Today will be the last day of the month....quite an open to the year. The SP500 is UP by 6.13% as we finish out the last market hour of the month right now. That is a KILLER start to the year. More than anyone expected after 2022. Just confirmation that you can NEVER second guess what the markets are going to do short term. I dont remember many of the so called experts preicting a booming market over the entire month of January.
I am sure this has something to do with the markets today. Wall Street rises after encouraging inflation data with Fed on deck https://finance.yahoo.com/news/futures-drop-earnings-roll-fed-125047510.html (BOLD is my opinion OR what I consider important content) "NEW YORK (Reuters) - Major U.S. stock indexes rose on Tuesday as labor cost data encouraged investors about the Federal Reserve's aggressive approach to taming inflation a day ahead of the central bank's critical policy decision. Investors also digested a full plate of earnings reports, with share declines in Caterpillar and McDonald's following their results capping gains on the Dow. U.S. labor costs increased at their slowest pace in a year in the fourth quarter as wage growth slowed, Labor Department data showed. The U.S. central bank on Wednesday is expected to hike the Fed funds rate by 25 basis points, following a 2022 in which the Fed aggressively boosted rates to control soaring inflation. "The fact that we have had goods inflation cooling, we have had housing cool, and the last shoe to drop is probably this labor services inflation – we may be getting early indications of that," said Mona Mahajan, senior investment strategist at Edward Jones. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 163.23 points, or 0.48%, to 33,880.32, the S&P 500 gained 29.51 points, or 0.73%, to 4,047.28 and the Nasdaq Composite added 107.90 points, or 0.95%, to 11,501.72. Gains were widespread, with 10 of the 11 S&P 500 sectors in positive territory, led by materials and consumer discretionary. Utilities were the lone sector logging a decline. The S&P 500 was on track to post its first increase for the month of January since 2019, following a brutal 2022 in which the benchmark index sank 19.4%. Aside from the Fed's rate decision on Wednesday, Chair Jerome Powell's news conference will be scrutinized for whether the rate-hiking cycle may be coming to a close and for signs of how long rates could stay elevated. "Jerome Powell and team are probably looking at this easing of financial conditions that has happened over the last month, and we will see if they try to push back against it to any extent," Mahajan said. "I don’t think they would want markets to move up too far, too fast either." In earnings news, Exxon Mobil Corp shares rose 2% after the oil major posted a $56 billion net profit for 2022, setting not only a company record but a historic high for the Western oil industry. United Parcel Service Inc shares climbed 4.4% after its quarterly profit topped estimates, while General Motors Co shares jumped 8% after it forecast stronger-than-expected earnings for 2023. Caterpillar Inc shares slumped over 3% as the machinery maker's fourth-quarter earnings slid by 29%. McDonald's shares slumped 1.8% after the burger chain warned inflation will weigh on margins in 2023. A busy week for markets will also include reports in coming days from Apple Inc, Amazon.com Inc and Alphabet Inc, central bank meetings in Europe and the monthly U.S. employment report. Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 4.28-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 3.11-to-1 ratio favored advancers. The S&P 500 posted 6 new 52-week highs and no new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 73 new highs and 19 new lows." MY COMMENT A good thing to see those labor cost gains slow down. Takes away some of the lingering fear of a wage/price spiral. After all...that is the real cause of out of control inflation. Although the FED has somehow gotten the idea that the stock markets ARE the economy......and....that is why then are constantly hammering the markets every time they try to rally. Some day they will catch on to the FACT that the economy is NOT the stock markets.
so yesterday the director of my unit scheduled a one-on-one call with me. naturally, my first thought was that a pink slip was waiting for me. but, no, he wanted to know if i was interested in a higher-level position. i mulled over possibly saying no i need to spend more time on stockaholics and less time working. but, i didn't. anyway, we'll see what kind of money offer he comes back with. i really don't work very hard, but my theory is that the level of work for many of my coworkers is so low that it makes me look better than i really am.
