Stock Market Watch for the Week of January 21st

Education, Trading , , ,

Stocks remain strong after three weeks of trading. The S&P 500 is up around 14% since December 24th. That said, there is still plenty of uncertainty in the market, including the government shutdown, Brexit, and trade talks between China.

China just posted its GDP numbers for 2018, 6.6% growth, its weakest annual performance since 1990.

However, it hasn’t been all doom and gloom. For example, members of the FOMC continue to come out and assure the market that the Fed is unlikely to raise rates this year. In addition, corporate earnings kicked off last week… and so far so good.

graph

Source: Yahoo

The VIX closed at 17.80 on Friday. A far cry from 36, where it was on Dec 24.

Here are how some of the most actively traded index ETFs performed over the week: SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) +2.89%, iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) +2.54%, SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA) +2.99%, Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) +2.84%

Here are how some of the most actively traded commodity and interest rate ETFs performed: United States Oil Fund (USO) +3.76%, iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond (TLT) -1.13%, SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) -0.64%

Economic Releases:
22 Jan 2019- Existing Home Sales 10:00 AM ET

24 Jan 2019- Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET; EIA Petroleum Status Report 11:00 AM ET

25 Jan 2019- Durable Goods Orders 8:30 AM ET; Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET; New Home Sales 10:00 AM ET

Key Earnings:
22 Jan 2019- JNJ, HAL, STLD, SWK, UBS, AMTD, IBM, NAVI, ZION

23 Jan 2019- CMCSA, KMB, NTRS, PG, RES, WAT, CCI, F, FFIV, XLNX

24 Jan 2019- FCX, HBAN, JBLU, LUV, STM, TXT, UNP, DFS, NSC, SBUX, WDC

25 Jan 2019- APD, CL, LEA, SYF

Be sure to check out our Active Trading Masters Program | Online Courses

September 24, 2018 The Week Ahead

Education, Trading , , , , , , , , ,

US Stocks moved steadily higher over the week, as another strong quarter was recorded on the books. Despite sitting near highs, investors are wondering how much longer the bull market can continue. Some fear that rising interest rates and debt levels could be the culprit that takes this market lower.

We’ll see what the FOMC has to say about this later in the week as they are set to meet. Interestingly, several publications including Barron’s mentioned gold over the weekend as a potential investment again.

Here are how some of the most widely traded index ETFs performed over the week:
Powershares QQQ ETF (QQQ) -0.15%, SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) +0.38%, SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF (DIA) +2.00%, iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) -0.57%

The VIX closed at 11.68 on Friday, selling off for the second straight week.

graph

Here are how some futures and commodity ETFs performed over the week: United States Oil Fund (USO) +3.17%, iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond (TLT) -1.22%, SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) +0.42%

Economic Releases:
26 Sep 2018- New Home Sales 10:00 AM ET; EIA Petroleum Status Report 10:30 AM ET; FOMC Meeting Announcement 2:00 PM ET; FOMC Forecasts 2:00 PM ET; Fed Chair Press Conference 2:30 PM

27 Sep 2018- Durable Goods Orders 8:30 AM ET; GDP 8:30 AM ET; International Trade in Goods 8:30 AM ET; Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET

28 Sep 2018- Personal Income and Outlays 8:30 AM ET

Key Earnings:
24 Sep 2018- ASNA

25 Sep 2018- FDS, JBL, NEOG, AIR, CTAS, KBH, NKE

26 Sep 2018- ATU, KMNX, OMN, WOR, BBBY

27 Sep 2018- ANGO, CAG, FGP, MKC, RAD, CAMP

28 Sep 2018- MTN

Be sure to check out our Active Trading Masters Program | Online Courses

July 31, 2016 The Week Ahead

Education, Trading , , , , , , , , , ,

The S&P 500 closed the week relatively flat, which means it’s still near record highs. Earnings thus far have been taken positively. The FOMC meeting proved to be a non-event, as they continue to use the same rhetoric. We now have a situation where gold, stocks, and bonds are near their yearly highs. It will be interesting to see how long that relationship can keep up.

