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WFC | Rival sides square off over succession at U S consumer finance agency | By Patrick Rucker WASHINGTON Reuters A battle over who should run the U S Consumer Financial Protection Bureau CFPB in the coming months was set for court as Obama era holdovers sought to maintain their control over a powerful watchdog which President Donald Trump is seeking to curb CFPB staff returning to work on Monday after the U S Thanksgiving holiday break were left scratching their heads over who was in charge after outgoing director Richard Cordray formally resigned on Friday and elevated his former chief of staff Leandra English to replace him temporarily Hours later President Donald Trump sought to over rule that move by naming his budget chief Mick Mulvaney a harsh critic of the agency as acting director Trump wants Mulvaney to run the CFPB until he can get a permanent successor confirmed by the Senate a process which could take months In yet another twist late on Sunday English sued the Trump administration seeking to block Mulvaney s appointment The move means a federal court will now decide which law applies when filling a temporary leadership vacancy at the relatively new agency The unprecedented battle reflects competing visions of how to regulate the U S financial system Created in the wake of the financial crisis to protect consumers from predatory lending the CFPB is hated by Republicans who think it wields too much power and burdens banks and other lenders with unnecessary red tape President Barack Obama appointed Cordray a Democrat as the CFPB s first director and he developed a reputation for drafting aggressive rules curbing products such as payday loans while issuing multimillion dollar fines against large financial institutions like Wells Fargo N WFC In a tweet over the weekend Trump called the agency a total disaster that had devastated financial institutions He has pledged to roll back many of the Obama era financial regulations Liberal groups and consumer advocates planned a rally in front of the CFPB headquarters on Monday morning to demonstrate support for the agency AN AGENCY IN LIMBO As acting director Mulvaney would have the power to make far reaching decisions on enforcement and supervision of financial firms Trump administration officials say the president has the power to appoint an acting director under the 1998 Federal Vacancies Reform Act and in an powerful boost for them the CFPB s own general counsel Mary McLeod issued a three page memo agreeing I advise all Bureau personnel to act consistently with the understanding that Director Mulvaney is the Acting Director of the CFPB McLeod s memo dated November 25 stated Such advice will stick in the throats of many CFPB staffers Mulvaney once described the agency as a sad sick joke and tried to get rid of it when he was a lawmaker in the House of Representatives English alluded to Mulvaney s views on the CFPB in her lawsuit She has argued that the 2010 Dodd Frank Wall Street reform law that created the CFPB stipulated that its deputy director would take over on an interim basis when a director departs Cordray named English as deputy director and said she would become the acting director The CFPB was the brainchild of Elizabeth Warren a Democratic senator and liberal firebrand Over the weekend lawmakers from both parties lined up to give opposing views of its role Dick Durbin the U S Senate s No 2 Democrat told CNN on Sunday that Wall Street hates it like the devil hates holy water While the legal battle rages the CFPB s enforcement work will be put in limbo Anything that the agency does or fails to do could be subject to challenge until this cloud is removed said Harvard Law School professor Laurence Tribe The CFPB was preparing to sue Santander MC SAN as early as this week alleging that the Spanish bank overcharged borrowers on auto loans two sources familiar with the plans told Reuters last week It was not clear if that lawsuit will now go ahead The agency s rule making ability has already been halted by the Republican controlled Congress which last month killed a CFPB rule that had allowed borrowers to join together to sue lenders
Even if English prevails Trump s permanent nominee is expected to neutralize much of the CFPB s work Some of the names mentioned by lobbyists as potential permanent successors to Cordray include Republican Representatives Jeb Hensarling and French Hill both CFPB critics |
WFC | Trump installed consumer agency head sets hiring freeze halts new rules | By Patrick Rucker and Richard Cowan WASHINGTON Reuters The fight for control of the U S consumer watchdog agency intensified on Monday as Mick Mulvaney President Donald Trump s pick to run the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau CFPB imposed a hiring freeze and halted any new regulations In a partisan showdown over the CFPB which was created to crack down on predatory financial practices Mulvaney is being sued by Leandra English an Obama era appointee to the agency who argues that she is the consumer bureau s rightful leader The conflict began on Friday when Richard Cordray a Democrat appointed CFPB director by then President Barack Obama formally resigned and named English his chief of staff as acting director Hours later Trump named Mulvaney the current director of the White House budget office as temporary head of the CFPB The Republican president has a right to name a permanent CFPB director officials agree There are dueling claims however about who gets to lead the agency in the meantime Both sides presented their arguments during an emergency U S District Court hearing in Washington on Monday Timothy Kelly a Trump appointed judge who is presiding over the case said the issues raised were extremely important and complicated The judge as well as the two sides said they hoped to see the case decided within the next few days The next step is for the Trump administration to submit its response to English s suit The fight to control the 1 600 employee agency lays bare deep divisions between Republicans and Democrats over how to regulate Wall Street and protect consumers following the 2007 2009 financial crisis that cost taxpayers 700 billion in bailouts Republicans loathe the CFPB saying it wields too much power and burdens banks and other lenders with unnecessary red tape Mulvaney who sought to dismantle the CFPB when he was a Republican congressman acknowledged at a news briefing on Monday afternoon that the Trump administration had a dramatically different interpretation of the 2010 Dodd Frank law that created the CFPB He said there would be a 30 day freeze on hiring at the agency and no payments from the CFPB s civil penalties fund for that amount of time as well except as required legally All new regulations would also be frozen he said The president has made it very clear he wants me here I want to be here I don t want anything coming out of here that I don t know about Mulvaney said DUELING ACTING DIRECTORS Earlier on Monday English welcomed staff back from the Thanksgiving holiday in a morning email and signed off as acting director Around the same time Mulvaney arrived at Cordray s former office bringing doughnuts for the staff Please disregard any instructions you receive from Ms English in her presumed capacity as Acting Director he wrote in an all staff email seen by Reuters that he also signed acting director Mulvaney advised staff members to inform the agency s general counsel if they heard additional communications from English As Mulvaney was getting settled in a source told Reuters CFPB general counsel Mary McLeod sent a memo agreeing with the U S Justice Department that Trump had the power to appoint Mulvaney as temporary leader of the watchdog English went to the CFPB in the morning according to her lawyer She then met on Capitol Hill with Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren who conceived the CFPB English told reporters that Mulvaney has no authority at the agency Schumer said on the Senate floor that the Dodd Frank law which he helped to write set up a clear succession process for the CFPB that made English the acting director Schumer said Mulvaney was chosen by the Trump administration simply to rock the agency from the inside Trump campaigned for president saying Wall Street gets away with murder but he also promised to defang or abolish the CFPB Since taking office Trump has tried to undo a number of his Democratic predecessor s initiatives mostly notably the 2010 Affordable Care Act that the Republican controlled Congress has been unable to repeal and replace Cordray developed a reputation for drafting aggressive rules curbing products such as payday loans while issuing multimillion dollar fines against large financial institutions such as Wells Fargo Co N WFC Stock prices of major U S banks are trading near all time highs The KBW Bank Index BKX has more than doubled since July 2011 when the CFPB opened for business The drama over the CFPB came as the Senate was preparing to consider a bill that would significantly ease rules on some banks for the first time since the financial crisis
Moderate Democrats and Republicans have come out in support of the package aimed primarily at smaller and mid sized banks but analysts warned the CFPB fight could imperil that compromise The Senate Banking Committee is supposed to take up the bill next week |
CMCSA | Former NBA star Shaquille O Neal joins Papa John s board | By Jessica DiNapoli and Aishwarya Venugopal Reuters Pizza chain Papa John s International Inc trying to recover from a string of high profile public relations blunders on Friday named former basketball star Shaquille O Neal as its newest board member brand ambassador and investor The move highlights the restaurant chain s attempts to fix its image after its founder John Schnatter reportedly used a racial slur on a media training conference call last year Schnatter stepped down as chairman of the Papa John s board last summer but still holds approximately 30 percent of the company s shares and has been feuding with the chain over control O Neal a popular product pitchman who was one of the National Basketball Association s best players in his prime will invest in nine of the company s restaurants in the Atlanta area where he lives The star who also owns a Krispy Kreme doughnut franchise in Atlanta and chicken restaurant Big Chicken in Las Vegas will be paid 8 25 million for his endorsement This is a triple threat opportunity for me said O Neal who played on four championship teams during his 19 year career in a statement I am excited to join the board and to help lead from the top A representative for Schnatter said the founder declined to comment on O Neal s appointment to the board Papa John s shares were up nearly 4 percent in mid day trade This is one more step in the evolution of the company the brand and our people said Papa John s Chief Executive Steve Ritchie in an interview with Reuters With Shaq on the board it s a big final step for turning the page for the company Papa John s first linked up with O Neal shortly before the Super Bowl in February when the restaurant chain sponsored an event he hosted in Atlanta Ritchie said O Neal said he was interested in becoming a franchisee and as Papa John s was looking to add racial diversity to its corporate board he became a candidate as a new director Ritchie said With expertise in restaurants and marketing Shaq checks all these boxes Ritchie said O Neal s directorship on the Papa John s board is his first on a publicly traded company He is also the pizza chain s first African American director Papa John s competitor Pizza Hut owned by Yum Brands Inc replaced it as sponsor for the National Football League last year Schnatter resigned as CEO in late 2017 after drawing criticism for comments he made about NFL leadership O Neal is among the several new directors added to the 12 member Papa John s board this year including Chairman Jeff Smith the chief executive officer of Starboard Value LP Starboard earlier this year unveiled an investment of up to 250 million in Papa John s To counter bad publicity Papa John s removed Schnatter as the brand s spokesperson and from its marketing materials and pizza boxes In March the company said Schnatter was leaving the board as part of a settlement resolving the bitter dispute and would find a mutually acceptable independent director who would not be affiliated with the founder or hedge fund investor Starboard That director has not yet been named
O Neal is known for his affable nature and appearing in ads for everything from Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA and Icy Hot balm to Radio Shack and Burger King during his playing days After retiring from the sport he continues to appear regularly promoting Gold Bond powder and the Carnival NYSE CCL cruise line |
CMCSA | Comcast CMCSA Q2 Earnings Top Estimates | Comcast CMCSA came out with quarterly earnings of 0 78 per share beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 0 75 per share This compares to earnings of 0 65 per share a year ago These figures are adjusted for non recurring items
This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of 4 A quarter ago it was expected that this cable provider would post earnings of 0 66 per share when it actually produced earnings of 0 76 delivering a surprise of 15 15
Over the last four quarters the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates four times
