Category: investing

The Other HP

Most people probably think of  Hewlett-Packard when they hear "HP."  This is almost certainly the case for investors who have followed Hewlett-Packard's struggles.  However, I'm not writing about that HP, I'm writing about another HP that many people have never heard of.  Helmerich & Payne (HP) is a $4.9 billion oil and gas company based in the US.  It provides contract drilling … Continue reading The Other HP →

Second Guessing

In fifth grade, I remember the "cool kids" at my school wore Guess jeans and a lot of hairspray (I wasn't one of them).  While hair spray has lost its popularity, Guess? Inc. has grown into a $2.4 billion dollar company that sells apparel in 90 countries around the world.  Last week, Guess reported earnings that missed analyst expectations and its stock price fell by more than 21%.  The negative … Continue reading Second Guessing →

Hot or Not

Bonds continue to be unpopular among professional investors.  Over the past year, many well-known investors including John Paulson and Warren Buffet have expressed their preference for stocks over bonds. It's easy to understand why. The current 2.45% yield on a 30 year Treasury is not only historically low but is practically negative when adjusted for inflation.  At least stocks have the … Continue reading Hot or Not →

Fast Money

The first quarter was full throttle "risk-on" for U.S. equity markets.  The S&P 500 came out of the gates screeching and clocked more than 10% for the quarter.  This rally seems to have rekindled animal spirits, and now the strength of the U.S. economic recovery is the toast of the town.  From a macroeconomic perspective, a continued expansion would imply further equity market strength. … Continue reading Fast Money →

Battered but not Broken

Given that it does, in fact, look like the "kitchen sink" is being tossed out the window, I thought I'd provide an example of something I consider to be a reasonable opportunity. Cisco Systems (CSCO) designs, manufactures and sells products and services related to networking and information technology in general.  Over the past year, CSCO stock has … Continue reading Battered but not Broken →

Patient Trigger Finger

So what did the stock market think about S&P's downgrade?  We got an answer today, in bright flashing red.  The Dow sank 634 points today - the sixth largest single-day drop in history. To be fair, the sell-off wasn't rooted entirely in the downgrade (which was widely expected).  Rather, as I have written before, it looks like the market is … Continue reading Patient Trigger Finger →

Here Comes the Sink

It was a wild week for US markets. Volatility was off the charts and on Thursday the Dow dropped 512 points - its ninth largest single-day drop in history.  Stocks are down about 7% from their peak in April and are now negative for the year.  Then on Friday, adding insult to injury, Standard and Poors stripped … Continue reading Here Comes the Sink →