American Express Co. (AXP) is a global service company with principal products and services being charge and credit payment card products, travel-related services offered to consumers and businesses around the world. The stock is currently trading around $78.79 at the lower end of its 52 week range of $75.75-$94.89. The stock has been under performing the market this year falling 15.33% year to date. AXP is scheduled to report earnings after the closing bell today, and the stock is down $0.15 or 0.20% on the session ahead of the close.

Over the past 12 quarters AXP has rallied on earnings day 4 times with an average move of 2.76%. The stock appears bearish on a chart going into the release having traded below or in the Ichimoku Cloud since March on the daily bars. Over the past 12 quarters AXP has rallied from earnings to the nearest options expiration 4 times with an average move of 3.48%. The stock looks as if it could continue falling following the recent bearish trend. Investors are expecting to see the company suffer from a rise in expenses, loan loss provisions, and foreign currency fluctuation. After an intensive technical analysis and poor earnings performance in the past it is hard to justify anything, but a short position on AXP.

The options market is currently implying a move of around $2.13 or 2.7% in AXP by this Friday’s close giving us targets of $76.66 and $80.92.

Trade: Buy this week’s 77.5-76 Put Vertical spread for $0.31
Risk: $31 per lot
Reward: $119 per lot
Break Even: $77.19

SanDisk Corp. (SNDK) provides flash storage solutions, designs, develops and manufactures data storage solutions in a variety of forms using flash memory, controller, firmware and software technologies. The stock is currently trading around $54.27 at the lower end of its 52 week range of $53.18-$106.64. The stock has been under performing the market this year dropping an appalling 44.65% year to date. SNDK is scheduled to report earnings after the closing bell today, and the stock is down $1.31 or 2.36% on the session ahead of the close.

Over the past 12 quarters SNDK has rallied on earnings day 7 times with an average move of 5.39%. The stock appears bearish on a chart going into the release having traded below and in the Ichimoku Cloud since for a few months since March on the daily bars. Over the past 12 quarters SNDK has rallied from earnings to the nearest options expiration 6 times with an average move of 6.16%. The stock price has not ripped to the upside for the past 4 quarters. Investors are expecting to see how the company performs having seen decline in PC shipment worldwide by 9.5%. With negative growth, bearish technical analysis, and poor earnings performance in the past 4 quarters it is hard to justify anything, but a short position in SNDK.

The options market is currently implying a move of around $4.44 or 8.2% in SNDK by this Friday’s close giving us targets of $49.83 and $58.71.

Possible Trade: Buy this week’s 51-49 Put Vertical Spread for $0.43
Risk: $43 per lot
Reward: $157 per lot
Break Even: $50.57

Texas Instruments Inc. (TXN) designs, makes and sells semiconductors to electronic designers and manufacturers across the world through two segments: Analog and Embedded Processing. The stock is currently trading around $49.22 at the middle of its 52 week range of $41.47-$59.99. The stock has been under performing the market this year dropping 7.93% year to date. TXN is scheduled to report earnings after the closing bell today, and the stock is down $1.01 or 2.05% on the session ahead of the close.

Over the past 12 quarters TXN has rallied on earnings day 7 times with an average move of 2.83%. The stock appears bearish on a chart going into the release having traded below the Ichimoku Cloud for the last few months since late April on the daily bars. Over the past 12 quarters TXN has rallied from earnings to the nearest options expiration 5 times with an average move of 3.69%. The stock looks as if it could drop to the downside further in today’s session following the recent bearish trend. Investors are expecting to see how the company performs after delivering poor earnings numbers last quarter taking a huge hit from strong currency headwinds. Considering a strong USD, weak technical data, and poor earnings performance in the past it is hard to justify anything, but a short position on TXN

The options market is currently implying a move of around $2.01 or 4.1% in TXN by this Friday’s close giving us targets of $47.21 and $51.23.