Comcast which belongs to the Zacks Cable Television industry posted revenues of 26 86 billion for the quarter ended June 2019 missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1 20 This compares to year ago revenues of 21 74 billion The company has topped consensus revenue estimates two times over the last four quarters
The sustainability of the stock s immediate price movement based on the recently released numbers and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management s commentary on the earnings call
Comcast shares have added about 31 8 since the beginning of the year versus the S P 500 s gain of 20 5
What s Next for Comcast
While Comcast has outperformed the market so far this year the question that comes to investors minds is what s next for the stock
There are no easy answers to this key question but one reliable measure that can help investors address this is the company s earnings outlook Not only does this include current consensus earnings expectations for the coming quarter s but also how these expectations have changed lately
Empirical research shows a strong correlation between near term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions Investors can track such revisions by themselves or rely on a tried and tested rating tool like the Zacks Rank which has an impressive track record of harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions
Ahead of this earnings release the estimate revisions trend for Comcast was mixed While the magnitude and direction of estimate revisions could change following the company s just released earnings report the current status translates into a Zacks Rank 3 Hold for the stock So the shares are expected to perform in line with the market in the near future You can see the complete list of today s Zacks 1 Rank Strong Buy stocks here
It will be interesting to see how estimates for the coming quarters and current fiscal year change in the days ahead The current consensus EPS estimate is 0 75 on 27 74 billion in revenues for the coming quarter and 3 03 on 110 84 billion in revenues for the current fiscal year
Investors should be mindful of the fact that the outlook for the industry can have a material impact on the performance of the stock as well In terms of the Zacks Industry Rank Cable Television is currently in the top 19 of the 250 plus Zacks industries Our research shows that the top 50 of the Zacks ranked industries outperform the bottom 50 by a factor of more than 2 to 1 |
WFC | Wells Fargo fires consumer lending chief Codel | Wells Fargo NYSE WFC says it has dismissed Senior VP Franklin Codel head of its consumer lending business effective immediately WFC says Codel acted in a manner that was contrary to the company s policies and expectations of its senior leaders during a communication he had with a former team member regarding that team member s earlier termination WFC expects to announce a permanent successor to head consumer lending by year end in the meantime the heads of consumer lending s four main lines of business will report to President and CEO Tim Sloan Now read |
WFC | Reuters poll Major U S tax cuts not likely this year economists | By Indradip Ghosh and Rahul Karunakar
BENGALURU Reuters U S Republicans are not expected to push major tax cuts through Congress this year according to a majority of economists in a Reuters poll who in any case were skeptical that the legislation would provide a significant boost to the economy
While optimism about a tax overhaul has helped push the U S stock market up for most of this year the administration of President Donald Trump a Republican is still seeking its first major legislative win after almost a year in office
Skepticism about major tax cuts has been growing over the past two weeks causing share prices to wobble
The House of Representatives on Thursday approved a package of tax reductions estimated to raise the federal deficit by nearly 1 5 trillion over a decade The Senate where the Republican majority is slimmer will be the focus for debate
Nearly two thirds of the more than 60 economists who answered an extra question in the Nov 13 17 poll which mostly took place before the tax cuts passed the House said they were not confident the administration would get the legislation passed this year
We feel that if it does pass next year it is likely to be less ambitious and more focused on temporary cuts than reform Ajay Rajadhyaksha head of macro research at Barclays LON BARC wrote in a note
The effect of tax cuts would probably be muted because of a lack of wage growth and a high level of employment he added
In a Reuters poll last month a strong majority of economists said the U S economy did not need a big fiscal stimulus at this late stage of the business cycle
This month s poll of more than 100 economists showed most respondents had upgraded their near term forecasts for the U S economy which they expect to grow just above the roughly 2 percent trend rate over the next two years but with muted inflation
When asked what the economy needs most the top pick was increased infrastructure spending Nearly as many said the United States ought to join the Trans Pacific Partnership trade agreement Trump pulled the nation out of negotiations just days after becoming president as those choosing tax cuts
It is hard to say with any level of confidence until we see a final plan for tax cuts what really are the benefits to the economic outlook said Sam Bullard senior economist at Wells Fargo NYSE WFC in Charlotte North Carolina
If we don t get one clearly there would be a response from the financial markets to a failure to not pass some kind of tax legislation But if we get it it would support the glass half full levels of sentiment we have seen
In the meantime most respondents did not expect the core PCE price index the Federal Reserve s preferred gauge of inflation to reach the central bank s target until the second quarter of 2019
At last measure it was no higher than it was just before the Fed first started raising interest rates from zero nearly two years ago
The poll still showed the Fed raising rates by 25 basis points more to 1 25 1 50 percent in December with two increases next year less than the three the central bank is projecting
UNLIKELY RECESSION
While there are few signs of any economic slowdown in broad economic data the current cycle is mature Movements in the U S government bond market have grabbed attention in recent weeks as well suggesting some kind of slowdown may be at hand
Two year U S Treasury yields have hit a nine year high on expectations for higher interest rates but a weak inflation outlook has pushed the yield curve to its flattest in a decade
The gap between two year US2YT RR and 10 year US10YT RR yields contracted to just above 63 basis points on Thursday That was the tightest since November 2007 not long before the last recession took hold
While the current yield curve is not inverted which is often viewed as a recessionary warning sign it has flattened by more than 60 basis points in less than a year
Economists polled by Reuters gave only a median 10 percent chance of a U S recession over the coming year The highest probability provided was 40 percent
Wells Fargo s Bullard said economic data had been strengthening over the past couple of quarters
That is certainly supportive to sustained moderate U S economic expansion Bullard said But yet financial markets at least the yield curve are reflecting something that suggests that maybe there are some signals out there that need to be paid attention to and clearly not everything is right
For other stories from the Reuters global long term economic outlook polls package
Additional reporting and polling by Shrutee Sarkar and Mumal Rathore Editing by Ross Finley and Lisa Von Ahn |
WFC | Wells Fargo consumer lending head axed after disparaging regulators source | By Dan Freed and Patrick Rucker NEW YORK WASHINGTON Reuters Wells Fargo NYSE WFC Co announced on Friday it fired its head of consumer lending a move that people familiar with the matter said was because he disparaged a bank regulator to a fired employee The abrupt departure of Franklin Codel Wells Fargo s head of consumer lending came as the bank grapples with the fallout from a sales scandal in which thousands of employees enrolled perhaps millions of customers in products they did not want or need The fired employee Greg Gwizdz reported Codel s comments to Wells Fargo which then fired Codel one of the people said Gwizdz a former mortgage sales executive was fired by Wells Fargo several months ago for a number of issues according to Wells Fargo spokesman Tom Goyda A call to Gwizdz was answered by a woman who said she was his wife and who declined to take a message A call to Codel s home was not returned Wells Fargo is now subject to tighter regulatory oversight and faces ongoing probes and lawsuits due to the scandal As a result once top Wells Fargo executives became aware of Codel s comments they felt they needed to take action one of the sources said After being promoted as part of a broader management shakeup last year Codel had become a key executive in the bank s effort to make things right with customers and fix operational flaws that led to a hard charging sales culture In announcing the dismissal earlier on Friday Wells Fargo said it expects to name a replacement by year end Codel forfeited more than 61 000 stock options and nearly 16 000 restricted shares according to securities filings Friday Goyda said the forfeitures were in connection with his firing The conversation between Gwizdz and Codel was about compensation Wells Fargo withheld from Gwizdz according to one of the people familiar with the matter As part of a 190 million settlement Wells Fargo reached with regulators in September 2016 payouts to departing employees must be cleared by the Comptroller of the Currency OCC and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp FDIC They have approved payouts for hundreds of former Wells Fargo employees since that time but have disagreed on a handful of executives The decision process can sometimes take months frustrating former employees waiting for deferred stock or severance It was not clear however whether Gwizdz would have been entitled to a payout since he was fired by the bank Goyda declined to comment on the bank s policies regarding employees fired for cause Bryan Hubbard spokesman for the OCC said the regulator does not comment on banks personnel matters A call to FDIC spokesman David Barr was not immediately returned In Friday s announcement Wells Fargo said it dismissed Codel because his behavior was contrary to the company s policies and expectations of its senior leaders during a communication he had with a former team member regarding that team member s earlier termination Goyda declined to elaborate on the communication We hold our executives to high standards regardless of the regulatory environment and if something was done that was improper that would have applied regardless of the scrutiny that we re under he told Reuters in a statement Wells Fargo the third largest U S bank by assets has been mired in scandal since the settlement which involved thousands of employees enrolling customers into credit card and deposit accounts without their knowledge to meet sales targets Since then it has faced more lawsuits and probes and detailed more sales practice issues in other businesses The number of phony accounts has grown to as many as 3 5 million Codel had been overseeing efforts to fix problems related to auto lending and mortgages that Wells Fargo unveiled in August The mortgage issue related to inconsistent application of policies regarding interest rate lock extensions was one of the reasons Gwizdz was fired Goyda said People who know Codel described him as an ethical person who had a careless interaction with a former employee Wells Fargo Chief Executive Tim Sloan described it as a difficult situation in the company statement Sloan will be the boss of Codel s direct reports until a replacement is found Those reports include Michael DeVito interim head of Wells Fargo Home Lending Laura Schupbach head of Wells Fargo Dealer Services John Rasmussen head of personal lending and Laurie Nordquist head of personal and small business insurance |
WFC | Hackers Have Lots of Ways to Ruin a Bitcoin Trader s Day Gadfly | Bloomberg Gadfly Saying Bitcoin is un hackable is of small comfort to those who ve lost money through cracks in its ecosystem of exchanges intermediaries and money raising schemes
The latest theft in cryptoland is a reminder that the promise of security and liquidity is only that a promise This isn t a systemic shock in the league of the Mt Gox bitcoin exchange collapse but it s a warning that transparency and trust are rare commodities in this world
The size and scope of the attack are small by historic standards hence why Bitcoin s price bounced back to 8 200 after sinking to about 7 800 About 31 million was stolen from Tether a Bitcoin peer that issues U S dollar backed tokens for easier trading on crypto exchanges and sent to what the company calls an unauthorized bitcoin address That s more manageable than the collapse of Mt Gox hacked for 450 million or last year s 65 million theft at another exchange Bitfinex
But the Tether raid shouldn t be dismissed
