ~0.23 mln), CAT (to ~0.45 mln from ~0.06 mln), HZO (to ~1.51 mln from ~1.13 mln), TSE (to ~0.83 mln from ~0.46 mln), DAL (to ~0.47 mln from ~0.18 mln) NEM (to ~1.82 mln from ~1.59 mln), CENX (to ~0.7 mln from ~0.57 mln), EOG (to ~0.2 mln from ~0.08 mln)
• Maintained positions in: TCK (~12.04 mln shares), TTWO (~1.04 mln)
• Closed positions in: CAA (from ~1.01 mln shares), DHI (from ~0.65 mln), KSU (from ~0.54 mln), BCS (from ~0.53 mln), AMD (from ~0.47 mln), CLD (from ~0.41 mln), BC (from ~0.39 mln), LPX (from ~0.36 mln), TUR (from ~0.28 mln), WAB (from ~0.19 mln), COH (from ~0.16 mln), TJX (from ~0.13 mln), CBS (from ~0.13 mln), SLB (from ~0.12 mln)
• Decreased positions in: SWFT (to ~2.79 mln shares from ~3.69 mln shares), FLR (to ~0.6 mln from ~1.34 mln), NFX (to ~0.15 mln from ~0.81 mln), X (to ~2.12 mln from ~2.49 mln), CLR (to ~0.19 mln from ~0.51 mln), DVN (to ~0.29 mln from ~0.48 mln), ARLP (to ~0.18 mln from ~0.35 mln), HOG (to ~1.07 mln from ~1.24 mln), FDX (to ~0.16 mln from ~0.29 mln)

Taking an early look at the options market, we found the following names that may be worth watching throughout the day for further indication of investor expectations given their options volume and implied volatility movement.

Stocks seeing volatility buying (bullish call buying/bearish put buying):

Calls:

• LUV Feb 55.5 calls are seeing interest ahead of Stifel conference Wednesday, February 15 starting at 9:55 ET with 1780 contracts trading vs. open int of 40, pushing implied vol up around 13 points to ~33% — we noted activity in the Feb 53 calls earlier this month (see 2/1 13:29 OPTNX). Co reported earnings last week and is expected to report its next quarterly earnings report late April. 

Puts:

• CAR Mar 37 puts are seeing interest ahead of earnings Wednesday, February 15 after the close with 2250 contracts trading vs. open int of 20, pushing implied vol up around 49 points to ~57% — over 1500 contracts traded in a single transaction. Co and Travel signed new, multi-year partnership agreement; financial details not disclosed. 

Stocks seeing volatility selling:

• FDC, TEVA, DCIX implied vol is lower following earnings/guidance

Sentiment: The CBOE Put/Call ratio is currently: 0.62… VIX: (11.30, +0.45, +4.2%).
February 17 is options expiration — the last day to trade February equity options.
*Please use the Talk to Us link at the top of the page to provide feedback on this comment as well as the OPTNX comments.

The following are some of today's most notable movers of interest, categorized by market capitalization (large cap over $10 billion and mid cap between $2-10 billion) and ranked by % change (all stocks over 100K average daily volume).

Large Cap Gainers

• TEVA (33.47 +3.98%): Reports Q4 EPS and revenue beats; reaffirms FY17 EPS and revenue guidance (MYL, PRGO).
• FDC (16.38 +3.54%): Shares rise on Q4 EPS beat.
• QSR (52.33 +1.77%): Reports Q4 EPS beat; increases quarterly dividend to $0.18/share from $0.17/share.

Large Cap Losers

• ATVI (46.17 -2.25%): Downgraded to Underperform from Long-term Buy at Hilliard Lyons.
• OXY (67.32 -1.68%): Downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Mizuho; tgt lowered to $70 from $87.
• VZ (48.49 -1.01%): Shares fall after unveiling a new data plan.

