Category Archives: Random Thoughts

Shopify Issuing Shares? No surprise there!

I’ve seen this movie over and over again.  A stock rages upward, and instead of letting investors simply enjoy the ride the company has to ruin it by issuing (diluting) more shares.  This is just the first volley – expect … Continue reading

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Time to sell tech stocks? Yes!

On March 25th I suggested it was okay to buy tech stocks, and featured a couple of ETF’s. I did buy at the time, and have enjoyed a 50% return in less than 2 months.  Let’s face it, with bond … Continue reading

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Decrease in Consumer Spending Alarm Goes Off.

I’ve hinted many times over the years that the most robust leading indicator is the ISM (Institute for Supply Management) manufacturing index.  Last Friday, the report was – not surprisingly – dismal.  May is likely to be even worse. We’re … Continue reading

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Why Warren Buffett’s Moves are Bewildering.

Everyone is confused – He bought a bunch of airlines at their peak, and sold them all (was the normally undaunted investor suddenly in a panic?) at the bottom.  “Fear is the most contagious disease you can imagine…” said Buffett … Continue reading

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US Energy Self-Sufficient – But for how long?

According to the Energy Information Administration, the US is more than self-sufficient when it comes to energy.  For the first time in a very long time, production of energy (all sources) exceeded consumption in 2019. What we do know is … Continue reading

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Consumer Sentiment – down but still not down enough.

Over many years I’ve marveled at how reliable consumer sentiment has been as a contrarian indicator.  When it reaches rock bottom then the markets, followed by the economy begin to recover from a crisis – whether a recession or financial.  … Continue reading

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How bad is it for energy sector? Real bad and getting worse!

When I published “Oil Stocks Should Continue To Be Avoided” on SeekingAlpha.com (March 6th) I was surprised by this comment from a reader: XOM hasn’t cut their dividend for 37 years. CVX hasn’t cut their dividend for 32 years. This … Continue reading

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Credit Shock due to COVID-19 Unprecedented

This quote is the latest from Moody’s: The credit shock created by the coronavirus pandemic is completely unprecedented, given the number of geographies and industries affected, and the lack of clarity as to when the economic implications of the pandemic … Continue reading

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Corporate Bonds not out of the woods yet!

We’ve watched a bit of a bear market rally in stocks, but also saw the same short term narrowing of corporate bond spreads (the difference between the yield offered by corporate bonds versus the virtually risk-free government bonds or treasuries).  … Continue reading

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Why the S&P 500 should fall another 10% to 20%.

The risk of being so right in one’s projections (I called this meltdown months ago) is you begin to second guess yourself – maybe now I should turn bullish? The recent rally (which I covered in my “It’s a Trap” … Continue reading

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