The VIX continued to decline during the week, closing on Friday at 12, at 11.87.

Crude oil futures prices fell more than 6% on the week. On Thursday, they hit a 3-month low, when the traded at 43.13. Crude futures prices are down 10% over the last two weeks and nearly 19% off their 3-month highs.

Moving on, gold futures prices gained more than 2%, closing above $1350 an ounce. Gold futures prices are creeping back to their yearly highs, and are now more than 20% higher than their 6-month lows.

In addition, T-bond futures prices gained more than 1.5%, as they too are near their yearly highs.

As mentioned earlier, earnings season continues to roll. We’ll be hearing from Tesla (TSLA), Pfizer (PFE), CVS Health Corp (CVS), Fitbit (FIT), and Procter & Gamble (PG) just to name a few.

Here is what is on tap for this upcoming week:

Key Economic Data:
1 August 2016- ISM Manufacturing Index 10:00 AM ET
2 August 2016- Personal Income and Outlays 8:30 AM ET
3 August 2016- EIA Petroleum Status Report 10:30 AM ET
4 August 2016- Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET
5 August 2016- Employment Situation 8:30 AM ET, International Trade 8:30 AM ET

Key Earnings:
1 August 2016- FDC, MCY, SOHU, FTR, GGP, IDTI, TEX, THC, WMB, VNO
2 August 2016- AET, AVP, CAH, CMI, CVS, EMR, EXPD, H, MNK, MOS, ODP, PBI, PFE, PG, RDC, SABR, SODA, SHPG, STX, TAP, AIG, DATA, EA, DVN, FIT, FUEL, GLUU, JIVE, NFX, TX, ZEN
3 August 2016- AXA, D, DDD, ICE, KATE, OXY, TWX, ZTS, CF, FOXA, GDDY, HLF, HUBS, MET, NLY, TROX, TSLA, TSO, WU
4 August 2016- DUK, K, MGM, NOK, PCLN, SEAS, SSYS, TEVA, TIME, VIAB, ANET, ATVI, CSOD, FLR, FSLR, IMPV, KHC, LGF, LNKD, OLED, TRUE, TRIP, TTWO, ZG, ZNGA
5 August 2016- WY, WLTW, HSBC, CTSH, AES

Be sure to check out our Active Trading Masters Program | Online Courses

July 26, 2016 Market Wrap Up

Education, Trading , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The S&P 500 closed relatively flat ahead of a heavy earnings schedule and the FOMC tomorrow. We had earnings out of Twitter (TWTR) -12.3%, Apple (AAPL) +6.2%, and Akamai (AKAM) -10.9%

Stocks in play today include: Linear Technology (LLTC) +27%, Analog Devices (ADI) +13%, Logmein (LOGM) +27.8%, and Cesca Therapeutics (KOOL) +39%.

The VIX closed nearly 1.5% higher, finishing at 13.05.

Crude oil futures prices continue to get hit, now down 5 out of the last 6 days and closing below $43 per barrel.

On the options front, we saw large call buying activity in Kennametal Inc (KMT), which traded 50.1 times normal volume. We also saw a ton of bearish bets being placed in Schlumberger (SLB), which traded 2.8 times usual volume.

Here’s what’s on tap for tomorrow and the rest of the week:

Key Economic Data:
27 July 2016- Durable Goods Orders 8:30 AM ET, EIA Petroleum Status Report 10:30 AM ET, FOMC Meeting Announcement 2:00 PM ET
28 July 2016- International Trade in Goods 8:30 AM ET, Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET
29 July 2016- GDP 8:30 AM ET

Key Earnings:
27 July 2016- ARMH, ANTM, CMCSA, DB, DPS, GLW, GRMN, HES, HLT, IR, KO, LVLT, MDLZ, MO, NDAQ, NOC, ROK, SIX, STT, SVU, STM, AF, CA, CAKE, CRUS, GRPN, INFN, LM, MCK, NOW, PXD, ORLY, VRTX, WFM, XLNX
28 July 2016- APD, AZN, BWA, BMY, CAB, CELG, CL, CLF, CME, COMM, COP, DOW, ESV, F, GRUB, HOG, HSY, IP, LEA, LLL, MA, MJN, NOV, PENN, POT, WWE, AMZN, CBS, BIDU, CY, DECK, ES, EXPE, GOOGL, HIG, INVN, N, RSG, STRZA, WDC
29 July 2016- ABBV, AN, BUD, CBOE, CPN, CVX, LYB, MRK, NWL, PSX, SAVE, UPS, WG, XOM

