State of the consumer Are U.S. consumers finally tightening the purse strings? That’s the main question on the minds of investors as major retailers kick off their quarterly earnings reports this week, starting with Home Depot (HD). The home improvement chain’s Q1 results came in below Street expectations, hurt by a delayed start to spring,…
SDI Productions While a lot of attention has turned to the Utilities sector given recent outperformance, we shouldn’t ignore another important sector that tends to benefit from risk-off periods – Consumer Staples. Momentum on a relative basis looks more and more appealing, which is why the iShares US Consumer Staples ETF (NYSEARCA:IYK) is worth paying…
Iryna Kharkova/iStock via Getty Images When it comes to classifying similar types of opportunities in stocks, there are a number of common ‘genres’ that investors will often refer back to when trying to describe an opportunity set. Common genres include buckets like Special Situations, Turnaround Stories, Commodity Plays, and other things in that vein. For…
mysondanube Thesis In A Nutshell Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) is set to report earnings for the company’s Q2 2024 quarter on April, 30th, after the market closes; and similar to the Q1 2024, the world’s leading coffee chain is likely to disappoint against consensus estimates. In my opinion, Starbucks has faced a challenging Q1 in 2024, as…
Dilok Klaisataporn The latest retail sales data suggests a robust consumer, leading economists to become even more optimistic about more robust economic growth this year. To wit: “It has been two years since forecasters felt this good about the economic outlook. In the latest quarterly survey by The Wall Street Journal, business and academic economists…
champpixs Almost a year ago, I penned a draft for Upstart (NASDAQ:UPST) titled: Upstart: Too hard basket until interest rates turn. I had expected the nearing quarterly report to be negative, but instead it was very positive, and instead I completely rewrote the article as “A leaner Upstart can grow from here” and rated the…
stock_colors Introduction And Thesis Reynolds Consumer Products Inc. (NASDAQ:REYN) is a leading consumer goods company known for its innovative and sustainable solutions. The company is recognized for its iconic brands like Reynolds Wrap and Hefty, offering a wide range of products including food storage, aluminum foil, and disposable tableware. REYN has a leading commercial position…
Bryan Bedder/Getty Images Entertainment Investment Thesis I believe that American Express (NYSE:AXP) is a buy because in my opinion it has a proven track record of strong financial performance and a business model which establishes it as one of the industry leaders. The company has a sustained dividend history with strong payout ratios, which demonstrates…
jetcityimage Overview I’ve dedicated the last 5 years of my life to growing a dedicated dividend portfolio. Over that time, I’ve managed to grow my dividend income to a sizeable amount that I can now use to pay bills, buy groceries, or even fund portions of trips. These days I find myself gravitating to higher-yielding…
PM Images The consumer, or personal consumption, accounts for nearly 70% of U.S. GDP and for that reason it is important to evaluate the overall health of the consumer. Since September of last year the overall level of retail sales has stalled, although a slight uptick was seen in last week’s retail sales report, but…
Consumer Portfolio Services, Inc. (NASDAQ:CPSS) Q4 2023 Earnings Conference Call March 18, 2024 1:00 PM ET Company Participants Charles Bradley – Chief Executive OfficerMichael Lavin – President and Chief Operating OfficerDanny Bharwani – Chief Financial Officer Operator Good day, everyone, and welcome to the Consumer Portfolio Services 2023 Fourth Quarter Operating Results Conference Call. Today’s…
marcoventuriniautieri/iStock Unreleased via Getty Images Introduction In response to my late 2023 article on Tesla, Inc. (TSLA) and the Detroit Three automakers, a reader posted an intriguing comment: “Solid state batteries are going to render Musk’s Gigafactory worthless…” The resulting comment thread essentially debated solid state batteries, developers of such batteries like QuantumScape Corporation (QS),…
Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) UBS Global Consumer and Retail Conference March 14, 2024 1:00 PM ET Company Participants Corie Barry – Chief Executive Officer Matt Bilunas – Chief Financial Officer Mollie O’Brien – Head of Investor Relations Conference Call Participants Michael Lasser – UBS Michael Lasser [Call Starts Abruptly] …and Retail Conference. I’m Michael…
triloks/iStock via Getty Images Few equity markets have performed anywhere near as well in India in recent years – and for good reason. The country saw some very impressive economic growth numbers yet again (even by its standards), with real GDP surging to +8.4% YoY through Q4 2023 and prior quarters’ growth revised higher in…
Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) Consumer Analyst Group of New York (CAGNY) Conference February 21, 2024 10:00 AM ET Company Participants Jacek Olczak – Chief Executive Officer Emmanuel Babeau – Chief Financial Officer Stacy Kennedy – President of Americas & CEO of PMI U.S. Stefano Volpetti – President, Smoke-Free Inhaled Products & Chief Consumer Officer…
FG Trade/E+ via Getty Images This monthly article series shows a dashboard with aggregate industry metrics in consumer staples. It is also a review of sector exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, like Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR® Fund ETF (XLP) and iShares Global Consumer Staples ETF (NYSEARCA:KXI), whose largest holdings are used to calculate these metrics….
