SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF

Corning’s gross margin grew 3% and 9% in 2016 and 9M17, respectively.

Delta Air Lines’ (DAL) operating revenue fell 3% in 2016 before gaining 3% in 9M17 (or the first nine months of 2017).

American International Group’s dividend per share rose 58% in 2016 and was flat in 2017.

FedEx’s (FDX) revenue grew 6% and 20% in 2016 and 2017, respectively. The FedEx Ground, FedEx Freight, and FedEx Services segments drove the 2016 growth, offset by the FedEx Express segment.

The Vulcan Materials Company’s (VMC) revenue grew 5% and 7% in 2016 and 9M17, respectively. Aggregates, concrete, and calcium drove the growth in 2016, offset by asphalt mix.

Hilton Worldwide Holdings’ (HLT) revenue grew 3% in 2016. Management and franchise fees, timeshare, and other revenues from managed and franchised properties drove the growth in 2016, offset by owned and leased hotels.

The Kraft Heinz Company’s (KHC) net sales grew 44% in 2016 before falling 1% in 9M17. Every product category drove the growth in 2016, offset by a decline in the infant and nutrition segments.

Coty (COTY) net revenue fell 1% in 2016 before climbing 76% in 2017. The Consumer Beauty segment drove the growth in both years.

Citigroup is projected to grow its revenue 2% and 4% in 2017 and 2018, respectively. The 2017 and 2018 diluted EPS are projected to grow 12% and 14%, respectively.

In this part of our focus on the top 18 cheap S&P 500 stocks, we’ll discuss another six stocks: General Motors (GM), Ford Motor (F), Owens-Illinois (OI), The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (GT), Navient (NAVI), and Brighthouse Financial (BHF).

For 9M17 (the first nine months of 2017), Gulfport Energy (GPOR) had normalized FCF (free cash flow) of -336%, the fourth lowest among the upstream producers we have been tracking.

Donald Trump’s promises of financial deregulation, infrastructure spending, and tax cuts played a major role in the stock market rally this year.

Devon Energy Corporation’s 56.0% dividend cut in 2016 was followed by a 43.0% cut in 2017.

The US Dollar Index fell 0.1% to 93.55 on October 9, 2017. However, it rose almost 1.1% last week. The US dollar (UUP) is near a ten-week high.

US steel production As US (DIA) (DOW) steel production is US steelmakers’ major revenue driver, it’s very important to track it. In this part, we’ll discuss domestic production and capacity utilization. According to the World Steel Association, the United States produced 7.1 million tons of steel in August 2017, an increase of 6.3% YoY (year-over-year). Production rose 5.6% in […]

Luxury home furnishings retailer RH (RH) will announce its 2Q17 earnings after the market closes on September 6, 2017.

Implied volatility in ExxonMobil has fallen from 14.9% on April 3, 2017, to 13.6% to date.

What is implied volatility? Volatility gauges changes in a stock’s return over a period. When estimated based on historical stock prices, it is called historical volatility. We can estimate the future volatility, or implied volatility, of security using an option pricing model. A high implied volatility would indicate that a stock price is expected to move […]

Nike’s key brand, Nike, which accounts for ~95% of the company’s business, saw a 7% YoY rise in its fiscal 4Q17 sales on a currency-neutral basis.

Valero’s crack indicators have fallen in all of these areas in May 2017 (as of May 23) as compared to April 2017.

Refiners’ cash flows have turned volatile over the past few quarters due to volatile refining earnings.

MPC’s valuations are above the peer averages likely because it’s now in the process of restructuring its organization to unlock value.

Since the previous Fed meeting in March, where the Fed announced a 0.25% rate hike, equity markets (IWV) around the globe remained dovish.

Alcoa and Century Aluminum (CENX) survives the commodity price slump by closing their high-cost capacities and negotiating better power deals for several operating plants.

Parsley Energy’s (PE) latest acquisition news came after markets closed on February 7, 2017.

Narayana Kocherlakota, 12th president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, said central banks have been able to control inflation better when left alone by the government.

Retracting monetary accommodation on time is crucial as well. This was the chief reason why three dissents took place in the September FOMC.

The BDTI (Baltic Dirty Tanker Index) stood at 554 on September 12, 2016. For the week ended September 9 (Week 36), the BDTI rose to 542 from 516 at the beginning of the week.

Market participants who are bullish on Alcoa (AA) point to Berkshire Hathaway’s (BRK-B) acquisition of Precision Castparts.

Consumer packaged goods (or CPG) companies are trading at higher valuations compared to the S&P 500 Index (IVV) (SPY) (VOO) and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DIA).

As of March 17, 2016, CPG companies were trading at higher valuations relative to the S&P 500 Index (SPY) and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DIA).

Boeing (BA) uses program accounting, a technique that allows the company to spread out its huge manufacturing costs over time by cutting the cost per plane in the early stages of a project, and smoothening profit margins over time.

While I don’t have a crystal ball, here are three things I believe all investors need to know about returns in 2016.

Nordic American Tankers’ (NAT) dividend yield has ranged from 6.3%–10.36% in the past four quarters. NAT had a dividend yield of 14.17% as of February 11, 2016, one of the highest dividend yields in the industry.

The Dogs of the Dow strategy involves ranking the 30 stocks comprising the Dow Jones Industrial Average index on the basis of their dividend yields and selecting the top ten.

Verizon’s (VZ) Marni Walden talked about how the company currently views quad-play offerings.

Time charter rates for dry bulk vessels have fallen considerably over the last few months. Capesize one-year rates have fallen by 40% in the last three months to $7,750 per day.

Navios Maritime Partners (NMM) and Diana Shipping (DSX) have a chartering strategy to charter the bulk of their vessels for the long term, thus holding high fixed-rate exposure.

P&G alleges that Dollar Shave Club is violating Gillette’s intellectual property by selling its razors.

In its 3Q15 earnings conference call, Harley-Davidson outlined five objectives for the company, including growing sales and outperforming the S&P 500 Index.

Performance for Nike and peers has been strong in North America over the past few years. The sports gear category has benefited from the improving US economy.

Verizon’s wireline segment revenue decreased ~2.2% year-over-year to ~$9.4 billion during the quarter.

Steel companies’ product portfolios and end market exposures can have significant impacts on company performance.

The new company, Coca-Cola European Partners PLC (or CCEP), would be based in the United Kindgom with CCE, CCIP, and The Coca-Cola Company (KO) holding 48%, 34%, and 18% of shares, respectively.

Industrial production—or in some cases, manufacturing production—provides important input about a nation’s economic output, irrespective of its business cycle.

The Walt Disney Company’s (DIS) Media Networks segment is the company’s largest segment in terms of revenue. It had 45% revenue share in 1H15.

Procter & Gamble’s Beauty segment includes products such as deodorants, cosmetics, personal cleansing, skin care, and hair care.

In an effort to partially digitize its supply chain, P&G has introduced an automated re-ordering system. It maintains a count of inventory in stores and relays the information to its suppliers.

Nike’s sales performance was the strongest in the key markets of North America, Western Europe, and Greater China.

Walmart announced it was testing unlimited shipping for $50 per year, presenting significant competition to Amazon’s Prime service.