November 2018 - Page 179 of 209 -

Wizard’s First Rule

Nov 05, 2018 Jeremy Parkinson Finance, No picture 0

Terry Goodkind wrote an epic fantasy series. The first book in the series is entitled Wizard’s First Rule. We recommend the book highly if you’re into that sort of thing. However, for purposes of this essay, the important part is the rule itself: “Wizard’s First Rule: people are stupid.” “People are stupid; given proper motivation, almost […]

US Services Economy Slides (Or Rebounds) As Surveys Signal Nothing But Confusion

Nov 05, 2018 Jeremy Parkinson Finance 0

After Manufacturing data showed a jump (Markit) or dump (ISM), US Services data was expected to rebound (Markit) or relapse (ISM) in October. To summarize the divergences Markit’s Manufacturing PMI printed higher at 55.7 (marginally higher than September’s 55.6 but below the October flash print of 55.9) ISM Manufacturing printed dramatically lower at 57.7 (well below expectations of […]

Beat Rates Hold Steady With Bottom-Line Much Higher Than Top-Line

Nov 05, 2018 Jeremy Parkinson Finance 0

More than 1,350 companies have now reported their Q3 2018 earnings results, and below is an updated snapshot of the percentage that have posted better than expected bottom and top-line numbers. The bottom-line earnings beat rate currently stands at a very strong 67.3%. As shown in the first chart below, this reading is comparable to […]

USD’s Weekly Breakout And The Golden Spring

Nov 05, 2018 Jeremy Parkinson Finance 0

USDX’s Friday’s close was its highest weekly closing prices of 2018. This is an extremely significant confirmation of the bullish outlook for the US currency that followed the verification of the breakout above the inverse head-and-shoulders pattern. The implications are clearly bullish for the US dollar. But are they clearly bearish for gold? The yellow […]

Elliott Wave Analysis: Crypto Update

Nov 05, 2018 Jeremy Parkinson Finance, No picture 0

On the 4h chart, Bitcoin bounced sharply higher, but we assume it’s still a part of a correction, so we would not fall in love with bulls just yet, while price keeps trading below 7400 level. That said, we should be aware of more complex and sideways price action within a bearish triangle or within […]

Lowe’s To Close 51 Underperforming Stores Amid Continuing Reassessment

Nov 05, 2018 Jeremy Parkinson Finance 0

Shares of Lowe’s Companies (LOW) are in focus after the home improvement retailer announced plans to close 51 stores in the U.S. and Canada as part of an ongoing strategic reassessment. The expected impact on fiscal 2018 earnings per share is expected to be 28c-34c. STORE CLOSURES: Lowe’s said on Monday morning that it will […]

Market Valuation, Inflation And Treasury Yields: Clues From The Past – Monday, Nov. 5

Nov 05, 2018 Jeremy Parkinson Finance, No picture 0

Note: The charts in this commentary have been updated to include the latest monthly data. Our monthly market valuation updates have long had the same conclusion: US stock indexes are significantly overvalued, which suggests cautious expectations on investment returns. In a “normal” market environment — one with conventional business cycles, Federal Reserve policy, interest rates and inflation — […]

Last Man Standing

Nov 05, 2018 Jeremy Parkinson Finance 0

Greetings from Los Banos (“the bathrooms“) California, where I think nasty thoughts about Southwest Airlines. This is hardly how I like to execute my trading day. In any case, I’ve been strident for many, many moons about how AAPL needs to break for a real bear market to begin. Well this is a pleasure to see: In a […]

Ethereum Is Eyeing $235 After Vitalik Buterin’s Optimism On Proof Of Stake

Nov 05, 2018 Jeremy Parkinson Finance 0

The price of Ethereum topped $200 and continued marching forward. Vitalik Buterin, the brain behind the world’s No. 1 Altcoin, said that Ethereum’s path to “Serenity” is “really no longer so far away.” The founder’s hopes, voiced at a conference in Prague, sent the ETH/USD higher. What levels should we watch? The Technical Confluence Indicator shows that […]

Magellan Midstream: Keeping Promises But Still Dragged Down By Peers

Nov 05, 2018 Jeremy Parkinson Finance 0

Many MLP management teams have pursued growth at the expense of honoring their promise of stable distributions. We think the sector’s persistently high yields need explaining. Although Kinder Morgan (KMI) got there through a series of steps, ultimately they redirected cashflows from distributions to new projects. From an NPV standpoint, financial theory holds that investors […]