Year: 2020

Shares of HP Inc. rose 6.2% on Friday after the personal computer maker reported stronger-than-expected fiscal 3Q results. The company’s quarterly results got a boost from strong PC demand driven by COVID-19 pandemic-induced online learning and work-from-home wave.On August 27, HP (HPQ) reported that 3Q revenues of $14.3 billion surpassed analysts’ expectations of $13.3 billion. Its adjusted EPS of $0.49 also beat Street estimates of $0.43.HP’s CEO Enrique Lores said, “We’re leveraging our leadership across consumer and commercial markets to capitalize on opportunities – from the essential role of the PC in an era of remote work and school to …read more […]

(Bloomberg Opinion) — From Monday there will be just one oil company in the Dow Jones Industrial Average — Chevron Corp. The removal of Exxon Mobil Corp. from the index after an uninterrupted presence since 1928 shouldn’t come as a surprise. It’s not the end of Big Oil, but it may signal the start of the beginning of the end.It may seem odd to remove one of only two oil companies in the index at a time when the shale boom has transformed America’s role in the global market. After all, the U.S. now produces more oil and more natural …read more […]

​AstraZeneca plc (NYSE:AZN) could easily acquire Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) Headlines: Market Dynamics May Inspire AZN To Re-Engage. A $200B+ Healthcare Juggernaut May Result. ​ Q2 2020 hedge fund letters, conferences and more Since June 8, 2020…When Speculation Bubbled About A Possible AstraZeneca-Gilead Sciences Combination [see vertical line in above chart]…The Following “Deal” Metrics Have Adjusted…Quite Dramatically […] …read more […]

If there was a “stock of the century” award, Amazon (AMZN) would be the favorite. Since 2001, AMZN has rocketed above $3,300, turning every $1,000 into just shy of $600,000. Obviously, anyone who got into Amazon early and held on is living the high life and deserves a round of applause. But now, it’s time to come to terms […] …read more […]

(Bloomberg) — President Donald Trump is cutting the cap on allowable steel shipments from Brazil, citing a slump in the U.S. market.In a proclamation issued late Friday, Trump amended a previous decision under the so-called Section 232 national security powers to lower the cap on allowable imports. The limits were set in 2018 as part of a deal between the nations to avoid tariffs that Trump applied to other countries.Trump cited a slumping American steel market, which has only accelerated amid shutdowns spurred by the coronavirus pandemic.“Imports from most countries have declined this year in a manner commensurate with this …read more […]

(Bloomberg) — Billionaire Jack Ma’s Ant Group is poised to pull off what could be the biggest initial public offering ever by simultaneously listing in Hong Kong and Shanghai. It’s said to be gunning for a valuation of $225 billion, making it the world’s fourth-largest financial company.A 2011 offshoot of Chinese giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., the firm has defined and dominates the Chinese payments market through its ubiquitous Alipay app. It also runs the giant Yu’ebao money market fund and the Huabei and Jiebei consumer lending units.Based in Hangzhou, a sprawling metropolis south of Shanghai, its ambitions run much …read more […]

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(Bloomberg) — Mick Mulvaney, a Trump administration veteran who served as acting White House chief of staff, is launching a hedge fund that aims to bet on financial services stocks.Mulvaney is starting the enterprise, Exegis Capital, with investor Andrew Wessel, a former portfolio manager at Sterling Capital Management. The pair discussed their plan at length in a podcast interview with S&P Global Market Intelligence released on Aug. 25.The long-short fund will capitalize on the duo’s knowledge of major regulatory changes that impact the financial services industry, they said on the podcast.Mulvaney, a former congressman, was appointed in March as the …read more […]

On CNBC’s “Fast Money Halftime Report,” Jon Najarian spoke about unusually high options activity in Roku Inc (NASDAQ: ROKU). Traders were buying the September 4, $175 calls on Friday. They bought 4,000 contracts right away and then the real buying came in and its volume increased to over 14,000 contracts, explained Najarian. He owns these calls and he is probably going to take off half since they have already doubled.Jim Lebenthal bought Roku during the show. He thinks it is a beneficiary of the stay-at-home economy. It has trailed Nasdaq and other stay-at-home stocks and it is still not trading …read more […]

AT&T (NYSE: T), has hired Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (NYSE: GS) to see through the process of offloading its stake in DirecTV, according to a Wall Street Journal report.What Happened: AT&T acquired DirecTV in 2015, and the total purchase price including assumed debt was about $67.1 billion.With the rise of various digital and OTT platforms like Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX) there has been a steady decline in the subscriber base of DirecTV, and this is said to be the reason AT&T is exploring a sale. Advisors from Goldman Sachs and officials from AT&T have been in talks with private equity …read more […]

* This weekend’s Barron’s looks at homebuilder stocks that are poised to soar. * Other featured articles focus on COVID-19 stocks, real estate investment trusts and disruptive global tech companies. * Also, the prospects for a fast-food giant, an auto parts leader, a top software provider and more.The Housing Market Is on Fire. These Stocks Could Benefit.” by Shaina Mishkin makes a case that homebuilders like Toll Brothers Inc (NYSE: TOL) that have lagged could catch up as housing demand continues to swell.Avi Salzman’s “McDonald’s Battles Its Former CEO. Why It’s Still a Buy.” points out that fast-food …read more […]

* Benzinga has examined the prospects for many investor favorite stocks over the past week. * This past week’s bullish calls included the iPhone maker and other tech leaders. * The leading EV maker and a top biotech were among the bearish calls.The big three U.S. stock indexes ended the past week higher, led by the more than 3% gain in the Nasdaq. Yet, economic news continued to be disappointing, prompting a Federal Reserve policy shift. It was also a week that saw a shakeup in the Dow Jones industrials, the result of a prominent stock split.As usual, …read more […]

The Federal Reserve wants a little more inflation to keep the economy buoyant. That’s hard to achieve when Main Street is so under water. …read more […]

(Bloomberg) — Reliance Industries Ltd. said it will acquire the retail, wholesale, logistics and warehousing units of India’s Future Group for 247.1 billion rupees ($3.4 billion), in a transaction that will propel Mukesh Ambani’s ambitions to dominate India’s retail sector.Future Group will merge some of its remaining businesses into Future Enterprises Ltd., Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd. said in a statement on Saturday. Ambani’s unit will then invest 12 billion rupees to acquire about 6.1% stake in Future Enterprises, according to the statement.The transaction with the Future Group will bolster Reliance Retail — already the nation’s largest retailer by the number …read more […]

Analysts are generally expecting Tesla’s battery day to be a catalyst for its stock, but not everyone is expecting the shares to rise because of the event. Wedbush analyst Daniel Ives said in a report this week that he expects the battery day to boost Tesla stock alongside the company’s growth story. He raised his bull case […] …read more […]