Category Archive: Finance
EC HH Wal-Mart Just Isn’t A Growth Company Any More
Apparently taking lovability lessons from United Airlines (at least pre David Dao), ex-Uber boss Travis Kalanick and Pharma-bro Martin Shkreli, Wal-Mart (WMT) decided to lay down the hammer on suppliers telling them that they’ll be fined not only if deliveries are late but also if they’re early and that WMT will tolerate no disputes. Why is the […]
Auto Defaults Soar On The Back Of “Hasty Loans And, At Times, Outright Fraud”
In the years after its 2009 bankruptcy, Chrysler looked for a dedicated lender to help customers “finance their cars quickly”…which was code for a lender who could help the struggling OEM expand their market share by making extremely risky loans to subprime borrowers all while laying off the credit risk to unsuspecting pension funds.As such, Chrysler […]
Does This News Show A New Top Copper Nation Rising?
Last week was tough for the copper mining sector in Chile. With S&P downgrading the country’s sovereign debt for the first time since the 1990s, because of lower copper prices. And workers at the Zaldivar mine voting for yet another strike in the Chilean sector. And news elsewhere suggests Chile may have even more to worry about when […]
Amid Recent Struggles, Signet Jewelers Names New CEO To Succeed Mark Light
Shares of Signet Jewelers (SIG) are in focus in morning trading after the company said Chief Executive Officer Mark Light would be succeeded by named Virginia Drosos on August 1. The appointment comes after the company reported quarterly earnings below expectations in May, disclosed the resignation of its COO, announced plans to outsource its credit […]
The Two Posterchildren
I am sure to madden a bunch of readers this morning, but here it goes nonetheless. For most of the spring and early summer, there were two poster children of speculative froth. The first was Tesla. Egged higher by Elon Musk’s tweets poking fun at the skeptical short sellers, this stock was seemingly unstoppable. Rising […]
Fast Food, Slow Thinking
Investing: “It’s not supposed to be easy. Anyone who finds it easy is stupid.” – Charlie Munger Over the past 2 years, McDonald’s stock is up over 70% while Chipotle’s is down 38%. Was this expected to happen? Not exactly. In July 2015, Chipotle’s stock had advanced 70% over the prior 2 years while McDonald’s […]
Friday’s Missed Shots: Retail, Inflation & Banks
Thank God it was Friday, as after the disappointing Retail Sales, weaker-than-expected CPI and bank earnings, most likely needed a drink. (Personal choice on a hot summer night is Tanqueray® Rangpur & tonic with cucumber, lime, and some shaved ginger.) Retail Sales Retail Sales missed for the second month in a row and were down 0.2 percent […]
Mortgage REITs Have Paid Off Well
The market for real estate investment trusts (REITs) has been choppy this year. Let me be more specific: The market for equity REITs has been choppy. Mortgage REITs – at least those inside the portfolios of two exchange-traded funds – have been on a quiet tear. It’s uncertain if that will continue. Equity REITS hold […]
Where’s The Froth?
Today it’s in the Chinese markets. We’ll see if today’s sell-off continues, in light of my comments of June 29th and whether it eventually negatively affects other world markets. Source Source
Yen Will Drag Gold Down
Gold has been bouncing higher for a little more than a week, and my view is that, as it approaches its gap at $117.95, it will reverse lower. Whether it’ll reach the gap or not at all remains to be seen, but I’ve shorted it this morning with a stop at $118. Of aid to this trade would […]
