Markets are heading into one of the busiest earnings weeks of the year. Over 1,800 companies report results between Monday and Friday. The biggest name is AMD, which posts Q1 numbers on Tuesday after the bell. Investors want clarity on AI chip demand. Pfizer, CVS Health, and Marriott also report this week. In Europe, Infineon Technologies delivers its results on Wednesday.
Short sellers are making targeted bets ahead of key prints. IonQ is drawing the most attention. Put open interest is piling up for the May 8 expiry. Bears are staking out downside at nearly every strike below $35, even as the stock trades near $46. Wolfspeed has the highest short interest at 50% of free float. That's up 4.2 percentage points in a week. Cost-to-borrow on hit 109% APR — short sellers are paying a steep price to stay in the trade.
Snap is the counterpoint. The stock has rallied 37% and shorts are retreating. Two-sided options activity signals continued volatility.
TKO Group picked up a fresh upgrade from Morgan Stanley today ahead of its Q1 print. Intel and AMD both saw upward analyst target revisions. Intel now carries a consensus target of $79.05. AMD sits at $307.50. Sentiment on both names is improving.
Sweden's Svenska Handelsbanken saw over $113 million in coordinated board buying in late April. The Jan Wallander Foundation and Industrivärden AB were the buyers. That level of insider accumulation at a major European bank stands out.
Across the Atlantic, Pentwater Capital exited its full stake in Avis Budget Group, filing a sale worth over $1.75 billion in late April. It is a complete departure from a major position.
ORTEX Market Intelligence content is generated by AI from a snapshot of ORTEX's proprietary data. Content is informational only and does not constitute investment advice.
