Self-Regulatory Organizations; Philadelphia Stock Exchange, Inc.; Notice of Filing of Proposed Rule Change Relating to the Extension and Expansion of a Pilot Program To Quote and Trade Certain Option Series in Increments of $0.01, 48722-48724 [E7-16760]
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48722
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Notices
All submissions should refer to File
Number SR–Phlx–2007–54. This file
number should be included on the
subject line if e-mail is used. To help the
Commission process and review your
comments more efficiently, please use
only one method. The Commission will
post all comments on the Commission’s
Internet Web site (https://www.sec.gov/
rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the
submission, all subsequent
amendments, all written statements
with respect to the proposed rule
change that are filed with the
Commission, and all written
communications relating to the
proposed rule change between the
Commission and any person, other than
those that may be withheld from the
public in accordance with the
provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be
available for inspection and copying in
the Commission’s Public Reference
Room, 100 F Street, NE., Washington,
DC 20549, on official business days
between the hours of 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.
Copies of the filing also will be available
for inspection and copying at the
principal office of the Phlx. All
comments received will be posted
without change; the Commission does
not edit personal identifying
information from submissions. You
should submit only information that
you wish to make available publicly. All
submissions should refer to File
Number SR–Phlx–2007–54 and should
be submitted on or before September 14,
2007.
For the Commission, by the Division of
Market Regulation, pursuant to delegated
authority.10
Florence E. Harmon,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. E7–16755 Filed 8–23–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8010–01–P
notice is hereby given that on August
17, 2007 the Philadelphia Stock
Exchange, Inc. (‘‘Phlx’’ or ‘‘Exchange’’)
filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (‘‘Commission’’) the
proposed rule change as described in
Items I, II, and III below, which items
have been substantially prepared by the
Phlx. The Commission is publishing
this notice to solicit comments on the
proposed rule change from interested
persons.
I. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement of the Terms of Substance of
the Proposed Rule Change
The Phlx proposes to extend and
expand a pilot program (the ‘‘Pilot’’)
that permits certain options series to be
quoted and traded in increments of
$0.01, through March 27, 2009. The
extended Pilot would include additional
options that are not part of the current
Pilot. The text of the proposed rule
change is available on the Exchange’s
Web site at (https://www.phlx.com), at
the offices of the Exchange, and at the
Commission’s Public Reference Room.
II. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule
Change
In its filing with the Commission, the
Exchange included statements
concerning the purpose of, and basis for,
the proposed rule change and discussed
any comments it received on the
proposed rule change. The text of these
statements may be examined at the
places specified in Item IV below. The
Exchange has prepared summaries, set
forth in Sections A, B, and C below, of
the most significant aspects of such
statements.
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
[Release No. 34–56284; File No. SR–Phlx–
2007–62]
A. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule
Change
1. Purpose
Self-Regulatory Organizations;
Philadelphia Stock Exchange, Inc.;
Notice of Filing of Proposed Rule
Change Relating to the Extension and
Expansion of a Pilot Program To Quote
and Trade Certain Option Series in
Increments of $0.01
yshivers on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
August 17, 2007.
Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
(‘‘Act’’),1 and Rule 19b–4 thereunder,2
10 17
CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).
U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
2 17 CFR 240.19b–4.
1 15
VerDate Aug<31>2005
14:35 Aug 23, 2007
Jkt 211001
The purpose of the proposed rule
change is to continue to permit
specified options series to be quoted
and traded in increments of $0.01 by
extending the Pilot through March 27,
2009, and to expand the Pilot to include
additional options, as described more
fully below. The Exchange believes that
including additional options in the Pilot
should provide greater breadth and
depth of experience in quoting and
trading options series in increments of
$0.01, and should therefore enable the
Exchange to better analyze the impact of
the Pilot on the options marketplace.
