Athletic wear stocks are back in focus this morning, including sector peers Nike Inc (NYSE:NKE) and Foot Locker, Inc. (NYSE:FL). Sportswear stocks (including Under Armour and Hibbett Sports) have seen a plethora of positive attention from analysts this week, and today NKE and FL are celebrating upbeat brokerage notes. Below, we'll take a look at how NKE and FL stocks are reacting today.
Stifel raised its price target on Nike stock to $74 from $66 -- in uncharted territory for the shares. NKE was last seen up 0.4% at $64.79, and is just off a fresh annual high of $65.07. The athletic wear stock has been on fire recently, skyrocketing more than 14% just in the past month.
Data from the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) shows NKE with a 10-day put/call volume ratio of 1.19, ranking in the 80th percentile of its annual range. This suggests puts have been bought over calls at a faster-than-usual clip during the past two weeks.
What's more, short interest grew nearly 29% in the past two reporting periods, and now represents a week's worth of pent-up buying demand, at Nike stock's average daily trading volume. An unwinding of pessimism in the options pits or a short squeeze -- particularly in the wake of a strong earnings report next week -- could add fuel to the blue chip's fire.
Canaccord Genuity upgraded FL stock to "buy" from "hold," and raised its price target by more than 50% -- to $64 from $42. Foot Locker stock is up 6.4% at $47.03 out of the gate this morning, up more than 66% from its early November lows.
Data from the ISE, CBOE, and PHLX shows FL stock with a 10-day call/put volume ratio of 2.55, ranking in the 75th percentile of its annual range. This suggests calls have been preferred over puts by a wider-than-usual margin during the past two weeks. Meanwhile, the equity's Schaeffer's Volatility Scorecard (SVS) of 89 suggests the sportswear concern has consistently rewarded premium buyers over the past year by making bigger-than-expected moves on the charts.