A Rare Stumble for the Stock Market As Oversold Conditions Loom – Above the 40 (June 18, 2021)

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

Normalization Places Fresh Pressures on the Spring Selling Season – Housing Market Review (May, 2021)

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

Home Builder Stocks Powered Through Softening Housing Data – Housing Market Review (March, 2021)

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

Upward America Venture: Lennar Tackles Housing Affordability Challenge

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 Stocks In Limbo Amid New Signs of Market Normalization – Housing Market Review (December, 2020)

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

Record Confidence, Rangebound Sales and Stocks – Housing Market Review (November, 2020)

The iShares Dow Jones US Home Construction Index Fund (ITB) lost 1.4% as it continues to pivot around its 50-day moving average in an extended trading range.

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

Divergence in the Housing Market: Slowing Stocks vs Soaring Data – Housing Market Review (October, 2020)

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

Why Lennar and Other Home Builder Stocks Failed to Rally On Good News

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

Stock Market Breaks Out to Overbought Territory Yet Again – Above the 40 (May 18, 2020)

Stock Market Statistics AT40 = 75.0% of stocks are trading above their respective 40-day moving averages (DMAs) (first oversold day)AT200 = 18.4% of stocks are trading above their respective 200DMAsVIX = 29.3Short-term Trading Call: neutral Stock Market Commentary Buyers followed through on the building momentum from the previous two trading days which drew a line … Read more

Housing Downturn: Optimism Races Ahead of the Data – Housing Market Review (April, 2020)

The iShares Dow Jones US Home Construction Index (ITB) gained 4.2% and closed at a 2-month high.

Housing Market Intro and Summary Something surprising is happening in the middle of the current downturn in the housing market: buyers keep coming and home builders are staying resilient and resolute. A series of earnings reports from publicly traded home builders do not reflect the historic plunge in builder sentiment from April (see below). The … Read more