Back to tech: For a day (at least) rotation is over
Today, August 12, the rotation out of tech winners and into beaten-up consumer and industrial stocks is over. As of the close today. the Standard & Poor’s 500 was up 1.40% but the NASDAQ Composite was ahead 2.13%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was higher...
Adding AES to my Dividend Portfolio
Yesterday I named AES (AES) as my seventh pick in my Special Report: 10 Global Warming Stock Picks on my subscription JubakAM.com site. I also added the utility stock to my Dividend Portfolio on all three of my sites. Hence this post. I wrote: “Reducing...
So why was Friday’s jobs report for July so worrying?
On Friday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the U.S. economy added 1.8 million jobs in July. Not a bad number, on an absolute scale. 1.8 million jobs is a lot of jobs. And the total did beat economists’ expectations by about 300,000 jobs. But…...
China car sales gain for fourth straight month
Preliminary figures for July show vehicle sales in China advancing for a fourth straight month as buyers gradually return to auto showrooms. The figures are good news for China’s economy as a whole, which looks to have returned to growth–very modest...
Stocks test rotation again today
This is a pattern that I’m looking for in the U.S. stock market right now. (Notice, please the “a.” It’s not the only pattern worth watching at the moment.) The next stage in this upward trending market may not be a reversal of the general...
ADP private payrolls report foreshadows negative government July jobs report due Friday
The ADP Research Institute report on private payrolls doesn’t always track with the government’s monthly jobs report, but the trends usually matches up. Which argues that Friday’s July jobs report will show that the economy and the labor market took...
Gold and silver take another step toward excess
We’ve been here before. With gold and silver we’re at that stage in a huge rally where Wall Street analysts rush to increase their target prices in order to keep ahead of the market and where the number of posts urging investors to get in now–And...
Incyte beats on earnings, revenue–but drops on lack of improved guidance
Shares of biotech Incyte (INCY) were down 2.60% as of 1:30 p.m. Tuesday on earnings and revenue that stomped Wall Street projections. The company reported second quarter adjusted earnings of $1.24 a share versus Wall Street projections for 50 cents a share. Earnings...
Ericsson is my 5G network pick
Ericsson (ERIC) has been piling up the contract wins for 5G networks. That’s the future–which is why I’m recommending buying this ADR in my Jubak Picks Portfolio today. If you want to ride the transition to 5G telecommunications network, this is the...
Gold hits a record: Now what?
Spot gold hit an all-time high today to close at $1991.40 an ounce. In July gold rose 11%, the most since 2012. And now even investors and traders who never own gold are looking at the metal and say, “Should I buy? Will it rally some more?” In my opinion...
Vacation heads up
I’m going to be taking a few days off–from Monday through Thursday of next week–to chill in a cabin in the woods and social distance with a moose or two. I’ve got a few posts in the can for those days. And just in case, I’ll be keeping my...
Congress blows it on the economy
The Senate left Washington yesterday without putting its plan for the next coronavirus aid package on the table. That guarantees, in case you had any doubt, that the enhanced $600 a week unemployment benefit that, for practical purposes, expires with today’s...
Market is amazingly calm today–all things considered
Let’s see. The Senate went home for the weekend without passing an extension to the $600 a week in enhanced unemployment benefits–so that program will pay out its last checks tomorrow. China retaliated for U.S. action to close China’s Houston...
Quickly, some of the Trump administration’s lines in the sand for the next coronavirus rescue package get washed away
You remember those lines in sand that the Trump White House declared before it began talks with the leaders of the Republican-controlled Senate? Well, a number of them have already vanished, washed out of existence by the fears of Republican Senators that the White...
Microsoft’s growth disappoints Wall Street in yesterday’s earnings report
Shares of Microsoft (MSFT) were down 4.35% as of the close today in spite of the company’s strong beat of Wall Street projections for the company’s fiscal fourth quarter that ended on June 30. The company reported earnings of $1.46 a share, versus Wall...
Initial claims for unemployment total ticks up, ends downward streak
Too much news today. But let me start. Today the Labor Department reported that new claims for unemployment through regular state programs rose to 1.42 million in the week ended July 18. That was a 109,000 increase from the prior week and the first increase in the...