Mid Cap Gainers

• CC (32.43 +15.29%): Co announces an agreement with DuPont (DD) to address the costs of the global settlement of the multi-district PFOA litigation between DuPont and the plaintiffs.
• X (39.8 +5.85%): Steel names show strength following report that China might force aluminum and steel producers to cut output (NUE, STLD, AKS).
• ON (14.85 +4.99%): Reports Q4 EPS and revenue beats; guides Q1 revs above consensus.

Mid Cap Losers

• HAIN (33.9 -12.02%): Shares drop after co files to delay its 10-Q.
• AUO (3.75 -5.54%): Downgraded to Underweight from Neutral at JP Morgan.
• LNCE (37.53 -4.24%): Reports Q4 EPS miss.

• New positions in: HAS (~1.4 mln shares), ADNT (~0.24 mln — JCI spinoff), COG (~0.24 mln), FSLR (~0.08 mln), ECA (~0.05 mln), NEE (~0.05 mln)
• Increased positions in: BAC (to ~30.5 mln shares from ~0.08 mln shares), SPWR (to ~0.29 mln from ~0.05 mln), JCI (to ~0.42 mln from ~0.31 mln), CRM (to ~0.13 mln from ~0.11 mln)
• Maintained positions in: DAL (~26.19 mln shares), LB (~10.42 mln shares), FB (~5.41 mln shares), GOOGL (~1.28 mln shares)
• Closed positions in: AES (from ~0.41 mln shares), AMD (from ~0.11 mln), BWA (from ~0.08 mln)
• Decreased positions in: V (to ~1.42 mln shares from ~7.52 mln shares), NKE (to ~17.05 mln from ~20.71 mln), JPM (to ~21.21 mln from ~23.96 mln), CMCSA (to ~21.37 mln from ~23.89 mln), C (to ~6.05 mln from ~7.89 mln), DIS (to ~8.11 mln from ~9.59 mln), AMZN (to ~1.47 mln from ~1.8 mln), IR (to ~0.07 mln from ~0.2 mln), CNQ (to ~0.17 mln from ~0.25 mln)

• Zosano Pharma (ZSAN +71.67%) announces its lead product candidate, M207, achieved both co-primary endpoints of pain freedom and most bothersome symptom freedom at 2 hours in the recently completed ZOTRIP trial
• XOMA (XOMA +17.12%) agrees to sell 1,200,000 shares of its common stock and 5,003 shares of convertible preferred stock directly to Biotechnology Value Fund, L.P. and certain of its affiliates; BVF agreed to purchase the shares of common stock from the Co pursuant to a subscription agreement at a price of $4.03/share
• SAGE Therapeutics (SAGE +12.78%) announces 'encouraging' top-line results from its Phase 2 clinical trial of orally-administered SAGE-217 for the treatment of major depressive disorder; study 'demonstrates positive signal of activity and tolerability'

• Signal Genetics (SGNL -19.31%) stockholders approved all of the merger-related proposals including the issuance of common stock, note conversion and reverse stock split
• XTL Biopharma (XTLB -9.59%) Expands Clinical Advisory Board to Support Phase II Study of HCDR1 in Sjogren's Syndrome
• Axovant Sciences (AXON -5.13%) announces preliminary results from the planned interim analysis of the first 11 patients to complete its Phase 2 study of nelotanserin in Lewy body dementia patients; Beneficial treatment effect observed on the pre-specified primary endpoint of Unified Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale Parts II + III

• Teva Pharma (TEVA +4.01%) beats by $0.02, beats on revs; reaffirms FY17 EPS and rev guidance

• BioLineRx (BLRX +9.17%) initiated with a Buy at Rodman & Renshaw; tgt $3
• Capricor Therapeutics (CAPR +4.17%) assumed with a Buy at Rodman & Renshaw; tgt $14
• Arch Therapeutics (ARTH +3.54%) initiated with a Buy at Rodman & Renshaw; tgt $2.50
• Masimo (MASI -1.09%) downgraded to Mkt Perform from Outperform at Raymond James

Rumor Activity was active to start out the week.

