Latest Posts

  • Finance 0

    4 Best-Rated Small-Cap Blend Mutual Funds To Buy Now

    Small-cap blend funds are a type of equity mutual funds which hold in their portfolio a mix of value and growth stocks, where the market capitalization of the stocks are generally lower than $2 billion. Blend funds are also known as “hybrid funds.” Blend funds aim for value appreciation by capital gains. It owes its origin to a graphical representation of a fund’s equity style box. In addition to diversification, blend funds are great picks for investors looking for a mix of growth and value investment. Meanwhile, small-cap funds are a good choice for investors seeking diversification across different sectors and companies. Investors wi...
    On February 4, 2016 / By
  • Finance 0

    Dunkin’ Same-Store Sales Fall Amid Increased Competition

    Dunkin’ Brands (DNKN) reported higher than expected top and bottom line fourth quarter results this morning, but the company noted that same-store sales fell 0.8% for its flagship Dunkin’ Donuts brand in the U.S. The company’s same-store sales decline was in contrast to Starbucks (SBUX), which recently reported a comparable store sales increase in the U.S., and come after McDonald’s (MCD) launched its “All-Day Breakfast” initiative. WHAT’S NEW: Dunkin’ reported Q4 earnings per share of 52c, versus the consensus estimate of 50c. Its Q4 revenue came in slightly above expectations. However, the cha...
    On February 4, 2016 / By
  • Finance 0

    Tesla Breaking 5-year Support, Ripple Into Tech Stocks

    Tesla has had a great run higher over the past 5-years, as it has stayed within the rising channel above. Once it broke out of its sideways channel in 2013 near the $30 level, it blasted off, moving almost 10x higher! Over the past 2-years, it has traded from the top of the channel to the bottom, in a sideways pattern. Triple support could be giving way at (1) above, which could encourage more selling pressure. If Tesla takes out 5-year rising support, could it impact the NDX 100? Possible! The rally off the 2002 lows has taken the NDX 100 index back to the same levels it hit in the dot.com highs, before it fell over 80%. At the same time it ...
    On February 4, 2016 / By
  • Finance 0

    30 January 2016 Initial Unemployment Claims Rolling Average Marginally Worsens

    Weekly Initial Unemployment Claims The market (from Bloomberg) was expecting the weekly initial unemployment claims at 274 K to 290 K (consensus 280,000) vs the 285,000 reported. The more important (because of the volatility in the weekly reported claims and seasonality errors in adjusting the data) 4 week moving average moved from 282,750 (reported last week as 283,000) to 284,750. The rolling averages generally have been equal to or under 300,000 since August 2014. It should be pointed out that Econintersect watches the year-over-year change on the 4 week moving average. There is always some seasonality which migrates into the seasonally ...
    On February 4, 2016 / By
  • Finance 0

    E Small Cap Best Stocks To Buy – February 4, 2016

    ·       The strongest small cap sectors are utilities and consumer goods. ·       The best small cap industry is specialized semiconductor. The average small cap score is 48.27 and that’s above the four week average score of 46.81. The average small cap stock in our universe is trading -39.11% below its 52 week high, -13.47% below its 200 dma, and has 7.5 days to cover held short. Utilities, consumer goods, technology, and services score above the average universe score. Financials, industrial goods, healthcare, and basic materials score below average. The best scoring small cap industry is specialized semiconductor (QLG...
    On February 4, 2016 / By
  • Finance 0

    US Jobless Claims Miss With 285K – USD Extends Slide

    A small miss on US jobless claims: 285K, worse than 280K expected. This is not a big miss but enough to keep the pressure on the greenback. The US dollar sell off continues, with hope for dollar bulls maybe coming from tomorrow’s Non-Farm Payrolls. Unit labor costs are up 4.5%, which is actually better than expected. However, productivity (non-farm) came out at -3%, worse than expected. Continued claims stand at 2.225 million. US jobless claims were expected stand at 280K after 278K last week. At the same time, the US also released unit labor costs, which were predicted to rise by 3.9% and non-farm productivity, which carried expectatio...
    On February 4, 2016 / By
  • Finance 0

    The Fed: One Hike And Done

    The annual gathering of the world’s elite in Davos, Switzerland always provides great insights on the markets from really bright people. This year, Ray Dalio was among the luminaries gathered in the Swiss Alps. Dalio is the founder of the world’s largest hedge fund, Bridgewater Associates. His fund manages over $150 billion and counts the World Bank among its investors. Dalio’s funds have an outstanding long-term track record. Last year, many of his funds again thumped the S&P 500 Index. Thus, he’s a guy whose views I always want to hear – especially when it comes to the Federal Reserve. Dalio Sees Asymmetric Risks As readers k...
    On February 4, 2016 / By
  • Finance 0

    3 Precious Metal Mutual Funds To Buy As Gold Shines

    A safe-haven appeal made gold one of the few popular investment spaces at the start of this year when the markets turned upside down. While the major benchmarks – Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq – are striving to return to positive territory, gold has witnessed a strong rebound. This precious metal went through a rough patch over the past three years and touched the six-year low level after the Fed opted for a rate hike last December. Mutual funds having significant exposure to securities related to gold, struggled alongside. And like a true ally, a strong rebound in gold has also lent a solid boost to these funds in the year-to-date frame. S...
    On February 4, 2016 / By
  • Finance 0

    Mr. Market And A Valuation Of The Dow Jones Industrial Average – February 2016

    Mr. Market’s Mental State Legendary value investor Benjamin Graham is probably most famous for his Mr. Market parable.  In the story, an investor is greeted each day by Mr. Market, who offers to purchase the investor’s stocks. Every offer is different, and sometimes the price is insanely high, sometimes it seems fair, and other times it is clearly too low. But one thing remains the same – the intrinsic value of the investments does not change. As a result, the investor is left to decide when to buy and sell based on the relationship between the intrinsic value and the price Mr. Market is offering. All value investors today should k...
    On February 4, 2016 / By
  • Finance 0

    European Bank Risk Soars To 3 Year Highs, US Risk Rising

    We are going to need more “whatever it takes.” And with Draghi’s efforts to shove sovereign bonds down the throat of Europe’s banks, the sovereign-to-financial linkage is now systemically as worrisome as it has ever been… Deutsche Bank’s CDS continues to push higher…smashing European bank risk to its highest since 2013… Unicredit remains the most risky among EU banks…   And it is spreading to America…  ...
    On February 4, 2016 / By