Since the beginning of this year, the energy sector has rebounded strongly from the pandemic-driven pressures that had kept prices – particularly in crude oil – depressed throughout 2020. From a November 2020 low point at around $34, for example, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude more than doubled to an early July peak at around […]
Read MoreThere’s a popular saying that you might have heard in a lot of different settings outside of the stock market: “If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and smells like a duck…then it’s a duck.” It’s interesting to me that I haven’t heard or seen the saying used when talking about stocks, […]
Read MoreI have written quite a bit about how I like to pay attention to stocks in the Food Products industry when market conditions become more uncertain and broad volatility starts to increase. That’s because while the industry itself can hardly be described as disruptive – in fact, I’ve seen analysts throughout the year dismiss the […]
Read MoreThere is a pretty significant difference in the way different investors perceive a stock in a long-term upward trend. For growth oriented-investors, the longer the upward trend, the more attractive the stock is, simply because the expectation is that the longer, bullish trend will outlast any near-term, bearish sentiment or momentum the stock may see. […]
Read MoreOne of the sectors that I like to pay attention to as a barometer for the underlying relative health of the economy is the Materials sector, because the companies that comprise it produce or mine many of the raw materials that make up the building blocks used to create most of the finished goods we […]
Read MoreOver the last year, one of the best sectors of the stock market’s rally back to, and even above pre-pandemic levels has been the Materials sector. From last year to a fresh high this week, the sector had increased in value by almost 70%, as measured by the S&P 500 Materials Sector SPDR (XLB). This […]
Read MoreMore and more this year, consumers have been thinking about the activities they’ve been deprived from enjoying because of pandemic-driven restrictions, and what they might want to do as the economy starts to reopen. For the market, that’s good news that has prompted investors to start paying more attention to companies in industries that traditionally […]
Read MoreApple Inc. (AAPL) is one of the biggest companies in the world; in August of last year, with the stock pushing nicely above $465 per share, they were the first company in the modern era to officially cross the $2 trillion dollar threshold. Over the last ten years or so, it is without a doubt […]
Read MoreThrough a big portion of 2020, one of the areas that I was able to find some interesting valuations to work with was in the Telecommunications industry. Some of the largest players in the industry do much more than just telecommunications; AT&T Inc. (T) has, of course long been one of the largest telecommunications companies […]
Read MoreOil prices were among some of the most dramatically impacted components of the global economy at the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic. As businesses were shuttered, and shelter-in-place orders ground economic activity everywhere to a halt, demand for crude oil cratered; both West Texas Intermediate (WTI) and Brent crude fell to shockingly low levels. […]
Read MoreLong, extended bull markets – either on a broad basis, or even in an individual stock – generally tend to work against value-focused investors. That’s usually because once investors start to pile into stocks at good valuation levels, it doesn’t take long for prices to increase well beyond the point of useful value. I say […]
Read MoreGood news about continued vaccine approval and deployment, along with Congress’ approval of a second stimulus package over the weekend has the major indices very near the highs they set last week. There is a not-too-surprising temptation to think about the end of the pandemic and start looking for all of the ways that the […]
Read MoreMoving closer and closer to Christmas means that most people’s focus is on end-of-the-year celebrations and time with family. I think that’s true this year, even though for many of us 2020 has meant maintaining distance from family members and loved ones; for me and my family, that has also impacted our normal, end-of-the-year massive […]
Read MoreThis year’s pandemic has had a dramatic impact on the operations of just about every type of business in America. One of the business segments that has experienced an especially conspicuous decline is the Auto industry, where stay-at-home, self isolation orders at the beginning of the outbreak cratered demand for petroleum products of every type. […]
Read MoreOver the last several months, one of the best sectors of the stock market’s rally back to, and even above pre-pandemic levels has been the Materials sector. Beginning in mid-May to a peak last week, the sector had increased in value by nearly 93% as measured by the S&P 500 Materials Sector SPDR (XLB). This […]
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