• Calcalist reported that Syneron Medical (ELOS 9.60 +0.30) is in talks to be acquired by Apax Partners.
• M&A blogger Ben Harrington (Betaville) in weekly video interview discusses unsubstantiated speculation of PE interest in ZELTIQ Aesthetics (ZLTQ 55.70 +6.29); also discussed vague chatter that Allergan (AGN 247.87 +1.51) may be interested in Cynosure (CYNO 50.83 -4.23).
• CNBC's David Faber reported a potential takeover of Macy's (M 33.14 +1.15) by Hudson's Bay (HBAYF 8.91 +0.32) seems unlikely.
• Gilead Sciences (GILD 67.52 +1.16) activist chatter circulated,
• Sunday Times UK reported on possible buyers for The Body Shop from Loreal (LRLCY 36.81 +0.55).
• Telegraph reported that hedge funds support Fox (FOXA 29.86 -0.05) planned M&A deal with Sky (SKYAY 50.19 +0.23).

While many rumors circulate during the day, and the validity of the source of these rumors can be questionable, the speculation may increase volatility in the near term

• Healthcare: ZLTQ (55.63 +12.61%), SAGE (53.39 +12.59%), CRBP (7.75 +9.14%), MNKD (0.56 +8.3%), MYGN (16.9 +5.69%)
• Materials: CC (31.79 +13.01%), VALE (11.3 +8.03%), CLF (12.03 +7.89%), X (40.23 +6.99%)
• Industrials: CMRE (6.03 +8.06%)
• Information Technology: AAOI (35.49 +8.67%), ACIA (60.29 +7.62%), TRVG (13.28 +7.27%), SWIR (26.2 +7.16%), ON (15.03 +6.29%)
• Financials: FBC (28.26 +9.79%), SBCF (25.03 +8.78%)
• Energy: STNG (3.83 +6.98%)
• Telecommunication Services: GSAT (1.44 +6.71%), I (3.85 +6.65%)

• Healthcare: INOV (11.18 -8.78%), CARA (13.55 -8.75%), CYNO (51.08 -7.22%), LXRX (14.44 -5.37%), ONVO (3.02 -5.33%), AXON (12 -5.29%)
• Materials: NAK (3.19 -5.21%)
• Industrials: KNL (23.8 -12.05%), CECE (11.85 -5.35%)
• Consumer Discretionary: GCI (8.44 -5.59%), SPWH (5.81 -4.99%), VRA (10.31 -4.63%)
• Information Technology: NQ (3.9 -7.8%), AUO (3.72 -6.3%), UBNT (50.37 -5.73%), UCTT (12.12 -4.57%), LPL (12.21 -4.39%)
• Financials: BFR (18.78 -5.1%)
• Energy: CIE (0.77 -5.58%)
• Consumer Staples: HAIN (34.19 -11.26%)

• Healthcare: ZLTQ (15.73 mln +12.61%), TEVA (11.75 mln +3.85%)
• Materials: CLF (34.73 mln +7.89%), VALE (33.41 mln +8.03%), AKS (17.48 mln +3.34%), X (12.38 mln +6.99%), FCX (12.13 mln +2.19%), MT (11.24 mln +4.74%),
• Industrials: GE (8.74 mln +0.61%)
• Consumer Discretionary: F (11.79 mln -0.08%)
• Information Technology: AMD (22.46 mln +0.81%), NVDA (14.36 mln -3.44%), TWTR (11.84 mln +0.74%), ON (9.65 mln +6.29%), AAPL (9.64 mln +0.92%), ATVI (9.53 mln -3.55%)
• Financials: BAC (45.66 mln +1.73%)
• Energy: CHK (8.75 mln -0.78%)
• Telecommunication Services: S (12.05 mln -1%), T (10.18 mln -1.08%)