It s one example of how quickly a cryptocurrency s glitzy promise of instant liquidity and top flight security can be shattered Tether is a Top 20 digital currency which built its name on combining both cryptographic security and real world monetary value Every Tether is supposed to be backed 1 to 1 by a corresponding hard currency meaning that crypto exchanges and traders can trade it as a U S dollar proxy safe in the knowledge that it will always be redeemable if the need arises The best of both worlds as Tether put it
But in practice it looks more like the worst of both worlds Already before the hack Tether s legal small print made clear that its tokens were neither money nor stored value nor currency Redemption wasn t guaranteed
Jittery banks didn t help with Tether warning this year that its Taiwanese lenders had blocked all incoming international wires since April The hack is drying up another pool of crypto liquidity Several exchanges say they re suspending Tether transactions according to news website Bitcoin com
There s more One part of Tether s story yet to be fully explained is its link to Bitfinex an exchange that was itself hacked last year Tethers can be used on Bitfinex as a withdrawal and deposit method for crypto users a kind of substitute for the traditional banking system
But the two companies have other ties They filed a lawsuit together against U S bank Wells Fargo NYSE WFC Co over those aforementioned frozen international transfers according to American Banker magazine fueling speculation that they re linked through ownership So Tether s wider impact could hit both general liquidity on crypto exchanges and any companies with which it has ties
The risks of trading cryptocurrencies are well known as are the rewards
This hack has done little to halt Bitcoin s speculative price bubble and Wall Street is still watching closely But the next big hack might not be so easy to digest especially with the arrival of bitcoin futures trading that will make it easier to pile on bearish bets This is a timely warning
This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bloomberg LP and its owners
Lionel Laurent is a Bloomberg Gadfly columnist covering finance and markets He previously worked at Reuters and Forbes |
WFC | U S homes sales accelerate supply still a constraint | By Lucia Mutikani WASHINGTON Reuters U S home sales increased more than expected in October as hurricane related disruptions eased but a chronic shortage of houses which is pushing prices beyond the reach of some first time buyers remains an obstacle The National Association of Realtors said on Tuesday that existing home sales rose 2 0 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5 48 million units last month The NAR said sales in Houston and Jacksonville regions which bore the brunt of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma had rebounded Sales in South Florida however remained weak last month The Realtors group said it expected activity in the areas affected by the storms to fully recover by the end of the year While this summer s storms undoubtedly took some steam out of the housing market the greater problem remains the general lack of inventory said Mark Vitner a senior economist at Wells Fargo NYSE WFC Securities in Charlotte North Carolina People simply are not moving as much as they used to Existing home sales make up about 90 percent of U S home sales They fell 0 9 percent on a year on year basis in October and remained well below a 10 year high 5 70 million unit pace touched in March Economists had forecast home sales rising 0 7 percent from September to a 5 42 million unit rate last month October marked two straight months of increases There are concerns that an effort by Republicans in the U S Congress to overhaul the tax code could undermine the housing market Republicans in the House of Representatives have proposed allowing interest payment deductions on mortgage debt only up to 500 000 and only on a primary residence Their colleagues in the Senate want to keep the existing limit at 1 million but eliminate the deduction of interest on home equity loans We just hope the tax cut plans are not too radical and end up scaring the consumer and make the purchase of a new home even less affordable after taxes said Chris Rupkey chief economist at MUFG in New York The PHLX housing index HGX was trading higher in line with a broadly firmer stock market The dollar slipped against a basket of currencies while prices for U S Treasuries rose LIMITED BUYING OPTIONS The South which accounts for almost half of the existing homes sales market recorded a 1 9 percent increase in sales last month There were also gains in sales in the Northeast Midwest and West regions Home sales remain constrained by an acute shortage of properties which is exerting upward pressure on house prices and sidelining some first time buyers who accounted for 32 percent of transactions last month Economists and realtors say a 40 percent share of first time buyers is needed for a robust housing market The number of previously owned homes on the market fell 3 2 percent to 1 80 million units in October a seven month low Supply was down 10 4 percent from a year ago Housing inventory has dropped for 29 straight months on a year on year basis At October s sales pace it would take 3 9 months to exhaust the current inventory down from 4 2 months in September A six month supply is viewed as a healthy balance between supply and demand As a result the median house price increased 5 5 percent from a year ago to 247 000 in October That was the 68th consecutive month of year on year price gains In contrast annual wage growth has struggled to break above 2 9 percent since the 2007 09 recession ended Roughly half of what s available to buy is priced in the upper one third of home values leaving scant options for those aging millennials and young families trying to get their foot in the door said Svenja Gudell chief economist at Zillow Builders have failed to plug the inventory gap citing land and labor shortages as well as expensive raw materials A report last week showed housing starts surged 13 7 percent to a 1 290 million unit pace in October Housing completions increased 12 6 percent to a rate of 1 232 million units last month the highest level since February 2008
Realtors estimate that housing starts and completions need to be in a range of 1 5 million to 1 6 million units to bridge the inventory shortfall Homes sold in October typically stayed on the market for 34 days down from 41 days a year ago |
WFC | Tether Theft Isn t the First Controversy for Cryptocurrency Firm | Bloomberg The latest victim of a high profile theft in the world of cryptocurrencies isn t a stranger to controversy
Tether Ltd disclosed Tuesday on its website that a malicious attacker swiped 31 million in tokens from its so called Tether Treasury wallet on Nov 19 and sent them to an unauthorized bitcoin address The firm which issues what it calls U S dollar backed tokens with the purpose of easing trading on crypto exchanges says it s trying to prevent the stolen coins from being used
Skepticism had already been building around Tether after the Hong Kong incorporated company said in April that U S dollar wire exchanges of funds had been blocked That fueled concern about whether the tokens were fully backed by fiat currencies Critics have also raised questions about Tether s relationship with Bitfinex an online exchange that has also been hacked
Tether has sought to position itself at the center of the crypto ecosystem by helping online exchanges facilitate trades using currencies like the dollar euro and yen Anti money laundering and know your customer rules have prevented many bitcoin exchanges from opening bank accounts needed to hold fiat currencies With a market capitalization of about 675 million tether is the world s 20th most valuable virtual currency according to data from Coinmarketcap com
The utility of the tokens may be the largest question surrounding tether On the legal section of its website Tether says it s not obligated to let customers exchange their tokens for dollars
Read more on how bitcoin fell after the tether hack was disclosed
Tethers are not money and are not monetary instruments the company says There is no contractual right or other right or legal claim against us to redeem or exchange your tethers for money We do not guarantee any right of redemption or exchange of tethers by us for money
Tether and Bitfinex which have worked together since at least 2014 sued Wells Fargo NYSE WFC Co in April after the bank cut off access to U S dollar wire transfers which the companies say they relied on to send money back to customers The companies voluntarily dismissed the action against Wells Fargo less than a week after it was filed
Tether s roots go back to a Santa Monica California based digital currency startup called realcoin which rebranded itself in November 2014 Among its founders was Brock Pierce a former child actor who starred in The Mighty Ducks who also started Blockchain Capital a San Francisco based venture capital firm |
CMCSA | Newly joined NBC and Sky to launch joint golf coverage at Players | By Hilary Russ NEW YORK Reuters NBC Sports Group and Sky Sports are set to announce on Monday that they are planning the most extensive television coverage ever of the Players Championship golf tournament their biggest collaborative foray on sports coverage since Comcast Corp NASDAQ CMCSA took over Sky last fall NBC and Sky plan to swap analysts and some other content as part of their extensive coverage this week at the Players Championship in Florida the PGA Tour s flagship event This is now the most comprehensive collaboration between NBC Sports and Sky Sports to date There will be more going forward Mike McCarley President of Golf for NBC Sports Group told Reuters Among other joint programming the channels are set to launch later on Monday Sky will air nearly 25 hours of live simulcast coverage of Golf Central Live from this week s tournament The U S based cable company Comcast which owns NBCUniversal and its Golf Channel won a bidding war in September with a 40 billion offer for 39 percent of the European pay TV group Sky Ltd The two networks first began talking about how they could make sports coverage more efficient and collaborative at the Ryder Cup in September Both companies decided to focus first on golf and the English Premier League two sports in which we had a shared significant investment McCarley said It s not the easiest process to get through but everyone comes to the table with the right spirit of collaboration he said of the post merger evolution
The Players Championship marks the first big event of the pro golf year now that the tournament has been moved back to March from May for the first time since 2006 as part of a calendar overhaul aimed at improving the season |
CMCSA | NBCUniversal Sky team up to expand global advertising product | By Sheila Dang Reuters Comcast Corp NASDAQ CMCSA is pooling the advertising power of its NBCUniversal and British based Sky units to better target viewers worldwide it said on Monday a major step by the top U S cable TV provider to transform itself into a global media leader The initiative would allow global advertisers to target specific households based on their interests widely seen as the future of TV advertising It comes ahead of an important ad sales period in May called the upfronts when major U S networks including NBC will tout upcoming shows and advertising technology in hopes of selling commercial time in advance of the next television season The AdSmart service offers the strengths of NBCUniversal s artificial intelligence in media planning and Sky s long experience in targeting ads to households based on their interests Comcast paid 40 billion for Sky a satellite TV broadband and mobile operator in September to fuel global growth and counter declines in U S cable TV subscribers The service would ultimately allow global advertisers to automatically place ads on the most relevant shows and measure the results across NBCUniversal and Sky s TV and digital platforms as advertising becomes more global The strategy is no longer country by country or market by market said Jamie West group director of advanced advertising for Sky in an interview It eases the friction of purchasing across NBCUniversal and Sky Showing viewers ads that more closely match their interests improves the viewing experience and is ultimately better for marketers said Linda Yaccarino chairman of advertising sales and client partnerships for NBCUniversal in an interview NBCUniversal which includes CNBC and U S Spanish language network Telemundo uses AI to scan scenes in a TV show to place an ad in the optimal spot a strategy called contextual alignment For example if a TV show depicts a flooded home the AI powered system could insert an ad for a home insurance provider |
WFC | Wells Fargo repays 5 4 million for repossessing service members cars | By Jonathan Stempel Reuters Wells Fargo Co N WFC has repaid another 5 4 million to about 450 military service members whose vehicles it repossessed illegally the U S Department of Justice said on Tuesday The third largest U S bank has now repaid about 10 2 million to roughly 860 service members and their co borrowers for improper repossessions under a settlement announced in September 2016 Other violations covered by that settlement were discovered more recently leading to the latest payout the Justice Department said Wells Fargo was also fined 20 million in September 2016 by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency in a related case The OCC had cited the San Francisco based lender for violations of the federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act from 2006 to 2016 It said the violations included exceeding a 6 percent interest rate cap on loans failing to accurately disclose service members active duty status to courts and failing to obtain court orders before conducting repossessions In a statement Wells Fargo spokeswoman Natalie Brown said the 5 4 million payout came as part of our commitment to a comprehensive ongoing account review process and as part of our consent order work Wells Fargo has for more than a year been addressing fallout from a variety of practices including its creation of potentially millions of unauthorized customer accounts
