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Technology Stocks : How high will Microsoft fly? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Dennis who wrote (26383)	7/16/1999 3:51:00 PM
From: William Hunt	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 74651

THREAD---Microsoft Corp. Dow Jones Newswires -- July 16, 1999 DJ Options Report:Options Expire, But Greed Springs Eternal By Steven M. Sears NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--On Friday, many traders were faced with a tough decision. Should they take profits on winning positions, whose values may have doubled or tripled, or should they roll expiring July options contracts into August or beyond and keep a chit in the game? Elliot Spar, Gruntal & Co.'s options strategist, offered this bit of advice: don't be greedy. "As bad as fear is in the market, the greed gets you also. People have a hard time selling," Spar said. "If you've got the winners, stay with the winners, but manage the risk; roll them up and out or take money off the table," he said. Many professional traders did just that. They rolled expiring options so they could continue to trade against the positions in future months. But all bets were off when it came to Microsoft Corp. On a generally listless day in a summer session, Microsoft caused paroxysms in many traders. The stock gapped higher at the opening to 95 1/2, forcing traders who were short July 95 calls to cover their positions, which Gary Semeraro, SG Cowen Securities' options strategist, said helped push the software maker's stock even higher. News that Microsoft is considering issuing an Internet tracking stock, a favorable antitrust ruling from a Connecticut jury, and anticipation of Monday's fourth-quarter earnings report helped push the stock toward an all-time high of 100, creating an irresistible opportunity for aggressive traders. They bought July 100 calls and they bought stock, hoping to push the stock's price above the option's strike price, a trader said. With the stock up 4 3/4 to 99 1/8, the July 100 calls gained 1/16 to 1/8 on volume of 18,426 contracts, compared with open interest of 28,212 contracts. The July 95 call, which many people were short, gained 3 9/16 to 4 on volume of 20,504 contracts, compared with open interest of 25,651 contracts. BEST WISHES BILL