CNBC Stock Blog

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Finisar has been a dog in recent months, but one investor is holding out hope for a rebound.

OptionMonster’s tracking programs detected the purchase of more than 9,000 May 15 calls against previous open interest of just 64 contracts. Larger institution-sized blocks were snapped up in the course of a couple of minutes, with premiums going from $0.45 up to $0.55.

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Getty Images Oprah Winfrey

Is Oprah Winfrey to blame for Discovery Communications’ lackluster first-quarter earnings? The cable giant, which owns Discovery Channel, TLC, and Animal Planet, reported that earnings slipped 28 percent, with net income down to $221 million, or 57 cents a share, from $305 million, or 74 cents a share a year ago.

Revenue rose 16 percent to $1.10 billion, but losses at the new joint venture overshadowed the growth.

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Photo by Jodi Gralnick for CNBC.com

Now that Facebook has set the share price for its initial public offering and kicked off its roadshow, investors are looking for ways to play the year’s biggest stock sale.

Some have questioned whether buying Facebook shares on their first day of trading is worth the risk, considering that revenue is declining and costs are rising.

In an updated S-1 filing, Facebook said its first-quarter revenue rose 45 percent year-over-year to $1.06 billion, but that was down 6 percent from the fourth quarter. Costs also rose 66 percent year-over-year as the social networking giant expanded data centers and its staff.

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Source: cadillac.com

If Buick can be among the hottest brands in China, why can’t Cadillac do the same?

That’s a question General Motors

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[GM  Loading...      ()   ] is asking. CEO Dan Akerson spelled out the automaker’s ambitious plans for Cadillac on the company’s first-quarter earnings call.

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Getty Images Warren Buffett (File Photo)

On Monday, Warren Buffett told CNBC he would add to two of his long-term holdings, but did not share the companies’ names. In response, the author of the book “Trade Like Warren Buffett” listed five companies and holdings of Berkshire Hathaway that investors could purchase to benefit from the Oracle of Omaha’s investing prowess.

“I would look at what Warren Buffett is buying,” said James Altucher, author and managing director of Formula Capital. “He’s buying IBM, Intel, DirecTV, Wells Fargo, and CVS. These are his recent shares where he’s added significant stock, and I would buy those.”

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Option trading turned bullish in Fifth Third Bancorp yesterday as buyers targeted the financials.

Fifth Third pays a dividend yield of 2.25 percent or better and trades near 1.3 times tangible book. The diversified financial-services company has been expanding, and its stock price has been reaching new highs along the way.

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Source: Marvel.com “The Avengers”

The “Avengers” super-hero flick cost Marvel Studios, a division of Walt Disney, about $220 million to produce — and it only took a weekend to make most of it back.

Grossing about $207 million in North America and $300 million globally, the movie’s box office has already raked in more than “Iron Man,” “Thor,” and “Captain America” combined.

Investors are joining the fan club. Disney shares

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[DIS  Loading...      ()   ] rose Monday, and are up about 23 percent over the last six months.

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Source: Allscripts.com Allscripts Healthcare Solutions

Allscripts Healthcare Solutions is enacting a shareholder rights plan — or “poison pill” — to help it ward off an opportunistic takeover bid, even before an offer emerges.

The health-care information company’s shares

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[MDRX  Loading...      ()   ] plummeted nearly 40 percent in late April after weak earnings, disappointing guidance, the firing of its chairman, and subsequent protest resignation of three board members.

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Susan Goldman | Bloomberg | Getty Images

If the level of impact surrounding the growth projections of smartphones and mobile devices were ever in doubt, investors should look no further than a recent study by Cisco Systems.

It projects not only that the average consumer will have more than one device, but remarkably the total number of devices will exceed the number of humans on the planet. So as the market continues its transition away from PCs to an ecosystem of “mobile data,” it stands to reason that companies that contribute to this evolution will grow commensurately.

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AP

Someone is looking for a big move in Cigna.

The health insurer’s last earnings report missed estimates, but the company did raise full-year guidance. An even bigger catalyst is expected in June, when the U.S. Supreme Court will rule on the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act.

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AP

Buying shares in Facebook will not be worth the risk over the long term, according to David Lowery, equity strategist at Faraday Research.

Facebook plans to raise up to $12 billion in its initial public offering priced at between $28 and $35 a share, which would value the company at around $96 billion.

Facebook is starting its roadshow on Monday, and trading is expected to start on May 18.

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Of all of the hardcore permabulls out there, Apple fan boys and girls do the best job defending their stock.

While the majority of the arguments contain credible analyses of Apple’s

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[APPL  Loading...      ()   ] indisputable dominance, some of the more passionate ones trigger cause for concern. Consider this incredibly clever retort to an article I wrote for TheStreet by a person who calls himself “The Macalope” over at MacWorld.com:

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