PO 00000
Frm 00114
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Current Pilot
The current Pilot began on January 26,
2007,3 and was thereafter extended
through September 27, 2007.4 All series
in options included in the Pilot (‘‘Pilot
Options,’’ listed below) trading at a
price of less than $3.00 are currently
quoted and traded in minimum
increments of $0.01, and Pilot Options
with a price of $3.00 or higher are
currently quoted and traded in
minimum increments of $0.05, except
that options overlying the Nasdaq-100
Index Tracking Stock (‘‘QQQQ’’) 5 are
quoted and traded in minimum
increments of $0.01 for all series
regardless of the price. A list of all Pilot
Options was communicated to
membership via Exchange circular.
The options included in the current
Pilot are:
Symbol
IWM .........
QQQQ .....
SMH .........
GE ...........
AMD .........
MSFT .......
INTC ........
CAT .........
WFMI .......
TXN .........
A ..............
FLEX ........
SUNW ......
Underlying security
Ishares Russell 2000
QQQQ
SemiConductor Holders
General Electric
Advanced Micro Devices
Microsoft
Intel
Caterpillar
Whole Foods
Texas Instruments
Agilent Tech Inc.
Flextronics International
Sun Micro
Expanded Pilot
The Exchange proposes to expand the
current Pilot to include additional
options in two phases, beginning on
September 28, 2007.
3 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 55153
(January 23, 2007), 72 FR 4553 (January 31, 2007)
(SR–Phlx–2006–74). In that filing, the Exchange
also made conforming amendments to various
Exchange rules in order to be consistent with the
Pilot. These conforming changes were also
approved on a six-month pilot basis. Therefore, the
Exchange is proposing to extend the effective date
for these rules through March 27, 2009.
4 See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 56141
(July 24, 2007), 72 FR 42216 (August 1, 2007) (SR–
Phlx–2007–53).
5 The Nasdaq-100, Nasdaq-100 Index, Nasdaq,
The Nasdaq Stock Market, Nasdaq-100 SharesSM,
Nasdaq-100 TrustSM, Nasdaq-100 Index Tracking
StockSM, and QQQSM are trademarks or service
marks of The Nasdaq Stock Market, Inc. (Nasdaq)
and have been licensed for use for certain purposes
by the Philadelphia Stock Exchange pursuant to a
License Agreement with Nasdaq. The Nasdaq-100
Index (the Index) is determined, composed, and
calculated by Nasdaq without regard to the
Licensee, the Nasdaq-100 TrustSM, or the beneficial
owners of Nasdaq-100 SharesSM. Nasdaq has
complete control and sole discretion in
determining, comprising, or calculating the Index or
in modifying in any way its methods for
determining, comprising, or calculating the Index in
the future.
E:\FR\FM\24AUN1.SGM
24AUN1
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Notices
Phase I
Phase I would begin September 28,
2007, and would continue through
March 27, 2008. Phase I would include
the original 13 Pilot Options, together
with 22 additional options. The 22 new
options (listed below), combined with
the original 13, would represent
approximately 35% of national trading
volume based on year-to-date trading
volume data (through July 16, 2007)
from the Options Clearing Corporation
(‘‘OCC’’). Excluded from this phase are
Google, NDX and RUT due to their
relatively high premiums.
All Pilot Options in Phase I would
trade in $0.01 increments in series
trading below $3.00, and in $0.05
increments in series trading at $3.00 and
above, except that options on QQQQ
would continue to trade in increments
of $0.01 for all series.
Options to be added to the Pilot in
Phase I:
Symbol
Underlying security
SPY .........
AAPL .......
MO ...........
DNDN ......
AMGN ......
YHOO ......
QCOM .....
GM ...........
XLE ..........
SPDR Trust Series 1
Apple Inc.
Altria Group Inc.
Dendreon Corporation
Amgen, Inc.
Yahoo!, Inc.
Qualcomm, Inc.
