Facebook stock options left the starting gate Tuesday.
Expected to hit the 400,000 contract mark on their first trading day, the options closed with a total volume of 369,478 contracts, according to The Options Clearing Corp (OCC). Only Apple Inc.'s (Nasdaq: AAPL) options had more trading volume than Facebook on Tuesday.
Unfortunately, the underlying Facebook (Nasdaq: FB) stock price wasn't as charming as it dropped under $29 a share for the first time Thursday. That's more than 23% below its IPO price of $38 on May 18.
The options market has highlighted investors' lack of faith in the Facebook stock price.
Put options, usually recognized as a bearish bet, give a holder the right to sell shares at a specific price by a certain date. Call options, on the other hand, are usually considered a bullish bet and give the holder the right to buy shares at a specific price.
In its first three days of trading, put volume has continued to outdo call volume. It appears that everyone is down on this stock.
Until Facebook stock stops falling, most investors remain too wary to buy.
"Short-term we are still cautious but there should be reasons for optimism later this year and next," Pivotal Research analyst Brian Wiesner told Reuters.
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Facebook Stock Options: Bears Come out to Play
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Facebook Stock Options: Proceed with Caution
As Facebook (Nasdaq: FB) continues to try to save face after its IPO flop and the myriad mess ups that followed, investors now have a new way to trade the most talked about stock this year.
Options on the social networking giant started trading today (Tuesday) on the NYSE Amex. BATS Options Exchange will list options starting Wednesday.
So far, staying with the Facebook stock theme, investor interest has been high.
As trading began this morning, volume for puts exceeded calls by 1.29-to-1, according to data compiled by Bloomberg News. More than 62,000 puts, giving the right to sell, traded by 11 a.m. June $30 puts were the most active contracts, with volume at 10,974, followed by June $34 calls and June $32 calls.
"Facebook options, like the stock in its debut, post impressive first day volume so far," explained the Dow Jones' Kaitlyn Kiernan to The Wall Street Journal. "Facebook looks poised to become one of the most-traded corporate options today, with a total of 17,232 options - 7,476 puts and 9,756 calls traded in the session's first 15 minutes."
Options on the social networking giant started trading today (Tuesday) on the NYSE Amex. BATS Options Exchange will list options starting Wednesday.
So far, staying with the Facebook stock theme, investor interest has been high.
As trading began this morning, volume for puts exceeded calls by 1.29-to-1, according to data compiled by Bloomberg News. More than 62,000 puts, giving the right to sell, traded by 11 a.m. June $30 puts were the most active contracts, with volume at 10,974, followed by June $34 calls and June $32 calls.
"Facebook options, like the stock in its debut, post impressive first day volume so far," explained the Dow Jones' Kaitlyn Kiernan to The Wall Street Journal. "Facebook looks poised to become one of the most-traded corporate options today, with a total of 17,232 options - 7,476 puts and 9,756 calls traded in the session's first 15 minutes."
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Zynga IPO Flop Proves Social Media Listings Are Still Suspect
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A strong debut by Zynga Inc. (Nasdaq: ZNGA) today (Friday) could have redeemed the tarnished reputation of social media companies. Instead, the online game-maker became the latest addition to salvage yard full of over-hyped social media companies that didn't live up to the promise of their initial listings.
After debuting at $10 a share, Zynga stock tumbled 7.75% to $9.25 in just four short hours of trading.
Money Morning Capital Waves Strategist Shah Gilani wasn't surprised.
"I don't particularly like the position the company's in. It's got a lot of competition at its heels and I'm not sure about the valuation of the stock," he said on Fox Business' "Varney & Co." program this morning. "I think there's a lot of hype in the social media space."
Indeed, Zynga's failure follows in the footsteps of Pandora Media Inc. (NYSE: P), LinkedIn Corp. (NYSE: LNKD), and Groupon Inc. (Nasdaq: GRPN).
But that's not all.
Here's what Zynga's initial public offering (IPO) means to investors going forward:
- Zynga will set the tone for 2012: The tech IPO market this year has fizzled, and was in desperate need of a spark that Zynga didn't provide. This is an undesirable lead-in for Facebook Inc., which is expected to debut in the second quarter of 2012. It might also hurt Yelp! Inc., the business review site that filed for an IPO on Nov. 17.
- It could influence future tech-IPO overpricing: Zynga drastically scaled back its initial pricing by more than 50% since July, when it was valued at $20 billion. Tech IPOs priced earlier in the year received a barrage of criticism for overpricing, but there's been much less of the same talk surrounding Zynga's range of $8.50 to $10. If it fails to close above $10 a share today, future tech IPOs may rethink their strategies.
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A Tech IPO Bellwether: What to Watch as Zynga Stock Starts Trading
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Here's what you need to know about this latest tech IPO:
- Zynga will set the tone for 2012: The tech IPO market this year has fizzled, and could use a spark. Zynga could provide one. Scott Sweet of IPO Boutique told clients in an e-mail Wednesday morning there was more investor interest in Zynga than available shares. A strong debut for Zynga stock would be a good lead-in for Facebook Inc., which is expected to debut in the second quarter of 2012. It might also help Yelp! Inc., the business review site that filed for an IPO on Nov. 17. Finally, it might even subdue talk that tech is doomed for a second dot-com bubble.
- It's Facebook-dependent: Zynga's growth is tied directly to Facebook. It generates a whopping 95% of its revenue through the social networking site, and that's not going to change anytime soon. While the relationship is an incredible revenue boost for Zynga, it's also a huge investor concern. If the business relationship soured, Zynga's revenue stream would dry up immediately.
Still, this dependence could give Zynga stock a boost, in that investors eager to profit from Facebook's growth can do so with the social gamer.
Zynga's contract with Facebook isn't up for review until 2015, giving Zynga three years to develop new revenue sources and decrease its Facebook dependence - if it proves detrimental. The company plans to push its product toward high-growth Asian markets. - It could mark the end of drastic tech-IPO overpricing: Zynga has drastically scaled back its initial pricing by more than 50% since July, when it was valued at $20 billion. Tech IPOs priced earlier in the year received a barrage of criticism for overpricing, but there's been much less of the same talk surrounding Zynga's adjusted range.
BTIG analyst Richard Greenfield recommended participating in the IPO in the $8.50 to $10 range, and said even at the higher end he thinks it could yield up to a 50% return for investors within a year. Greenfield said the lower IPO price range favors investors and expects the company's revenue to grow by about 45% over the next two years.
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