S&P500 Index
Latest S&P500 Index News and Updates

What S&P 500 Index Moving Averages Could Indicate
The S&P 500 Index is trading 1.2% above its 20-day moving average and 6% above its 100-day moving average.

Coca-Cola’s Stock: Analysts Raise Target Prices after Q2 Earnings
As of July 26, about 37% or ten out of 27 analysts had a “buy” rating for Coca-Cola’s (KO) stock. The stock was rated “hold” by 59% or 16 analysts.

ConocoPhillips’s 1Q17 Crude Oil Price Underperforms WTI
ConocoPhillips’s 1Q17 crude oil realized prices In 1Q17, excluding the effect of hedges, ConocoPhillips’s average realized crude oil price in the Lower 48 region was $45.89 per barrel, up ~70% from its price of $27.04 per barrel in 1Q16. Sequentially, ConocoPhillips’s 1Q17 price is ~4% higher than it was in 4Q16. Crude oil prices versus […]

These Key Economic Indicators Were Released Last Week
In this series, we’ll take a look at the global final manufacturing PMIs and services PMIs for March 2017. These indicators help us understand the business condition of an economy.

Is ONEOK Stock Currently Overvalued?
ONEOK (OKE) stock is currently trading at a forward EV-to-EBITDA multiple of 14.3x.

DUK, AWK, FE: Why These Utility Stocks Are in Focus
NRG Energy (NRG) has risen 23.1% in the past year, the most among high-volatility utility stocks.

Will President Trump’s Pressure Tactics Work Out?
In March 2018, President Donald Trump imposed a tariff of 25% on steel imports. What’s happened since?

Suncor Energy: The Only Integrated Energy Loser This Week
Suncor Energy (SU) is the only losing stock in the current week from the integrated energy sector. It fell from last week’s close of $34.67 to $34.52 on October 11, 2017.

Why Time Warner Intends to Pull Its HBO Programming from Amazon
Time Warner announced at its fiscal 1Q17 earnings call that it most likely won’t extend its agreement with Amazon beyond 2018.

Why J.M. Smucker’s Earnings Could Continue to Fall
J.M. Smucker (SJM) expects its fiscal 2Q18 adjusted EPS to fall by high single digits.

Top Energy Losses Last Week
On June 8–15, Whiting Petroleum (WLL) and California Resources (CRC) fell the most on our list of energy stocks.

Conagra’s Margins Will Likely Improve at a Slower Rate
Notably, Conagra Brands generated an improvement of more than 300 basis points in its operating margins in the first three quarters of fiscal 2017.

Why Campbell Soup’s Sales Could Be Disappointing
Campbell Soup (CPB) has been disappointing investors with its sales and has missed the analysts’ consensus estimates in the past three quarters.

What Sprint Foresees for Revenue Growth in Fiscal 1Q17
Wall Street expects Sprint’s (S) total revenues to rise ~3.0% YoY (year-over-year) to ~$8.25 billion in fiscal 1Q17 (ended June 2017).

Crude Oil Is Firming: Are Traders Looking for a Breakout?
US crude oil April futures rose 0.4% in the week ending on February 24, 2017. WTI crude oil April futures closed at $53.99 per barrel on February 24.

Why Netflix Is Stopping Short of an All-Time High
Netflix (NFLX) is expected to announce its 1Q17 results on April 17, 2017. In its 4Q16 results, Netflix had total streaming revenues of $2.4 billion, up 41% year-over-year.

Colgate-Palmolive’s Developed Markets Remained a Drag in 1Q17
Net sales in North America fell 5.0% in 1Q17, reflecting a strong decline in volumes coupled with lower pricing.

Will Kinder Morgan Stock Continue to Surge in 2017?
Kinder Morgan stock has risen 44% in the past year, as compared to Enterprise Products Partners’ 32% rise and ONEOK’s 162% rise.

PepsiCo Stock: Analysts Revised Price Target after 3Q17 Results
As of October 5, 2017, PepsiCo stock was rated a “buy” by 55.0% (12 of 22) analysts. The stock is rated a “hold” by ten analysts.

Factors That Could Impact Kimberly-Clark’s Earnings in 2018
Kimberly-Clark (KMB) has managed to increase its EPS (earnings per share) despite volume deleveraging.