• Healthcare: ZLTQ (21.16x +12.61%), SAGE (2.24x +12.59%), IMMU (1.92x -1.82%), CRBP (1.61x +9.14%)
• Materials: CLF (1.84x +7.89%), CC (1.65x +13.01%)
• Industrials: KNL (3.03x -12.05%), KTOS (2.33x +5.21%)
• Consumer Discretionary: MPG (1.52x -0.42%)
• Information Technology: UBNT (4.11x -5.73%), LIOX (3.04x +0%), SWIR (2.17x +7.16%), AUO (1.75x -6.3%), ON (1.69x +6.29%), FDC (1.68x +3.48%)
• Financials: SBCF (2.08x +8.78%)
• Energy: STNG (2x +6.98%), TGS (1.89x +1.33%)
• Consumer Staples: HAIN (6.01x -11.26%)
• Telecommunication Services: TI (2.49x -0.12%)

The Industrials sector (XLI) is trading 1% higher today, higher than the broader market (SPY +0.5%). In a quiet day for the Industrial Sector, Avis Budget (CAR +0.2%) and Travel (TVPT +0.1%) sign new, multi-year partnership agreement, and Deluxe (DLX +0.3%) will acquire 100% of the stock of RDM Corp of Canada for approx. $70 mln in cash.

Earnings/Guidance

• Insperity (NSP +5.8%) reports Q4 earnings of $0.58 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.04 better than the consensus of $0.54; revenues rose 12.2% year/year to $729.1 mln vs the $731.99 mln consensus.
  • Co issues upside guidance for Q1, sees EPS of $1.78-1.87, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $1.75 consensus.
  • Co issues upside guidance for FY17, sees EPS of $4.21-4.42, excluding non-recurring items, vs. $4.12 consensus.
  • Co sees Q1 Average WSEE's of 174200-175800; FY17 of 185-188K.
• Knoll (KNL -12.4%) reports Q4 earnings of $0.44 per share, in-line with the consensus of $0.44; revenues fell 4.2% year/year to $292.9 mln vs the $313.55 mln two analyst estimate.
• Scorpio Tankers (STNG +8.2%) reports Q4 loss of $0.18 per share, excluding non-recurring items, in-line with the consensus of ($0.18); revenues fell 40.5% year/year to $106.1 mln vs the $108.03 mln consensus
  • TCE revenue decreased $72.5 mln to $105.6 mln from $178.1 mln for the three months ended December 31, 2016 and 2015, respectively.

Additional Industrials reporting earnings/guidance: EVI +18% DCIX +12.4%

News

• Avis Budget (CAR +0.1%) and Travel (TVPT +0.1%) sign new, multi-year partnership agreement.
  • Through the agreement, Avis Budget Group will have continued access to Travelport's Travel Commerce Platform enabling the Company to continue to showcase its available vehicle inventory and suite of ancillary products and services for its portfolio of brands, including Avis Car Rental, Budget Car Rental, Payless Car Rental, Apex Car Rentals and Maggiore.
• Deluxe (DLX +0.2%) to acquire 100% of the stock of RDM Corp of Canada for approx. $70 mln in cash, net of estimated cash to be acquired. On closing, RDM will become part of the growing suite of Treasury Management Solutions offered by Deluxe.

Broker Research

Upgrades

• Costamare (CMRE +7.9%) upgraded to Hold from Sell at Stifel, $5.50 target.
• Twin Disc (TWIN +4.1%) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Seaport Global Securities

Downgrades

• Stifel downgrades Covanta (CVA -3.5%) to Hold from Buy and sets target price at $16.50 noting shares should be benefiting from better commodity prices.
• Corp. Exec. Board (CEB +0.1%) downgraded to Hold from Buy at SunTrust.
• Boeing (BA +1.5%) downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at Buckingham Research.

Other

• Belden (BDC +0.3%) initiated with a Neutral at JP Morgan; tgt $76.
• Triton International (TRTN +4.7%) initiated with a Outperform at Wells Fargo.

