Stocks in Play - 3rd February 2026

Today in Focus: PYPL, MPC

Stocks in Play - 3rd February 2026

Today in Focus: PYPL, MPC

Sources & Services I Use in my Trading:

Situational Awareness

Market Condition: Back in ‘‘healthy’’ market on monitor. VIX down. Market above MAs. SPY at ATH. Choppy conditions.

Commentary: Some green shoots in AI Infra but remains to be seen if we have any follow through. AMD earnings this evening will be important. Market at all time highs but individual names still lackluster. Cautious and avoid getting chopped up.

Upcoming Earnings:
After Hours: AMD, ENPH, AMGN, LUMN
Before Open: LLY, NVO, KMT, UBER

Trade Updates:

New: GLW, GME, FUSE
Current Positions: GME, DECK, GLW
Sells: ZLS (Closed), META (Closed), DXYZ (closed), FUSE (closed day trade)

In Play

PYPL (SHORT):  Huge earnings miss, CEO Change, Poor Guidance.

Key Metrics: Industry Group: Credit Services, Market Cap: 40.63B, Float: 934.72M, Short Interest: 4.74%, Days to Cover: 2.84, Sales Y/Y TTM: 4.50%, EPS Y/Y TTM: 19.71%, Earnings: Feb 03 BMO, Exchange: NASDAQ

Catalyst: Terrible earnings miss across the board. Material miss on revs and EPS. Weak FY26 Guidance. Negative commentary by CFO. CEO being replaced due to poor performance. Clear leadership crisis at the company. Nice chart for short. Big money is going to be bailing on this one. The thesis is bust.

MPC:  Strong Earnings & EBITDA Expansion

Key Metrics: Industry Group: Oil & Gas Refining & Marketing, Market Cap: 55.16B, Float: 299.75M, Short Interest: 3.00%, Days to Cover: 3.94, Sales Y/Y TTM: -6.37%, EPS Y/Y TTM: -25.83%, Earnings: Feb 03 BMO, Exchange: NASDAQ

Catalyst: MPC crushed lowered expectations with massive Q4 operational execution. Adjusted EPS of $4.07 obliterated consensus of $2.71 by +50%, representing a 428% YoY surge. Strong refining operational performance drove significant EBITDA expansion (+64% YoY). Developing theme with Oil and Gas stocks breaking out. Which is why I’m interested in this name. A sustained run over $200 possible.

Delayed Reaction Watchlist:

Monitoring:

  • Worth Watching WULF also. They announced the purchase of two plants. Today may not be the day but adding it to delayed watchlist. Nice price action pre market and weekly chart has potential.

  • AMPX - News of Partnerhip. Nice Chart.

  • Adding TER to delayed reaction list also. Excellent results today but no real setup on daily for me.

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Note: This is my methodology for identifying stocks in play. There are many valid approaches to trading catalysts—find the setups, timeframes, and risk parameters that align with your strategy.

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