coldsnowstorm Never bet against the American consumer. That’s what so many pundits say, and the December Retail Sales report put out by the US Census Bureau last Wednesday underscored strength in spending to wrap up 2023.[1] Both the headline figure and the “control group,” which backs out some volatile categories, came in well above economists’…
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images News One central theme impacting markets today is the weak performance of many consumer staples companies. Last week, I covered Hormel (HRL), which has lost considerable value after losing profit margins through its failure to pass rising input costs onto its product prices. This is one of many examples seen amongst consumer…
mbbirdy Monarch Casino & Resort Incorporated (NASDAQ:MCRI) is a Reno, Nevada-based casino owner and operator with two principal properties: the Reno-based Atlantis Casino Resort Spa, and the Monarch Casino Resort Spa in Black Hawk, Colorado. TradingView Through these activities, Monarch has recorded Q3’23 revenues of $132.97mn- a 0.57% YoY decline- alongside a net income of…
Dragon Claws There’s a lot riding on tomorrow’s US consumer inflation report for December for markets, which are pricing in relatively upbeat news. Quite a lot of the stock market’s upbeat profile recently is closely linked to forecasts that the worst has passed for inflation, which leaves room for the Federal Reserve to start cutting…
FG Trade Purpose I look at the high frequency weekly indicators because while they can be very noisy, they provide a good nowcast of the economy, and will telegraph the maintenance or change in the economy well before monthly or quarterly data is available. They are also an excellent way to “mark your beliefs to…
Klaus Vedfelt Investment action I recommended a hold rating for The Duckhorn Portfolio (NYSE:NAPA) when I wrote about it the last time, as I remained concerned about the near-term uncertainties regarding the business performance outlook and the lack of a proper CEO. Based on my current outlook and analysis of NAPA, I recommend a hold…
Realpictures/iStock via Getty Images After years of outperformance against other emerging Asian markets, Indian equities are hardly undervalued. Its consumer sector, which features many of the country’s ‘feel-good’ franchises, still screens richly – since I last covered the fund, Columbia Threadneedle’s sector-focused India Consumer ETF (NYSEARCA:INCO) portfolio has de-rated slightly but remains multiple turns above…
NoDerog Investment thesis Our current investment thesis is: CHD is a high-quality business, owing to its strong portfolio of brands, which are successfully developed over time strategically, and supplemented with M&A. Growth has been extremely good for a mature business and margins are high. We see a continuation of its current trajectory. Economic conditions and…
Smile This monthly article series shows a dashboard with aggregate industry metrics in consumer staples. It may also serve as a top-down analysis of sector ETFs like the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP) and the Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF (NYSEARCA:VDC), whose largest holdings are used to calculate these metrics. Shortcut The next two…
Vitalii Petrushenko/iStock via Getty Images Investment Thesis: American Express (NYSE:AXP) is one of my favorite long-term companies within financial services and recently made a tremendous run up from the 145/share region to just over 170, a return of nearly 20% in the span of under 45 days. The company represents small business spending in the…
According to the latest CPI data published by United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, the surge in consumer prices was propelled by various factors. The shelter index, for instance, continued its upward trend, effectively offsetting a decline in the gasoline index. The energy index, witnessing a 2.3% decrease, was notably impacted by a significant 6.0%…
Lemon_tm/iStock via Getty Images Once a quarter, the St Louis Fed releases delinquency rates on consumer and business loans. With the consumer at 67.8% of GDP, this chart shows the two categories of consumer borrowings, Single-Family Mortgages and Consumer Loans with a sub-set of Credit Card debt. Commercial Loans represent the business borrowings. Excepting the…
The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) Morgan Stanley Global Consumer & Retail Conference Call December 5, 2023 3:00 PM ET Company Participants Henrique Braun – President of International Development Conference Call Participants Dara Mohsenian – Morgan Stanley Dara Mohsenian All right. Good afternoon, everyone. I’m Dara Mohsenian. I’m Morgan Stanley’s Beverage and Household Products analyst. Very pleased…
Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) Morgan Stanley Global Consumer & Retail Conference December 5, 2023 11:45 AM ET Company Participants Stan Sutula – CFO Panos Tsourapas – Group President, Europe and Developing Markets Conference Call Participants Dara Mohsenian – Analyst Dara Mohsenian Thanks, everyone, for joining us. I’m Dara Mohsenian, Morgan Stanley’s Household Products and Beverage Analyst….
Arista Networks, Inc. (NYSE:ANET) Raymond James TMT & Consumer Conference December 5, 2023 1:40 PM ET Company Participants Ita Brennan – CFO Liz Stine – IR Conference Call Participants Simon Leopold – Raymond James Simon Leopold Thank you very much folks for joining us. My name is Simon Leopold, Raymond James’ Data Infrastructure Analyst, and…
Call End: Ulta Beauty, Inc. (NASDAQ:ULTA) Raymond James 2023 TMT and Consumer Conference December 04, 2023 10:55 AM ET Company Participants Kecia Steelman – President and Chief Operating Officer Conference Call Participants Olivia Tong – Raymond James Olivia Tong Thank you everybody for being here. I’m Olivia Tong, I cover beauty, personal care, and household…
MicroStockHub/iStock via Getty Images By Jharonne Martis Historically, Cyber Monday falls on the Monday after the Black Friday weekend. Cyber Monday discounts tend to be an extension of Black Friday deals for shoppers returning to the office after a holiday weekend, eyeing merchandise online. Like Black Friday this year, Cyber Monday deals are starting earlier…
ArtistGNDphotography/E+ via Getty Images By Peter C. Earle The annual ritual known as Black Friday takes on renewed significance in 2023. This year’s shopping extravaganza will serve as a litmus test for the strength of the American consumer and, consequently, the broader health of the US economy. As citizens continue to grapple with inflationary pressures…
HJBC This monthly article series shows a dashboard with aggregate subsector metrics in Consumer Discretionary. It is also a top-down analysis of sector ETFs like Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLY) and Vanguard Consumer Discretionary ETF (NYSEARCA:VCR), whose largest holdings are used to calculate these metrics. Shortcut The next two paragraphs in italic describe…
Bitcoin bulls may be hoping that the expected CPI report may present some respite for BTC, which has struggled to maintain momentum. The general financial market is anticipating the Consumer Price Index (CPI) today to put some figures in perspective regarding the state of the economy. In addition to economic indicators, the content of the…
lechatnoir The New York Fed’s ‘Household Debt and Credit’ report for Q3 has raised some alarms, with delinquent balances rising for the quarter, particularly in consumer-centric categories like credit card debt and auto loans. Adding to concerns is the additional student loan repayment burden, which, combined with tighter rate-driven financial conditions, could place further upward…
The creator of the second largest stablecoin USDC with a market cap of about $24.7 billion announced that it will support only business institutional accounts. In a strategic move to review its relations with customers, Circle, a leading and regulated stablecoin issuer, informed its individual account holders that they will not be serviced by the…
chameleonseye PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) is set to report Q3 earnings on Wednesday, November 1st, after the market close. Consensus quarterly earnings according to Seeking Alpha are expected to be around $1.23/share with revenues growing 8% YoY to $7.4 billion. On an annualized basis, PayPal trades at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 10x, which is…
bernie_photo/iStock via Getty Images Listen below or on the go on Apple Podcasts and Spotify September personal spending tops forecasts, but incomes lagged. (0:15) Exxon Mobil (XOM) boosts its dividend. (3:14) Certain Apple Watch models to be prohibited from being imported into the U.S. (4:09) This is an abridged transcript of the podcast. Our top…
Zarina Lukash/iStock via Getty Images By Jharonne Martis Despite continued inflation, the consumer wants to celebrate the spooky season. Online Halloween merchandise is selling out on par with last year’s level, and faster than the pandemic and pre-pandemic levels. Given the mix of discounts, it looks like retailers might be able to maintain healthy margins….