• UK's FTSE: + 0.3%
• Germany's DAX: + 0.9%
• France's CAC: + 1.2%
• Spain's IBEX: + 1.3%
• Portugal's PSI: -0.2%
• Italy's MIB Index: + 1.1%
• Irish Ovrl Index: + 1.1%
• Greece ASE General Index: + 0.9%

• Trading higher following earnings/guidance: QSR +2.1%

• comScore reported Q4 U.S. retail e-commerce spending from desktop computers and mobile devices +18% (AMZN +1.6%).
• Leaders: M 3.3% (outperforming amid ongoing M&A speculation despite CNBC's David Faber reporting a potential takeover of Macy's by Hudson's Bay seems unlikely), LRLCY 1.4% (Sunday Times UK reported on possible buyers for The Body Shop from Loreal), LEA 1.2% (announces increase in the Co's share repurchase authorization to $1 billion; increases quarterly dividend to $0.50/share from $0.30/share), SHO 0.4% (Sunstone Hotel announces the sale of Fairmont Newport beach for $125.0 mln; results in an estimated net book gain of approximately $44 mln and is estimated to increase 2017 taxable income by approximately $37 mln), SGMS 0.7% (appoints of Karin-Joyce Tjon as Chief Operating Officer and President effective February)
• Laggards: VRA -5.6% (CFO leaving)  AOBC -4% and RGR -1% (reports that fishing and hunting chain Gander Mountain is mulling a possible bankruptcy filing), SHLD -3.9% (continued weakness; issues formal response to reports it and Kmart removed Trump products from their websites), KORS -0.6% (files to delay its 10-Q due to technical issue with its information technology reporting systems; does not expect previously reported ending cash balance of $368.8 million as of December 31, 2016 to change), DAN -0.3% (to purchase axle housing and driveline shaft manufacturing operations from U.S. Manufacturing Corporation for $100 mln in cash)
• Nearly unchanged: COH (Coach approved an amendment and restatement of the Company's Bylaws, effective as of February 8, 2017 to add proxy access)

• Most retail names are in the red today
  • Teen/fashion retailers: BKE -3%, TLYS -2.5%, EXPR -1.8%, FRAN -1.3%, AEO -1.3%, LB -1%, URBN -0.7%, GES -0.6%, ANF -0.4%
  • Discount retailers. TUES -3.8%, CATO -2.2%, BIG -2.2%, FIVE -2.2%, SSI -1.1%, SMRT -0.8%, FRED -0.8%, ROST -0.7%, TJX -0.5%

• Upgrades: JCP 0.6% (upgraded to Equal-Weight from Underweight at Morgan Stanley)
• Downgrades: AXL -1.6% (downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup), WSM -1.9% (downgraded to Market Perform at Telsey Advisory Group)

Looking ahead:

• On the earnings front: DPS, TAP, SALE, TTS report earnings tomorrow after the close. 

The broader market makes fresh all-time highs after finishing last week on a high note, led higher now by the Dow Jones Industrial Average which gains about 122 points (+0.60%) to 20391, the Nasdaq Composite adds 29 (+0.50%) to 5762, and the S&P 500 is up about 10 (+0.43%) to 2326. Action has come on mixed average volume (NYSE 308 vs. avg. of 321; NASDAQ 794 mln vs. avg. of 780), with advancers outpacing decliners (NYSE 1750/1212, NASDAQ 1670/1095) and new highs outpacing new lows (NYSE 226/4, NASDAQ 261/18).

Relative Strength:

Steel-SLX +3.8%, Emrg. Mkts. M. East&Africa-GAF +3.2%, Rare Earth Metals-REMX +2.7%, Copper Miners-COPX +1.9%, Metals&Mining-XME +1.7%, Israel-EIS +1.6%, US Broker/Dealers-IAI +1.4%, Turkey-TUR +1.3%, Vietnam-VNM +1.3%, Banking-KBE +1.2%, Reg. Banking-KRE +1.2%, China Lg. Cap-FXI +0.9%, Italy-EWI +0.7%, France-EWQ +0.6%.

Relative Weakness:

US Nat Gas-UNG -2.8%, Sugar-SGG -2.6%, Short-Term Futures-VXX -2.3%, US Gasoline-UGA -2.3%, Cocoa-NIB -1.9%, Colombia-GXG -1.6%, US Oil-USO -1.4%, Gold Miners-GDX -1.3%, Greece-GREK -1.1%, Mexico-EWW -0.7%, Chinese Yuan-CYB -0.6%, Russia-RSX -0.6%, India-INP -0.5%, Australian Dollar-FXA -0.5%.

