XLE off 4%, Nasdaq off 1.57% After Close: Financials and Materials also hit hard, down over 2% Biotech stocks remain a safe harbor in a stormy market freaked out by the energy free-fall. Most major biotech ETFs are up (FBT, XBI) but the IBB was a little volatile, eventually off 0.16%. Kite Pharma (KITE) took…
One of the major input costs for airlines is fuel, and with oil prices hitting multi-year lows, airlines will subsequently start to see improved operating margins. Further, the length at which oil prices have been subdued is significantly aiding airline company’s top and bottom lines for at least Q4 2014, and Q1 2015. As we…
Not satisfied with merely “nailing the number”, Goldman Sachs’ David Kostin forecasts the S&P 500’s trajectory through 2015. Recognizing, as we did, that Bullish Sentiment is as highs as it gets, Kostin expects short-term weakness during the next month (the drop), earnings growth thanks to lower oil prices into mid-year (the pop), but multiple compression…
The 2014 Q4 earnings season takes center stage from next week onwards even though the reporting cycle has actually been underway for a couple of weeks. The reports thus far (17 S&P 500 companies have reported results) are from companies with fiscal quarters ending in November, which we count as part of the Q4 tally….
Shares of Isis Pharmaceuticals (ISIS) soared as much as 10% in today’s trading session after the company had announced the collaboration deal with Janssen Biotech, a unit of Johnson & Johnson (JNJ). According to the deal, both companies will co-develop RNA drugs targeting autoimmune diseases of the GI tract. Autoimmune diseases occurs when the patient’s…
I received an email a few weeks ago stating “Hussman has been so wrong I should stop quoting him.” Nonetheless here I go again, because I think Hussman has something important to say. Please consider a few admittedly lengthy snips from his post today Pills for Cognitive Dissonance in a Speculative Bubble. Several years of persistent…
It could be hard to see the action in gold and silver today as anything but a ‘flight to safety’ as people with leveraged stock positions were unwinding them and seeking safety in Treasuries and precious metals. There will be a Non-Farm Payrolls report on Friday. Gold has moved to a key resistance point, and…
Written by Gary Oil stopped falling in the early part of the afternoon session and so did the equities. WTI oil has remained below 51 since it touched 50.02 earlier in the session and then went below 50 at 2:30 this afternoon. Current wisdom indicates we have NOT seen the last decline. By 4 pm the…
I must say, I didn’t understand the feelings of betrayal. But last week, when I completely by accident saw an image of Elon Musk from 15 years ago with most of his hair gone, I was confused and a little peeved. Authenticity is important to me. And here’s a guy who prances around the world…
In October, I wrote that mortgage REIT dividends had stabilized and that many were trading below book value. As we enter 2015 much the same way we entered 2014–with fears of rising rates and an overheated stock market–I wanted to revisit the table I prepared in my October comprehensive portfolio review. Mortgage REITs are not quite the…