General Motors Corporation
S&P Energy Select Sector
SPDR
DIAMONDS Trust Series I
Oil Services HOLDRS
NYSE Euronext
Cisco Systems, Inc.
S&P Financial Select Sector
SPDR
AT&T Corporation
Citigroup, Inc.
Amazon.com, Inc.
Motorola, Inc.
Research in Motion, Ltd.
Freeport-McMoRan Cooper &
Gold, Inc.
ConocoPhillips
Bristol-Meyers Squibb Company
DIA ...........
OIH ..........
NYX .........
CSCO ......
XLF ..........
T ..............
C ..............
AMZN ......
MOT .........
RIMM .......
FCX .........
COP .........
BMY .........
yshivers on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
The Exchange would issue a circular
to membership identifying the options
to be added to the Pilot in Phase I.
Phase II
Phase II would begin March 28, 2008,
and would extend for one year, through
March 27, 2009. Options would be
added to the Pilot in Phase II such that
the Top 50 multiply listed options by
national volume would be included,
bringing the total number of options in
the Pilot to 63. Thus, any multiply listed
options in the Top 50 that are not
included in Phase I would be added to
the Pilot in Phase II. The Exchange
would file a proposed rule change under
Section (b)(3)(A) of the Act, and would
VerDate Aug<31>2005
14:35 Aug 23, 2007
Jkt 211001
48723
issue a circular to membership,
identifying the options to be added to
the Pilot in Phase II.
Again, all penny options in Phase II
would trade in $0.01 increments in
series trading below $3.00, and in $0.05
increments in series trading at $3.00 and
above. Options on QQQQ would
continue to trade in increments of $0.01
for all series.
90 days of such date if it finds such
longer period to be appropriate and
publishes its reasons for so finding or
(ii) as to which the Exchange consents,
the Commission will:
(A) By order approve such proposed
rule change, or
(B) Institute proceedings to determine
whether the proposed rule change
should be disapproved.
Reporting
IV. Solicitation of Comments
Interested persons are invited to
submit written data, views and
arguments concerning the foregoing,
including whether the proposed rule
change is consistent with the Act. The
Commission also requests and
encourages interested persons to submit
comments on the following specific
questions:
• Whether there are circumstances
under which options classes included in
the Penny Pilot should be removed from
the Pilot?
• If so, what factors should be
considered in making the determination
to remove an option class from the
Penny Pilot?
Æ Should an objective standard be
used? For instance, should an option
class come out of the Penny Pilot if its
trading volume drops below a threshold
amount? If so, what should that
threshold be? Or, should an option class
come out of the Penny Pilot if it is no
longer among the most actively-traded
options? If so, what should be
considered the most-actively traded
options? What statistics or analysis
should be used to support a
determination to remove an options
class?
Æ Should a more subjective analysis
be allowed? If so, what factors should be
taken into account?
• What concerns might arise by
removing an option from the Penny
Pilot? How could such concerns be
ameliorated?
• How frequently should the analysis
be undertaken (e.g., annually, biannually, quarterly), or should the
evaluation be an automated process?
• If a determination is made that an
option should be removed from the
Penny Pilot, how much notice should be
given to market participants that the
quoting increment will change?
Comments may be submitted by any
of the following methods:
The Exchange would submit four (4)
reports on the Pilot analyzing its impact
on the quality of the Exchange’s markets
and on capacity, which would be due
on the last day of the calendar month
following a specified period, as follows:
Report #1 would cover the period from
May 1, 2007–September 27, 2007
Report #2 would cover the period from
September 28, 2007–January 31, 2008
Report #3 would cover the period from
February 1, 2008–July 31, 2008
Report #4 would cover the period from
August 1, 2008–January 31, 2009
2. Statutory Basis
The Exchange believes that the
proposed rule change is consistent with
Section 6(b) of the Act,6 in general, and
furthers the objectives of Section 6(b)(5)
of the Act,7 in particular, in that the
proposed rule change is designed to
promote just and equitable principles of
trade, to remove impediments to and
perfect the mechanism of a free and
open market and a national market
system, and, in general, to protect
investors and the public interest by
expanding the Pilot to include more
options series.
B. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement on Burden on Competition
The Exchange does not believe that
the proposed rule change will result in
any burden on competition that is not
necessary or appropriate in furtherance
of the purposes of the Act.
C. Self-Regulatory Organization’s
Statement on Comments on the
Proposed Rule Change Received From
Members, Participants, or Others
Written comments on the proposed
rule change were neither solicited nor
received.
III. Date of Effectiveness of the
Proposed Rule Change and Timing for
Commission Action
Within 35 days of the date of
publication of this notice in the Federal
Register or within such longer period (i)
as the Commission may designate up to
6 15
7 15
PO 00000
U.S.C. 78f(b).
U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
Frm 00115
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
Electronic Comments
• Use the Commission’s Internet
comment form (https://www.sec.gov/
rules/sro.shtml); or
• Send an e-mail to rulecomments@sec.gov. Please include File
Number SR–Phlx–2007–62 on the
subject line.
E:\FR\FM\24AUN1.SGM
24AUN1
48724
Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 164 / Friday, August 24, 2007 / Notices
held in room 1107 of the U.S.
Department of State, located at 2201 C
• Send paper comments in triplicate
Street, NW., (entrance on 23rd Street),
to Nancy M. Morris, Secretary,
Washington, DC. For logistical and
Securities and Exchange Commission,
security reasons, it is imperative that
100 F Street, NE., Washington, DC
everyone enter and exit using only the
20549–1090.
23rd Street entrance. The majority of the
All submissions should refer to File
meeting is devoted to an exchange of
Number SR–Phlx–2007–62. This file
ideas between the Department’s Bureau
number should be included on the
of Overseas Building Operations’ senior
subject line if e-mail is used. To help the management and the panel members, on
Commission process and review your
design, operations, and building
comments more efficiently, please use
maintenance. Members of the public are
only one method. The Commission will asked to kindly refrain from joining the
post all comments on the Commission’s discussion until Director Williams
Internet Web site (https://www.sec.gov/
opens the discussion to them.
rules/sro.shtml). Copies of the
Entry to the building is controlled; to
submission, all subsequent
obtain pre-clearance for entry, members
amendments, all written statements
of the public planning to attend should
with respect to the proposed rule
provide, by September 12, 2007, their
change that are filed with the
name, professional affiliation, date of
Commission, and all written
birth, citizenship, and a valid
communications relating to the
government-issued ID number (i.e., U.S.
proposed rule change between the
government ID, U.S. military ID,
Commission and any person, other than passport, or drivers license (and state))
those that may be withheld from the
by e-mailing: iapr@state.gov. Due to
public in accordance with the
limited space, please remember that
provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be
only one person per company may
available for inspection and copying in
register.
the Commission’s Public Reference
If you have any questions, please
Room, 100 F Street, NE., Washington,
contact Andrea Specht at
DC 20549, on official business days
spechtam@state.gov or on (703) 516–
between the hours of 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. 1544.
Copies of such filing also will be
Dated: August 16, 2007.
available for inspection and copying at
Charles E. Williams,
the principal office of the Phlx. All
Director and Chief Operating Officer,
comments received will be posted
Overseas Buildings Operations, Department
without change; the Commission does
of State.
not edit personal identifying
[FR Doc. E7–16834 Filed 8–23–07; 8:45 am]
information from submissions. You
BILLING CODE 4710–24–P
should submit only information that
you wish to make available publicly. All
submissions should refer to File
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Number SR–Phlx–2007–62 and should
be submittedon or before September 14,
Federal Aviation Administration
2007.