Facebook Stock Is Dragging the Tech Sector Down
The Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) fell ~2.6% on March 22, 2018.

Conagra’s 1Q18 Sales Beat Estimates despite Falling Year-over-Year
Conagra Brands’ (CAG) fiscal 1Q18 sales of $1.8 billion came in ahead of analysts’ estimate but fell 4.8% YoY (year-over-year).

Can Procter & Gamble Improve Its Earnings in Fiscal 2018?
Procter & Gamble (PG) has managed to increase its earnings despite weak sales. It has surpassed analysts’ EPS expectations for ten consecutive quarters.

Why Larry Fink Thinks Markets Could See Some Setbacks
In a recent interview with CNBC, Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock (BLK), shared his views on market movement, the US economy, and the dangerous impact of the lower interest rates.

ConocoPhillips Stock Outperforms Crude Oil
The price of natural gas (UNG) rose ~5% last week. It rose from $2.92 per mmBtu (million British thermal units) to $3.07 per mmBtu. ConocoPhillips’s production volume mix contains ~40% natural gas.

What Drove Sprint’s Fiscal 1Q17 Earnings Growth
Sprint’s earnings in the last few quarters Sprint’s (S) strong fiscal 1Q17 (ended June 2017) results indicate that a turnaround is on track. Sprint has begun to recover from years of customer losses and continues to make progress on customer retention, acquisition, and expense optimization initiatives. In fiscal 1Q17, Sprint’s earnings grew significantly YoY (year-over-year). Its […]

Campbell Soup’s Margins Improved in 4Q17
Campbell Soup (CPB) reported strong margin growth during the quarter. In fiscal 4Q17, the company’s adjusted gross margin rose by 80 basis points to 36.9%.

Is $30 for Crude Oil Coming?
US crude oil (USO) (OIIL) (USL) (DBO) futures contracts for May delivery closed at $48.24 per barrel on March 21, 2017.

Why Fiat Chrysler Stock Is Trading in a Narrow Range
Last week, which ended October 13, 2017, Fiat Chrysler (FCAU) stock remained mixed and witnessed a minor rise of 0.90%.

Key ADP Highlights: 135,000 Jobs in September
The ADP National Employment Report for September 2017 showed some weaker improvement in private sector employment to 135,000 in September compared to the market’s expectation of 125,000.

Natural Gas Prices Driving Chesapeake Energy Stock in 2017
Chesapeake Energy’s (CHK) 2016 debt management efforts included a combination of debt exchanges, open market repurchases, and equity-for-debt exchanges.

Donald Trump or Xi Jinping: Whose Ammunition Will Run Out First?
The trade war between the United States and China has shown no signs of abating.

What Devon Energy’s Implied Volatility Could Say about Its Stock Price
On May 18, 2017, Devon Energy (DVN) had an implied volatility of ~33.9, which is ~14.9% below its 260-trading day historical price volatility of ~39.9%.

Shell’s Upstream Portfolio: Is it Poised to Grow?
Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A) produced 3.8 MMboepd in 1Q17 from its worldwide operations, compared to 3.7 MMboepd in 1Q16.

Wall Street Analysts’ Targets for SLB, HAL, NOV, and WFT
Approximately 90% of the analysts tracking Halliburton (HAL) recommended a “buy,” ~8% recommended a “hold,” and the rest recommended a “sell.”

How Costco’ Margins Fared in Fiscal 1Q18
Margins remained pressured Similar to peers, Costco Wholesale (COST) saw its margins pressured in fiscal 1Q18. Increased investments in growth initiatives and lower pricing to fend off competition from Amazon (AMZN) in the grocery space are taking a toll on the profitability of mass US (SPY) merchandisers. Whereas rising digital sales and fulfillment costs have […]

What Drove Colgate-Palmolive’s Margins Growth in 1Q17?
Colgate-Palmolive (CL) witnessed improved margins in 1Q17 despite soft sales thanks to its “Funding the Growth” initiative aimed at reducing costs and driving efficiency.

Can Micron Stock Continue to Outperform the Market in 2017?
Micron stock has risen 154.0% in the last 12 months, hitting a new 52-week high of $32.93 in June 2017.

