ONE-TWENTY TWO: Trading Financial Markets
Exploring the poetry in financial markets for students of money and economy since the year 2000.
The Follow-Through: Churning While the S&P 500 (SPY) cruised higher all week, much of the rest of the market resigned to churning. The dichotomy of a market rebound versus the wounds left to heal continued to play out. Many of the follow-through trades for this week churned with the rest of the stock market. See … Read more
The Follow-Through Intro The stock market followed a rare stumble with a broad-based rebound from “oversold enough” conditions. Stocks were generally up across the board as buyers rushed in to grab “bargains.” AT40 (T2108), the percentage of stocks trading above their respective 40-day moving averages (DMAs), jumped from 37% to 46%. My favorite technical indicator … Read more
Stock Market Commentary The Federal Reserve seemed to change the rules of the game. To-date, easy money policies and stubborn dovishness in the face of rising inflation was a formula for higher asset prices, reflation and inflation-friendly trades, and even rising fears of an over-heating economy. Last week, Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell shifted the … Read more
Housing Market Intro and Summary The Spring selling season looked like it started strong for new home sales. The data for April reveal a story evolving differently. Absolute inventories rose for both existing and new homes and yet sales declined. Housing starts also suffered a setback. Median prices of homes soared, especially for new homes, … Read more
Housing Market Intro and Summary Softening housing data pointed to more normalization in the housing market. Normalization is returning housing data to prior trends and in some cases suggesting important plateaus. Home builder stocks powered through the softening data to show strength in sharp rebounds and fresh all-time highs. The arrival of the Spring selling … Read more
Just as I was going about to close the books on the seasonal trade in home builders, Lennar (LEN) revived upward momentum across home builders. LEN gained 13.8% after announcing a partnership with Centerbridge to invest in rental single-family housing. News of the “Upward America Venture” lit a fire across the sector. However, the excitement … Read more
Housing Market Intro and Summary In recent months a divergence in the housing market emerged between rangebound home builder stocks and strong housing data. In October, new home sales recorded a third straight month at the 1 million mark. Since new home sales hit an August peak, the stocks of home builders have also largely … Read more
Housing Market Intro and Summary A divergence in the housing market emerged between rangebound home builder stocks and strong housing data. In October, new home sales recorded a third straight month at the 1 million mark. Since new home sales hit the August peak, the stocks of home builders have also largely gone nowhere. A … Read more
Housing Market Intro and Summary A divergence in the housing market is emerging between slowing home builder stocks and strong housing data. The housing boom in the U.S. continued to make its mark in the middle of the pandemic-induced recession. While new home sales took a bit of a pause in October, housing starts, existing … Read more
The Message in Home Builder Sentiment The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reported a tremendous surge in the sentiment of home builders. The Housing Market Index (HMI) soared from 37 in May to 58 in June. Just two months after suffering a historic plunge, sentiment among home builders is right back to positive territory. … Read more