Dr. Duru | Sep 08, 2013 05:13AM ET
Many internet-related stocks have been on fire lately. In many ways, the run-up has been about mobile, so it may not even be technically accurate to call this feature a valuation update on internet-related stocks. Regardless, the most notable change since mid-June is that the internet high-fliers have experienced significant run-ups this summer. Facebook (FB), Yelp.com (YELP), LinkedIn (LNKD), and Zillow (Z) experienced significant surges over the past 3 months.
Click the chart below for a larger view of the price-to-sales (P/S) ratios of select internet-related stocks. The chart is ordered from left-to-right by the latest P/S ratio. (This will be the last update to include Kayak. It is off to the right and not included in the P/S ordering). As a reminder, I use P/S ratios instead of P/E so that I can compare profitable and unprofitable companies.
The obvious question is if trading call options is so incredibly profitable on FB why bother shorting? My answer is that when the market’s euphoria takes off, there is simply no telling when the spigot of emotion turns off. It can happen overnight; it could be an unanticipated blip in an earnings report. I just want to be in position whenever it happens. The profits on the call options pay for the position while I wait. With the current momentum, FB has been surprisingly easy to flip…and the out-of-the-money call options STILL look relatively cheap to me.
Bottom-line: FB has turned from goat to gloat as it has pulled off the rare feat of a full recovery from a busted IPO of historic proportions.
I sold my latest round of call options into Thursday’s pop. I missed Friday’s impressive surge above the upper-Bollinger® Band on the heels of upgrades from Barclays to overweight and a mind-boggling price target from Deutsche Bank at $81 (rating is “just” a buy). I think the stock is ridiculously over-valued: forward P/E of 260 and a $4B market cap! Yet, I have chosen not to fight this one as long as the momentum is so friendly. I can’t be bearish about every over-valued stock, right? Besides, my wife and I have discovered some incredible Thai restaurants using Yelp…
Be careful out there!
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