Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOGL) stock gave the Nasdaq-100 Index (NDX) a lift this morning. Shares were last seen up 8.8% at $229.86, after the results of the Department of Justice's (DoJ) antitrust case against the tech giant. Alphabet will not have to divest its Chrome browser and Android operating system units, which the DoJ originally proposed in 2023.
On the charts, today's bull gap has GOOGL hitting fresh record highs as it heads for its largest single-day percentage gain since April 9. The stock has been steadily climbing since early April, notching its fifth-straight monthly win on Friday. The 20-day moving average moved in as support in early July. Year-over-year, the equity is up 46.2%.
A flood of analysts chimed in with price-target hikes, including Oppenheimer, which lifted its price objective from $235 to a Street- high of $270. The brokerage firm also initiated coverage with an "outperform" rating, calling the ruling the "best-case outcome" for Alphabet.
Options traders are targeting GOOGL as well. So far today, 589,000 calls and 285,000 puts have been exchanged, five times the options volume typically seen at this point. The weekly 9/5 230-strike call is the most popular, with new positions being bought to open there.
These options are reasonably priced at the moment. Alphabet stock's Schaeffer's Volatility Index (SVI) of 34% ranks in the relatively low 28th percentile of its annual range, meaning options traders are pricing in low volatility expectations.
