FDO Technicals Could Spell Profits

by Jon Lewis  
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Sentiment toward FDO is all over the map. The Street is less than thrilled with the company, as just four of 14 covering analysts rate the stock a "buy."

But options players feel differently. FDO's put/call ratio is sitting at an annual low. The problem is that neither the analyst ratings nor put/call ratio have changed much in the past three months. That makes sentiment mostly a wash, putting the technicals in the spotlight.

Earnings expectations for Q2 are robust, but are not out of line with what the company has produced during the past year. FDO usually beats the consensus estimate by a penny or two (it hasn't missed in two years), but the post-earnings performance is typically mediocre.

The key is how the stock behaves around the 200-day. If support holds and the market appears to be firming after the three-day weekend, this could be a nice call play to start the earnings season. If not, we'll probably stay on the sidelines and look for other opportunities.

Don't sit on the sidelines this earnings season. Get 12 Keys to Trading Earnings for Profits.


Jon Lewis is the co-editor of The Winning Edge trading service designed to help you make options profits around corporate earnings and other market events. For more information about Jon, read his bio here.

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