For the Commission, by the Division of
Notice of FAA Approval of the Noise
Market Regulation, pursuant to delegated
Compatibility Program at Great Falls
authority.8
International Airport, Great Falls, MT
Paper Comments
Florence E. Harmon,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. E7–16760 Filed 8–23–07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8010–01–P
DEPARTMENT OF STATE
[Public Notice 5886]
yshivers on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
Industry Advisory Panel: Notice of
Open Meeting
The Industry Advisory Panel of
Overseas Buildings Operations will
meet on Thursday, September 20, 2007
from 9:30 until 3:30 p.m. Eastern
Standard Time. The meeting will be
8 17
CFR 200.30–3(a)(12).
VerDate Aug<31>2005
14:35 Aug 23, 2007
Jkt 211001
Federal Aviation
Administration, DOT.
ACTION: Notice of FAA Approval of
Noise Compatibility Program 14 CFR
Part 150, Great Falls International
Airport, Great Falls, Montanta.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: The Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) announces its
findings on the noise compatibility
program submitted by the Great Falls
International Airport under the
provisions of 49 U.S.C. (the Aviation
Safety and Noise Abatement Act,
hereinafter referred to as ‘‘the Act’’) and
14 CFT Part 150. These findings are
made in recognition of the description
of Federal and nonfederal
responsibilities in Senate Report No.
PO 00000
Frm 00116
Fmt 4703
Sfmt 4703
96–52 (1980). On February 13, 2007, the
FAA determined that the noise exposure
maps submitted by the Great Falls
International Airport under Part 150
were in compliance with applicable
requirements. On August 8, 2007, the
FAA approved the Great Falls
International Airport noise
compatibility program. All of the
recommendations of the program,
approved by the Airport, were approved
in whole or in part by FAA.
EFFECTIVE DATE: The effective date of the
FAA’s approval of the Great Falls
International Airport noise
compatibility program is August 8,
2007.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gary
Gates, Federal Aviation Administration,
Helena Airports District Office, 2725
Skyway Drive, Suite 2, Helena, MT,
telephone 406–449–5271, e-mail
gary.gates@faa.gov. Documents
reflecting this FAA action may be
reviewed at this same location.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This
notice announces that the FAA has
given its overall approval to the noise
compatibility program for Great Falls
International Airport, effective August
8, 2007.
Under section 47504 of the Act, an
airport operator who has previously
submitted a noise exposure map may
submit to the FAA a noise compatibility
program which sets forth the measures
taken or proposed by the airport
operator for the reduction of existing
non-compatible land uses and
prevention of additional non-compatible
land uses within the area covered by the
noise exposure maps. The Act requires
such programs to be developed in
consultation with interested and
affected parties including local
communities, government agencies,
airport users, and FAA personnel.
Each airport noise compatibility
program developed in accordance with
Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR) Part
150 is a local program, not a Federal
program. The FAA does not substitute
its judgement for that of the airport
proprietor with respect to which
measures should be recommended for
action. The FAA’s approval or
disapproval of FAR Part 150 program
recommendations is measured
according to the standards expressed in
Part 150 and the Act and is limited to
the following determinations:
a. The noise compatibility program
was developed in accordance with the
provisions and procedures of FAR Part
150;
b. Program measures are reasonably
consistent with achieving the goals of
reducing existing non-compatible land
E:\FR\FM\24AUN1.SGM
24AUN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 164 (Friday, August 24, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48722-48724]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-16760]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[Release No. 34-56284; File No. SR-Phlx-2007-62]
Self-Regulatory Organizations; Philadelphia Stock Exchange, Inc.;
Notice of Filing of Proposed Rule Change Relating to the Extension and
Expansion of a Pilot Program To Quote and Trade Certain Option Series
in Increments of $0.01
August 17, 2007.
Pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
(``Act''),\1\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder,\2\ notice is hereby given that
on August 17, 2007 the Philadelphia Stock Exchange, Inc. (``Phlx'' or
``Exchange'') filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
(``Commission'') the proposed rule change as described in Items I, II,
and III below, which items have been substantially prepared by the
Phlx. The Commission is publishing this notice to solicit comments on
the proposed rule change from interested persons.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1).