What’s the Forecast for Shell Stock for the Next 7 Days?
Implied volatility in Royal Dutch Shell (RDS.A) has fallen 4.9% since July 3, 2017, to the current level of 12.8%.

Why Analysts Expect Clorox’s Earnings to Fall in Fiscal 2Q18
Analysts expect Clorox to report adjusted earnings of $1.23 per share, a YoY (year-over-year) decline of 1.6%.

How Did Markets Respond to April Jobs Data?
Non-farm payrolls in April showed a marginal improvement compared to March.

Where NVIDIA’s Margins Stand next to Those of Intel and AMD
NVIDIA’s profit margins NVIDIA (NVDA) has been increasing its revenue while controlling its expenses, resulting in improved profitability and a high free cash flow of up to 20% of its total revenues. Gross margin NVIDIA’s non-GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) gross margin fell 90 basis points from 59.7% in fiscal 1Q18 to 58.6% in fiscal 2Q18 […]

How Kohl’s Margins Have Fared in Recent Quarters
With continued pressure on sales, several department stores like Kohl’s (KSS) are trying to mitigate the impact of weak top-line figures through increased productivity.

How Volatility Is Affecting Market Movement
The CBOE Volatility Index rose 0.6% in March 2018.

What to Expect from Phillips 66 Stock after It Earnings
Phillips 66’s stock price could close between $87.7 per share and $83.5 per share in the ten-day period after its earnings. The period ends on August 11.

Inside Marathon Oil’s Stock Performance Last Week
Marathon Oil’s stock price fell from $15.91 to $15.16 last week, while crude oil prices fell from $53.18 per barrel to $49.62 per barrel.

Why COG Is the Second-Best-Performing Upstream Stock Year-to-Date
In 9M17, Cabot Oil & Gas (COG) reported revenues of ~$1.4 billion, which is ~63.0% higher than its 9M16 revenues of ~$839.0 million.

Factors Impacting Target’s Earnings in Fiscal 2017
Following its strong fiscal 1H17 results, Target’s management lifted its fiscal 2017 adjusted outlook during the fiscal 2Q17 conference call.

What Could Drive NVIDIA’s GeForce Unit Sales
Growth opportunities in the gaming market NVIDIA’s (NVDA) GeForce business unit has a history of strong growth. The company expects the growth to continue in coming years as the gaming market evolves with the increasing popularity of eSports, AAA games, gaming notebooks, and VR (virtual reality). At NVIDIA’s 2017 Investor Day, GeForce senior vice president […]

Why SunTrust Upgraded Colgate-Palmolive Stock
On October 11, 2017, SunTrust Robinson Humphrey upgraded Colgate-Palmolive (CL) stock to a “buy” from “hold” and increased the target price.

Bernstein: Tax Reform Is Bullish for the Equity Market
Tax reform On December 2, 2017, the Senate passed Donald Trump’s tax reform bill, and on December 20, 2017, the House of Representatives passed the bill. Afterwards, the S&P 500 (SPX-INDEX) (SPY) rose to a record high. Richard Bernstein on tax reform In an interview with CNBC, prominent investor Richard Bernstein stated that tax reform could be very helpful for […]

What Goldman Sachs Thinks about Bank of America
Bank of America (BAC) is currently trading at $25.26. Its 52-week high is $25.80 and 52-week low is $12.05.

Schlumberger’s Short Interest Has Fallen: What Does It Mean?
Short interest in Schlumberger (SLB) stock as a percentage of its float was ~1.2% on March 3, 2017, a marginal fall compared to December 30, 2016.

Election Over, Market Still Undecided
We know the nation is politically divided, and now the market is showing us its split personality as well.

MLPs Continue to Slip after Weak April 2017
MLPs saw a huge decline in prices during the first week of May driven by the sharp decline in crude oil prices.

Why Kinder Morgan Rose 3% Last Week
Kinder Morgan (KMI) rose 2.9% in the week ended Monday, June 5, 2017, recovering from some of its previous losses.

Why Target Is Betting on Small-Format Stores
Target (TGT) is expanding its small-format store base and expects to open 28 new small-format stores this year.

How Do Disney’s Technical Indicators Compare with Peers?
Disney has a MACD of -1.3, while Twenty-First Century Fox (FOXA), Time Warner (TWX), and Comcast (CMCSA) have MACDs of -0.8, -0.2 and 0.3, respectively.