Trade: Buy this week’s 48-46.5 Put Vertical spread for $0.33
Risk: $33 per lot
Reward: $117
Break-Even: $47.67

Apple Inc. (AAPL) designs, manufactures and markets mobile communication and media devices, personal computers and portable digital music players and a variety of related software services, network solutions and applications. The stock is currently trading around $131.53 at the upper end of its 52 week range of $93.28-$134.54. The stock has been out performing the market this year rallying 18.78% year to date. AAPL is scheduled to report earnings after the closing bell today, and the stock is down $0.54 or 0.41% on the session ahead of the close.

Over the past 12 quarters AAPL has rallied on earnings day 7 times with an average move of 3.98%. The stock appears bullish on a chart going into the release having traded below and ripped through the top of the Ichimoku Cloud since mid-July on the daily bars. Over the past 12 quarters AAPL has rallied from earnings to the nearest options expiration 6 times with an average move of 4.78%. The stock looks as if it could rip to the upside in today’s session following the recent bullish trend. Investors are expecting to see how the company performs after the public expects a low sales number on the watches. Other investors have looked to the East for positive sales number as the company continues to dominate China in iPhone sales.

The options market is currently implying a move of around $6.26 or 4.8% in AAPL by this Friday’s close giving us targets of $125.27 and $137.79.

Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) is engaged in developing, licensing and supporting a range of software products and services while designing and selling hardware through its five segments. The stock is currently trading around $46.84 closer to the upper end of its 52 week range of $40.12-$50.04. The stock has been under performing the market rising 0.73% year to date. MSFT is scheduled to report earnings after the bell today, and the stock is down $0.05 or 0.10% on the session ahead of the close.

Over the past 12 quarters MSFT has rallied on earnings day 8 times with an average move of 4.56%. The stock appears bullish on a chart going into the release having traded in the Ichimoku Cloud and broken through the top for the past months since mid-June on the daily bars. Over the past 12 quarters MSFT has rallied from earnings to the nearest options expiration 7 times with an average move of 5.01%. The stock looks as if it could rip to the upside in today’s session following the past months trend. Investors have seen favorable earnings revisions which is usually a foreshadow of favorable earnings estimates. Microsoft Corporation also had news about plans for a restructure. The recent purchase of Nokia’s smartphone arm and cut of 18,000 jobs by the new CEO Sataya Nadella may lead to greater profit margins for the company.

The options market is currently implying a move of around $2.45 or 5.2% in MSFT by this Friday’s close giving us targets of $44.39 and $49.29.

Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO) is a technology company engaged in providing Internet search, communication and digital content with products including Search, Communications, Digital Content, Flickr and Tumblr. The stock is currently trading around $39.56 around the middle of its 52 week range of $33.16-$52.62. The stock has been under performing the market this year falling 21.64% year to date. YHOO is scheduled to report earnings after the close today, and the stock is up $0.01 or 0.04% on the session ahead of the close.

Over the past 12 quarters YHOO has rallied on earnings day 5 times with an average move of 4.83%. The stock appears bearish on a chart going into the release having traded below or in the Ichimoku Cloud for the past few months since March on the daily bars. Over the past 12 quarters YHOO has rallied from earnings to the nearest options expiration 5 times with an average move of 5.28%. The stock looks as if it could drop like a rock in today’s session following the 4 month trend. Investors are expecting to see how the company performs having seen falling revenue recently. The main portion of earnings investors are expected to be focused upon is the spinoff company Alibaba and their growth. Other key parts of earnings is growth at Yahoo’s core.

The options market is currently implying a move of around $1.84 or 4.6% in YHOO by this Friday’s close giving us targets of $37.72 and $41.40.

Harley-Davidson (HOG) is the parent company for groups of companies doing business as Harley-Davidson Motor Company and Harley-Davidson Financial Services operating in two segments: the Motorcycles & Related Products. The stock is currently trading around $55.04 at the lower end of its 52 week range of $53.04-$70.41. The stock has been under performing the market this year falling 16.51% year to date. HOG is scheduled to report earnings before the opening bell tomorrow, and the stock is up $0.06 or 0.10% today on the session ahead of the close.

