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Technology Stocks : AUTOHOME, Inc -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: ALTERN8 who wrote (19810)	2/23/2000 10:05:00 PM
From: ayahuasca	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 29970

February 23, 2000 17:58 U.S. Options - ExciteAtHome volatility increases CHICAGO, Feb 23 (Reuters) - ExciteAtHome Corp options saw implied volatility increase as the stock firmed on Wednesday, and call turnover far exceeded put volume. "Vols are moving higher," said Paul Foster, an investment strategist at 1010wallstreet.com. He quoted the March 35s at about 85.5 percent implied volatility, up from 76 percent at Tuesday's close. "So it's (implied volatility) probably up about 10 percent," added a designated primary market maker in the option at the Chicago Board Options Exchange. Foster said he had been waiting for implied volatility to move and signal that the options market again may be looking for news on ExciteAtHome soon, even if options volume has not swelled. "The volatility issues are enough for me to jump in," Foster said. "It's still early Wednesday afternoon. We still have Thursday and Friday" before the weekend and "the stock is moving." "I just think that there's a lot of speculation about what AtHome might do as a deal," the market maker said. "One of these times it's (speculation) going to be right." By 1:55 p.m. CST (1955 GMT), shares of the Internet access and services company were up 13/16 at 35-3/8 on Nasdaq market volume of 4.4 million. Options volume thus far on Wednesday appeared "within normal parameters," Foster added, although many more calls than puts had traded. By early afternoon, roughly 5,000 calls and 780 puts had changed hands on the four U.S. options exchanges combined. On Tuesday, a total of about 8,000 contracts changed hands interexchange. The stock periodically has moved on recurrent speculation it could be an acquisition or partnership target. On January 26, Banc of America said it started coverage of ExciteAtHome with a buy rating and a year-end price target of $57. Analyst Doug Shapiro wrote in a research note that the recent America Online Inc. and Time Warner Inc. deal made ExciteAtHome a more attractive strategic partner or perhaps a takeover candidate. On Jan. 13, investment firm Kaufman Bros. issued a research report saying AT&T Corp. "must launch a friendly bid" for ExciteAtHome "to strengthen its position in the cable broadband marketplace and to gain a leading position in the (Internet) portal space."