FAANG stocks Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Amazon, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) are back in the headlines this morning, after reports surfaced of the two tech stocks being in licensing discussions with Riyadh to invest in Saudi Arabia. Here's a closer look at shares of AAPL and AMZN out of the gate.
Shares of AAPL are up 0.6% at $171.58 at last check. The stock most recently touched a record high of $177.20 on Dec. 18, and a bear gap earlier this week was contained at the equity's 50-day moving average. However, the shares are still on track for a third consecutive close beneath their 20-day moving average.
Analysts remain typically optimistic towards the tech stock, with 22 out of 30 following AAPL carrying a "buy" or "strong buy" rating. However, after the Dow component's 48% year-to-date rally, short-term speculators are showing a stronger-than-usual preference toward puts over calls. AAPL's Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR) checks in at 0.97, which registers in the 84th percentile of its annual range.
AMZN has impressed this year as well, and at last check was up 0.4% at $1,186.98 in early trading. The retail giant recently touched a record high north of $1,200 on Nov. 27, and has managed to gain 58% in 2017.
In the options pits, calls have been preferred over puts in recent weeks, with data from the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) showing AMZN with a 50-day call/put volume ratio of 1.12, which ranks in the 76th percentile of its annual range. This suggests a bullish skew among AMZN options traders.
As with AAPL, Amazon is a favorite among analysts. Of the 37 brokerage firms following the stock, 34 call AMZN a "buy" or "strong buy."