Filed under: Deals, Management, Google (GOOG), Microsoft (MSFT), Yahoo! (YHOO), Options, Technical Analysis
Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) shares are trading higher today as chief rival Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) seems to be embroiled in chaos over their thus far unsuccessful merger efforts. Billionaire investor Carl Icahn sent an open letter to YHOO yesterday threatening to begin a proxy war over the failed takeover attempt by Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT). Yahoo! has since responded to Icahn’s letter, but all this trouble at YHOO might just mean more good times for GOOG. If you think that the stock won’t fall by too much in the coming months, then now could be a good time to look at a bullish hedged trade on GOOG.
After hitting a one-year high of $747.24 in November, the stock hit a one-year low of $412.11 in March. GOOG opened this morning at $577.08. So far today the stock has hit a low of $576.21 and a high of $586.24. As of 1:15, GOOG is trading at $584.11, up 11.89 (2.07%). The chart for GOOG looks bullish and steady, while S&P gives the stock a neutral 3 STARS (out of 5) hold rating.
For a bullish hedged play on this stock, I would consider a June bull-put credit spread below the $530 range. A bull-put credit spread is an options position that combines the purchase and sale of put options to hedge risk in case the stock doesn’t do what you think but still leverage nice returns. For this particular trade, we will make a 5.3% return in just two weeks as long as GOOG is above $530 at June expiration. Google would have to fall by more than 9% before we would start to lose money. Learn more about this type of trade here.
GOOG hasn’t been below $530 since April and has shown support around $560 recently. This trade could be risky if the markets continue to go through a rough patch for the next few weeks, but even if that happens, this position could be protected by the support the stock might find around $540, which is where it bottomed in Might.
Brent Archer is an options analyst and writer at Investors Observer.
DISCLOSURE: Mr. Archer owns and/or controls diversified portfolios of long and short stock and option positions that might include holdings in companies he writes about. At publication time, Brent neither owns nor controls positions in GOOG or YHOO. He does control bullish hedged positions in MSFT.
With oil sliding further, U.S. stock futures were mildly higher as investors also contemplated Verizon’s potential bid for Alltel and awaited major retailers results.
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