Sectors
Retail Reality Check – Comparing March to What Number?
On the surface, the retail sales numbers unveiled last week looked at least promising for all merchants, and downright amazing for a few of these names. Take Saks Inc. (NYSE:SKS) and Nordstrom Inc. (NYSE:JWN), for instance. Saks saw a 12.7% increase in same-store sales last month, while Nordstrom fostered a 16.8% [...]
Move Over eBay, & Look Out Amazon
Move over eBay, and take notice Amazon.com - you’re not the only internet-retailing game in town anymore. Oh, your dominance in the online-auction and e-tailing spaces (respectively) are still intact - for now. If you think you’re impervious though, you should know that Overstock.com (NASDAQ:OSTK) just posted its first full-year [...]
The Only Thing Keeping Gambling Alive
Considering the average one is up about 85% for the last twelve months, one would think casino stocks - and the companies they represent - are on the mend like most everything else. So why then is Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) looking to sell its stake in the half-built Revel Casino [...]
How Real Estate’s Non-Recovery Can Be a Good Thing
Now more than a full year into the market recovery, and at least a few months into the (so far unofficial) economic recovery, one thing has become pretty clear…. the real estate market isn’t participating in the rebound process. Yet, there’s a rebound - of sorts – in the house and [...]
The Unnoticed Opportunity of Healthcare Reform
Though the jury is still out on how – or even if – insurance companies like Humana (NYSE:HUM) will be able to thrive in the post-healthcare reform era, experts mostly agree that President Obama’s final healthcare package is good for pharmaceutical companies, and great for hospitals.
Why’s that? Despite $80 billion [...]
Healthcare Reform Reality Check – Does It Even Matter?
The debate over healthcare reform has left Capital Hill and made its way to Wall Street. It’s also changed slightly, from a “should it and can it pass?” argument to a “who wins and loses?” discussion, in reference to which stocks and industries will be most affected, and how. Incredibly [...]
When a Fad Becomes Permanent – Pet Spending Investments for 2010
When pet-mania became an epidemic coming out of the 2001/2002 recession, it didn’t take long for investors to recognize the opportunity. Since 2001, annual pet spending has nearly doubled, reaching $45.5 billion in 2009. But how long can the fad last? Longer than it has, if 2010’s conservative forecasts [...]
Consumer Spending Is – and Isn’t - Back in Full Swing Yet
Just because a stock is rallying doesn’t mean it deserves to. Case in point? The consumer cyclical stocks.
The S&P 1500 Consumer Discretionary Sector Index is leading the charge year-to-date with its 10.8% gain… tops among all sectors. A closer look within the group, however, reveals too many of these [...]
The Unsung Victors in the Auto Industry’s Revival
The strength of their stocks would lead you to believe things couldn’t be better for the major auto manufacturers. After all, the S&P 1500 Automobile Manufacturing Index wouldn’t be up 318% for the last twelve months by mere chance, would it?
The short answer is ‘no’. Ford (NYSE:F) and Toyota Motor [...]
Is It Good, or Bad, to be Boeing Right Now?
On the surface, the phrase ‘sitting pretty’ doesn’t even seem to be adequate as a way of categorizing The Boeing Company (NYS:BA) right now. There’s always more to the story though. Is BA really the no-brainer ‘buy’ the market wants to believe it is?
The wind is at its back: It’s not [...]
