Home Builders: Pressures Mount As Interest Rates Rise

The Pressure The optimism continues to build in financial markets over the prospect for finalizing the “Partial” or “Phase One” deal on the U.S. vs China Trade War. That optimism translates into slightly higher growth expectations which in turns translates into higher interest rates. Even the Fed Fund Futures stay below 50% odds for another … Read more

Housing Market Review (October, 2019) – Home Builders Wavering At the Edge of the Moment of Truth

Housing Market Intro/Summary The stocks of home builders are starting to fail their moment of truth. A Moment of Truth Looming Ever Larger On October 25th, the iShares Dow Jones Home Construction ETF (ITB) hit a 21-month high that coincided exactly with a major multi-year peak and post-recession high from January, 2018. The sellers showed … Read more

A Moment of Truth for Stocks of Homebuilders

The iShares Dow Jones Home Construction ETF (ITB) has backed off from 21-month highs.

This is a moment of truth for the stocks of homebuilders. The iShares Dow Jones Home Construction ETF (ITB) last week hit a 21-month high that exactly coincided with a climactic high in January, 2018. The subsequent selling this week seemed to unfold like clockwork. The selling was particularly notable given the S&P 500 (SPY) … Read more

Market Rally Narrows Into the Specter of A Bearish Divergence – Above the 40 (October 28, 2019)

AT40 = 59.3% of stocks are trading above their respective 40-day moving averages (DMAs)AT200 = 53.9% of stocks are trading above their respective 200DMAsVIX = 13.1Short-term Trading Call: neutral Stock Market Commentary A Sufficient Resolution Seems about right. Just as I switch from a (cautiously) bearish stance to neutral, the stock market throws more definitively … Read more

Home Builder Seasonal Trade Begins 3.5% Away From Major Reversal

On January 22, 2018, the iShares Dow Jones Home Construction ETF (ITB) closed at $46.25, a more than 10-year high. In just two and a half weeks, ITB lost 15.0% and did not bottom until the Christmas Eve market bottom at $28.55. Almost 10 months later, investors have almost reversed this entire loss – just … Read more