Without much ado, here are some thoughts to ponder over the weekend:
 

• Tech Data Corp. (TECD): Yesterday the stock completed a sell countdown, and on a traditional chart it did so on a huge spike in volume. The stock then reversed. This has all the makings of a blow-off high. Today Raymond James downgraded it on valuation.
  
  
• I've moved on the Research In Motion (RIMM) short I alluded to yesterday. Using options, I shorted the 80 calls and bought the 65 puts. This gives me some breathing room in case I'm wrong.
  
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• Hewlett Packard (HPQ): Decent earnings did little for the stock price, and the stock now shows a qualified downside break. If the theory behind such a break works, the stock would have to complete a TD buy setup and a countdown buy setup before the selling exhausts itself. That could be a long way down.
  
  
• I don't know what it is, but there's something happening with F5 Networks (FFIV). Whatever it is, though,  I'm even more satisfied that I shifted from long stock to long calls. As the saying goes: "If after 5 minutes in the room you don't know who the dope is, chances are you're the dope."
  
  
• On the one hand, it's not a good thing that Cougar Biotech (CGRB) -- a company developing a drug for prostate cancer -- is now in the hands of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ). On the other hand, if Dendreon (DNDN) were to attract a similar multiple commensurate with the fact that its drug is much closer to FDA approval, that would be a very good thing.
  
  
• If the financials/economic comeback is for real, isn't Berkshire Hathaway (BRK/B) the simplest way to play it? And should I worry that since the March 6 lows BRK/B has underperformed the S&P 500 (SPX)?
  
  
• I've covered almost all my Long Term Treasury (USM9) short, but I'm going to be really aggressive in reloading if we get higher prices.
  
  
• Have you noticed the relative strength of the NYSE Euronext (NYX) and CME (CME)?  And will the NASDAQ (NDAQ) play catch up?
  
  
• I wish I could write this paragraph in a smaller font, because hyperbole rarely does much good for one's reputation. On the other hand, as I watch the spasms in the currency and treasury markets, I can't help but think that if the currency markets over-run our Fed's best-laid plans, the rise in Interest rates will be violent, and the reaction in the equity markets isn't likely to let anyone out gracefully. If that happens, we'll long for the good old days of SPX 666. Anyone for some SPX December 450 puts under $3 instead of the weekly powerball? How about the 600/500/400 "butterfly spread" for $3.90?