What Are T-Mobile’s Capex Plans for 2017?
T-Mobile (TMUS) is continually investing in capex (capital expenditure) to improve its network. By deploying more low-band spectrum, it continues to enhance its network.

Facebook’s Efforts to Appease Media Companies
Facebook (FB) is building a paywall tool that would allow publishers to charge for access to stories they publish on Instant Articles, according to the Wall Street Journal.

How Did Phillips 66 Stock Perform after Its 1Q18 Earnings?
On April 27, Phillips 66 opened at $110.8 per share—lower than the previous close of $112.5. Phillips 66 opened lower despite its 1Q18 earnings beat.

Nvidia’s Growth Catalysts: Stronger Than Stock Market Volatility?
Nvidia (NVDA) was the second-fastest-growing semiconductor stock in 2017, returning more than 80%.

Why HP Inc. Is Optimistic about Its Long-Term Growth
HP Inc. has valued its total available market (or TAM) at $560.0 billion.

Why Qualcomm Is Doing Well despite Apple’s Lawsuit
Qualcomm (QCOM) reported its fiscal 4Q17 results on November 1, 2017. It easily beat revenue and earnings expectations despite the year-long legal battle with Apple (AAPL).

A Look at Kellogg’s 3Q17 Performance in North America
Kellogg’s (K) 3Q17 performance in North America continued to be soft, with net sales falling 1.6% YoY, reflecting a decline in volumes and pricing.

Analysts Remain Neutral on Clorox Stock before 4Q17 Results
Analysts covering Clorox (CLX) have rated the stock a 2.9 on a scale of one (strong buy) to five (strong sell) and maintain a neutral outlook.

What’s behind Kellogg’s Disappointing 1Q Sales?
Kellogg’s (K) 1Q17 sales of $3.3 billion missed the Wall Street consensus estimate and fell 4.1% YoY (year-over-year).

How Is Ford Stock Performing ahead of 3Q17 Earnings?
Ford Motor Company (F) is set to release its 3Q17 earnings report on October 26. Ford is the second-largest US auto company by vehicle sales volume after General Motors (GM).

The 2% Fall in Fitbit Stock since May 1
Despite a 40.0% YoY fall in sales in 1Q17, Fitbit stock rose 12.0% on May 4, 2017, since it beat analysts’ revenue estimate.

Why Analysts Are Positive about Mondelēz Stock
Most analysts providing recommendations for Mondelēz International (MDLZ) have maintained a positive outlook on its stock.

Could Conagra Brands Exceed Earnings Estimates?
Conagra Brands (CAG) is expected to announce its fiscal 2Q18 earnings on Thursday, December 21, 2017. Analysts expect the company to continue to report higher EPS (earnings per share) despite the headwinds to its margins.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise Stock Reacts to Earnings, CEO Departure
The US-based (SPY) Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) announced its fiscal 4Q17 results on November 21 and reported revenue of $7.8 billion for the quarter, which ended in October 2017.

Why Marc Faber Thinks These Stocks Are Vulnerable
Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, and Google returned nearly 388%, 345%, 1,157%, and 217%, respectively, in the last five years.

Could Kellogg Surpass Its Fiscal 3Q17 Earnings Estimate?
Weak consumption in the US (SPY), challenges in Europe, and increased competition is expected to result in lower volumes. These trends could affect Kellogg’s bottom-line performance.

Why Energy Could Spell Worry for Wall Street Bulls
US crude oil (USO) (USL) April futures fell 6.3% between March 2, 2017, and March 9, 2017. The fall in XLE corresponded with weakness in crude oil prices.

US Crude Oil Inventories Rose: What It Could Mean for Oil Prices
According to the EIA’s (Energy Information Administration) report on February 15, 2017, US crude oil inventories rose 9.5 MMbbls (million barrels) in the week ended February 10, 2017.

US Indexes Fell Sharply—Is a Trade War with China in the Offing?
On March 22, 2018, President Trump announced the imposition of retaliatory tariffs on up to $60 billion on China’s imports.

Utility Sector: Will Investors Continue Their Defensive Positions?
The Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLU), which tracks the performance of the utility sector, rose 2.7% in November 2017.