Over the past 12 quarters HOG has rallied on earnings day 4 times with an average move of 3.87%. The stock appears bearish on a chart going into the release having traded below or in the Ichimoku Cloud for the past few months since March on the daily bars. Over the past 12 quarters HOG has rallied from earnings to the nearest options expiration 8 times with an average move of 6.00%. The stock looks as if it could rip to the upside in today’s session following the recent change in trend. Investors are expecting to see how the company performs after already releasing to the public a lower shipment order of 88,000 motorcycles as compared to last years 92,000 order. The company anticipates operating income of the Financial Services segment to decline due to higher credit losses and contracting net interest.

The options market is currently implying a move of around $4.00 or 7.2% in HOG by this Friday’s close giving us targets of $51.04 and $59.04.

International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) is a technology company operating in five business segments: Global Technology Services, Information Technology, Global Business Services, Systems and Technology and Software. The stock is currently trading around $172.67 at the middle of its 52 week range of $149.52-$196.40. The stock has been outperforming the market this year rising 7.69% year to date. IBM is scheduled to report earnings after the closing bell today, and the stock is up on the day by $0.22 or 0.13% ahead of the close.

Over the past 12 quarters IBM has rallied on earnings day 4 times with an average move of 4.66%. The stock appears bullish on a chart going into the release having traded above or in the Ichimoku Cloud for the past few months since late-March on the daily bars. Over the past 12 quarters IBM has rallied from earnings to the nearest options expiration 3 times with an average move of 4.93%. The stock looks as if it could rip to the upside in today’s session following the 4 month trend. Investors are expecting to see how the company performs at earnings largely due to disappointing earnings in previous quarters. The company has reported declining revenues on a year-over-year basis, and intensifying competition in the industry continue to be major headwind.

The options market is currently implying a move of around $6.90 or 4.0% in IBM by this Friday’s close giving us targets of $165.77 and $179.57.

Verizon Communications (VZ) is a holding company that, acting through its subsidiaries, provides communications, information and entertainment products and services to consumers, businesses and governmental agencies. The stock is currently trading around $47.80 at the lower end of its 52 week range of $45.09-$53.66. The stock has been performing in line with the market this year rising 2.17% year to date. VZ is scheduled to report earnings before the opening bell tomorrow, and the stock is up on the day by $0.26 or 0.54% ahead of the close.

Over the past 12 quarters VZ has rallied on earnings day 6 times with an average move of 2.17%. The stock appears bearish on a chart going into the release having traded below the Ichimoku Cloud for the past few months since early June on the daily bars. Over the past 12 quarters VZ has rallied from earnings to the nearest options expiration 7 times with an average move of 2.25%. The stock looks as if it could rip to the upside in today’s session following today’s trend. Investors are expecting to see how the company will perform on earnings tomorrow due to consistent market share gain. The company has also seen strong LTE (Long Term Evolution) sales increase and the roll-out of FiOS Internet have been key for growth. Additions of tablet and Wi-Fi devices are increasing number of gadgets per customer, contributing to revenue.

The options market is currently implying a move of around $0.85 or 1.8% in VZ by this Friday’s close giving us targets of $46.95 and $48.65.

Morgan Stanley (MS) is a financial holding company providing a variety of products and financial services to a group of clients and customers, including corporations, governments, financial institutions and individuals. The stock is currently trading around $39.91 at the upper end of its 52 week range of $31.12-$40.26. The stock has been performing in line with the market this year rising 2.86% year to date. MS is scheduled to report earnings before the opening bell on Monday, and the stock is unchanged today on the session ahead of the close.

Over the past 12 quarters MS has rallied on earnings day 8 times with an average move of 3.49%. The stock appears bullish on a chart going into the release having traded above or in the Ichimoku Cloud for the past few months since mid-April on the daily bars. Over the past 12 quarters MS has rallied from earnings to the nearest options expiration 9 times with an average move of 3.65%. The stock looks as if it could rip to the upside in today’s session following the 3 month trend. Investors are expecting to see how the company performs after reporting 176 deals worth $569 billion. Despite near zero interest rate environments, investors have seen pickup in consumer and commercial loan demand to aid the company’s net interest income.

The options market is currently implying a move of around $1.25 or 3.1% in MS by this Friday’s close giving us targets of $38.66 and $41.16.