TAKE IT....but be sure to negotiate numerous breaks all though the day to check in with Stockaholics. The fact that they offered it to you shows that you are not at the level of.......The Peter Principle....yet. "The Peter principle is a concept in management developed by Laurence J. Peter, which observes that people in a hierarchy tend to rise to "a level of respective incompetence": employees are promoted based on their success in previous jobs until they reach a level at which they are no longer competent, as skills in one job do not necessarily translate to another." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_principle
A BIG end to the month today.....for me and the markets. What a great start to the year. I was ten for ten in the green today with my ten stocks. I also managed to beat the SP500 by 0.72% today to end the month. So we move on from here with a 6.60% gain for the SP500 in the can for year 2023. Lets see.....6.6% times 12 equals a year gain of 79.2% for 2023. Sounds about right to me.
After close earnings.... Stryker reports 2022 operating results and 2023 outlook (SYK) AMGEN REPORTS FOURTH QUARTER AND FULL YEAR 2022 FINANCIAL RESULTS (AMGN) Electronic Arts Reports Q3 FY23 Financial Results (EA) Snap Inc. Announces Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2022 Financial Results (SNAP) Western Digital Reports Fiscal Second Quarter 2023 Financial Results (WDC) NI Achieves Record Revenue for Q4 and Fiscal Year 2022 (NATI) Mercury Systems Reports Second Quarter Fiscal 2023 Results; Initiates Review of Strategic Alternatives (MRCY) O-I Glass Reports Full Year and Fourth Quarter 2022 Results (OI) Varex Announces Financial Results for First Quarter Fiscal Year 2023 (VREX) AMD Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2022 Financial Results (AMD) CP reports fourth-quarter results; ready to unite a continent in 2023 (CP) Juniper Networks Reports Preliminary Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2022 Financial Results (JNPR) POWELL INDUSTRIES ANNOUNCES FISCAL 2023 FIRST QUARTER RESULTS (POWL)
Before the opening earnings... Thermo Fisher Scientific Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2022 Results (TMO) WM Announces Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2022 Earnings (WM) Enterprise Reports Record 2022 Results (EPD) Dynatrace Reports Third Quarter of Fiscal Year 2023 Financial Results (DT) Evercore Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2022 Results; Quarterly Dividend of $0.72 Per Share (EVR) NuStar Energy L.P. Reports Strong Fourth Quarter and Full-Year 2022 Earnings Results (NS) Dorian LPG Ltd. Declares Irregular Cash Dividend of $1.00 Per Share and Announces Third Quarter Fiscal Year 2023 Financial Results (LPG) T-Mobile Delivers Industry-Leading Customer, Postpaid Service Revenue and Cash Flow Growth in 2022, Setting Up Strong 2023 Outlook (TMUS) BOSTON SCIENTIFIC ANNOUNCES RESULTS FOR FOURTH QUARTER AND FULL YEAR 2022 (BSX) AmerisourceBergen Reports Fiscal 2023 First Quarter Results (ABC) CGI reports strong first quarter Fiscal 2023 results (GIB) WestRock Reports Fiscal 2023 First Quarter Results (WRK) Silicon Labs Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2022 Results (SLAB) Novartis continues to grow with further core margin expansion and achieves important innovation milestones (NVS) Altria Reports 2022 Fourth-Quarter and Full-Year Results; Provides 2023 Full-Year Earnings Guidance; Announces New $1 Billion Share Repurchase Program (MO) Humana Reports Fourth Quarter 2022 Financial Results; Provides Full Year 2023 Financial Guidance (HUM) Peloton Interactive, Inc. Reports Second Quarter Fiscal 2023 Financial Results (PTON) ScottsMiracle-Gro Reports First Quarter Results (SMG)
Many of the companies that have had good earnings are simply glossed over and ignored today. It is unfortunate, but it is all about the FED today. They haven't had a mic in front of them due to the "black out" period, so we will get non-stop blabber and speaking engagements for the rest of the week. And of course the rest of the FOMC members can't be out done and will also have to travel around and speak to anyone offering a time slot for them. I also noticed the financial media is already starting the fire pit for big tech earnings. With the FED and big tech coming up they are simply in negative overdrive. So a "noisy" week is what we got. It's all like a big infomercial hoping to distract you or find a weakness that you as an investor will react to in an impulsive way. Stick to the plan that has worked for you over the long term.
