SPDR® S&P 500 ETF

LinkedIn’s stock, which traded at $269 in February 2015, fell to one of its lows of $101.11 in February 2016.

MPLX crude pipelines are connected to supply hubs, and transport crude oil to Marathon Petroleum Corporation’s, or MPC’s, refineries and third parties.

High-quality bonds can be an investor refuge when there’s market volatility. These securities provide relatively stable cash flows. The default probability is low.

Valuations are at the higher end of their historical range. Investors should avoid defensive sectors, which are highly sensitive to interest rate changes.

Rebalancing your portfolio means bringing the portfolio back to the asset allocation levels specified in the financial plan. Not rebalancing can expose you to higher risk.

Most of Nike’s (NKE) incremental revenue was recorded in its North America market, Nike’s largest geographical segment.

This year, Tesla (TSLA) stock has fallen 21.3%, underperforming broader markets. Let’s look at how Tesla’s Model Y could turn things around.

Beginners in the stock market tend to think about investing as buying stocks and making money when those stocks go up. But it’s not the only way.

After September’s strong jobs numbers, a Fed rate hike could be on the horizon early next year. Russ explains two equity market implications.

Facilitating payments isn’t enough At the Credit Suisse 21st Annual Technology, Media & Telecom Conference, PayPal (PYPL) chief financial officer John Rainey stated that the company aims to become an everyday part of customers’ financial lives. To insert itself into customers’ routines, PayPal acknowledges that it cannot limit itself to its roots of facilitating payments for […]

Overall, it has been a mixed earnings season for steel companies.

The overall rise in WTI (West Texas Intermediate) prices since July 3 has likely led ExxonMobil stock to deliver a positive return.

On July 5, 2017, natural gas (UNG) active futures fell 3.8% and settled at $2.84 per MMBtu (million British thermal units), their lowest level since March 8, 2017.

The Redbook Index released the same-store weekly data on Tuesday, March 11, 2014.

The EIA expects less natural gas production at four key US shales by January 2017 compared to November 2016. It expects production to rise at three key US shales.

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

What the markets have long been fearing has finally come true, at least in part. The S&P 500 (SPY) (SPX) hit a record high on January 26, 2018. Since then, the index has fallen ~8% as of February 6, 2018.

This article takes a closer look at the unemployment rate in the U.S. and considers the implications for equity investors.

With about five weeks remaining in the trade truce, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said yesterday that the US was “miles and miles” away from a trade deal with China.

International Business Machines (IBM) reported its 2Q17 results on Tuesday, July 18. The company reported falling quarterly profits and sales yet again.

Wall Street analysts’ consensus estimate for loss per share was $0.289.

Volatility in the global markets fell considerably in the previous week. The key risks subsided that spiked risk aversion in the last few weeks.

Phillips 66 (PSX) is trading at a forward PE (price-to-earnings) ratio of 15.1x, which is above its peer average of 14.5x.

Schlumberger’s trailing-one-year stock price has fallen 12% as of June 16, 2017, while XLE, the broader energy industry ETF, has fallen 3%.

Last week, the Institute for Supply Management (or ISM) and Markit both released their reports on the Purchasing Managers Index (or PMI). The ISM’s report gave its strongest reading since February.

In this series, we’ll look at what Trump’s win means for the media sector. We’ll also look at how the possibility of a change in net neutrality regulations could affect media companies.

Analysts predict that Amazon Web Services could reach $12 billion in profits by the end of 2016 as companies become more dependent on the cloud and reduce spending on IT infrastructure.

In the past year, Weatherford International’s (WFT) stock has fallen 28% as of August 11, 2017.

Last Friday, President Donald Trump in a tweet called the Federal Reserve’s interest rate hikes a mistake.

When the Federal Reserve chair, Janet Yellen, testified to Congress on February 11, she affirmed the Fed’s consideration of negative interest rates. Under a negative interest rate scenario, investors would pay interest to the bank for holding their money.

With the start of the third quarter earnings season, the S&P 500 Index (SPY) finished the week ending October 6, 2017, with positive growth of 1.2%.

On April 17, China (FXI) released several economic data points. The country’s first-quarter GDP growth of 6.4% surprised on the upside.

Since ConocoPhillips (COP) reported its fourth-quarter earnings results on January 31, the stock has fallen 1.7%.

