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Technology Stocks : Compaq -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: John Koligman who wrote (17409)	2/19/1998 11:44:00 AM
From: zalesky	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 97611

To JK: The last time I mentioned call options was at Oct 75. If you remember the stock was STUCK around 75 for a few weeks leading up to the Friday expiration. This was the same week CPQ announced its earnings and it DIDN'T BUDGE!!! Don't tell me this manipulation isn't happening, I've seen it in many of the big name High techs the past couple of years. You've got a degree in finance, you should be telling us about this racket!! LETS PLAY THE GAME AND MAKE SOME $$$$$!!!!!

To: John Koligman who wrote (17409)	2/19/1998 2:19:00 PM
From: MIKenn	Read Replies (5) \| Respond to of 97611

Suggestions that "market makers" are manipulating the price of CPQ to effect certain option prices are pure BUNK. With 15 million shares trading daily, more than $1/2 billion in value is being exchanged. Yet, open interest of 36,000 contracts for 35 calls only represents the right to buy 3.6 million shares. Furthermore, its distinctly probable that many sellers of calls (the smart ones) also have an offsetting position in other contracts to limit their exposure. Concerted selling of 15 million shares over an extended period of time, representing billions of dollars in order to preserve a few million dollars is absurd and ridiculous. Compaq is traded on NYSE. I don't think this exchange even has market makers. The ONLY reason that Compaq is trading at 35-1/2 today is that all the sellers and all the buyers agree that this is a fair price based upon all of the information that is available to the public today. If the buyers and sellers agree on a price of 40 (or 50, or higher) in the next month or so, then MAYBE I'll recover all the money I lost on January 60 calls. If you have any new information for the public to digest that will help lift this pathetic price (now falling to 35-1/4) then please spill it! KQB