Harris Corporation: S&P 500’s Top Gainer on January 30
Harris Corporation was the S&P 500’s top gainer on January 30. On January 30, Harris Corporation gained 6.2% and closed the day at $156.31.

Could General Mills’ Earnings per Share Improve in Fiscal 2018?
General Mills (GIS) expects its adjusted EPS to increase 1.0%–2.0% on a constant currency basis in fiscal 2018.

February’s Inflation and Retail Sales: Impact on the Economy
Key important US indicators released last week are US inflation and US retail sales.

What Just Happened to ConocoPhillips Stock?
Last week (ended May 26), crude oil prices fell from $50.67 per barrel to $49.80 per barrel.

Juniper Networks’ Services Revenues Rose in 2Q17
Juniper Networks’ (JNPR) Services business segment generated revenues of $392 million in 2Q17, a rise of 9% year-over-year.

Crude Oil Futures Hit Multi-Month Highs but S&P 500 Falls
November US crude oil (DBO)(DWT)(SCO) futures contracts rose 3% to $52.22 per barrel on September 25—the highest level since April 2017.

Why ESPN Isn’t Concerned about Falling Sports Ratings
In August 2019, Disney is set to expand its college sports programming by launching a successor to its SEC Network—the ACC Network.

How Serious Is Apple about Original Content?
Earlier this year, Apple said it will be spending a whopping $1 billion on original content over the next couple of years.

Why Kraft Heinz’s US Segment Remained Sluggish in 1Q17
The majority of packaged food manufacturers continue to struggle in the domestic market owing to a fall in consumption. Kraft Heinz’s (KHC) net sales fell 3.5% in the United States.

How Baidu’s AI Push Has Affected Its Costs
Baidu’s (BIDU) expenses have risen steadily in recent years with notable increases in the cost of revenue and R&D (research and development) spending.

What’s Affecting Comcast’s Stock Price?
On March 28, 2017, Comcast’s (CMCSA) stock closed at $37.09. The company’s stock has risen 7.4% YTD (year-to-date).

MPC, ANDV, VLO, PSX: Why Refining Stocks Are Underperforming SPY
In this series, we’ll perform a cross-sectional analysis of refining stocks. We’ll examine their moving averages and eight-day price forecasts based on implied volatility, and compare their leverage, liquidity, capex, and refining margins.

Campbell Soup’s Top Line Was Lower in Fiscal 3Q17
Campbell Soup marked a stark fall in its top line in February due to low consumer spending amid a shift towards healthier foods and a delay in tax returns.

Five Below Stock on the Rise as Future Prospects Look Bright
Five Below (FIVE) has generated YTD (year-to-date) returns of 13.4% as of April 13, 2018.

Why Buffett Believes US Businesses Aren’t Really Hurting from the US Corporate Tax
The US economy has been improving gradually, but some businesses in the US have suffered a lot over the years.

Why Hershey Stock Fell despite Strong 2Q17 Results
Hershey (HSY) posted better-than-expected 2Q17 results, which it released on June 26. Hershey’s sales and earnings per share beat Wall Street’s expectations.

The Boon of Tax Reform and Infrastructure Spending: More Than Just High Hopes?
President Trump is expected to submit a tax reform and infrastructure spending package to Congress this year—all aimed at increasing business investments.

How Time Warner Expects Its Advertising Market to Shape Up
Time Warner (TWX) stated at its fiscal 1Q17 earnings call that there has been a moderation in advertising compared to fiscal 2Q16.

Biogen: S&P 500’s Top Loser on January 8
Biogen was the S&P 500’s top loser on January 8. Biogen regained strength last week and rose to ten-week high price levels.

A Look at Charter Communications’ Earnings Growth in 4Q17
In 3Q17, Charter Communications (CHTR) reported adjusted EBITDA of $3.8 billion, compared to $3.6 billion in 3Q16.

How Is Ericsson Stock Performing in July 2017?
In the trailing-one-month period, Ericsson (ERIC) has generated returns of -1.1%. In the trailing-12-month period, the stock has fallen 2.4%.

Here’s How Comcast Plans to Fight Cord-Cutting
Amazon’s (AMZN) Amazon Web Service (or AWS) announced on Tuesday, January 16, 2018, that media giant Comcast (CMCSA) has made AWS its preferred public cloud provider.