Be sure to check out our Active Trading Masters Program | Online Courses

July 24, 2016 The Week Ahead

Education, Trading , , , , , , , , , ,

The S&P 500 closed the week near record levels, making that the fourth straight week of positive gains. We now set up for one of the busiest earning weeks of the year, along with the FOMC meeting on Wednesday.

The VIX continued to decline during the week, closing on Friday at 12.02.

Crude oil futures prices fell about 4% on the week. On the other hand, gold futures prices dropped about 1%. T-bond futures prices closed relatively flat on the week.

As mentioned earlier, earnings season starts really pick up now. We’ll be hearing from Apple (AAPL), Coca-Cola (KO), Mcdonald’s (MCD), Amazon (AMZN), and ExxonMobil (XOM) just to name a few.

Here is what is on tap for this upcoming week:

Key Economic Data:
26 July 2016- New Home Sales 10:00 AM ET
27 July 2016- Durable Goods Orders 8:30 AM ET, EIA Petroleum Status Report 10:30 AM ET, FOMC Meeting Announcement 2:00 PM ET
28 July 2016- International Trade in Goods 8:30 AM ET, Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET
29 July 2016- GDP 8:30 AM ET

Key Earnings:
25 July 2016- COL, DHR, KMB, S, CR, ESRX, GILD, LVS, TXN
26 July 2016- AKS, ALLY, BAX, BEAV, BP, CAT, CHKP, CVLT, DD, FCX, DD, HOT, JBLU, JNS, KEY, KKR, LLY, MAS, MBLY, MCD, UA, UTX, VLO, VZ, WAT, AAPL, AKAM, APC, ASH, BWLD, CAKE, CAVM, ILMN, IRBT, JNPR, LLTC, PNRA, TWTR, X, ZION
27 July 2016- ARMH, ANTM, CMCSA, DB, DPS, GLW, GRMN, HES, HLT, IR, KO, LVLT, MDLZ, MO, NDAQ, NOC, ROK, SIX, STT, SVU, STM, AF, CA, CAKE, CRUS, GRPN, INFN, LM, MCK, NOW, PXD, ORLY, VRTX, WFM, XLNX
28 July 2016- APD, AZN, BWA, BMY, CAB, CELG, CL, CLF, CME, COMM, COP, DOW, ESV, F, GRUB, HOG, HSY, IP, LEA, LLL, MA, MJN, NOV, PENN, POT, WWE, AMZN, CBS, BIDU, CY, DECK, ES, EXPE, GOOGL, HIG, INVN, N, RSG, STRZA, WDC
29 July 2016- ABBV, AN, BUD, CBOE, CPN, CVX, LYB, MRK, NWL, PSX, SAVE, UPS, WG, XOM

Be sure to check out our Active Trading Masters Program | Online Courses

July 6, 2016 Market Wrap Up

Education, Trading , , , , , , , , , ,

The S&P 500 has been on an absolute tear lately, and inching ever closer to the all-time highs. With that said, we’re less than 2% from those levels. Interestingly, Treasury bonds are also near yearly highs, along with gold futures prices.

It almost feels like something has to give? But the million dollar question is in what and when. The market reacted positively after the FOMC Minutes were released this afternoon. Of course, traders are still digesting the aftermath of the Brexit.

Stocks in play today include: Kohl’s (KSS) +2.78%, Carmax (KMX) +5.6%, and Valeant Pharmaceuticals (VRX) +16.9%.

The VIX was down nearly 4%, closing the day below 15, at 14.96.

Crude oil futures bounced nicely ahead of tomorrow’s DOE numbers. The United States Oil Fund (USO) was up over 2% on the day.

