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S&P 1500 Most Heavily Shorted Stocks

Short interest figures for the end of April were released late last week, and below we provide a table of the stocks in the S&P 1500 with the highest short interest as a percentage of float.  Topping this month's list are shares of Blyth (BTH), which has more than two-thirds of its free-floating shares sold short.  While BTH may not be a household name, there are plenty of more recognizable names on the list, including Coinstar (CSTR), JC Penney (JCP), Gamestop (GME), SUPERVALU (SVU), 3D Systems (DDD) and US Steel (X).

High Yield Yields Less Than Treasuries Five Years Ago

The chart below is from last week's Bespoke Report newsletter, and it shows the average yield to maturity on the Merrill Lynch High Yield (Junk) Master Index.  At a current level of 5.24%, investors have never been paid less to own high yield debt.  Yields are so low, in fact, that five years ago the yield on the 10-Year US Treasury was higher than the current yield on junk bonds.

May 13th Blogger Sentiment Poll

Blogger Sentiment Poll Participants: 24/7 Wall St (-) The Aleph Blog (-) Biiwii (-) BullBear Trading Carl Futia (-) Dash of Insight (+) Dividend Growth Investor (N) Elliot Wave Lives On (+) Expected Returns Fallond Stock Picks (-) Global Economic...

S&P 500 Sector Breadth Levels

As of this morning, 88% of S&P 500 companies are trading above their 50-day moving averages.  This is a very high reading, but it's not quite as high as the reading we saw back in January.  

Still Bullish

There were more bulls than bears in our weekly market poll for the second straight week.  As shown below, 53% of respondents said the S&P 500 would be higher one month from now, while 47% said the index would be lower.  This is the first time since mid-January that we've had two weeks in a row of more bulls than bears.  Pretty remarkable given the gains we've seen so far this year.

Recent Asset Class Performance

The "Sell in May" theory has been turned on its head so far this year.  As shown in the left-hand side of our key ETF matrix below, US equities have jumped out of the gate strong over the first eight trading days of May.  The Nasdaq 100 (QQQ) and Smallcap 600 (IJR) have rallied the most with gains of more than 3% already, while the Smallcap 600 Growth ETF (IJT) is up even more at 4.03%.  The rally we've seen to start the month has been led by cyclical sectors like Industrials (XLI) and Consumer Discretionary (XLY).  The weakness in defensive sectors has been notable as well.

S&P 500 Higher or Lower From Here?

Nothing has been able to stop this market lately, but who knows what's in store for investors as we enter the summer months.  What do you think?  Please take part in our weekly Bespoke Market Poll below by answering whether you think the S&P 500 will be higher or lower one month from now.  We'll report back with the results on Monday before the open.  Thanks for participating and have a great weekend!

Updated Q1 Earnings Season EPS and Revenue Beat Rates

About 500 companies reported earnings this week, pushing the total number of companies that have reported this season up to more than 2,100.  And while the market is up on the week, earnings haven't been great.  At the start of the week, the percentage of companies that had beaten earnings estimates this season stood above 59%.  The additional 500+ companies that reported this week only beat earnings at a 52% rate, pushing the overall earnings beat rate down to 57.6%.   As shown below, this would be the weakest reading of the entire bull market if earnings season ended today.

Guidance Spread Negative But Inching Higher

More than 2,000 companies have reported earnings so far this season, which ends next Thursday when Wal-Mart (WMT) reports.  So far this season, the spread between the percentage of companies raising guidance minus those lowering guidance has been -2.9 percentage points.  This means that more companies have lowered guidance than raised guidance, and if it holds in negative territory, it will be the seventh straight quarter with a negative guidance spread.  As shown in the chart below, the spread this season is much better than it was in the prior three quarters.

ETF Inflows Continue in April and Total Assets Rise to $1.5T

ETFs (including ETNs, ETPs, etc) experienced a net inflow of $9.5B in April while total assets rose 1.7% to $1.49T.

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