Schaeffer's Daily Market Blog Features: Versant, Verifone, American International Group, DIRECTV Group, and Pan American Silver.

CINCINNATI -- Among the stocks featured in the September 1 edition of Schaeffer's Market Blog are Versant (NASDAQ:VSNT), Verifone (NYSE:PAY), American International Group (NYSE:AIG), DIRECTV Group (NYSE:DTV), and Pan American Silver (NASDAQ:PAAS). Schaeffer's Market Blog is just one of the many free market commentaries written every day at www.SchaeffersResearch.com - the home of Bernie Schaeffer and Schaeffer's Investment Research. The Market Blog is written throughout every trading day by Schaeffer's financial analysts and traders. They are quick insights to the day's most notable market activity from an options perspective. For additional information about this report or to have it delivered to you free via email every day click on the following link. http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/redirect.aspx?CODE=PROB13M&PAGE=1 .

12:07 PM Versant Hits Another Multi-Year High

On Wednesday, I reported in this blog that Versant (NASDAQ:VSNT) was the leading stock on the Nasdaq today. The company reported third-quarter results of $1 million, or 28 cents per share, compared to a loss of $14.35 million, or $4.04 per share per year ago. Revenue grew 8.8 percent to $3.76 million. At the time I blogged about VSNT, the stock was up more than 37 percent at $8.49. Today, VSNT has advanced another 13 percent. At last check, it was changing hands at $9.75. Since late April, the stock's 10-week and 20-week trendlines have provided resistance; now that this resistance has been taken out now, buyers seem to be in charge. Turning to the sentiment, Zacks does not list any analysts who cover VSNT, so there's room for initiations, which would attract attention and sideline money, potentially fueling further price rises. VSNT does not trade options, so we cannot calculate a Schaeffer's put/call open interest ratio (SOIR). However, the short-interest data tell a story. Just a quarter of a percent of VSNT's float is sold short, and this lack of pessimism from equities enthusiasts warns that fuel for a short-covering rally is absent. Nevertheless, the stock is trading at the highest levels we have seen since April 2000 and it has gained more than 57 percent since Tuesday's close.

12:37 PM Verifone Leads the NYSE

As we enter the final four months of the year, all three of the major indices are making gains. The advance/decline ratio at the Nasdaq is 1.46, and the ratio at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is 2.08. Verifone (NYSE:PAY) is the leader at the NYSE today. The company reported third-quarter earnings of 28 cents per share, excluding non-recurring items, two cents better than the Reuters consensus estimate of 26 cents per share. Revenue rose 17.4 percent on a year-over-year basis to $147.6 million. At last check, the stock was up more than 20 percent.

1:39 PM AIG May Face Overhead Resistance at 65

Insurance giant American International Group (NYSE:AIG) has been attracting a ridiculous amount of call option buying as the stock has climbed higher over the past few weeks. This is not abnormal, as one would expect investors to be bullish on a strong stock. The $65 level, however, is the site of a large amount of overhead call option open interest, and could act as a resistance level on the shares. September and October house well over 30,000 contracts of call open interest at the 65 strike.

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2:38 PM DIRECTV Hits All-Time High

DIRECTV Group (NYSE:DTV) hit an all-time high today, rising as high as $19.22. At last check it stood at $19.10, up 1.65 percent. The sentiment for DTV is interesting. Zacks monitors 17 analysts who rate the stock, and 13 of those have it at a cautious "hold" or worse, leaving plenty of room for upgrades. If the stock is hitting all-time high when the brokerages are advising clients to sell, what would it do if we saw some upgrades to "buy?" With a short-interest ratio of almost 7.5 days to cover, there's potential fuel for a short-covering rally, too. On our Schaeffer's Equity Scorecard, the stock earns 7.0 out of 10, suggesting that the path of least resistance still lies to the upside.

2:48 PM Metals Up Again

Another day and more strong gains for metals across the board. The group had a great day yesterday after the Goldcorp (GG) and Glamis Gold (GLG) mega-merger. On the news the AMEX Gold Bugs Index (HUI) gained 2.64 percent and today it's up another percent. And surprise, surprise, silver is leading the charge higher - as it continues to outperform gold. Looking at a few silver names, Coeur D'Alene Mines (CDE) is up two percent, Silver Standard Resources (SSRI) is up four percent and Pan American Silver (NASDAQ:PAAS) is up 1.50 percent.

For more information on these stocks or any stock in your portfolio, feel free to visit our Schaeffer's Equity Scorecard feature. Click here to read all of today's Market Blog: http://www.schaeffersresearch.com/redirect.aspx?CODE=PROB13C&PAGE=1.

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About Schaeffer's Investment Research (www.SchaeffersResearch.com)

Schaeffer's Investment Research, founded by Bernie Schaeffer in 1981, is a financial information and trading resources company. It publishes Bernie Schaeffer's Option Advisor, the nation's leading options subscription newsletter. The firm's contrarian approach focuses on stocks with technical and fundamental trends that run counter to investor expectations. The firm's website, http://www.SchaeffersResearch.com , is recognized as one of the leading information sources for stock and options traders and was cited as the top options website by both Forbes and Barron's. Click here for more details about Schaeffer's trading methodology: http://www.SchaeffersResearch.com/method .