On the options front, we saw large call buying activity in Foot Locker (FL), which traded 4.8 times normal volume. We also saw a ton of bearish bets being placed in Chemours Company (CC) which traded 16.2 times usual volume.

Here’s what’s left for the rest of the week:

Key Economic Data:
7 July 2016- Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET, EIA Petroleum Status Report 11:00 AM ET
8 July 2016- Employment Situation 8:30 AM ET

Key Earnings:
7 July 2016- PEP, CUDA, HELE

July 3, 2016 The Week Ahead

Education, Trading , , , , ,

What a difference a week makes. The S&P 500 has gained more than 5% over the last 4 trading sessions, as it’s inching closer to yearly highs. With that said, the VIX on Friday closed at 14.77, that’s 42% off last Friday’s close of 25.76. Some believe the threat of contagion after Brexit was overestimated as it appears that the EU and UK plan on working closely together to assure some type of order.

Interestingly, Gold, often recognized as a safe haven also saw futures prices rise this week, nearly 2% and closing around 1340… which isn’t too far from the year to date high. Not to mention, US Treasury futures prices also rose more than 2% on the week. They too, are near the yearly highs.

Crude oil futures prices rose more than 3% on the week, at around $49 per barrel.

Outside of the FOMC minutes being released, we’ve got a pretty thin schedule coming up with markets being closed on Monday. With that said, have a happy and safe Independence Day!

Here is what is on tap for this upcoming week:

Key Economic Data:
6 July 2016- International Trade 8:30 AM ET, FOMC Minutes 2:00 PM ET
7 July 2016- Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET, EIA Petroleum Status Report 11:00 AM ET
8 July 2016- Employment Situation 8:30 AM ET

Key Earnings:
6 July 2016- WBA
7 July 2016- PEP, CUDA, HELE

May 22, 2016 The Week Ahead

Education, Trading , , , , ,

The S&P 500 snapped its three week losing streak on Friday, however; the same could not be said for the Dow, which currently suffered its fourth straight down week. The FOMC minutes which were released earlier in the week point toward a potential rate hike in June. Since then, the market reaction has been very mixed.

Despite this heightened level of uncertainty, the VIX was relatively unchanged for the week, closing at 15.20.

Crude oil futures prices are at yearly-highs, inching ever closer to the $50 per barrel market. On Friday, they closed above $48.40. That’s more than 50% higher than the 3-month lows. With that said, energy is the best performing sector thus far, with financials and healthcare lagging.

Here is what is on tap for the rest of the week:

Key Economic Data:
24 May 2016- New Home Sales 10:00 AM ET
25 May 2016- International Trade in Goods 8:30 AM ET, EIA Petroleum Status 10:30 AM ET
26 May 2016- Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET, Durable Goods Orders 8:30 AM ET
27 May 2016- GDP 8:30 AM ET

Key Earnings:
24 May 2016- AZO, BBY, TOL, HPE, INTU, NMBL
25 May 2016- BMO, TIF, COST, HPQ, LGF, NTAP
26 May 2016- ANF, DG, FRED, GME, PANW, SPLK, ULTA, VEEV, VNET

Key Events:
23 May 2016- JP Morgan Technology Media & Telecom Conference (runs till 5/25); SunTrust Financial Services Conference (runs till 5/25); UBS Global Healthcare Conference (runs till 5/25)
24 May 2016: Morgan Stanley China Conference (runs till 5/26); UBS Global Oil & Gas Conference (runs till 5/26); Wolfe Global Transportation (runs till 5/25)

January 26, 2016 Market Wrap Up

Education, Trading , , , , , , , , ,

So far this week, we’ve seen less fireworks than the first three weeks of the year. However, that’s probably in anticipation of all the data that will be flooding the market. For example, we’ve got an FOMC announcement coming up, along with a ton of earnings and economic data to review.

With that said, the S&P 500 saw a gain of 1.4% today. Not only that, but the trading range was relatively tight, with not a lot of up and down action.

It was no surprise to see the VIX sell off, falling nearly 7% and closing at 22.50.

