Daily Options Report

So hard to believe, but LEH was full of it, and it wasn't actually a cabal of shorts that brought them down. And Barry Ritholtz wants an apology.

In the early days pre-meltdown, there were a handful of skeptics pointing to problems at firms like AIG, Fannie Mae, Bear Stearns and most especially Lehman Brothers.

It was not the media or the analyst community that identified the frauds, but the short sellers. In this sad tale of criminality and corruption, the shorts were the...

Bespoke yesterday noted an increase in VXX volume, so figured we'd take a look at it in 3D here.

First off, the real spike was back in January, and was well-timed. For the buyers at least. However it reached a crescendo in early February right at what looks like a pretty distinct high. Those bars coming out of the left compare net volume at varying price levels, and as you can see, the low 30's remains the most popular price level here over the past half year. You can also see that reflected...

Getting some low put/call readings as of late. Mean much? Well, we go over it a bit on Options Zone.

The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX) is certainly the most popular market gauge investor fear, but it's not the only one. Let's not forget the put/call ratio, which is simply a ratio of put options to call options that have traded over a given time period.

The put/call ratio is used to measure investor sentiment. The theory is that the more puts that trade, the more bearish the sentiment and,...

OK, we're never going to fix the NHL. They're not shrinking the league or the season or ticket prices any time soon.

Plus it's getting nice out, time to fix MLB. Tom Verducci of SI relays some ideas in the "bandied about" stage.

When baseball commissioner Bud Selig named a 14-person "special committee for on-field matters" four months ago, he promised that all topics would be in play and "there are no sacred cows." The committee already has made good on Selig's promise by discussing a radical...

It's a Very VIX World as we all know, but it's far from the only volatility index out there. Among others we have RVX, a proxy for Russell options. Can we learn much comparing Russell vo; to the Good Ole VIX? Steve Place has this to say.

One relationship I’ve been watching was the relationship of smallcaps and the S&P. The rule of thumb is that when smallcaps are outperforming, that means there is an appetite for risk and beta-chasing in the market, and upside momentum should follow. However,...