• Cisco reported a solid quarter after the bell.  Shares are up 4% afterhours and are also providing a boost to the overall indices which spiked about 0.25% on the news.  Cisco could set the tone for tomorrow’s action.

• An institutional trader placed a large bet on a rising dollar in the coming weeks:

UUP – PowerShares DB U.S. Dollar Index Fund – There was huge volume today in this exchange traded fund that tracks the American dollar’s index value ahead of this afternoon’s FOMC statement, which is likely to leave monetary policy unchanged and point to an ongoing situation in which interest rates remain accommodative for as long as the eye can see. Such an outlook for the dollar at a time of modest recovery has created a weak fundamental backdrop for the greenback. So today’s 155,000 call options bought for tiny premiums ranging between 10-15 cents per contract smacks of a large institution placing a sizeable gamble that change might be in the air either in what the Fed says this afternoon or for a more general change of heart towards the dollar before expiration on November 20. The dollar index on which this ETF is based is lower today and close to its weakest point in the current environment. With the price of the fund trading at $22.54, the investor needs to see a dollar rally lift the index and boost the price of the ETF beyond $23.15 by expiration in order to not lose money. A sharp turnaround in the fortune of the dollar today would automatically boost the index and therefore the value of this sizeable set of trades.

• Options traders are also looking for a 16% rally in gold:

GLD – SPDR Gold Trust – A ratio call spread on the gold exchange-traded fund this afternoon suggests one trader expects the price of the underlying shares to increase significantly by expiration in March of 2010. Shares are currently up nearly 1% to $107.41. The investor purchased 3,500 calls at the March 125 strike for an average premium of 2.14 apiece, spread against the sale of 7,000 calls at the higher March 135 strike for 1.22 each. The trader receives a net credit of 30 cents per contract on the bullish transaction. Additional profits may accumulate if shares surge 16% to the breakeven price of $125.00. Maximum potential profits of 10.00 per contract are attainable if the price of the GLD jumps 26% to $135.00 by expiration in March. The GLD fund has never traded higher than the current all-time highs experienced during today’s session.

• Bearish bets were also being made on the S&P Retail ETF:

XRT – SPDR S&P Retail ETF – A three-legged transaction in the December contract on the retail exchange-traded fund reveals bearish sentiment by one investor. Shares of the XRT are trading nearly 1% higher today to $34.60. It looks like the trader sold call options in order to offset the cost of buying a put spread. The put spread involved the purchase of 5,000 puts at the December 33 strike for a premium of 1.07 apiece, marked against the sale off 5,000 puts at the lower December 30 strike for approximately 37 cents each. The sale of 5,000 calls at the higher December 36 strike knocked another 87 cents per contract off the total price of the bearish play. The investor more than offset the cost of buying the spread and thus receives a net credit of 17 cents per contract. The full credit is retained by the trader as long as shares of the XRT remain below $36.00 through expiration. Additional profits may accumulate if shares dip below $33.00, while maximum potential gains of 3.00 per contract require that shares trade down to $30.00.

• Goldman Sachs downgraded Energizer and removed them from the conviction buy list.

• Goldman added Shanda (GAME) to their Asia Conviction Buy list.  It replaces Sina (SINA).

• Bank of America upgraded JB Hunt to buy with a $37 price target.

• Credit Suisse upgraded General Dynamics to outperform.