The major averages have ridden investors' bullish bias to fresh record highs in the first half of Monday's session. The benchmark S&P 500 has increased steadily since posting a modest gain at the opening bell, and now hovers 0.5% above its flat line at midday.

Monday's upbeat sentiment has stemmed from the continued optimism surrounding President Trump's upcoming tax-related announcement, which is expected in the coming weeks. The president has called the plan «phenomenal» but has yet to give any specific details. Still, investors have appeared to take comfort in in the announcement as a sign that the new administration is looking to make good on the pro-growth promises of Mr. Trump's presidential campaign.

Financials (+1.2%) have provided strong sector leadership again today, similar to last Thursday following the news of the president's tax-related announcement. Industrials (+0.9%) have also outperformed the broader market with sector heavyweight Caterpillar (CAT 98.62, +2.31) leading the advance.

The industrial sector has profited from a recent U.S. Department of Homeland Security report which showed the cost of President Trump's proposed barrier along the U.S./Mexico border to be greater than it was originally estimated. However, Mr. Trump promised to bring the costs back down once he steps up to the negotiation table.

The lightly-weighted telecom services sector (-1.1%) has set up camp at the opposite end of today's leaderboard. Shares of Verizon (VZ 48.54, -0.43) trade 0.9% lower after the company announced that it will begin offering an unlimited data plan. The move is a response to growing competition in the wireless space as smaller companies like T-Mobile US (TMUS 60.64, -1.75) and Sprint (S 8.85, -0.11) have gained ground on Verizon and fellow industry heavyweight AT&T (T 40.80, -0.57) with their unlimited offerings.

Energy (-0.3%) is the only other sector that resides in negative territory at midday. The space's loss has been spurred by a 1.9% decline in crude oil, which currently trades at $52.84/bbl.

In the Treasury market, longer-dated issues hold the majority of their earlier losses while shorter-dated issues have ticked back up to their flat lines in recent action. The benchmark 10-yr yield is two basis points higher at 2.43% while the 2-yr yield is unchanged at 1.20%.

Investors did not receive any economic data today.

• Today after the close look for the following companies to report:
  • BKD, NBL, AMKR, FLO, ACGL, OMF, SCI, RCII, VNO, BRKR, MPSX, DCP, AGII, BRX, DDR, FRT, GPOR, CSOD, RNG, CHGG, CUTR, QTNA, GUID, PDFS, EFC, NVTA, TTOO
• Tomorrow before the open look for the following companies to report:
  • AUO, TMUS, TAP, Q, DISCA, DPS, DBD, WSO, MLM, AB, CAE, ITT, LECO, TOWR, FLIR, CRL, TRU, GNRC, MGI, STFC, INCY, IPGP, VG, AYR, AMAG, ACOR, CPLA, SALE, TTS, NMM, NVMI, DSX, SQNS, RDCM

The following options are exhibiting notable trading, potentially indicating changing sentiment toward the underlying stocks, and/or potentially representing positioning for increased volatility.

Bullish Call Activity:

• SN Feb 13 calls are seeing interest with the underlying stock down 3% ahead of Credit Suisse conference Wednesday, February 15 starting at 12:25 ET (volume: 5640, open int: 5950, implied vol: ~91%, prev day implied vol: 37%) — nearly 5.4K traded in a single transaction. Co received notification from the Tag Owner stating that they have elected not to exercise their Tag Rights in regards to the transaction announced on Jan. 12, 2017.  Co is confirmed to report earnings February 22 before the open (outside of expiration).
• LUV Feb 55.5 calls are seeing interest ahead of Stifel conference Wednesday, February 15 starting at 9:55 ET (volume: 2750, open int: 40, implied vol: ~30%, prev day implied vol: 20%) -- we noted activity in the Feb 53 calls earlier this month (see 2/1 13:29 OPTNX). Co reported earnings last week and is expected to report its next quarterly earnings report late April.
• AKS Mar 10 calls are seeing interest with strength in steel names — AKS up 5% (volume: 14.3K, open int: 19.0K, implied vol: ~62%, prev day implied vol: 59%) — 5K traded in a single transaction. There was as report that China might force aluminum and steel producers to cut output.  Co reported earnings late January and is expected to report its next quarterly earnings report late April.