The S&P 500 index, tracked by the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) and the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV), rose 8.3% in October.

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 […]

W.W. Grainger (GWW) recorded a 2.0% net sales growth in 2016 after flat growth in 2015.

The US economy stalled in 2014 for several reasons, including seasonality, weather, strength of the dollar, the West Coast port strike, and the oil price slump.

BlackRock’s retail business has seen negative flows over the past few quarters. Retail investors have withdrawn funds from the alternatives, fixed income, and multiasset categories.

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.

Broader markets posted a sharp drop and the financial sector saw more losses. The S&P 500 financial index fell 5.80% and closed at 458.95.

For 1Q16, Denbury Resources (DNR) reported an adjusted EBITDA of ~$105 million with an EBITDA margin of ~40%. Its EBITDA margin is only ~20% lower.

Are markets upbeat on potential tax reforms? The markets (SPY) (IVV) surged last week with the announcement of a phenomenal update on the corporate tax cut. The S&P and Nasdaq Comp gained ~2% in the week ended February 10, 2017. The Trump administration’s proposed tax cut is likely to boost the economy, though analysts have […]

As of August 24, TJX Companies stock was trading at $69.43, a rise of 2.2% since the start of 2015. The company’s stock price rose 7.2% on August 18, the day it announced its 2Q16 results.

On March 15–22, US crude oil May futures rose 0.4% and closed at $59.04 per barrel.

Since Scotts Miracle-Gro’s earnings release, the stock closed ~3.7% lower at $98.6 as of November 10. The stock has returned 4% year-to-date.

Along with its 4Q15 earnings, Murphy Oil announced the divestiture of its Montney midstream assets located in Canada. The transaction includes the sale of existing infrastructure capable of processing up to 320 million cubic feet per day.

Alphabet reported its 3Q17 earnings on October 26, 2017. The company posted EPS (earnings per share) of $9.57, which beat analysts’ estimates of $8.33.

Not only are young individuals scared of investing in equities, they’re also hoarding cash under the mattress in case a similar crisis should reoccur.

WFT, SPN, and FMSA have significantly underperformed the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), which has produced 23.0% returns since November 3, 2016.

Due to the coverage of the US presidential elections this year, 21st Century Fox (FOXA) expects substantial advertising revenue from Fox News.

Goldman Sachs (GS) believes that Cornerstone OnDemand could provide a cash return of 37% on cash investments in R&D by 2018.

Best Buy is one of the few pure-pay electronic retailers that has managed to withstand weak industry demand and intense competition from online retailers.

In July 2015, investors poured approximately $23 billion in US ETFs with 50% of total investments in equity funds.

Under Armour was the S&P 500’s top gainer on April 3. After declining for three consecutive trading weeks, Under Armour regained stability last week.

PepsiCo expects currency headwinds to impact its fiscal 2015 core EPS by 11% compared to its previous estimate of 7%. It expects currency headwinds to drag down EPS in 2Q15 by 12%.

US crude oil February futures rose 5.6% in the trailing week.

Olin Corporation (OLN) turned out to be one of the best performers among the specialty segments in August.

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

In the last three months, Abraxas Petroleum (AXAS) has had the highest positive correlation with WTI crude oil among upstream companies that are part of XOP.

Between January 17 and January 24, 2018, oil-weighted stocks rose 2.4%. Over this period, US crude oil March futures rose 2.6%.

Emerging market equities are currently trading at 11.5x on a one-year forward earning basis.

Merck provided revenue guidance of $39.7 billion–$40.2 billion in 2016. It expects negative foreign exchange fluctuations to reduce its fiscal 2016 revenue.

Dow Chemical (DOW) and DuPont (DD) started 4Q16 on a positive note, with their stocks rising 1.1% and 1.3%, respectively, compared to their closes on September 30, 2016.

In the current market environment, Bill Gross recommends staying plain vanilla. His advice is to avoid high-risk markets.

Dynegy Inc. (DYN), NRG Energy Inc. (NRG), and Calpine Corporation (CPN) were among the top four losers in the utility sector for the second successive week.

On January 7, 2016, Signet Jewelers (SIG), the world’s largest retailer of diamond jewelry, announced its broad-based success in the holiday season with revenue of $1.9 billion.

Agios Pharmaceuticals was one of the top performers among the small-cap segment within the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF (IBB) on June 13, 2016.