\2\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
I. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Terms of Substance
of the Proposed Rule Change
The Phlx proposes to extend and expand a pilot program (the
``Pilot'') that permits certain options series to be quoted and traded
in increments of $0.01, through March 27, 2009. The extended Pilot
would include additional options that are not part of the current
Pilot. The text of the proposed rule change is available on the
Exchange's Web site at (https://www.phlx.com), at the offices of the
Exchange, and at the Commission's Public Reference Room.
II. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change
In its filing with the Commission, the Exchange included statements
concerning the purpose of, and basis for, the proposed rule change and
discussed any comments it received on the proposed rule change. The
text of these statements may be examined at the places specified in
Item IV below. The Exchange has prepared summaries, set forth in
Sections A, B, and C below, of the most significant aspects of such
statements.
A. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement of the Purpose of, and
Statutory Basis for, the Proposed Rule Change
1. Purpose
The purpose of the proposed rule change is to continue to permit
specified options series to be quoted and traded in increments of $0.01
by extending the Pilot through March 27, 2009, and to expand the Pilot
to include additional options, as described more fully below. The
Exchange believes that including additional options in the Pilot should
provide greater breadth and depth of experience in quoting and trading
options series in increments of $0.01, and should therefore enable the
Exchange to better analyze the impact of the Pilot on the options
marketplace.
Current Pilot
The current Pilot began on January 26, 2007,\3\ and was thereafter
extended through September 27, 2007.\4\ All series in options included
in the Pilot (``Pilot Options,'' listed below) trading at a price of
less than $3.00 are currently quoted and traded in minimum increments
of $0.01, and Pilot Options with a price of $3.00 or higher are
currently quoted and traded in minimum increments of $0.05, except that
options overlying the Nasdaq-100 Index Tracking Stock (``QQQQ'') \5\
are quoted and traded in minimum increments of $0.01 for all series
regardless of the price. A list of all Pilot Options was communicated
to membership via Exchange circular.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\3\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 55153 (January 23,
2007), 72 FR 4553 (January 31, 2007) (SR-Phlx-2006-74). In that
filing, the Exchange also made conforming amendments to various
Exchange rules in order to be consistent with the Pilot. These
conforming changes were also approved on a six-month pilot basis.
Therefore, the Exchange is proposing to extend the effective date
for these rules through March 27, 2009.
\4\ See Securities Exchange Act Release No. 56141 (July 24,
2007), 72 FR 42216 (August 1, 2007) (SR-Phlx-2007-53).
\5\ The Nasdaq-100[supreg], Nasdaq-100 Index[supreg],
Nasdaq[supreg], The Nasdaq Stock Market[supreg], Nasdaq-100
Shares\SM\, Nasdaq-100 Trust\SM\, Nasdaq-100 Index Tracking
Stock\SM\, and QQQ\SM\ are trademarks or service marks of The Nasdaq
Stock Market, Inc. (Nasdaq) and have been licensed for use for
certain purposes by the Philadelphia Stock Exchange pursuant to a
License Agreement with Nasdaq. The Nasdaq-100 Index[supreg] (the
Index) is determined, composed, and calculated by Nasdaq without
regard to the Licensee, the Nasdaq-100 Trust\SM\, or the beneficial
owners of Nasdaq-100 Shares\SM\. Nasdaq has complete control and
sole discretion in determining, comprising, or calculating the Index
or in modifying in any way its methods for determining, comprising,
or calculating the Index in the future.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
The options included in the current Pilot are:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Symbol Underlying security
------------------------------------------------------------------------
IWM................................ Ishares Russell 2000
QQQQ............................... QQQQ
SMH................................ SemiConductor Holders
GE................................. General Electric
AMD................................ Advanced Micro Devices
MSFT............................... Microsoft
INTC............................... Intel
CAT................................ Caterpillar
WFMI............................... Whole Foods
TXN................................ Texas Instruments
A.................................. Agilent Tech Inc.