Bearish Put Activity:

• HTZ Feb 20 puts (volume: 5410, open int: 2560, implied vol: ~79%, prev day implied vol: 53%) — co's new CEO Kathryn Marinello announced structural changes in N America. Co is scheduled to present at a Mobile World Congress on February 28. Co is expected to report earnings early March.
• CAR Mar 37 puts are seeing interest ahead of earnings Wednesday, February 15 after the close (volume: 2560, open int: 20, implied vol: ~57%, prev day implied vol: 54%) — over 1500 contracts traded in a single transaction. Co and Travel signed new, multi-year partnership agreement; financial details not disclosed.

Sentiment: The CBOE Put/Call ratio is currently: 0.94… VIX: (11.15, +0.30, +2.8%).
This Week is options expiration — Friday, February 17th is the last day to trade February equity options.
*Please use the Talk to Us link at the top of the page to provide feedback on this comment as well as the OPTNX comments.

Events and conferences of interest for tomorrow, December 14th include:

• Stifel Transportation & Logistics conference (Feb 14-15th)
  • Scheduled to appear: KNX, GBX, KEX, ARCB, ANW, GATX, UNP, ATSG, WERN, NSC, R, KSU, CHRW, LSTR, CNI, LUV, HTLD, GWR, OSG, USAK
• Goldman Sachs Technology and Internet Conference (Feb 14-16th)
  • Notable cos to present: SAP, ACN, INFN, SQ, PFPT, MU, MSFT, ARW, GLW, YELP, JNPR, GPN, INST, TXN, ULTI, GOOG, GOOGL, VMW, AVT, CSOD, XRX, TEL, FFIV, P, NEWR, WEX, PTC, EFX, SABR, SFLY, V, TWLO, FTNT, KLAC, ARRS, ADBE, MSCC, WU, QCOM, RNG, ETSY, ZEN, MTSI, OLED, JBL, BKFS, VSM, FLEX, TEAM, CTXS, CHKP, AMAT, Z, ZG, INFO, DATA, EXPE, CSCO
• SunTrust Robinson Humphrey Orphan Drug Day Conference (Feb 14-17th)
  • Scheduled to appear: EIGR, SMMT, RGNX, VYGR, ADAP, ANTH, ARRY, BLCM, BLUE, CPRX, CLLS, CNAT, CRIS, DMTX, EDIT, EXEL, GBT, GLYC, JUNO, MGNX, NLNK, OMED, RARX, SAGE, SRRA, ONCE, TGTX, RARE, QURE, VSAR, WVE

Conference in progress:

• BIO CEO & Investor Conference 2017 (Feb 13-14th)
  • Notable cos to present: TIG, EIGR, ABBV, ACN, AFMD, AGRX, ARNA, ALPMY, BLPH, BSGM, BTX, CEMI, CLCD, CTSO, EDIT, GALE, RGEDF, HTBX, HTGC, IMUC, INO, NVTA, JMP, JNJ, JPM, LTS, MBVX, MGA, MSTX, MRK, MS, NVO, OCX, PDLI, PFE, PZRX, PJC, PFSCF, RSPI, RVXCF, RTRX, ROSG, SPGI, SNY, ACRX, AXIM, FENCF, AEZS, OCUL, AVEO, EBIO, STLT, AKBA, TGTX, CBMG, ALBO, VBLT, INVA, ATNM, CORI, NTRP, CTRV, SMMT, INFI, ORMP, NVIV, CYCC, BCLI, MTST, LPTX, ARDM, PIRS, CLBS, CA:HBP, BIOC, CLRB, INO, ARGS, CNAT, GALT, ONTX, RDHL, APHB, SYN, CYTR, CBIO, MYOV, SCLN, SBPH, NVCR, CRXM, MATN, SNSS, CAPN, CTIC, TNXP, ADHD, VKTX, AXSM, APRI, VSTM, ITUS, SYRS, CBAY, FLKS, OREX, BLRX, BPTH, KMPH, CALA, MNTM, ONCE, VICL, CWBR, CAPR, FOMX, IMMVF, ARTH, OMED, AVXL, RXII, ONCS, PGNX, BMY