In August it agreed to pay the U S government 108 million to settle a whistleblower lawsuit accusing it of charging military veterans hidden fees to refinance mortgages and concealing those fees when seeking federal loan guarantees |
WFC | Wells Fargo CFO says not worried about consumer credit | By Dan Freed Reuters Wells Fargo NYSE WFC Co s chief financial officer said on Wednesday he is not worried that consumers are struggling to pay their debts CFO John Shrewsberry speaking at an industry conference said banks have been very competitive in trying to get consumers to use their credit cards but the easy availability of credit has not yet led to a meaningful rise in defaults That s probably at the margin where excess leverage will show up I don t think it s happened yet he said Consumer defaults hit a multiyear high in May 2009 partly leading to the financial crisis and have been roughly flat since May 2015 according to data from S P Experian Since consumer credit moves in cycles and some lenders have become more aggressive analysts are worried defaults could move higher Wells Fargo has sharply cut back auto loans and Shrewsberry said while the market heats and cools on a daily cycle used car prices are reasonable so lenders losses will not be serious if consumers default I don t think banks incidentally are going to get the worst if auto credit goes sideways I think that will be finance companies more likely he said Regarding mortgages Wells Fargo is focused mainly on prime jumbo loans which are unlikely to default while home equity loan activity is very slow he said Wells loan balances declined in the third quarter but Shrewsberry said a sales scandal at the lender that erupted slightly more than a year ago has not changed its appetite for credit risk Wells is still working to convince investors it has gotten past the scandal which involved the creation of as many as 3 5 million fake accounts Wells shares dipped 0 1 percent to 54 |
CMCSA | NBA U S Tennis Sky urge U S action on alleged Saudi TV piracy | DOHA Reuters A group of sports bodies and broadcasters including the U S National Basketball Association U S Tennis Association and Sky has called for the United States to add Saudi Arabia to its priority watch list over alleged TV piracy filings show The filings made this week with the office of the United States Trade Representative come as a growing number of global sports and television bodies look to shut down beoutQ a TV station they claim is based in Saudi Arabia and broadcasting sports and entertainment they hold exclusive rights for BeoutQ emerged in 2017 after Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies launched a diplomatic and trade boycott of Qatar which it accused of supporting terrorism which Doha denies saying the boycott seeks to curtail its sovereignty The channel is widely available in Saudi Arabia Riyadh however says beoutQ it is not based in the country and that Saudi authorities are committed to fighting piracy While initially targeting lucrative sports content held by Qatar s beIN Sports such as Premier League soccer some broadcasters say the network has since expanded to include entertainment and is now reaching users in Europe undercutting the value of their television rights In its filing Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA Corp s Sky said the service has rapidly grown and we understand that beoutQ set top boxes are now sold across the MENA region and the beoutQ channels are now also available in Europe MENA refers to the Middle East and North Africa In addition the beoutQ devices provide direct access to applications offering unauthorized access to many thousands of premium television channels including channels owned by Sky Group companies across Europe and carrying content in which Sky has invested billions of Euros it said It is unclear who owns or operates beoutQ and Reuters has not been able to contact it for comment The Special 301 Report on Intellectual Property Rights is an annual report in which the United States highlights the countries it considers the worst offenders of intellectual property rights A spokesman for the U S Trade Representative declined to comment Other organizations that filed complaints include Canal beIN Media Group and MIRAMAX a sports coalition that includes Major League Baseball the National Football League and the U S Chamber of Commerce The Saudi government media office did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on the filings Saudi Arabia the United Arab Emirates Bahrain and Egypt cut diplomatic trade and transport ties with Qatar in June 2017 The row has since defied mediation efforts by Kuwait and the United States which sees Gulf unity as essential to containing Iran
The Trump administration announced its 2018 priority watch list last April and added Saudi Arabia to its less serious watch list over similar concerns |
WFC | Master limited partnerships poised for bounce but could be short lived | By Chuck Mikolajczak NEW YORK Reuters Master limited partnerships MLPs have been beaten down in 2017 but conditions may be turning in their favor for a short term bounce by year end An MLP is a limited partnership that is publicly traded and as such enjoys the benefits of paying no tax at the company level as well as the liquidity that comes with being traded on a major stock exchange They generally deal in the production processing storage and transport of commodities such as oil and natural gas which makes them sensitive to fluctuations in the price of the underlying commodity A high dividend yield also makes them attractive in low interest rate environments But there has been a dislocation this year as WTI and Brent crude oil have climbed about 20 percent since the end of August yet MLPs have yet to follow suit If you told me what oil did interest rates did credit spreads all of these things so far this year I would say MLPs should be up 10 percent this year said Jack Ablin chief investment officer at BMO Private Bank in Chicago Oil prices going above 55 a barrel interest rates remaining pretty low U S oil production seems to be pretty strong if you take those factors and triangulate then MLPs should be a lot higher A recent Reuters poll showed oil will likely rally into 2018 with periods of volatility as an anticipated extension of OPEC led output restrictions offsets higher U S production The Alerian MLP Index AMZ is down more than 4 percent since Aug 31 and nearly 15 percent for the year despite the climb in oil prices That lags well behind the gain of more than 4 percent in the broad S P 500 SPX since Aug 31 and 15 percent gain for the year That decline has made MLPs cheap and coupled with their high dividend yields in a low interest rate environment should make them attractive to investors The average dividend yield of the Alerian index is 7 8 percent according to Thomson Reuters data Enbridge Energy Partners EEP N and Suburban Propane Partners SPH N are among the highest yielding stocks in the index with dividend yields of over 9 5 percent You buy things that are cheap that have good income you sit there and collect your dividend checks and kind of wait it out said Stephen Massocca senior vice president at Wedbush Securities in San Francisco Fortunately you get these big dividends and it offsets a lot of the pain One factor that could work against MLPs could be seasonality as investors begin to engage in tax loss selling by the end of the year when investors dump underperforming stocks in order to reduce or negate capital gains taxes The Alerian index has also become less correlated with oil prices themselves with a 50 day correlation of negative 0 66 to U S crude the biggest disconnect in four years So as oil prices have increased MLPs have gone in the other direction That could indicate investors are not convinced oil prices will continue to rally You get into these bear super cycles these long periods where it is really hard for prices to get going because there is just too much supply everywhere and it doesn t go away said John LaForge Head of Real Asset Strategy at Wells Fargo NYSE WFC Investment Institute in Sarasota Florida If oil prices are not going to be headed above 60 and staying above 60 the growth profile for more and more projects just isn t there and I m not going to bid up an MLP
This version of the story corrects paragraph 10 to change average dividend yield of the Alerian index to 7 8 percent from 7 9 and EEP and SPH dividend yields to over 9 5 percent from 16 08 percent and 14 47 percent and to say they are among the highest yielding not the highest yielding |
WFC | Muni market breathes sigh of relief over Senate tax plan | By Karen Pierog Laila Kearney and Stephanie Kelly CHICAGO NEW YORK Reuters The U S Senate Republican tax bill helped soothe nerves in the municipal bond market on Friday just over a week after the House of Representatives proposed changes that would decrease its future supply of tax free debt While House Republicans sought to remove federal tax exemption for private activity bonds PABs an outline of the Senate s proposal released late on Thursday does not include that provision among its list of revenue raisers When the Senate s plan came out with no change to the tax exemption for private activity bonds I think it gave the market a chance to take a sigh of relief said Alan Schankel a managing director at Philadelphia based Janney Montgomery Scott The termination of tax exempt PABs in the House bill sent shock waves through the 3 8 trillion market after the Ways and Means Committee introduced it on Nov 2 Almost 102 billion of the bonds which are issued through states and local governments for economic development projects airports and nonprofits like hospitals were sold in 2015 according to a recent report from Wells Fargo NYSE WFC Securities That accounted for 27 percent of overall long term municipal debt sold that year The House plan contends that eliminating the bonds will raise 38 9 billion for the federal government between 2018 and 2027 Analysts have questioned that figure arguing that it was wrong for lawmakers to assume that PAB issuers would sell a similar amount of taxable bonds for their purposes under the House plan We feel more comfortable about PABs future long term with the Senate bill said Tim Fisher legislative and federal affairs coordinator for the Council of Development Finance Agencies adding that his group plans to keep to keep up pressure on the House But Emily Swenson Brock director of the Government Finance Officers Association s GFOA Federal Liaison Center cautioned that amendments to the Senate bill were expected over the weekend and that the status of PABs will not be absolutely clear until the final legislation is released The outline of the Senate bill is silent on other issuances the House measure would end including tax free debt for professional sports stadiums and tax credit bonds SIMILARITIES Like the House bill the Senate s measure eliminates the alternative minimum tax That tax is applied to earnings from a small percentage of muni bonds sold by issuers such as airports and housing authorities that have substantial private activity components in their deals Both proposals end tax exempt status for advance refunding bonds which issuers in the U S municipal bond market use to take advantage of lower interest rates before outstanding bonds can be called back from investors The GFOA s Brock said various groups are trying to explain to Congress that the practice is a big cost saver for state and local governments schools and other issuers In the meantime issuers of the bonds are rushing to get deals done before year end said Emilie Ninan a bond lawyer and partner at Ballard Spahr LLP in Wilmington Delaware
I don t think anybody should be taking comfort that this is a done deal Ninan said of the Senate plan that appears to be kinder to the muni market than the House proposal |
WFC | Sell side sees sale price for GGP going higher | One of the Street s bigger bulls on GGP Boenning Scattergood s Floris van Dijkum figures the company is worth 35 per share and expects at least 30 will be necessary to seal a purchase Brookfield s BAM BPY past M A behavior suggests they will eventually up their bid to 25 26 from the current 23 says Wells Fargo NYSE WFC s Jeffrey Donnelly Meanwhile Sandler O Neill says it s going to take more than 28 per share Source BloombergShares up 7 4 to 23 84 Previously Mall names mostly higher after Brookfield bid for GGP made official Nov 13 Now read |
