Tactical Update
A report on our tactical portfolio moves for the week, all which occurred Thursday. Global Opportunities portfolio: Sell AHT, Sell UPL, Buy CELG, Buy MSFT Ashford Hospitality Trust is a hotel Reit we purchased in the first quarter of 2011. With low interest rates, our thesis held that Ashford would obtain cheap refinancing of existing debt and leverage .. read more
Trend Watcher – End of Quarter Window Dressing Ahead
Joseph Gomez, Sr. Investment Adviser and Portfolio Manager As we close out the quarter next week, expect to see plenty of window dressing as portfolio managers want their clients to see that they have stocks on the books during such a strong quarter for the market. Window Dressing is a strategy used by mutual fund and portfolio managers .. read more
Trend Watcher – Are You Missing Out?
Joseph Gomez, Sr. Investment Advisor and Portfolio Manager Of the nineteen economic indicators released this week, nine were weaker than expected, eight were stronger, and two were in line. Once again this week, strength was concentrated in employment and housing related indicators. Thursday’s initial jobless claims report showed that the nation’s employment picture continues to improve. In terms of expectations, this week’s total of 348K .. read more
Trend Watcher – YTD Performance and Earnings Review
Joseph Gomez, Sr. Investment Advisor Companies are clearly having a tougher time living up to analyst expectations this season. Currently, only 58 percent of companies have managed to beat estimates. Even though we are in the middle of earnings season, analysts have continued to lower their earnings estimates at a quickening pace. There is a factor of .. read more
Trend Watcher – Beware the Bond Bubble
With the US economy showing decent growth while the rest of the world is showing slow or no growth, currency traders are selling Euros and buying Dollars. As a result, the Euro is trading at intermediate term lows while the Dollar is hitting new highs. In recent months, equities and the dollar have gone from a nearly perfect .. read more
Weekly Chart Review: What’s hot, what’s not.
What’s Hot: Google, Apple, Herman Cain, Retail Sales What’s Not: US Dollar, Treasury Bonds, Consumer Confidence Another amazing week for equities. So far in October, the S&P 500 is up over 8%, led by Technology and Materials. Overall, economic statistics have been coming in stronger than expectations, so there is at least, a fundamental justification .. read more
How The High Corporate Tax Rate Is Hurting America
A recent article on Microsoft’s earnings report titled, “Microsoft’s Quarter: One Big Tax Dodge” shows how Microsoft and other US mutinationals use creative tax strategies to report good earnings: Here are the specific figures on Microsoft’s earnings. Revenue hit $17.4 billion, an 8% jump over the previous year. Earnings were a whole different story; they .. read more
AAA-Rated US Corporations – Standard and Poors
Currently, only five US corporations hold a AAA credit rating from S&P. Listed here are the companies, their quotes and charts, and their 1-year performance (as of 6/8): Automatic Data Processing - (ADP), Chart, 1-Year: -9.8% Exxon Mobil - (XOM), Chart, 1-Year: -16.5% Johnson & Johnson - (JNJ), Chart, 1-Year: -13.7% Pfizer Inc - (PFE), Chart, .. read more