The FED goes 0.25% with the next rate....for those interested. JP will now head to the press conference shortly. LOL...the media is all "breaking news" full tilt about it. Wait until they analyze his remarks.
Do you ever wonder if earning reports are worth the paper they are printed on? I'm not saying these ER are fictitious. They could well be real. My point is that everyone is doing great, despite record supply chain issues, extreme difficulties in finding staff, and various other problems that apparently are not problems at all. The lesson here is that everything is great. No need for fiscal responsibility, smooth corporate operations, or anything of this sort. It will always be great!
I can see your point. I think there have certainly been some companies that have not done as well as expected. There have also been some who have done pretty well considering the overall environment. Even some of those that have done really well have probably not done as well as they would have, minus some of the issues you mention. There are also some of these companies that are operating within sectors that may not have been as affected as others. An example might be, companies such as energy (oil, natural gas, etc) and companies that provide materials or services to those industries have probably been beneficial for each other. Travel, aviation, and associated industries had nowhere to go but up after the pandemic. Consumers out and about spending money has helped too. I think overall the total earnings have been a bit under the "normal" averages as a whole in comparison. However, when you factor in some of the things you mentioned, most have done better than expected for different reasons. So, I tend to look at the earnings over a larger time period maybe than just the current reports. These companies have navigated this for an extended period of time. I expected earnings to be a bit softer this time around, and in some cases it has been. Tech has seen some of this. We will find out more on them this week too.
Speaking of the earnings reports. I started adding some of the reports to just balance out some of the ones we always hear about and drive the news. I found many of these other companies success and/or shortfalls interesting from a larger perspective in regard to our economy as a whole. I have also found it interesting to learn about some companies I was not aware of or even some of the things they were manufacturing. It is interesting to see how some of them are intertwined into providing things to a lot of the larger industries and sectors. That being said, I do not want to clog up this thread with too many of the earnings reports just because I find them of interest. So, if anybody would like to see less of those reports, please say so. I will not be offended in the least.
A few earnings after the close.... NETGEAR® Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2022 Results (NTGR) Aflac Incorporated Announces Fourth Quarter Results, Reports Fourth Quarter Net Earnings of $185 Million, Reiterates Increase in First Quarter Cash Dividend of 5.0% (AFL) Avnet Reports Second Quarter Fiscal 2023 Financial Results (AVT) ALLEGIANT TRAVEL COMPANY FOURTH QUARTER AND FULL-YEAR 2022 FINANCIAL RESULTS (ALGT) BENCHMARK REPORTS RECORD FISCAL YEAR 2022 RESULTS (BHE) Sisecam Resources LP Announces Fourth Quarter and Year Ended 2022 Financial Results (SIRE)
And for you META holders.... Meta (META) reported its Q4 2022 earnings today after the bell, and the Facebook parent beat key revenue expectations amid a difficult ad market. Here's what the key numbers looked like, as compared to analysts' estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Q4 Revenue – $32.17 billion actual versus $31.65 billion expected Advertising Revenue – $31.25 billion actual versus $30.86 billion expected Adjusted Earnings Per Share (EPS) – $1.76 actual versus $2.26 expected Facebook Daily Active Users (DAUs) – 2 billion actual versus 1.98 billion expected Family of Apps Daily Active Users (DAUs) – 2.96 billion actual versus 2.92 billion expected Reality Labs Operating Loss – -$4.28 billion actual versus -$3.99 billion expected The company's stock bumped about 14% in after-hours trading. These numbers close out what's been an exceptionally difficult year for Meta, which also owns Instagram and WhatsApp. In 2022, the company's stock declined approximately 63% as the social media giant battled growing competition from TikTok, high inflation, and a muted digital advertising market. (Yahoo Finance).
From the looks of the weather down WXYZ's way....and he mentioned it yesterday being a possibility. Lots of folks without power in the TX region. Those ice storms can be dangerous and damaging. If so...warm thoughts and prayers sent your way W.