Dollar Grinds Higher

• The U.S. Dollar Index added 0.16% to 100.96 today as the greenback gained against the euro, yen, and Swiss franc. Higher Treasury yields helped to support USD in a session devoid of U.S. economic data releases but the British pound continued to show relative strength versus the euro and the dollar alike. Markets look ahead to the preliminary Q4 eurozone GDP report on Tuesday and the market remains on watch for any hints of a tax plan from the Trump administration. Last week, the president promised one in «two to three weeks.» In France, Marine Le Pen remains a long shot for the presidential election in April but traders are still on edge because she would almost certainly remove France from the eurozone. All of the majors are now firmly within their ranges from the past few months but the Russian rouble traded to its strongest level against USD since July 2015
• EUR/USD: -0.38% to 1.0601
  
  • Germany's wholesale price index rose 0.8% m/m in January (4.0% y/y), beating forecasts but slowing from December's 1.2% pace
  • The year-on-year pace was the highest since 2011
  • The eurozone's preliminary GDP growth reading for the fourth quarter is due out on Tuesday morning
• GBP/USD: +0.30% to 1.2524
• USD/CHF: +0.28% to 1.0054
  
• USD/JPY: +0.40% to 113.67
  
  • In Japan, GDP grew by 0.2% q/q in the fourth quarter (1.0% y/y), missing expectations for a continuation of Q3's 0.3% growth
• USD/CNY: +0.02% to 6.8827
  
  • China's CPI and PPI data for January is due out on Tuesday
• USD/INR: +0.20% to 66.98
  
  • India's consumer price index increased by 3.17% y/y in January, missing forecasts and slowing from December's 3.41% pace
• USD/RUB: -0.34% to 58.03
  
• USD/TRY: -0.70% to 3.670
  
• USD/BRL: -0.20% to 3.1096
  
• USD/MXN: -0.12% to 20.313
  
• USD/CAD: -0.17% to 1.3061
  
  • Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will give a press conference with U.S. President Trump shortly
• AUD/USD: -0.33% to 0.7650
  
• NZD/USD: -0.32% to 0.7179

Crude oil (USO, -1.4%) futures down today, ending a 3 day rally. Natural gas (UNG, -3%) continued Friday's losses.

Notable Gainers:

• Oil & Gas Drilling & Exploration: Pengrowth Energy (PGH, +4%)
• Equipment and services: Mcdermott International (MDR, +2%)
• Independent oil & gas: Midstates Petroleum Co (MPO, +1.5%)
• Major-integrated: Chevron (CVX, +0.75%)
• Refining & Marketing: Valvoline (VVV, +2%)
• Pipelines: TCP Pipelines (TCP, +1.5%)

Notable Laggards:

• Oil & Gas Drilling & Exploration: Bill Barrett (BBG, -4%)
• Equipment and services: Tidewater (TDW, -8%)
• Independent oil & gas: Jones Energy (JONE, -6.4%)
• Major-integrated: Aegean Marine Petroleum (ANW, -2.76%)
• Refining & Marketing: Ferrellgas Partners (FGP, -3.5%)
• Pipelines: PennTex Midstream Partners (PTXP, -2.25%)

Earnings/News

• Diamond Offshore (DO, +2%) revises previously announced Q4 earnings; discovered that its liability for uncertain tax positions in certain foreign jurisdictions did not appropriately reflect changes in foreign exchange rates
• USA Compression Partners (USAC, +1.4%) misses by $0.01, beats on revs