FLEX............................... Flextronics International
SUNW............................... Sun Micro
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Expanded Pilot
The Exchange proposes to expand the current Pilot to include
additional options in two phases, beginning on September 28, 2007.
[[Page 48723]]
Phase I
Phase I would begin September 28, 2007, and would continue through
March 27, 2008. Phase I would include the original 13 Pilot Options,
together with 22 additional options. The 22 new options (listed below),
combined with the original 13, would represent approximately 35% of
national trading volume based on year-to-date trading volume data
(through July 16, 2007) from the Options Clearing Corporation
(``OCC''). Excluded from this phase are Google, NDX and RUT due to
their relatively high premiums.
All Pilot Options in Phase I would trade in $0.01 increments in
series trading below $3.00, and in $0.05 increments in series trading
at $3.00 and above, except that options on QQQQ would continue to trade
in increments of $0.01 for all series.
Options to be added to the Pilot in Phase I:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Symbol Underlying security
------------------------------------------------------------------------
SPY................................ SPDR Trust Series 1
AAPL............................... Apple Inc.
MO................................. Altria Group Inc.
DNDN............................... Dendreon Corporation
AMGN............................... Amgen, Inc.
YHOO............................... Yahoo!, Inc.
QCOM............................... Qualcomm, Inc.
GM................................. General Motors Corporation
XLE................................ S&P Energy Select Sector SPDR
DIA................................ DIAMONDS Trust Series I
OIH................................ Oil Services HOLDRS
NYX................................ NYSE Euronext
CSCO............................... Cisco Systems, Inc.
XLF................................ S&P Financial Select Sector SPDR
T.................................. AT&T Corporation
C.................................. Citigroup, Inc.
AMZN............................... Amazon.com, Inc.
MOT................................ Motorola, Inc.
RIMM............................... Research in Motion, Ltd.
FCX................................ Freeport-McMoRan Cooper & Gold,
Inc.
COP................................ ConocoPhillips
BMY................................ Bristol-Meyers Squibb Company
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The Exchange would issue a circular to membership identifying the
options to be added to the Pilot in Phase I.
Phase II
Phase II would begin March 28, 2008, and would extend for one year,
through March 27, 2009. Options would be added to the Pilot in Phase II
such that the Top 50 multiply listed options by national volume would
be included, bringing the total number of options in the Pilot to 63.
Thus, any multiply listed options in the Top 50 that are not included
in Phase I would be added to the Pilot in Phase II. The Exchange would
file a proposed rule change under Section (b)(3)(A) of the Act, and
would issue a circular to membership, identifying the options to be
added to the Pilot in Phase II.
Again, all penny options in Phase II would trade in $0.01
increments in series trading below $3.00, and in $0.05 increments in
series trading at $3.00 and above. Options on QQQQ would continue to
trade in increments of $0.01 for all series.
Reporting
The Exchange would submit four (4) reports on the Pilot analyzing
its impact on the quality of the Exchange's markets and on capacity,
which would be due on the last day of the calendar month following a
specified period, as follows:
Report 1 would cover the period from May 1, 2007-September 27,
2007
Report 2 would cover the period from September 28, 2007-
January 31, 2008
Report 3 would cover the period from February 1, 2008-July 31,
2008
Report 4 would cover the period from August 1, 2008-January
31, 2009
2. Statutory Basis
The Exchange believes that the proposed rule change is consistent
with Section 6(b) of the Act,\6\ in general, and furthers the
objectives of Section 6(b)(5) of the Act,\7\ in particular, in that the
proposed rule change is designed to promote just and equitable
principles of trade, to remove impediments to and perfect the mechanism
of a free and open market and a national market system, and, in
general, to protect investors and the public interest by expanding the
Pilot to include more options series.