WFC | Wells defends Immunomedics 19 selloff a buying opportunity | Wells Fargo NYSE WFC s Jim Birchenough says today s negative action for Immunomedics IMMU 19 1 is a buying opportunity after seeing an overview of abstract data on lead candidate IMMU 132 sacituzumab govitecan adding that the results support accelerated approval OUTPERFORM 14 Source BloombergInvestors appear concerned about the company s lack of disclosure of data to be presented at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium in early December One abstract 1727 will detail Phase 2 results in treatment resistant metastatic triple negative breast cancer The objective response rate was 34 as determined by local radiologist assessment but the results from the independent central blinded review will be presented at the meeting Now read |
WFC | Anheuser Busch falls as playbook wears thin | Investors are cautious on Anheuser Busch InBev NYSE BUD today amid some concerns that the global giant s playbook of acquire cut costs acquire again may be running thin observes New York Post s Josh Kosman Coca Cola trades at a high multiple while other logical targets might not be large enough to generate meaningful returns Wells Fargo NYSE WFC analyst Bonnie Herzog didn t help sentiment by suggesting earlier today that Coca Cola may even make an entry into the alcoholic drinks business on its own Shares of BUD are down 2 48 on the day are now 9 below their 52 week high Previously Coca Cola called a core holding by Wells alcohol next Nov 14 Now read |
WFC | Services boost U S producer prices underlying inflation firming | By Lucia Mutikani WASHINGTON Reuters U S producer prices rose more than expected in October driven by a surge in the cost of services leading to the biggest annual increase in wholesale inflation in more than 5 1 2 years Tuesday s report from the Labor Department also showed steady gains in underlying producer prices which supported expectations of a gradual increase in inflation and keep the Federal Reserve on track to raise interest rates in December Reports that inflation is dead or too low are not true in every corner of the economy said Chris Rupkey chief economist at MUFG in New York It won t be long before producers will be faced with having to raise the prices of consumer goods if inflation continues to percolate here The producer price index for final demand increased 0 4 percent last month after a similar gain in September That lifted the year on year increase in the PPI to 2 8 percent the largest rise since February 2012 from 2 6 percent in September Economists had forecast the PPI edging up 0 1 percent last month and increasing 2 4 percent from a year ago Last month s rise in prices received by the nation s farms factories and refineries reflected a 0 5 percent surge in the cost of services mostly margins received by wholesalers and retailers Margins for fuels and lubricants retailing soared 24 9 percent accounting for almost half of the increase in the cost of services last month Services rose 0 4 percent in September The rise in services helped to offset a 4 6 percent drop in the cost of gasoline Wholesale gasoline prices spiked 10 9 percent in September in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey which struck Texas in late August and reduced refining capacity in the Gulf Coast area Gasoline prices are falling amid ample crude oil supplies The strong producer price readings probably did not translate into higher consumer prices in October as the correlation between the PPI and consumer price index has weakened Still firming inflation at the factory gate is likely to be welcomed by Fed officials who have long argued that price pressures were being held back by transitory factors The personal consumption expenditures PCE price index excluding food and energy inflation measure tracked by the Fed has remained below the U S central bank s 2 percent target since mid 2012 Despite moderate price pressures the Fed is expected to raise interest rates next month amid cautious optimism that tightening labor market conditions will spur faster wage growth next year The Fed has hiked rates twice this year While not the primary measure of inflation the consistent gradual improvement in producer prices over the past two years will be welcomed by Fed officials who on balance continue to express confidence in a gradually rising inflation outlook said Sam Bullard a senior economist at Wells Fargo NYSE WFC Securities in Charlotte North Carolina MARGINAL CPI GAINS EXPECTED Prices for U S Treasuries rose with traders awaiting October s consumer inflation data on Wednesday which is expected to show a marginal increase in consumer prices The dollar fell against a basket of currencies U S stocks slipped as declining oil prices hit energy stocks Outside services producer price increases were fairly broad last month There were increases in the cost of pharmaceutical preparations fresh and dry vegetables meat and tobacco Prices for passenger cars were however unchanged in October following the introduction of the 2018 models into the survey A key gauge of underlying producer price pressures that excludes food energy and trade services rose 0 2 percent in October month advancing by the same margin for three straight months The so called core PPI increased 2 3 percent in the 12 months through October after advancing 2 1 percent in September Core goods prices increased 0 3 percent in October after a similar gain in the prior month The weakening dollar which has this year lost 5 4 percent of its value against the currencies of the United States main trading partners could gradually lift core producer inflation
The cost of healthcare services increased 0 3 percent in October after being unchanged in September Those costs feed into the core PCE price index |
WFC | Wells Fargo rehab tour rolls on | Dubbed Overdraft Rewind a new feature will automatically reverse overdrafts that occur the day before a payday direct deposit is received Customers don t need to enroll in order to receive this benefit Wells NYSE WFC will also no longer charge overdraft fees for any transaction of 5 or less Source Press ReleaseNow read |
CMCSA | Comcast Falls 3 | Investing com Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA fell by 3 02 to trade at 34 70 by 10 12 15 12 GMT on Monday on the NASDAQ exchange
The volume of Comcast shares traded since the start of the session was 3 90M Comcast has traded in a range of 34 67 to 35 54 on the day
The stock has traded at 37 4200 at its highest and 34 6900 at its lowest during the past seven days |
CMCSA | Comcast NBC teams with Acorns on financial content | NBCUniversal and Comcast Ventures CMCSA 1 9 are teaming up in a strategic partnership with Acorns the millennial targeting financial app That will include Acorns getting an equity investment and providing a board seat that will be occupied by CNBC Chairman Mark Hoffman FierceVideo notes The two will work on opportunities for editorial content and events including a CNBC hired team to create content for Acorns platforms around financial literacy and personal finance Now read |
CMCSA | Comcast unifying linear digital ad systems | FreeWheel and NBCUniversal are connecting their ad delivery systems meaning that the Comcast CMCSA 1 5 companies will have a unified approach to advertising decisioning The first stage is complete in the initiative to extend FreeWheel s decisioning capabilities to the company s traditional television ad inventory That will help NBCU optimize linear TV scheduling in coordination with its trafficking system The two will roll out the capability across channels throughout the year The next stage involves in flight optimization of campaigns across linear and digital optimizing between direct sold and programmatic channels and enabling household addressability Now read |
CMCSA | Comcast Rises 3 | Investing com Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA rose by 3 03 to trade at 36 51 by 09 44 14 44 GMT on Thursday on the NASDAQ exchange
The volume of Comcast shares traded since the start of the session was 2 33M Comcast has traded in a range of 35 77 to 36 52 on the day
The stock has traded at 37 4200 at its highest and 34 6700 at its lowest during the past seven days |
CMCSA | 3 Best Dimensional Mutual Funds To Invest In | Dimensional Fund Advisor offers investment solutions from different asset classes to institutional and individual investors investment consultants and financial advisors With a workforce of more than 1400 Dimensional Fund Advisor has 13 offices in nine different countries including the United States
It invests in both domestic and foreign equities fixed income securities retirement income funds real estates and commodity markets As of Mar 31 2019 Dimensional Fund Advisor had nearly 576 billion of assets under management For the past three decades the company has been providing investment management strategies to its clients Founded 37 years ago this fund family is headquartered in Austin TX
Below we share with you three top ranked Dimensional Fund Advisor mutual funds Each has earned a Strong Buy and is expected to outperform its peers in the future Investors can
DFA Enhanced US Large Company I fund aims for total returns that surpasses the total return performance of the S P 500 Index The fund invests the majority of its assets in short term fixed income obligations DFELX has three and five year annualized returns of 11 5 and 9 5 respectively
David A Plecha has been one of the fund managers of DFELX since 1996
DFA U S Sustainability Core 1 Portfolio fund aims for long term capital growth The fund invests in a diverse range of securities of American companies with a focus on small capitalization value and high profitability ones DFSIX has three and five year annualized returns of 11 5 and 8 6 respectively
DFSIX has an expense ratio of 0 25 compared with the category average of 0 94
DFA Tax Managed U S Marketwide Value Portfolio fund aims for long term capital growth while minimizing federal income taxes on returns The fund invests the majority of its net assets in securities of American companies DTMMX has three and five year annualized returns of 8 6 and 6 5 respectively
As of April 2019 DTMMX held 2151 issues with 4 37 of its assets invested in Comcast Corp NASDAQ CMCSA Class A
To view the Zacks Rank and past performance of all Dimensional Fund Advisor funds investors can
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CMCSA | Comcast CMCSA Upgraded To Strong Buy What Does It Mean For The Stock | Comcast CMCSA appears an attractive pick as it has been recently upgraded to a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy An upward trend in earnings estimates one of the most powerful forces impacting stock prices has triggered this rating change
The Zacks rating relies solely on a company s changing earnings picture It tracks EPS estimates for the current and following years from the sell side analysts covering the stock through a consensus measure the Zacks Consensus Estimate
The power of a changing earnings picture in determining near term stock price movements makes the Zacks rating system highly useful for individual investors since it can be difficult to make decisions based on rating upgrades by Wall Street analysts These are mostly driven by subjective factors that are hard to see and measure in real time
Therefore the Zacks rating upgrade for Comcast basically reflects positivity about its earnings outlook that could translate into buying pressure and an increase in its stock price
Most Powerful Force Impacting Stock Prices
The change in a company s future earnings potential as reflected in earnings estimate revisions has proven to be strongly correlated with the near term price movement of its stock The influence of institutional investors has a partial contribution to this relationship as these big professionals use earnings and earnings estimates to calculate the fair value of a company s shares An increase or decrease in earnings estimates in their valuation models simply results in higher or lower fair value for a stock and institutional investors typically buy or sell it Their transaction of large amounts of shares then leads to price movement for the stock
For Comcast rising earnings estimates and the consequent rating upgrade fundamentally mean an improvement in the company s underlying business And investors appreciation of this improving business trend should push the stock higher
Harnessing the Power of Earnings Estimate Revisions
Empirical research shows a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near term stock movements so it could be truly rewarding if such revisions are tracked for making an investment decision Here is where the tried and tested Zacks Rank stock rating system plays an important role as it effectively harnesses the power of earnings estimate revisions
The Zacks Rank stock rating system which uses four factors related to earnings estimates to classify stocks into five groups ranging from Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy to Zacks Rank 5 Strong Sell has an impressive externally audited track record with Zacks Rank 1 stocks generating an average annual return of 25 since 1988 You can see the complete list of today s Zacks 1 Rank Strong Buy stocks here
Earnings Estimate Revisions for Comcast
For the fiscal year ending December 2019 this cable provider is expected to earn 3 02 per share which is a change of 18 4 from the year ago reported number
Analysts have been steadily raising their estimates for Comcast Over the past three months the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the company has increased 9 1
Bottom Line
