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Technology Stocks : InfoSpace (INSP): Where GNET went! -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: The O who wrote (20375)	7/27/2000 3:30:59 PM
From: Hawkmoon	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 28311

Based on the run up as well as the call option volume, it would appear that the news had alredy leaked. The timing may not have been by choice. It may have leaked, but sometimes option buyers pile on to activity they see taking place, kinda like a blind herd of greedy traders. Since options cost less than the underlying stock and GNET was in an uptrend anyway on the weekly chart, most probably considered it a low risk speculation. This entire announcement should have waited until after August, or at least until INSP's stock showed some momentum. Here's the link to GNET's options chain: quote.cboe.com Here's the release about the option's volatility... We're not talking about a lot of stock, since only 3,000 contracts traded Wednesday, equaling 300,000 shares: U.S. Options - Go2Net vols sharply higher CHICAGO, July 26 (Reuters) - Implied volatility in options of Go2Net Inc. rose Wednesday on call buying as the stock of the Web site operator and technology provider slipped amid a lack of news. "I have not seen anything. Earnings were out a few days ago," an options trader on the American Stock Exchange said, citing no other news for the spike in volatility and the recent interest in calls. Shares of Seattle-based Go2Net were off 1-5/8 to 60-1/2 on Nasdaq volume of about 656,400 shares in late morning trade. In the past 52 weeks, the stock has traded as high as 111-3/4 and as low as 35-3/4. But as of the July 18 close of 50-7/8, it has been trending higher. Implied volatility for the August 60 calls stood around 122 percent, up from about 105 percent on Tuesday, an options trader on the American Stock Exchange said. Early Wednesday, options volume died down considerably from the brisk activity on Tuesday. About 349 calls and 18 puts changed hands across the Amex and Chicago Board Options Exchange. A total of 3,079 contracts traded on Tuesday, of which 3,020 were calls and 59 were puts, up from its recent average daily volume of 910 contracts, according to McMillan Analysis Corp. Go2Net Inc. said last week that on a pro-forma basis excluding special items like stock compensation, fiscal third-quarter operating profits rose to $10.1 million, or 22 cents a share, compared to $3.1 million, or 7 cents a share a year earlier. Go2Net had been expected to earn 15 cents a share, according to consensus analyst estimates compiled by First Call/Thomson Financial. ((Doris Frankel, Chicago Derivatives Desk(312)408-8750 chicago.derivatives.newsroom@reuters.com)) "