Twitter (TWTR) Gains As Traders Position Ahead of Catalyst

As noted earlier, Twitter (NYSE: TWTR) is green today in a sea of red in the stock market. The upside comes one day after the stock broke below its $26 IPO price.

The main reason for the uptick is traders are positioning in the name in anticipation of a major catalyst... the naming of a permanent CEO.

An announcement could come as soon as next week.

Early on in the search, co-founder and interim CEO Jack Dorsey was not seen as a likely replacement given that he stated he will stay on as the CEO of Square. However, as time has passed, and with the realization that there will be no 'unicorn CEO' like Yahoo! found in Marissa Mayer, Dorsey is now seen as the front runner. Early Twitter investor Chris Sacca essentially gave his blessing for the Dorsey dual-role.

Another name that has come up recently is outgoing Intel President Renee James. In July, James informed Intel's board that she will be stepping down as President of Intel to pursue an external CEO role, although she didn't name companies.

Other names include: Adam Bain, Mike McCue, Ross Levinsohn, and Neal Mohan.

Recently, SunTrust analyst Robert Peck said we may see a "triumvirate of leadership", with: Jack Dorsey as CEO, Adam Bain as COO / President, and Ev Williams with more board influence (perhaps Chairman).

Meanwhile, on investors' 'pretty please' list is Facebook COO, Sheryl Sandberg. Sandberg would in fact be viewed as a 'unicorn CEO.' The move to Twitter, however, would seem unlikely given her deep roots with Facebook and the recent death of her husband Dave Goldberg.

While the CEO candidate is still unknown, selecting a new permanent CEO could go a long way to improve investor sentiment and employee morale - which, with the stock, is at an all time low.

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