Retail sales in the United States in April didn’t see any growth over March’s sales figures. But the jobless claims reading brought some positive news for the consumer sector.

Stock performance in 2017 Most airline stocks have continued their gaining streak in 2017. As of February 14, 2017, Southwest Airlines (LUV) has seen the highest YTD (year-to-date) gain of 10.9%, followed by Alaska Airlines (ALK) with 8.5%. Allegiant Travels (ALGT) has gained 5.0%, United Continental (UAL) has gained 1.2%, and Delta Air Lines (DAL) […]

With manufacturing slowing, a reading of the Non-Manufacturing Index at an above-neutral level (56.9) may provide some relief to the US economy, which is highly dependent on the service sector for its economic growth.

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

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.

The US saw positive fund flows in 2014 due to a relatively better economic position.

Time Warner announced at its fiscal 1Q17 earnings call that it most likely won’t extend its agreement with Amazon beyond 2018.

Of the 44 analysts covering Netflix, 23 have given it a “buy” recommendation, seven have given it a “sell” recommendation, and 14 have given it a “hold” recommendation.

The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) traded flat as investors were cautious about Greece’s debt deal negotiations with its Eurozone partners.

In evaluating the FOMC’s performance over the past three years, Kocherlakota mentioned that the unemployment rate fell to 5.6%.

In fiscal 3Q17, the latest reported quarter, Broadcom reported revenues of $4.5 billion on a GAAP basis, up 18% year-over-year.

The 10-year Treasury yield still appears attractive relative to sovereign rates elsewhere in the world. In addition, longer-dated Treasuries also look more attractive than those with two- to five-year durations.

General Motors has delivered a return of 6.9% year-to-date as of December 16, 2016. This return was much lower than the 10.5% return of the S&P 500 Index.

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

On September 7, 2017, PotashCorp (POT) and Agrium (AGU) provided an update on the status of their merger. The merger was initiated almost a year ago.

Devon Energy (DVN) has a forward EV-to-EBITDA (enterprise value to earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization) ratio of ~13x.

I would pay particular attention to the Shiller P/E Ratio, which is a variation on the Cyclically Adjusted P/E or CAPE. This indicator is worth watching as it has historically correlated with long-term stock market returns.

Farmers for Free Trade’s campaign was rolled out on September 12 with the slogan “Tariffs Hurt the Heartland.”

Williams Companies’ forward EV-to-EBITDA multiple was 11.7x as of July 18, 2017—below the historical five-year average of 13.2x.

While observers were quite bearish on the US economic growth outlook at the beginning of the year, several of them have toned down their bearish stance.

ConocoPhillips’ (COP) adjusted EPS might fall ~24% in the first quarter on a sequential basis based on analysts’ consensus estimate.

In fiscal 1Q16, Time Warner bought back $700 million worth of shares. Including dividends, it has returned around $1.3 billion to its shareholders year-to-date.

BlackRock’s (BLK) retail business had assets under management (or AUM) of $542 billion as of March 31, 2016.

Rising stocks have been buoyed by various factors, including the accommodative monetary policy of the Federal Reserve and robust US corporate earnings.

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

Aetna (AET) recorded a 5.0% rise in revenue in 2016 and a 4.0% rise in 2015.

In 4Q15, Range Resources was trading at higher price-to-book and price-to-sales multiples than peers.

A few participants expressed uncertainty about the outlook for economic growth in Japan and China.

The week ending March 24, 2017, was broadly negative for agricultural fertilizer stocks. The VanEck Vectors Agribusiness ETF (MOO) fell 0.98%.

Between December 2014 and December 2016, Baker Hughes (BHI) stock hit its peak in April 2015. It troughed at ~$39 in January 2016.

For 2013, trends in exchange-traded products (or ETP) flows suggest that investors preferred risky assets.

Of the 13 analysts covering Align Technology in August 2017, eight rated the company a “strong buy,” and five rated it a “buy.”

Micron’s PE ratio For the past two to three months, many analysts have been touting Micron Technology (MU) as a cheap stock at a forward PE (price-to-earnings) ratio of 6.0x. Micron’s PE ratio is well below the semiconductor industry’s (SMH) average PE ratio of 23.4x and the S&P 500’s (SPY) average PE ratio of 21.5x. […]