Unlike the overly optimistic Wall Street analysts whose rating systems tend to be weighted toward favorable recommendations the Zacks rating system maintains an equal proportion of buy and sell ratings for its entire universe of more than 4000 stocks at any point in time Irrespective of market conditions only the top 5 of the Zacks covered stocks get a Strong Buy rating and the next 15 get a Buy rating So the placement of a stock in the top 20 of the Zacks covered stocks indicates its superior earnings estimate revision feature making it a solid candidate for producing market beating returns in the near term
You can learn more about the Zacks Rank here
The upgrade of Comcast to a Zacks Rank 1 positions it in the top 5 of the Zacks covered stocks in terms of estimate revisions implying that the stock might move higher in the near term |
WFC | Australian court OKs CBS buyout of Ten Network | An Australian court has given approval to a buyout of Ten Network Holdings by CBS CBS 0 3 leaving regulatory sign off as the final hurdle to the deal CBS swooped in on the bankrupt broadcaster and thwarted a bid from Fox Chairman Lachlan Murdoch after Ten s creditors voted to go with CBS Three small shareholders had challenged the transfer of Ten shares to CBS Murdoch having lost in court two months ago didn t contest the transfer today The deal needs final clearance widely expected from the Australian Securities and Investment Commission Now read |
WFC | Bull Of The Day John Bean Tech JBT | You may not have heard of John Bean Tech JBT but you have probably been an indirect customer Let s take a look at this stock and why I have made it the Bull of the Day
Consistent Beats
JBT has a great earnings track record The company has topped that Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the last four quarters These aren t small beats either with the average positive earnings surprise coming in at 21
The most recent quarter saw a beat of 0 18 when the company reported EPS of 0 85 when the Zacks Consensus Estimate was calling for 0 67 That translated to a positive earnings surprise of 26 8
Description
John Bean Technologies a leading global solutions provider to the food processing and air transportation industries The Company designs manufactures tests and services technologically sophisticated systems and products for regional and multi national industrial food processing customers through its JBT FoodTech segment and for domestic and international air transportation customers through its JBT AeroTech segments
New Coverage
Following a secondary offering of about 2M shares JBT saw new coverage from a few brokerages On March 13 the stock was rated a new Outperform at Wells Fargo NYSE WFC and on the same day Robert W Baird started coverage as well
About a month later on April 10 JBT was initiated on as an outperform at BMO Capital Markets The brokerage put a 105 price target on the stock at that time
On April 12 CL King upgraded the stock to Buy
Estimates
The Zacks Consensus Estimate has risen over the last 60 days The number moved from 2 94 60 days ago to the present level of 3 05
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2018 has also moved higher 60 days ago the number was 3 35 and it has since moved to 3 56
Valuation
When you have a stock that has a good history of beating the number seeing earnings estimates increases you usually have a big multiple That is the case here with JBT as the stock trades at 34x trailing and 28x forward earnings estimates The price to book is also very stiff at 14x while the price to sales is only 2x
For a food delivery and logistics company JBT is still growing the top line at about 15 per year and that translates into earnings growth of more than 20 per year
John Bean Technologies Corporation Price and Consensus
The Best Worst of Zacks
Today you are invited to download the full up to the minute list of 220 Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buys free of charge From 1988 through 2015 this list has averaged a stellar gain of 25 per year Plus you may download 220 Zacks Rank 5 Strong Sells Even though this list holds many stocks that seem to be solid it has historically performed 6X worse than the market |
CMCSA | Comcast Shares Jump 3 After Q4 Earnings Beat | Investing com Shares of Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA jumped in premarket trade on Wednesday after the cable giant reported fourth quarter earnings that beat expectations thanks to its NBCUniversal media unit and high speed internet business
Comcast reported adjusted earnings per share of 64 cents beating expectations of 63 cents a share
Total revenue came in at 27 85 billion above estimates of 27 55 billion
Revenue at the NBCUniversal division which will launch a streaming service in early 2020 jumped 7 1
The company also announced that it will raise its quarterly dividend 10 in 2019 to 84 cents per share
Brian L Roberts Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Comcast Corporation said 2018 was a successful and pivotal year for Comcast I m pleased with the strong operational and financial results that we delivered across the company
Comcast shares rose 3 2 in premarket trade to 36 25
Comcast follows other major Services sector earnings this month
On January 17 Netflix reported fourth quarter EPS of 0 3 on revenue of 4 19B compared to forecasts of EPS of 0 24 on revenue of 4 21B
Prologis earnings beat analyst s expectations on Tuesday with fourth quarter EPS of 0 94 on revenue of 679 2M Investing com analysts expected EPS of 0 42 on revenue of 661 86M
Stay up to date on all of the upcoming earnings reports by visiting Investing com s earnings calendar |
CMCSA | Comcast Rises 3 | Investing com Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA rose by 3 36 to trade at 36 15 by 09 30 14 30 GMT on Wednesday on the NASDAQ exchange
The volume of Comcast shares traded since the start of the session was 1 35M Comcast has traded in a range of 36 00 to 36 20 on the day
The stock has traded at 36 3200 at its highest and 34 8800 at its lowest during the past seven days |
CMCSA | Comcast Falls 3 | Investing com Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA fell by 3 20 to trade at 35 70 by 09 42 14 42 GMT on Thursday on the NASDAQ exchange
The volume of Comcast shares traded since the start of the session was 2 45M Comcast has traded in a range of 35 56 to 36 88 on the day
The stock has traded at 37 4800 at its highest and 34 8300 at its lowest during the past seven days |
CMCSA | Comcast CMCSA Dips More Than Broader Markets What You Should Know | Comcast CMCSA closed at 41 05 in the latest trading session marking a 1 65 move from the prior day This change lagged the S P 500 s 1 32 loss on the day Meanwhile the Dow lost 1 41 and the Nasdaq a tech heavy index lost 1 51
Coming into today shares of the cable provider had lost 2 13 in the past month In that same time the Consumer Discretionary sector lost 5 95 while the S P 500 lost 5 09
Wall Street will be looking for positivity from CMCSA as it approaches its next earnings report date The company is expected to report EPS of 0 74 up 13 85 from the prior year quarter Meanwhile the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of 27 58 billion up 26 89 from the year ago period
CMCSA s full year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of 3 per share and revenue of 111 76 billion These results would represent year over year changes of 17 65 and 18 25 respectively
Any recent changes to analyst estimates for CMCSA should also be noted by investors These revisions help to show the ever changing nature of near term business trends As a result we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company s business outlook
Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near term stock prices We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear actionable rating model
Ranging from 1 Strong Buy to 5 Strong Sell the Zacks Rank system has a proven outside audited track record of outperformance with 1 stocks returning an average of 25 annually since 1988 Over the past month the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0 04 higher CMCSA is currently a Zacks Rank 2 Buy
Looking at its valuation CMCSA is holding a Forward P E ratio of 13 93 For comparison its industry has an average Forward P E of 28 which means CMCSA is trading at a discount to the group
Meanwhile CMCSA s PEG ratio is currently 1 18 The PEG ratio is similar to the widely used P E ratio but this metric also takes the company s expected earnings growth rate into account The Cable Television was holding an average PEG ratio of 2 17 at yesterday s closing price
The Cable Television industry is part of the Consumer Discretionary sector This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 183 putting it in the bottom 29 of all 250 industries
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups Our research shows that the top 50 rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1
Make sure to utilize Zacks Com to follow all of these stock moving metrics and more in the coming trading sessions |
CMCSA | 3 Reasons Growth Investors Will Love Comcast CMCSA | Investors seek growth stocks to capitalize on above average growth in financials that help these securities grab the market s attention and produce exceptional returns However it isn t easy to find a great growth stock
That s because these stocks usually carry above average risk and volatility In fact betting on a stock for which the growth story is actually over or nearing its end could lead to significant loss
However the Zacks Growth Style Score part of the Zacks Style Scores system which looks beyond the traditional growth attributes to analyze a company s real growth prospects makes it pretty easy to find cutting edge growth stocks
Comcast CMCSA is one such stock that our proprietary system currently recommends The company not only has a favorable Growth Score but also carries a top Zacks Rank
Studies have shown that stocks with the best growth features consistently outperform the market And returns are even better for stocks that possess the combination of a Growth Score of A or B and a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy or 2 Buy
While there are numerous reasons why the stock of this cable provider is a great growth pick right now we have highlighted three of the most important factors below
Earnings Growth
Arguably nothing is more important than earnings growth as surging profit levels is what most investors are after And for growth investors double digit earnings growth is definitely preferable and often an indication of strong prospects and stock price gains for the company under consideration
While the historical EPS growth rate for Comcast is 14 3 investors should actually focus on the projected growth The company s EPS is expected to grow 17 5 this year crushing the industry average which calls for EPS growth of 10 3
Cash Flow Growth
Cash is the lifeblood of any business but higher than average cash flow growth is more beneficial and important for growth oriented companies than for mature companies That s because high cash accumulation enables these companies to undertake new projects without raising expensive outside funds
Right now year over year cash flow growth for Comcast is 15 3 which is higher than many of its peers In fact the rate compares to the industry average of 12
While investors should actually consider the current cash flow growth it s worth taking a look at the historical rate too for putting the current reading into proper perspective The company s annualized cash flow growth rate has been 9 3 over the past 3 5 years versus the industry average of 7
Promising Earnings Estimate Revisions
Superiority of a stock in terms of the metrics outlined above can be further validated by looking at the trend in earnings estimate revisions A positive trend is of course favorable here Empirical research shows that there is a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near term stock price movements
There have been upward revisions in current year earnings estimates for Comcast The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has surged 0 1 over the past month
Bottom Line
While the overall earnings estimate revisions have made Comcast a Zacks Rank 2 stock it has earned itself a Growth Score of B based on a number of factors including the ones discussed above
You can see the complete list of today s Zacks 1 Rank Strong Buy stocks here
This combination positions Comcast well for outperformance so growth investors may want to bet on it |
CMCSA | CMCSA Stock Vs Option | Options are foreign to many investors And yes there is a degree of complexity and a necessary learning curve involved But understanding even a few basic option strategies can open a world of opportunity
In a nutshell I typically describe options as offering 3 basic avenues
Expressing a market opinion i e profiting if a security moves in the direction you think it will go typically at a fraction of the cost of trading shares of stock
Hedging an existing position or portfolio i e the ability to protect yourself without having to sell your stock holdings
Taking advantage of unique situations selling premium to make money in a neutral market buying a straddle to profit if a move takes place in either direction and so on
What follows is NOT a recommended trade or opportunity It is simply an example that compares buying stock versus buying an option to illustrate the relative pros and cons
Ticker CMCSA
