Who Was That Monster Google Block Trade? (GOOG)

Chasing block trading volume of trades of more than 10,000 or 100,000 shares and higher on a single trade has become almost alchemy in the new world of online trading in equities.  Many funds and traders no longer have large block trades because via pools and exchanges they can get VWAP trades that generate the same trade result as a block and then it can be converted via the virtual weighted average price.  Seeing block trades of 750,000 shares has become quite rare.  But in Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG)??? Almost unheard of any longer.

At 15:28:02 today there was a trade of 750,000 shares of GOOG at $545.15 on the CSE rather than on NASDAQ.  The bid/ask at the time was approximately $545.20 / $545.53.  As with all actual trades, the actual trade time can differ from the reported trade time.  Many after-hours trades or pre-market trades are the evidence of that.  This one was close enough to the bid/ask spread that it was likely not too far off on the time.

But here is the issue.  Almost all trades listed on NASDAQ under GOOG are in 100 share lots to 500 share lots.  After all, 100 shares is $54,500 or so at that price.  The 750,000 share block was $408,862,500.00…..

Generally when you see trades this size, it is because someone wants to advertise their trade.  A big trade indeed.

JON C. OGG

Radio Shack Options More Impressive Than Stock (RSH)

Radio Shack Corp. (NYSE: RSH) is surging on ‘rumors’ today that we are skeptical of endorsing… Either way the stock saw 11.2 million shares trade as of 3:00 PM EST with the stock up around 5% and close to $21.00.

More important is the stock options trading, and it is also more impressive:

• March-2010 $20 and $22.50 Calls have seen over 23,000 options contracts trade between the two; while the open interest was only about 17,000 contracts.
• April-2010 $20 and $22.50 contracts combined have seen over 13,000 contracts versus barely 6,200 contracts in the open interest.

If you add up these call options you get some 36,000 contracts, which is 3.6 million shares worth of options on a fully leveraged basis that would be added to the volume.  The put option volume is paltry.

Caveat emptor!  Still, impressive volume.

JON C. OGG

Price/Volume Spike in Toyota (TM)

Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM)  is spiking higher this morning.  Maybe it is the realization that many other car companies are having recalls too.  But traders are pouncing on the buy-buttons on the screens at the open.  Shares are gapping up 3% at $76.72 right after the open.  At 9:33 AM EST we have seen 200,000 shares that have traded hands versus 1.8 million shares on average.  This is actually the highest price in the ADR since Feb. 16….
-JON OGG

Top Day Trader Alerts (MDVN, PFE, NFLX, NOVL, COST, VISN)

These are this morning’s top day trader and active trader alerts seen moving on news and events.

Medivation, Inc. (NASDAQ: MDVN) is down almost 70% and at 52-week lows after its Dimebon failed in its Phase III trials to attack Alzheimer’s.  This is very active and will be the most active of all biotechs today with tens of millions of shares likely to trade.  At 8:42 AM EST we have seen 6.5 million shares and the last trade was $12.80.  The 52-week range was $13.36 to $40.49.

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) is also indicated lower this morning as well as it was Medivation’s partner on Dimebon for the Alzheimer’s treatment. Pfizer is down 0.7% at $17.47 and it has seen 3.7 million shares as of 8:42 AM EST.

Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) was doing so well…. Yet this morning we saw 3 downgrades from BofA/Merrill Lynch, Kaufman Bros, and Susquehanna.  At 8:42 AM EST we have seen 44,000 shares trade hands and shares are down 4% at $66.20. The 52-week range is $34.11 to $70.00.

Novell, Inc. (NASDAQ: NOVL) is soaring after it got a buyout offer from a private equity group called Elliott and the price was at $5.75 per share in cash.  Shares were trading up above $6.00 last night after the news as many are likely betting that the company will say no or ask for more money.  This morning at 8:43 AM EST we have seen 20 million shares trade hands versus 4.7 million shares on average.  The stock is up 30% at $6.20.

Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ: COST) had some light earnings on the surface.  Its most recent quarter was $0.70 EPS vs. $0.72 estimates. Revenue rose 11% to $18.7 billion vs. estimates of $18.5 billion.  The problem is valuation here at almost 20-times forward earnings.  At 8:44 AM EST shares are down 3.8% at $59.00 on 475,000 shares and the 52-week trading range is $38.17 to $62.12.  Average volume is 3.4 million shares.

VisionChina Media, Inc. (NASDAQ: VISN) is getting hit hard.  The stock closed at $8.20 yesterday and the shares are down 26% at $6.05 on 685,885 shares as of 8:48 AM EST.  The average volume here is only about 400,000 shares after its earnings report.

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JON C. OGG