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\6\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b).
\7\ 15 U.S.C. 78f(b)(5).
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B. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Burden on Competition
The Exchange does not believe that the proposed rule change will
result in any burden on competition that is not necessary or
appropriate in furtherance of the purposes of the Act.
C. Self-Regulatory Organization's Statement on Comments on the Proposed
Rule Change Received From Members, Participants, or Others
Written comments on the proposed rule change were neither solicited
nor received.
III. Date of Effectiveness of the Proposed Rule Change and Timing for
Commission Action
Within 35 days of the date of publication of this notice in the
Federal Register or within such longer period (i) as the Commission may
designate up to 90 days of such date if it finds such longer period to
be appropriate and publishes its reasons for so finding or (ii) as to
which the Exchange consents, the Commission will:
(A) By order approve such proposed rule change, or
(B) Institute proceedings to determine whether the proposed rule
change should be disapproved.
IV. Solicitation of Comments
Interested persons are invited to submit written data, views and
arguments concerning the foregoing, including whether the proposed rule
change is consistent with the Act. The Commission also requests and
encourages interested persons to submit comments on the following
specific questions:
Whether there are circumstances under which options
classes included in the Penny Pilot should be removed from the Pilot?
If so, what factors should be considered in making the
determination to remove an option class from the Penny Pilot?
[cir] Should an objective standard be used? For instance, should an
option class come out of the Penny Pilot if its trading volume drops
below a threshold amount? If so, what should that threshold be? Or,
should an option class come out of the Penny Pilot if it is no longer
among the most actively-traded options? If so, what should be
considered the most-actively traded options? What statistics or
analysis should be used to support a determination to remove an options
class?
[cir] Should a more subjective analysis be allowed? If so, what
factors should be taken into account?
What concerns might arise by removing an option from the
Penny Pilot? How could such concerns be ameliorated?
How frequently should the analysis be undertaken (e.g.,
annually, bi-annually, quarterly), or should the evaluation be an
automated process?
If a determination is made that an option should be
removed from the Penny Pilot, how much notice should be given to market
participants that the quoting increment will change?
Comments may be submitted by any of the following methods:
Electronic Comments
Use the Commission's Internet comment form (https://
www.sec.gov/rules/sro.shtml); or
Send an e-mail to rule-comments@sec.gov. Please include
File Number SR-Phlx-2007-62 on the subject line.
[[Page 48724]]
Paper Comments
Send paper comments in triplicate to Nancy M. Morris,
Secretary, Securities and Exchange Commission, 100 F Street, NE.,
Washington, DC 20549-1090.
All submissions should refer to File Number SR-Phlx-2007-62. This file
number should be included on the subject line if e-mail is used. To
help the Commission process and review your comments more efficiently,
please use only one method. The Commission will post all comments on
the Commission's Internet Web site (https://www.sec.gov/rules/
sro.shtml). Copies of the submission, all subsequent amendments, all
written statements with respect to the proposed rule change that are
filed with the Commission, and all written communications relating to
the proposed rule change between the Commission and any person, other
than those that may be withheld from the public in accordance with the
provisions of 5 U.S.C. 552, will be available for inspection and
copying in the Commission's Public Reference Room, 100 F Street, NE.,
Washington, DC 20549, on official business days between the hours of 10
a.m. and 3 p.m. Copies of such filing also will be available for
inspection and copying at the principal office of the Phlx. All
comments received will be posted without change; the Commission does
not edit personal identifying information from submissions. You should
submit only information that you wish to make available publicly. All
submissions should refer to File Number SR-Phlx-2007-62 and should be
submitted on or before September 14, 2007.
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\8\ 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
For the Commission, by the Division of Market Regulation,
pursuant to delegated authority.\8\
Florence E. Harmon,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. E7-16760 Filed 8-23-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8010-01-P
