We’re starting to see a shift in the momentum of the market as the S&P 500 and other major indices are consolidating after a strong beginning of the year may have some traders looking to lock in profits ahead of what has become a seasonally weak week of trading. To date, the S&P 500 is [...]
Earlier this week I wrote about the Golden Cross pattern currently forming on the S&P 500 Index (Click here to read A Golden Opportunity for the S&P 500 on the Horizon). This bullish pattern, when completed, has some impressive bullish implications for the market, but aside from investing in an index-based exchange traded fund (ETF), [...]
The S&P 500 finished the year stronger than many expected it might as investors took opportunities to buy some groups of stocks “on the dips”. For the most part, the strength in the market has been constrained to certain sectors like the Consumer Staples, Utilities and Retail, with other more traditionally leading sectors like Technology [...]
There are two ways to start a fire. You can take what most would consider the “proper” way by carefully stacking your tinder and wood, lighting a match and then fanning the fire until things really get going. Then there’s the other way: Throw the wood down, spray it with lighter fluid, add a lit [...]
The holiday season is upon us and retail stocks are in play. But we’ve already seen that high-end stores – such as Tiffany – are getting pummeled by poor outlooks. The discount store is in vogue and Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ:COST) fits the bill. COST reports earnings around December 8, with analysts expecting a modest [...]
Although earnings season has largely passed, next week’s calendar is hardly empty. In fact, a number of specialty apparel retailers – including Jos. A. Bank, American Eagle, Express, Coldwater Creek, Charming Shoppes, and lululemon athletica to name a few – are on the docket. One retailer we have on our screen is Aeropostale, Inc. (NYSE:ARO), [...]
Next week’s abridged earnings calendar contains a few big names, one of which is Hewlett-Packard Company (NYSE:HPQ). The embattled PC/printer giant reports on Monday (11/21) after the close. Analysts expect HPQ to earn $1.13 per share, a 15% decline from a year ago. That would mark the first year-over-year decline in profits since May 2009. [...]
According to Investopedia.com, the definition of “pinning the strike” is, “The tendency of a stock’sprice to close near the strike price of heavily traded options (in the same stock) as the expiration date nears.” If you’re looking for a prime example of pinning, look no further than General Electric Company (NYSE:GE). The stock is trading [...]
Significant earnings reports continue to thin as earnings season wanes. This week has a retail bias, but tech is also in evidence. One such techie is NetApp Inc. (NASDAQ:NTAP), the data storage company. NTAP reports Q2 2012 earnings on Wednesday after the bell, with analysts expecting 59 cents per share. That’s a 14% increase from [...]
The earnings calendar may seem full this week … if you look only at the number of companies on the list. But “quality” is lacking, with the exception of Cisco Systems and a few of the major department store names. But one major Dow Jones Industrial component (along with Cisco) on the list this week [...]