According to the Elliott Wave count from ProfitSource by HUBB Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA is setting up for a Wave 4 advance in price Now the caveats I like and use ProfitSource and I find the built in Elliott Wave count to be useful That being said no given setup or Wave count is EVER guaranteed to pan out I have no idea whether this latest count for CMCSA will ultimately be a good one or a bad one In this instance I am simply using it as a potential catalyst for a hypothetical trade for illustrative purposes
Figure 1 Courtesy ProfitSource by HUBB
This wave count is projecting that CMCSA will rise to somewhere between 45 67 and 48 30 by the end of July
Let s assume that we believe the wave count in Figure 1 will play out and that we want to speculate on this opportunity The simplest approach would be to buy 100 shares of CMCSA stock With the stock trading at 41 40 a share this would involve spending 4 140 to buy 100 shares This position appears in Figure 2 Note that for every 1 the stock goes up the position makes 100 and vice versa A 100 shares of stock position has a delta of 100
Figure 2 Courtesy OptionsAnalysis com
Another possibility among many would be to buy the September 37 50 strike price call for 470 This is only about 10 of what the stock trader must put up This trade appears in Figure 3
Figure 3 Courtesy OptionsAnalysis com
A few things to note
The worst case loss for the option trade is 470
The trade has a delta of roughly 78 While delta value can and will change over time for now it means that this position is essentially equivalent to holding 78 shares of stock In other words the option buyer in this example buys 78 deltas for 470 versus the stock trader who buys 100 deltas for 4 410
How will this all play out It beats me and remember I am NOT suggesting that CMCSA is bullish nor am I recommending either of these positions
Figure 4 displays the expected dollar profit or loss from the two positions at various prices for CMCSA stock as of the end of July
Figure 4
Note that at higher price the call option makes almost as much total return as the stock position while committing 90 less capital Likewise as price sinks progressively lower the stock position just keeps losing more and more while the option position cannot lose more than 470
While the number are helpful still probably the best way to illustrate the relative tradeoffs is to overlay the two position on one chart See Figure 5
Figure 5 Courtesy OptionsAnalysis com
Summary
So is better to buy the call option than the stock shares That s for each trader to decide in each situation While in this illustration the option appears to have some advantages another scenario involves the stock going nowhere for a while before making a move higher In that scenario the stock trader can simply hold the stock shares and wait The option will expire in September and the option trader will have to make another trading decision
In any event remember that the purpose of this article is NOT to prompt you to take action regarding CMCSA The purpose is simply to illustrate the relative pros and cons of options versus stocks in certain situations |
CMCSA | TEGNA Set To Acquire Leading TV Stations For 535M In Cash | TEGNA NYSE TGNA is set to acquire leading TV stations WTHR and WBNS and WBNS Radio 1460 AM and 97 1 FM from the Dispatch Broadcast Group for 535 million in cash The deal structured as a stock purchase represents 7 9 times estimated average EBITDA for the 2018 2019 period The transaction is expected to close in third quarter 2019 Notably Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA owned NBC affiliate WTHR is the 1 television station in Indianapolis which is the 28th largest television market in the United States WBNS an affiliate of CBS NYSE CBS is the 1 rated station in Columbus which is the 34th largest television market in the United States Per Columbus Business First report WBNS serves 896 980 TV homes in 21 counties in Central Ohio Moreover WBNS Radio is a dominant sports radio content provider in the region and particularly popular among adults aged 25 54 years The deal expands TEGNA s footprint particularly in Ohio Notably the company already owns NBC affiliate WKYC in Cleveland and CBS affiliate WTOL in Toledo Per management post the completion of the deal TEGNA will reach two third of TV households in Ohio This will also benefit its political advertising revenues Moreover the transaction is immediately accretive to free cash flow per share Additionally it is expected to positively impact the bottom line within a year of the deal closure TEGNA Inc Revenue TTM
Acquisitions Key CatalystAcquisitions have played an important role in TEGNA s growth trajectory Strategic acquisitions have expanded the company s market reach It currently operates 49 TV stations in 41 markets catering to one third TV households in the United States Early this year TEGNA completed the acquisition of WTOL in Toledo and KWES in Midland Odessa from Gray Television NYSE GTN The deal is expected to be accretive to earnings in 2019 Moreover in March TEGNA signed a deal with Nexstar Media NASDAQ NXST to acquire 11 local TV stations for an all cash deal worth 740 million This apart the company announced an agreement with Cooper Media to acquire 85 stake in Justice Network and Quest two leading 24 7 multicast networks for an all cash deal worth 77 million Management expects the latest acquisition deal combined with the 11 local TV stations of Nexstar Media to expand its total household reach to nearly 32 on a UHF discounted basis and 39 on an undiscounted basis Increasing Leverage A ConcernTEGNA will finance the acquisition by using available cash and tapping into its existing credit facility Post completion of all the acquisitions including Nexstar Media and Cooper Media deals leverage is expected to increase to roughly 4 8 times Management expects to use free cash flow to reduce leverage to roughly 4 times by the end of 2020 Notably following the latest acquisition announcement Moody s Investors Service has TEGNA s Ba2 corporate family rating CFR Ba1 PD probability of default rating PDR Ba2 ratings on its senior unsecured notes including the 2027 unsecured notes issued by Belo Corp and senior unsecured bank credit facility under review for downgrade Currently TEGNA has a Zacks Rank 4 Sell You can see
The Hottest Tech Mega Trend of AllLast year it generated 8 billion in global revenues By 2020 it s predicted to blast through the roof to 47 billion Famed investor Mark Cuban says it will produce the world s first trillionaires but that should still leave plenty of money for regular investors who make the right trades early |
CMCSA | Should Value Investors Buy Comcast CMCSA Stock | While the proven Zacks Rank places an emphasis on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find strong stocks we also know that investors tend to develop their own individual strategies With this in mind we are always looking at value growth and momentum trends to discover great companies
Of these value investing is easily one of the most popular ways to find great stocks in any market environment Value investors use fundamental analysis and traditional valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are being undervalued by the market at large
On top of the Zacks Rank investors can also look at our innovative Style Scores system to find stocks with specific traits For example value investors will want to focus on the Value category Stocks with high Zacks Ranks and A grades for Value will be some of the highest quality value stocks on the market today
One stock to keep an eye on is Comcast CMCSA CMCSA is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of 2 Buy as well as a Value grade of A The stock is trading with a P E ratio of 13 23 which compares to its industry s average of 18 34 Over the past 52 weeks CMCSA s Forward P E has been as high as 14 59 and as low as 11 94 with a median of 13 35
We also note that CMCSA holds a PEG ratio of 1 12 This metric is used similarly to the famous P E ratio but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock s expected earnings growth rate CMCSA s industry currently sports an average PEG of 1 55 Over the past 52 weeks CMCSA s PEG has been as high as 1 19 and as low as 0 93 with a median of 1 11
We should also highlight that CMCSA has a P B ratio of 2 49 Investors use the P B ratio to look at a stock s market value versus its book value which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities This stock s P B looks attractive against its industry s average P B of 3 03 Within the past 52 weeks CMCSA s P B has been as high as 2 60 and as low as 2 08 with a median of 2 32
Value investors also frequently use the P S ratio This metric is found by dividing a stock s price with the company s revenue Some people prefer this metric because sales are harder to manipulate on an income statement This means it could be a truer performance indicator CMCSA has a P S ratio of 1 95 This compares to its industry s average P S of 2 11
Finally we should also recognize that CMCSA has a P CF ratio of 8 13 This metric focuses on a firm s operating cash flow and is often used to find stocks that are undervalued based on the strength of their cash outlook CMCSA s current P CF looks attractive when compared to its industry s average P CF of 9 48 Over the past 52 weeks CMCSA s P CF has been as high as 8 49 and as low as 4 45 with a median of 5 15
These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at but they help show that Comcast is likely being undervalued right now Considering this as well as the strength of its earnings outlook CMCSA feels like a great value stock at the moment |
CMCSA | Comcast CMCSA Outpaces Stock Market Gains What You Should Know | Comcast CMCSA closed at 43 25 in the latest trading session marking a 1 62 move from the prior day This change outpaced the S P 500 s 0 97 gain on the day Elsewhere the Dow gained 1 35 while the tech heavy Nasdaq added 1 39
Prior to today s trading shares of the cable provider had lost 0 51 over the past month This has lagged the Consumer Discretionary sector s gain of 0 28 and the S P 500 s gain of 0 64 in that time
CMCSA will be looking to display strength as it nears its next earnings release which is expected to be July 25 2019 The company is expected to report EPS of 0 75 up 15 38 from the prior year quarter Meanwhile our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of 27 55 billion up 26 73 from the prior year quarter
CMCSA s full year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of 3 02 per share and revenue of 111 67 billion These results would represent year over year changes of 18 43 and 18 16 respectively
Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for CMCSA These revisions help to show the ever changing nature of near term business trends As a result we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company s business outlook
Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near term share price momentum Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple actionable rating system
Ranging from 1 Strong Buy to 5 Strong Sell the Zacks Rank system has a proven outside audited track record of outperformance with 1 stocks returning an average of 25 annually since 1988 Over the past month the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0 72 higher CMCSA is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of 2 Buy
Investors should also note CMCSA s current valuation metrics including its Forward P E ratio of 14 1 Its industry sports an average Forward P E of 29 05 so we one might conclude that CMCSA is trading at a discount comparatively
We can also see that CMCSA currently has a PEG ratio of 1 19 The PEG ratio is similar to the widely used P E ratio but this metric also takes the company s expected earnings growth rate into account The Cable Television industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 2 16 as of yesterday s close
The Cable Television industry is part of the Consumer Discretionary sector This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 160 which puts it in the bottom 38 of all 250 industries
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups Our research shows that the top 50 rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1
To follow CMCSA in the coming trading sessions be sure to utilize Zacks com |
