The Trump Volatility Trade: Nordstrom, Intel, Cognizant Technology, and Biotech

President Trump will address a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night, February 28th. Traders will no doubt have notepads ready to jot down the latest corporate targets of Trump’s wrath and praise. Trump’s words and tweets move markets, yet recent impacts have not lasted and have even worked in reverse of expectations. It is … Read more

Housing Market Review – The Promise of Spring Awaits (February, 2017)

The last Housing Market Review covered data reported in January, 2017 for December, 2016. At that time, the iShares US Home Construction (ITB) was rebounding strongly from a brief pullback from an earnings-driven 6-month high. I described the setup as a coiled spring. The coiled spring did not release to great effect, but earnings from … Read more

A Chicken-Fueled Pairs Trade: Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen Versus Restaurant Brands

Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, Inc. (PLKI) is one expensive stock, especially for a (fried chicken) restaurant: trailing P/E of 36.2, forward P/E of 28.9, price/sales of 5.5, and price/book of 187.4. PLKI most recently reported 4.7% year-over-year revenue growth and -1.9% earnings growth. (Data from Yahoo Finance). According to briefing.com, year-over-year revenue growth has stagnated in … Read more

Century Communities Hits All-Time Highs With Strong Preliminary Earnings

I have long been a fan of Century Communities (CCS) and regional home builders in general. When I took profits in April of 2016 on my accumulated CCS position, I timed the sale to coincide with the end of the seasonally strong period for home builders. CCS was also struggling to break through resistance at … Read more

Awful Offerings: Acacia Communications and Twilio

I raise yellow flags when companies implement a secondary stock offering soon after going IPO, especially after the stock has experienced a massive run-up. I get even more worried when the majority of the shares are being sold by shareholders rather than the majority of proceeds going into corporate investments. Two recent IPOs have popped … Read more