Deepak Sethi ETF Profile The Columbia India Consumer ETF (NYSEARCA:INCO), with a trading history of ~12 years, and $122m in AUM offers investors exposure to around 30 Indian consumer companies. These are essentially staple and discretionary stocks, with exposure to sub-terrains such as automobiles, food and beverages, media, retail, travel and entertainment, etc. Garnering access…
Data released by the Labor Department show that CPI for September increased higher than expected, with several prices up from August. According to figures published by the Labor Department, the prices of goods and services increased quicker than expected in September. The consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.4% in September and 3.7% compared with the same period…
Khanchit Khirisutchalual A Quick Take On Criteo S.A. Criteo S.A. (NASDAQ:CRTO) is a digital marketing software and service provider for retail advertisers seeking improved connections with customers and prospects. I previously wrote about CRTO with a Buy outlook. Criteo S.A.’s Europe growth outlook is weaker than I expected and the stock’s valuation appears full at…
fotofrog Thesis The Fidelity MSCI Consumer Staples Index ETF (NYSEARCA:FSTA) is an equities exchange traded fund. The vehicle invests at least 80% of its assets in securities included in MSCI USA IMI Consumer Staples 25/50 Index, and uses a representative sampling indexing strategy. Consumer staples are considered a defensive sector in the equity market given…
JLGutierrez By James Knightley, Chief International Economist The Fed’s favoured measure of inflation undershot expectations and has boosted the case for the Fed not hiking rates in the current quarter. But huge upward revisions to houshold savings suggests the consumer can remain more resilient than we thought likely and supports the case for the Fed…
Concerns about higher interest rates can lead to reduced borrowing, higher financing costs, and a potential slowdown in economic activity. On Tuesday, September 27, the US stocks experienced a significant dip as bond yields inched up and consumer confidence declined for the second consecutive month in September. The Nasdaq Composite (INDEXNASDAQ: .IXIC), S&P 500 Index…
RealPeopleGroup/E+ via Getty Images By Blu Putnam At a glance Job openings in the United States are off their peak post-pandemic level and appear to be receding toward pre-pandemic levels. Unemployment remains under 4%, only rising a few notches in August, and is a healthy sign that more people are returning to the labor force….
William_Potter/iStock via Getty Images Student debt resumed accruing interest on September 1 and payments will be due in October. This is all over financial media with pundit’s views ranging from a crash in consumer spending to it being a complete non-event and consumption progressing as usual. Each side of the argument can even pull up…
Armstrong pointed out protocols like Truflation, Ampleforth/Spot, and Nuon that are building crucial infrastructure for the development of flatcoins in the near future. The growth of the cryptocurrency market has significantly been spearheaded by top crypto firms like exchanges, and DeFi protocols. Coinbase Global Inc (NASDAQ: COIN) has played a major role in pushing the…