ID Analysts

Our seasoned team of analysts continually monitors investment opportunities around the world, to provide investors with the widest possible array of money-making ideas.

Analyst Articles

Sell to close the Abercrombie & Fitch May 52.50 put option at the market. In its place, buy to open the Mosaic (MOS) September 80 call option, using a limit order to pay no more than $9.10 per contract. Read More

The economy continues to muddle along. Yesterday we learned that consumer spending picked up slightly last month, the eight consecutive increase. Disposable personal income also ticked higher, although adjusted for inflation and taxes the gain was nothing to write home about. Read More

Last week we opened and closed out a trade in the Best Buy June 30 put option for a one-day gain of 34 percent.   This morning we opened the iShares Barclays 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) January 2012 95 put option. Use a limit order to pay no more than $9.75 per contract on this bet that interest rates are headed higher.   We’re still holding a number of other short positions with good prospects. Yesterday Starwood Hotels (HOT) dropped sharply after rival Marriott reported disappointing results and lowered its guidance. Starwood is presenting at J.P. Morgan’s Gaming, Lodging, Restaurant & Leisure Management Access Forum in Las Vegas today and the stock is enjoying a modest bump as a result, but we expect it to drop further. The Starwood Hotels (HOT) May 57.50 put option is a buy with a limit set at $3.60.   Damage assessment is still being conducted in Japan, but the cost of repairs is likely to exceed $300 billion. Power shortages will hamper the rebuilding and the Fukushima Daiichi disaster is still not resolved. All of this is likely to adversely impact Coach (COH), which garners about 20 percent of its sales from the country. New clients can still buy the Coach May 50 put option at the current price.   Retailer Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) rallied and then faltered in the past week. The stock is trading up slightly today on the back of the latest reading on consumer confidence, even if the latest reading wasn’t impressive. With April just days away and the option still out of the money, the Abercrombie & Fitch May 52.50 put option rates a hold.   Read More

Buy to open the iShares Barclays 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) January 2012 95 put option. Use a limit order to pay no more than $9.75 per contract. The price tag for rebuilding Japan in the wake of the earthquake and tsunami, never mind the ongoing nuclear disaster,… Read More

Given the tumultuous events in the world recently, traders have been especially leery of holding stocks through the weekend. Last Friday things were looking up, but there were still lingering doubts. Yesterday when they returned to their desks, they breathed a collective sigh of relief that the Japanese nuclear disaster would remain largely a local event.   Read More

With the market liable to head in either direction from here, we’re maintaining a relatively neutral stance, with positions split between longs and shorts. Let look at those shorts first.   This morning we added the Starwood Hotels (HOT) May 57.50 put option; it can still be purchased with a limit set at $3.75.   Coach (COH) should have a tough time mustering a move above $52. It’s got thin support around $50 a share with a big gap in the share price down below $46. We like that upside/downside differential and recommend the Coach May 50 put option as a buy for new clients at the current price.   Also in the retail space, Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) is acting a bit better, but not significantly so. It, too, offers much greater downside risk than upside potential. But with our Abercrombie & Fitch May 52.50 put option out of the money, we’re maintaining a hold rating on the trade.   Textron (TXT) has bounced off its lows only to stop right at resistance. The Textron June 26 put option is a buy for new clients at its current price, with the stock likely to slip to the $24 area.    McDermott International (MDR) should also fall from its present level. Still we’re a bit cautious on the trade as MDR showed better relative strength in the past week than we would have anticipated. The McDermott International May 24 put option is a hold.   Read More