Trump administration ratchets up tension with China by closing Houston consulate
This morning the Trump Administration ordered China to close its consulate in Houston by Friday. China vowed to retaliate, calling the move illegal. The United States accused Chinese diplomats of aiding a nationwide pattern of economic espionage and attempted theft of...
Let the stimulus logrolling begin (I hope): Republicans near $1 trillion (maybe) with Democrats at $3 trillion as McConnell describes his plan on Senate floor
Of course, there isn’t actually a Republican bill in the Senate yet, but in a floor speech today Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said “The American economy needs another shot of adrenaline.” McConnell also noted that infections are “climbing in hot spots...
Good vaccine news from Oxford/AstraZeneca–and others today
With 160 coronavirus vaccine candidates under development around the world, it’s not surprising that we would get reports on three successful, if very early, trials today. The coronavirus vaccine that Oxford University is developing with AstraZeneca (AZN) showed...
Charles Schwab misses on revenue and earnings drop 21% over year–but long-term metrics stay on track
On Thursday, after the close of trading in New York, brokerage Charles Schwab (SCHW) reported net revenue of $2.4 billion for the second quarter, a 9% drop year over year and short of the $2.47 billion projected by Wall Street analysts. Non-GAAP adjusted earnings fell...
Today it’s Amazon’s market
This morning shares of Amazon (AMZN) burst higher out of the box, gaining 5.98% as of noon New York time. The catalyst, it appears, was a new target price from Goldman Sachs of $3800 a share, up from the previous target of $3000. The shares had closed at $2961.97 on...
Market worries that a smaller-than-expected drop in new claims for unemployment portends future downturn in economy
Initial jobless claims in regular state programs totaled a seasonally adjusted 1.3 million in the week ended July 11, down just 10,000 from the prior week, the Labor Department reported this morning. That’s the smallest drop in the new claims since March and...Vaccine hopes drive stock prices higher today–and tomorrow?
U.S. stocks broke strongly higher today as Moderna (RNA) disclosed results from an initial safety trial. Investors also got a report on the ITV.com website that new findings from the vaccine candidate being developed at the University of Oxford could be published as...
Dividend Portfolio member Hanesbrands pops 9.51% today on analyst upgrade
Last time I visited Hanesbrands (HBI) on May 11 in my Dividend Portfolio it was down 37.66% from my February 21 pick. But it was worth holding on, I argued, for the hefty 6.69% dividend and an eventual turn in the share price. Well, today, July 14, the shares yield...
Banks start off earnings season by pouring cold water on V-shaped recovery
“I don’t think anybody should leave any bank earnings call this quarter simply feeling like the worst is absolutely behind us and it’s a rosy path ahead,” Citigroup (C) CEO Michael Corbat said this morning as he announced the bank’s second quarter earnings. “We...
Jubak Picks member Xylem gains 8.97% on upgraded guidance ahead of earnings
Just a reminder today from Xylem (XYL) of why the company is one of the best investments in trends in the water market. The shares moved up 8.97% ahead of the release of second quarter earnings on July 30, 2020 to close at $73.38. Today, July 14, I’m raising my...
Everything was rosy until the last hour
At the high point during the day, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 2.2%. It closed with a gain of just 0.1% for the day. The trend wasn’t limited to U.S. stocks. The iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF (EEM) was up 1.26% at noon New York time but closed off...
Disney parks re-open in Florida as state hits record new coronavirus cases; Hong Kong park closes again
On Sunday, Florida reported the highest single-day total of new coronavirus cases by any state since the start of the pandemic. The 15,299 new cases surpassed the previous high for any state on a single day of 12,274 recorded in New York on April 4. The record comes...
Another day, another market Put: this time it’s remdesivir
et’s count the Puts that are keeping any Bad News Bear from biting this market. Of course, first and foremost there’s the Federal Reserve Put (or Powell Put for lovers of alliteration). The Fed has told investors they can expect the current near 0%...Jim’s Daily Email Alerts:
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