Crude oil futures prices caught a bounce after yesterday’s +5% sell-off. However, it’s currently trading lower in the after hours after the API reported a build in crude oil stocks. It will be important to see what the DOE reports tomorrow.

On the options front, we saw large call buying activity in Fortuna Silver Mines Inc (FSM). In addition, we saw heavy put buying in Grand Canyon Education (LOPE).

In the after hours we got earnings results out of Apple (AAPL). The stock is trading 2% lower at the time of this wrap up. Some attribute the drop to a slowdown in iPhone sales.

Please pay attention to the schedule as there is a lot of stuff going on this week.

Key Economic Data:
27 January 2016- New Home Sales 10:00 AM ET, FOMC Meeting Announcement 2:00 PM ET
28 January 2016- Durable Goods Orders 8:30 AM ET, Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET
29 January 2016- GDP 8:30 AM ET, International Trade in Goods 8:30n AM ET

Key Earnings:
27 January 2016- BA, CLF, EMC, NVS, STJ, STM, TUP, CAVM, CRUS, CTXS, FB, INVN, HOLX, JNPR, LRCX, MLNX, MCK, QCOM, PYPL, SNDK, TER, TSCO, TXN, URI, VRTX
28 January 2016- ABT, BMY, DGX, F, CAT, CELG, CY, DB, HOG, JBLU, LLY, NDAQ, UA, V, VLO, POT, NUE, HSY, AMZN, EA, FLEX, SYNA, SWKS, MSFT, NOC
29 January 2016- AAL, ABBV, PCAR, APD, CL, CVX, HON, MA, PCAR, PSX, XRX

January 24, 2016 The Week Ahead

Education, Trading , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The S&P 500 had its first positive week on the year. However, despite being up 3 out of 4 trading sessions, there still seems to be a lot of fear in the markets. We had about a 100 point range from the highs to lows (1812-1906).

A lot of eyes are on the Asian Markets, as well as the world energy market. Crude Oil prices have had a nice bounce after trading below $30 per barrel. They finished the week up, about 7% or so. However, it’s too early to tell if the bottom is in or we’re just seeing a dead-cat bounce.

The VIX waited till Friday to sell-off hard. Overall, it closed the week more than 15% lower. With that said, it’s still trading above 22.

This is an incredibly busy week, which includes an army of earnings releases and economic data. Some of those highlights include the FOMC Meeting and GDP numbers on Friday. Earnings will cover several sectors including pharmaceuticals, energy, defense, technology, and transportation.

Reporting this week: Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT), Facebook (FB), Amazon (AMZN), Caterpillar (CAT), Halliburton (HAL), Eli Lilly (LLY), and a whole lot more.

Here’s what else is on tap:

Key Economic Data:
27 January 2016- New Home Sales 10:00 AM ET, FOMC Meeting Announcement 2:00 PM ET
28 January 2016- Durable Goods Orders 8:30 AM ET, Jobless Claims 8:30 AM ET
29 January 2016- GDP 8:30 AM ET, International Trade in Goods 8:30n AM ET

Key Earnings:
25 January 2016- DHI, HAL, KMB, MCD, ASH, PKG, SWFT, ZION, STLD
26 January 2016- DD, COH, FCX, GLW, JNJ, JNS, LMT, MMM, PG, PH, WAT, AAPL, CB, COF, NAVI, SYK, T, X
27 January 2016- BA, CLF, EMC, NVS, STJ, STM, TUP, CAVM, CRUS, CTXS, FB, INVN, HOLX, JNPR, LRCX, MLNX, MCK, QCOM, PYPL, SNDK, TER, TSCO, TXN, URI, VRTX
28 January 2016- ABT, BMY, DGX, F, CAT, CELG, CY, DB, HOG, JBLU, LLY, NDAQ, UA, V, VLO, POT, NUE, HSY, AMZN, EA, FLEX, SYNA, SWKS, MSFT, NOC
29 January 2016- AAL, ABBV, PCAR, APD, CL, CVX, HON, MA, PCAR, PSX, XRX