SNY Stock Pops on First-Quarter Results

Sanofi cited a strong demand for pain and fever medications during its first quarter

French pharmaceutical maker Sanofi SA (NASDAQ:SNY) is up 2.2% at $49.45 after releasing its first-quarter results and confirming its 2020 outlook. The company announced a 16.1% rise in income at constant exchange rate to 2.04 billion euros, or $2.20 billion, and a 6.6% pop in sales to 8.97 billion euros, or $9.69 billion. Sanofi cited a strong demand for its pain and fever medications, attributing roughly half its sales to the COVID-19 crisis, but warned that this effect is unlikely to carry over into the second quarter.

The security has staged an impressive climb off its late-March lows just above the $38 region. In fact, SYN started the week by surging past its 180-day moving average -- a trendline that's provided stiff resistance on the charts since the equity's March 9 bear gap. For the month, SNY is up over 10%, though it's still staring up at the year-to-date breakeven level.

Analysts were already bullish on the stock coming into today. Eight of the 11 in coverage consider SNY a "strong buy," while the remaining three say "hold." Plus, the consensus 12-month price target of $56.25 is a 13.8% premium to current levels.

Options players have also taken an optimistic stance. In the last 10 days, an eyebrow-raising 30.3 calls have been picked up for every put at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX). This ratio sits in the 75th percentile of its annual range, suggesting the appetite for calls is higher than usual.