Winter's icy grip reached New Orleans and Florida early Wednesday, but the market stayed warm thanks in part to solid quarterly results from Netflix (NFLX), which boosted shares of the streaming giant double digits in pre-market trading and contributed to gains for major indexes.

That happened even as the Trump administration made new threats to impose tariffs on imports from China by February 1. Treasury yields stayed flat early despite that and another potential updraft from the Bank of Japan's (BoJ) rate decision looming Friday, with markets expecting an increase. "Treasury yields are likely to remain elevated, with risks to the upside," said Collin Martin, director, fixed income strategy at the Schwab Center for Financial Research. "Inflation remains sticky—with or without potential tariffs—and the labor market has stabilized, likely keeping the Fed on hold for the next few meetings."

Transport firms dominate earnings as the week advances and could provide a closer look at freight and passenger traffic trends. American Airlines (AAL), Union Pacific (UNP), and CSX (CSX) report tomorrow after United Airlines (UAL) shared positive results late Tuesday. When Union Pacific reported in October, it benefited from increased volume, a key metric to monitor. FactSet now sees blended fourth quarter S&P 500 earnings growth of 12.5% counting companies already reporting and estimates for those to come, but mega caps next week could have a massive impact.

The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield (TNX) is up slightly to 4.60%.

The U.S. Dollar Index ($DXY) is unchanged at 108.20.

The CBOE Volatility Index^®(VIX) is up marginally to 15.25.

WTI Crude Oil (/CL) is down to $75.58/barrel.

Bitcoin (BTC) is giving back recent gains, down to $103,855.

Source: Schwab Center for Financial Research

Shares of Seagate Technologies Holdings (STX + $10.37 to $111.62) are up over 10% this morning after the data storage company reported Q2 earnings of $2.03 per share, beating estimates on revenue that rose 50.0% year-over-year to $2.33B (above the $2.31B expected). Another item of note from the Q2 report was the adjusted gross margin which grew to 35.5% from 23.6% the previous year and above expectations for 34.1%, indicating what the company calls, "structural improvements in the business and our focus on value capture in an improving demand environment."

Looking ahead, the company said that it sees upcoming Q3 revenue of $1.95 billion to $2.25 billion, estimate $2.18 billion (Bloomberg Consensus) and adjusted EPS $1.50 to $1.90, estimate $1.68.

Option trading in STX currently stands at 20,636 contracts, 5x the daily average, with calls outpacing puts 2:1. Leading the way are the following trades, expirations, and strikes:

• January 24th, 2025, 112.00 call accounted for 1,242 contracts; open interest is 999 contracts.
• February 21st, 2025, 115.00 call accounted for 1,231 contracts; open interest is 413 contracts.
• January 24th, 2025, 101.00 put accounted for 1,150 contracts; open interest is 343 contracts.

New 52-week highs (221 new highs today): Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN + $4.04 to $234.74), Oklo Inc. (OKLO + $2.65 to $33.90), Taiwan Semiconductor (TSM + $6.28 to $224.98), Energy Transfer LP (ET + $0.32 to $21.23)

Unusual call activity is noted today in Himax Technologies (HIMX + $0.59 to $10.15), as call volume currently stands at 32,410 contracts, 10x the average daily volume. Most of the activity stems from multiple large block call trades in the February 21st, 2025, expiration month. Traders are especially targeting the 9.00, 10.00, 11.00, and 12.00 call strikes where over 25,000 contracts have transacted collectively between them with action on both the buy and sell side. Shares of HIMX had initially posted a 52-week high in early morning trading before fading a bit, following a comment from TF International Securities' Ming-Chi Kuo who said via X that, "Himax Emerging as a Key AI Upstream Winner in TSMC's COUPE (Silicon Photonics), Significantly Boosting Growth Visibility for 2026-2028."

Other call activity of note can be seen today in Travere Therapeutics (TVTX - $0.55 to $18.91), as call activity has spiked to 4,012 contracts in morning trading (100x daily average). Volume is strongest in the March 21st, 2025, expiration month and is being led by multiple a large 2,000-contract call vertical spread. Traders bought the March 20.00 strike call and sold the March 30.00 strike call for a net debit of $1.70. Interestingly, traders also sold the 15.00 strike put for $0.50 as part of the trade. This brought the cost of the call vertical down to $1.20. These are all new positions given the combined open interest of 170 contracts (suggesting bullish intent).

Shares of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ - $4.69 to $143.46) are trading close to a 52-week low after the drug and device maker warned in its most recent earnings call that a strong dollar would likely cut into its 2025 revenue and profit, pushing its forecast below analysts' expectations. Johnson & Johnson stated that its annual revenue will rise between 0.5% and 1.5%, thanks in part to a surging dollar which could temper growth by 2%. The company expects adjusted earnings will be $10.50 to $10.70 a share, reduced 25 cents a share by currencies. Going forward, Johnson & Johnson is counting on its newer line of medicines, including Darzalex and Tremfya, to make up for the decline of its second-biggest drug, Stelara which will be losing some patent protections and facing off-brand competition in the US and abroad, per Bloomberg.

Option trading in JNJ currently stands at 68,625 contracts, 3x the daily average, with calls outpacing puts 2:1. Leading the way are the following trades, expirations, and strikes:

• January 24th, 2025, 140.00 put accounted for 4,151 contracts; open interest is 1,291 contracts.
• February 21st, 2025, 155.00 call accounted for 3,339 contracts; open interest is 9,504 contracts.
• January 24th, 2025, 143.00 call accounted for 2,475 contracts; open interest is 70 contracts.

New 52-week lows (48 new lows today): Tilray Brands Inc. (TLRY - $0.02 to $1.15), Sunrun Inc. (RUN - $0.52 to $8.70), The Aes Corp. (AES - $0.36 to $11.39), Conagra Brands Inc. (CAG - $0.48 to $25.22)

Some unusual put activity is noted today in Williams Cos Inc. (WMB - $0.90 to $59.73). This activity equates to over 11,333 put contracts, 7x average daily put volume. Nearly all the activity can be attributed to a massive 10,568 contract block trade that occurred in the February 28th, 2025, expiration month. Traders sold the 55.00 put strike for a price of $0.47 when the bid/ask was $0.35 x $0.80. With only five contracts of open interest, this represents new positioning (suggesting neutral to bullish intent). Shares of WMB hit a 52-week high price of $61.46 in early morning trading before pulling back to current levels.

Unusual put activity can also be seen in Coupang Inc. (CPNG + $0.12 to $22.31), as put volume stands at 6,842 contracts in morning trading, 23x average daily volume. Much of that volume can be attributed activity in the February 21st, 2025, expiration month where traders are selling the 23.00 strike puts for prices ranging from $1.10 to $1.20, primarily on the bid.  What's interesting about these put sales is that the strike is slightly in-the-money with little open interest, only 640 contracts.  This suggests new positioning and given the strike is in-the-money, it suggests bullish intent, as CPNG shares would have to close above $23.00 on the February 21st expiration date to avoid assignment.

The Cboe Volatility Index (VIX + 0.19 to 15.25) has traded on both sides of unchanged line today, as equity markets are moving higher in morning trading (DJI + 100, SPX + 45, COMPX + 288). VIX movement has occurred within a narrow range today (the intraday range is 14.59 – 15.29). VIX option volume is elevated today, given its position as 6th on the "Top Volume by Underlying" list. The volume put/call ratio is currently 0.18, and the highest volume contract is the February 19th, 2025, 40.00 call (volume is 82,137 vs. open interest of 198,500).