E*Trade Financial Corp. (ETFC: sentiment, chart, options) was one of many discount brokers initiated at Goldman Sachs today. Goldman slapped a "neutral" rating on ETFC and on the sector as a whole, though it added that TD Ameritrade (AMTD) and Charles Schwab (SCHW) should outperform the group during the next 6 months. On the other hand, warned analyst Daniel Harris, E*Trade will need about $340 million in capital to stay well-capitalized through the end of 2009.

As midday approaches, ETFC is down roughly 1.5% at $1.36. The stock is down 61% year-to-date, and it has been trading below 5 since March. Technical resistance from the equity's 10-week moving average lies overhead in the $1.63 region.

Although ETFC has spent the bulk of 2008 exploring new all-time lows, option players seem convinced the shares can rebound. Traders on the International Securities Exchange (ISE) continue to buy call options on the equity, which sports a 10-day ISE call/put ratio of 13.60. This reading indicates that ETFC's calls have rarely been more popular among traders on the ISE. The lingering optimism on this technical laggard could indicate that still more losses are in store for E*Trade shares.