Week of Oct 2 2015 Weekly Recap & The Week Ahead
“. . . Look for hysteria to see if you shouldn’t go the opposite way, but don’t go the opposite way until you have fully examined it. Also, remember that the world is always changing. Be aware of change. Buy change. You should be willing to buy or sell anything. So many people say, ‘I could never buy that kind of stock.’ ‘I could never buy utilities.’ ‘I could never play commodities.’ You should be flexible and alert to investing in anything.” — Excerpt of an interview with Jimmy Rogers
1. Shell Halts Alaska Oil Exploration — after spending $7Bil, Shell halts Alaska oil exploration after disappointing well results. Shell targeting finds it thought could be 10 times greater than the amount of oil and gas produced thus far in the North Sea. Though there were signs of oil and gas in the Burger J well in Alaska’s Chukchi Sea, they weren’t enough to warrant further production, and the well will be plugged and abandoned.
2. House Demecrats Request Subpoena For Docs on Valeant (NYSE:VRX) Drug Pricing — House Democrats want to subpoena Valeant (NYSE:VRX) for documents related to its increases in drug pricing. Valeant (NYSE:VRX) hiked the prices of Nitropress and Isuprel 212% and 525% respectively the day it bought them. Jason Chaffetz, Chairman of House’s Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, 18 Democratic representative stated,”We believe it is critical to hold drug companies to account when they engage in a business of buying old neglected drugs and turning them into high-priced specialty drugs,”. Biotech stocks sold-off on the news.
3. Senate Passes U.S. Spending Bill Hours Before Shutdown Deadline — the Senate and the House passed a short-term spending bill that will extend federal funding until December 11 and avoid a government shutdown by Sept 30’s midnight deadline. The measure comes amid a row over the financing of the women’s group Planned Parenthood. Following the votes, Republican leaders plan to start talks with President Obama about a two-year budget, although it’s unclear whether any successor to outgoing House Speaker John Boehner would be interested in such a deal. President Barack Obama has signed into law a bill that extends federal funding until December 11.
4. Chinese Manufacturing Continues To Shrink — Chinese factory activity continued to contract in September, albeit at a slightly slower pace, two surveys show. The government NBS Manufacturing PMI edged up to 49.8 from 49.7 in August, while the Caixin manufacturing PMI rose to an expected 47.2 from 47.
5. Nordstrom (JWN) Sells Credit Card Porfolio For $2.2B, Sets Buyback and Announces Special Dividend — Nordstrom has wrapped up the sale of its credit card portfolio for $2.2B in a long-term deal with TD Bank (NYSE:TD), which will be the exclusive issuer of Nordstrom (NYSE:JWN) brand Visa and private label cards. Net proceeds of the sale are about $1.8B after $325M in debt reduction, as well as transaction costs. Nordstrom’s putting the cash to work via a $1B buyback program and a $900M special dividend or $4.85 per share.
6. Market Correction Similarity Between 1011 and 2015 — chart below shows a similarity of 2011 vs 2015. We need to see more ingredients follow before we can say that a bottom has been created. A bottom is defined as a function of price & time and a level from which a multi-week up trend can begin.
- Note:
a. Correction Length –> 8 weeks
b. Low set is retested –> 2015 low SPX 1,867
c. Check MACD & ADX before going long
The week ahead — Economic data from Econoday.com:
Tags: 2011 vs 2015 Comparision, Government Shutdown, Special Dividend