Shares of video game publisher Activision Blizzard (ATVI) slipped last week, despite reporter strong first quarter earnings that beat analyst estimates on both the top and bottom lines. For its first quarter, Activision earned an adjusted $0.17 per …
Market Commentary
Rare US Budget Surplus Reported for April; Dell Receives Fresh Bid (DELL)
May 10th, 2013On Friday the Fed began a two-day gathering for finance ministers to discuss banks and competition. Ben Bernanke made statements that the US central bank will keep watch on the risks that go along with low interest rates. It was announced that the…
The Oracle Wins Again as Berkshire’s (BRK.A) Profits Soar 51%
May 10th, 2013Last week was an interesting one for the Oracle of Omaha, Warren Buffett. Mr. Buffett, who has long avoided tech stocks, posted his first tweet on Twitter, simply stating “Warren is in the house.” Meanwhile, his company, Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A), …
Wall Street Sees Third Week of Gains on Strong Tech Moves
May 9th, 2013Weekly Wrap Up This week the S&P 500 continued to rally and hit record numbers and by Tuesday the Dow topped 15,000 for the first time. All three major indices saw their third week of consecutive gains. Even though job openings fell this month, jobless claims dropped to an unexpectedly low number and the four-week
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Streak Ends on Wall Street; Dollar Rises Over 100 Yen (FNMA, STX)
May 9th, 2013The winning streak ended on Thursday as most of the US stocks erased gains and ended lower for the day. This was a record streak for the Street and a very strong first four-and-a-half months of the year. An unexpected drop in unemployment claims w…
Should Investors Worry About American Capital Agency (AGNC)?
May 9th, 2013Analysts have long debated if American Capital Agency’s (AGNC) 16% dividend was sustainable or a trap for greedy investors. The mREIT, which has risen over 50% since its inception in 2008, has handsomely rewarded investors with some of the biggest d…
Solid Earnings Push Markets Even Higher on Wednesday (NWS, GRPN)
May 8th, 2013The US markets continued their climb on Wednesday with both the Dow and S&P hitting consecutive record closes. Strong data was released regarding Chinese trading and Germany announced an unexpected jump in industrial output, bumping up global stocks. A group of after-hours earnings results were released today, including News Corp (NWS), Groupon (GRPN) and Activision
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Whole Foods (WFM) Stock Surges After Earnings
May 8th, 2013Shares of Whole Foods Market Inc. (WFM) increased 10 percent in afterhours trading on Tuesday and were up +6.30 or +6.79 percent to $99.10 per share in pre-market trading early Wednesday. The company reported better than expected second quarter ear…
Consumer Credit Growth Slows as Dow Tops 15,000 for the First Time
May 7th, 2013On Tuesday it was announced that job openings in the US have fallen from the five-year high hit in March. The Labor Department also noted more firing and less hiring in the job market. Also indicators are showing that consumer worries over the fut…
Facebook’s (FB) Firm First Quarter Earnings
May 7th, 2013Last week, social media giant Facebook (FB) reported its first quarter earnings. Earnings were flat from the prior year quarter at $0.12 per share, missing the consensus estimate by a penny. Net income edged up 7% to $219 million. Revenue, however, …
S&P Extends Record as Bank of America Agrees to Settlement (BAC, APO)
May 6th, 2013On Monday the markets mostly advanced and continued their positive rally from last week. The S&P 500 hit another record high and was supported by tech companies and financials. Bank of America (BAC) agreed to a $1.7 billion settlement with ins…
Is it Time to Recycle The Washington Post? (WPO)
May 6th, 2013Last week, The Washington Post (WPO) reported disappointing first quarter earnings that showed a continuing decline in its print business and larger education segment. For its first quarter, The Post earned $0.64 per share, or $4.7 million, a steep …
Dow and S&P Hit Record Highs on Positive Economic Reports
May 3rd, 2013Weekly Wrap Up The markets were up and down this week but managed to end on a positive note. Jobless claims dropped to a five-year low. Early on Monday the euro zone approved a 2.8 billion euro loan plan for Greece, and finally on Thursday the ECB announced its refinancing rate cut. By the end
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Stocks Rally as Unemployment Rate Falls to Lowest Since December 2008 (AMD, LNKD)
May 3rd, 2013On Friday the Dow Jones Industrial Average joined the S&P 500 in hitting intraday highs after the markets celebrated April’s jobs data. The unemployment rate in the US dropped to 7.5%, the lowest since December 2008. This data boosted Treasury yields, hopes for energy demand and subsequently oil prices and the dollar. Disappointing news came
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Altria (MO) Enters the E-Cigarette Business
May 3rd, 2013Tobacco giant Altria (MO), the largest tobacco company in America, announced that it was planning to release an electronic cigarette later this year, to offset waning demand for its flagship cigarette products, such as Marlboro. Over the past few ye…
Encouraging Jobs Report and Earnings Boost Wall Street on Thursday (LNKD, AIG)
May 2nd, 2013On Thursday the European Central Bank decided to cut its refinancing rate and subsequently caused the euro to fall and government bond prices to rise. Along with this decision Mario Draghi commented on the ECB’s readiness to act further if necessa…
The U.S. Government Declares War on Novartis AG (NVS)
May 2nd, 2013The U.S. government declared war on Novartis AG (NVS) last week, launching two civil fraud lawsuits against the Swiss drug maker in four days. The U.S. government is accusing the company of paying multimillion-dollar kickbacks and benefits for presc…
Economic Uncertaintly Grows; Facebook Propelled by Mobile (FB, YELP)
May 1st, 2013Stocks were not able to extend their gains on Wednesday and ended in the red for the most part. The Federal Reserve announced their plan to stick to its monetary policy, as expected. Officials also said that bond purchases could be increased or decreased depending on the economy. The ADP reported that the private sector
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Five Stocks to Watch in May
May 1st, 2013The stock market ended the month of April racking up its fifth consecutive month of gains as measured by the Dow and sixth, as measured by the Nasdaq and S&P 500 Indexes. By Tuesday’s close, the S& P 500 Index traded up +0.3% to a new all-time high, closing at 1,597.57. The Index rose +1.8%
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Economy Shows Strength with Retail Sales Gain; Stocks Trade Sideways
May 13th, 2013On Monday several economic reports were released in the United States that surprised economists. Retail sales rose during the month of April and pointed to the growing strength of the economy. After this positive news several investors raised their estimates for Q2 growth. Both JPMorgan (JPM) and Goldman Sachs (GS) revised their forecasts to about
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