Monthly Archives: April 2018

Benchmark Sees Activision Blizzard Guidance Affected By ‘Fo

Shares of Activision Blizzard (ATVI) were trading lower after an analyst from Benchmark said he expects the game maker to report strong first-quarter earnings followed by disappointing second quarter guidance. BENCHMARK KEEPS BUY: In a research note to investors, Benchmark analyst Mike Hickey maintained a Buy rating and $80 price target on Activision Blizzard, saying…

The Sure Thing

It’s a terrific day so far (and it’s been a while since I’ve been able to type those words). I am particularly pleased with the emerging markets bond fund, which has been a true “old faithful” and which continues to work its way toward what I think is going to be a spectacular failure.

Too Good?

Would you like a 7-percent return without being subjected to the volatility of the stock market? How about 6-percent in a security that Standard & Poor’s rates BBB-, which is investment grade? There are no guarantees, but that’s what investors can expect to receive if they hold two exchange-traded notes until they mature in 2024….

The Fed Has Forgotten The Lessons Of 2008

A few days ago, Neel Kashkari, president of the Minneapolis Fed, told an attendees at an event at Howard University that Wall Street is “forgetting the lessons of the 2008 financial crisis“: “The shareholders got bailed out. The boards of directors got bailed out. Management got bailed out. So from their perspective, there was no…

S&P 500 Index: Intraday Support & Resistance Levels

The following 60 minute chart of the S&P 500 Index (SPX) shows intraday support and resistance levels at 2650 and 2700, respectively. The momentum and relative volatility index technical indicators have plunged on today’s action, so far (as at 1:15 pm ET, Thursday April 19), and price has fallen back into the lower 1/4 of the uptrending Andrew’s Pitchfork channel…all of which are suggesting that the latest…

Philly Fed Manufacturing Index: Slight Improvement In April

The Philly Fed’s Manufacturing Business Outlook Survey is a monthly report for the Third Federal Reserve District, covers eastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey, and Delaware. While it focuses exclusively on business in this district, this regional survey gives a generally reliable clue as to the direction of the broader Chicago Fed’s National Activity Index. The latest Manufacturing Index…

An Alert On Deutsche Bank? ECB Worried…

This is a first: The European Central Bank (ECB) has asked Deutsche Bank to calculate the impact of selling one of its trading positions as it is considering withdrawing from the investment bank. It wants to know if Germany’s largest bank can come out of this activity without guarantees from the State or German taxpayers’…