Bernie Schaeffer Highlights Options for the Following Stocks: Ebay, Ford Motor, and Wal-Mart...

Business Editors

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 7, 2003

With the Fed in full 'growth at any price' mode, the market will likely keep an upward course in the near term. Options are a good way to make the most of it, and Bernie Schaeffer can get you started with three of his extensive

Here are the highlights from the Featured Expert column:

This period will be one in which economic growth and earnings will matter little and "overbought" technical indicators and "complacent" sentiment indicators will throw off false sell signals. Instead, this period will be one in which liquidity will rule. The sources of this liquidity for the stock market include: 1. The Fed's aggressive program of money creation. 2. Money flowing from bonds back into stocks. 3. Money flowing back into equity mutual funds. 4. The covering of massive short positions in futures, options, individual equities, and exchange-traded funds.

Ebay (NASDAQ:EBAY) - EXPECTATIONALANALYSIS(R): Pessimism continues to dominate on this online auctioneer. Such negative slants often have bullish implications within the context of strong technical performance. Fundamentally, the company remains strong, as it has surpassed the Street earnings estimate for the past four quarters by an average of 12.75%. The equity has been moving steadily higher along support from its 10-week moving average, and has been in a strong uptrend versus the NASDAQ Composite since April 2002.

Ford Motor (NYSE:F) - EXPECTATIONALANALYSIS(R): Ford managed to beat the Street's earnings estimate last quarter by 104%. The company should also benefit from lowered interest rates to reduce debt costs. Sentiment toward the stock remains grim, with short interest at 97 million shares, the highest level of the past 10 years. Wall Street fails to see the stock as a comeback play. Technically, the stock formed a potential "double bottom" in mid- October and mid-March in the 6.50-7.00 range.

Wal-Mart Stores (NYSE:WMT) - EXPECTATIONALANALYSIS(R): Optimism continues to reign on WMT. In addition, the number of WMT shares sold short has been steadily inching lower, giving up more than 3% over the most recent reporting period. Wall Street is even enamored of the blue chip. According to Zacks, 18 of the 21 analysts following the company rate it a "buy" or better. This leaves ample room for future downgrades that could spell trouble for the shares. Peak July call open interest resides overhead at the 55 strike with more than 20,000 contracts. This accumulation of calls could act as a wall of resistance against any further rally attempts.

Get Bernie's specific recommendations on how to handle options for the above-mentioned stocks, and don't miss out on more of his commentary along with issues from his Put Selling Portfolio by clicking: http://featuredexpert3bw.zacks.com/

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