WFC | U S and AT T discuss conditions for approval of Time Warner deal | By David Shepardson WASHINGTON Reuters AT T Inc NYSE T and the U S Department of Justice are discussing conditions the No 2 wireless carrier needs to meet in order to win government antitrust approval for its acquisition of Time Warner Inc NYSE TWX sources familiar with the situation told Reuters on Thursday The 85 4 billion deal unveiled in October 2016 is opposed by an array of consumer groups and competitors on the grounds that it would give the wireless company too much power over the media it would carry on its own network Wall Street largely believes the transaction will go through but its success is not assured and the issue has become a political battleground Donald Trump who has accused Time Warner s CNN and other media of being unfair to him criticized the deal on the campaign trail last year and vowed that as president his Justice Department would block it As president he has not revisited the subject Approval of the deal marks an early challenge for Trump s appointee as the Justice Department s antitrust chief Makan Delrahim who was confirmed by Congress in late September Delrahim said at his confirmation hearing in May that he would not discuss antitrust matters with the White House Delrahim perhaps looking to make a mark in his new job may want to ramp up pressure on AT T The Wall Street Journal reported earlier on Thursday that the Justice Department was laying the groundwork for a potential lawsuit aimed at stopping the deal if settlement talks did not work out The Journal reported that the outcome could go either way It did not say what the sticking points were The Justice Department did not reply to requests for comment Shares of Time Warner initially plunged after the Journal report but recovered some losses and closed down 3 7 percent at 94 70 AT T s shares closed down 1 1 percent at 33 17 The market is saying that the deal still most likely gets done said Craig Moffett an analyst at MoffettNathanson It s just not as much of a sure thing as it was yesterday ALL POSSIBLE SCENARIOS AT T has said it expected the deal to close by the end of the year AT T executives have repeatedly expressed confidence that it would reach an agreement with the antitrust enforcer When the DOJ reviews any transaction it is common and expected for both sides to prepare for all possible scenarios AT T said in a statement on Thursday For over 40 years vertical mergers like this one have always been approved because they benefit consumers without removing any competitors from the market AT T said While we won t comment on our discussions with DOJ we see no reason in the law or the facts why this transaction should be an exception Arguments over the deal have focused on how much power a pay TV provider should have in steering its customers to cable channels that it also owns Critics from both parties argue that AT T s purchase of Time Warner would give it the clout to steer customers to its own premium content Time Warner properties include CNN HBO the film studio Warner Bros and other coveted media assets Trump has not repeated his criticism of the deal since becoming president and he has met with AT T Chief Executive Randall Stephenson at least twice in 2017 Delrahim underscored in May that he would not be swayed by political considerations The independence of the decisions made in prosecuting and reviewing mergers as well as other conduct is a serious one that should be free from any political influence he said They will be free if I am fortunate enough to be confirmed THE OPPOSITION Daphna Ziman the founder and president of Cin moi a female owned TV network told Reuters last month she had met with the Justice Department to discuss the merger She told a U S Senate panel that further consolidation could be catastrophic to diverse minority and women owned voices The Justice Department has been discussing whether to require conditions that AT T does not discriminate against channels that compete with Time Warner and unfairly advantage its own channels time limits on any such conditions and customer data issues sources told Reuters Barclays LON BARC analysts said similar issues were addressed in the Justice Department s seven year consent decree allowing Comcast Corp NASDAQ CMCSA to acquire NBCUniversal in 2011 Companies that produce TV shows have been pushing for a longer consent decree in the AT T Time Warner deal a separate source told Reuters on Thursday Wall Street played down the news on Thursday as a threat to the deal
These headlines may be more about increasing the Justice Department s leverage in negotiating conditions than a serious intent to try and sue to block the deal said Jennifer Fritzsche analyst at Wells Fargo NYSE WFC This is still a vertical merger and the DOJ would face the same uphill battle in court if it sued to stop it same hurdles it faced a month or six months ago |
WFC | Gold Prices Set for 3 Week Losing Streak as Dollar Shrugs off Weak Jobs Data | Investing com Gold prices came under pressure amid dollar strength as a weaker than expected jobs report failed to derail investor expectations for a year end rate while a surge in the services sector lifted sentiment on riskier assets
Gold futures for December delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell by 7 98 or 0 62 to 1270 13 a troy ounce
Gold prices remained on track to post a three week losing streak amid ongoing risk on sentiment as service sector growth offset data pointing to labor market weakness
ISM nonmanufacturing data for October showed an uptick to 60 1 beating expectations of 58 5 That was the highest reading for the service sector index since 2005
The upbeat nonmanufacturing report raised investor expectations of bullish U S economic growth spurring a rebound on the dollar which pressured gold prices to sink to session lows
The U S economy added 261 000 jobs in October the Department of Labor said Friday that missed economists estimates for 310 000 new jobs
The jobless rate remained steady at 4 2 while average hourly earnings was sluggish with growth roughly flat for the month
Analysts noted however that while weaker wage growth could weigh on markets it is unlikely to derail the Fed s plan to raise rates in December
Flat wages doesn t concern us too much analysts at Wells Fargo NYSE WFC said We do think wage pressure could start to weigh on the markets next year in a tight labor market
Gold prices are sensitive to moves higher in interest rates which lift the opportunity cost of holding non yielding assets such as bullion
In other precious metal trade silver futures fell 1 59 to 16 86 a troy ounce while platinum futures fell 0 61 to 921 85
Copper traded at 3 12 down 0 61 while natural gas rose by 1 98 to 2 99 |
WFC | Is Wells Fargo Toast | One might think so from its precipitous 12 decline in less than 30 days
Even the estimable Warren Buffett sold 7 million shares in the three days before the earnings announcement
Of course that means he still owns some 472 million shares
Toast is relative And in this case a tempting bargain
Wells Fargo NYSE WFC did some incredibly stupid things that came to light last fall A bank that was a key contributor to the opening of the West and a proponent of fair business practices and the least fined major bank coming out of the banking fiasco of the recent recession screwed up Big time
Under its now fired Chairman and CEO John Stumpf and his over zealous prot g Carrie Tolstedt WFC employees were encouraged to open and were rewarded for creating 2 million phony bank accounts Wells has been fined 185 million so far for these transgressions They have however clawed back incentive pay and bonuses of 69 million from Stumpf and 63 million from Tolstedt so far Leaving aside the question of why WFC believes it had to pay so much money for individuals fomenting such malfeasance that 132 million is considered only a partial pay back they are at least mitigating some of those fines
More importantly Wells still has a retail franchise with more branches than any other US bank This is quite the competitive advantage As commercial and individual customers seek to borrow ahead of future rate rises WFC has deep pockets well replenished by its many depositors nationwide Barring another Great Recession I believe interest rates will increase steadily in the next 1 2 years which in turn will increase Wells Fargo s margins
In addition as the nation s largest mortgage originator Wells will benefit as more Millennials seek to buy homes and more individuals become re employed
This is the third largest bank in the country and the one which until recently employed the sharpest executives and managers I believe that this recent scandal was a one off and the bank is now committed to restoring its customers faith and moving forward with the strengths its size and geographic reach provide This too shall pass
At this price WFC enjoys an operating margin of 37 and a net margin of 25 an ROE of 10 and an ROA of a little more than 1 It sells at 12 85 times earnings and pays a healthy dividend yield of just under 3
I began buying shares this time in one of my personal accounts at 54 75 I averaged down on Thursday before the holiday after the revenue was reported for the first quarter as just a hair below the year ago period and earnings just a hair above buying at 51 75
I have chosen to go the relatively conservative route of buying the common shares However I ve also previously owned shares of the Wells Fargo TARP warrants and may again For those of a more speculative bent these might be appropriate During the past month when the common fell 12 the warrants plunged 30 in 30 days That s the joy and the heartache of leverage
The warrants WFC WS on BigCharts are currently trading at 18 20 Their strike price is 34 01 That means there is a remarkably small premium to pay for this warrant Think of it as a call option that expires in October of 2018 Adding 34 01 and 18 20 we see that the premium is just 86 cents to control a share of WFC from now until October of 2018 34 01 18 20 52 21 52 21 Thursday s close at 51 35 86 cents
The downside If WFC closes in Oct 2018 at 34 01 a common shareholder has lost a good chunk of money The warrant holder on the other hand has lost absolutely everything
Of course if WFC recovers to just 60 the common holder buying at 51 50 makes 8 50 the warrant holder is awarded 26 per warrant or roughly the same dollar amount from 18 that the common shareholder makes spending nearly three times as much
A caveat leverage cuts both ways And you must be right on the direction of the stock and the timing And there are other adjustments that are too detailed to spin us around for this short article but these performance adjustments could make the warrants even more worthwhile
If you are spending mad money I would personally rather spend it on a leveraged way to play a great company than an unleveraged way to buy a lesser company In either case however let the buyer beware
Disclaimer 1 Do your due diligence What s right for me may not be right for you 2 Past performance is no guarantee of future results Rather an obvious statement but most people look for past performance instead of a solid rational approach they can agree with |
CMCSA | Comcast Rises 3 | Investing com Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA rose by 3 03 to trade at 35 69 by 13 09 18 09 GMT on Friday on the NASDAQ exchange
The volume of Comcast shares traded since the start of the session was 8 82M Comcast has traded in a range of 34 86 to 35 69 on the day
The stock has traded at 35 7000 at its highest and 32 6100 at its lowest during the past seven days |
CMCSA | Comcast Falls 3 | Investing com Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA fell by 3 12 to trade at 35 08 by 15 36 20 36 GMT on Tuesday on the NASDAQ exchange
The volume of Comcast shares traded since the start of the session was 19 25M Comcast has traded in a range of 35 08 to 36 09 on the day
The stock has traded at 36 3200 at its highest and 35 0800 at its lowest during the past seven days |
CMCSA | Zacks com Featured Highlights Include Comcast Quanta Services Hub Rocky Brands And Westlake Chemical | For Immediate Release
Chicago IL May 21 2019 Stocks in this week s article are Comcast Corp NASDAQ CMCSA Quanta Services Inc NYSE PWR Hub Group NASDAQ HUBG Rocky Brands NASDAQ RCKY and Westlake Chemical Partners LP NYSE WLKP
Buy These Low Price to Sales Stocks with Growth Potential
A stock s price to sales ratio reflects how much investors are paying for each dollar of revenues generated by the company
If the price to sales ratio is 1 it means that investors are paying 1 for every 1 of revenues generated by the company So it goes without saying that a stock with a price to sales below 1 is a good bargain as investors need to pay less than a dollar for a dollar s worth
Thus a stock with a lower price to sales ratio is a more suitable investment than a stock with a high price to sales ratio
When considering valuation metrics price to earnings ratio has always been the obvious choice This is because calculations based on earnings are easy and come in handy However price to sales has emerged as a convenient tool to determine the value of stocks that are incurring losses or are in an early cycle of development generating meager or no profits
While a loss making company with a negative price to earnings ratio falls out of investor favor its price to sales could indicate the hidden strength of its business This underrated ratio is also used to identify a recovery situation or ensure that a company s growth is not overvalued
Price to sales is often preferred over price to earnings as companies can manipulate their earnings using various accounting measures However sales are harder to manipulate and are relatively reliable
However one should keep in mind that a company with high debt and low price to sales is not an ideal choice The high debt level will have to be paid off at some point leading to further share issuance rise in market cap and ultimately a higher price to sales ratio
In any case the price to sales ratio used in isolation cannot do the trick One should also analyze other ratios like Price Earnings Price Book and Debt Equity before arriving at any investment decision
For the rest of this Screen of the Week article please visit Zacks com at
Disclosure Officers directors and or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and or hold long and or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and or hold long and or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material
About Screen of the Week
Zacks com created the first and best screening system on the web earning the distinction as the 1 site for screening stocks by Money Magazine But powerful screening tools is just the start That is why Zacks created the Screen of the Week to highlight profitable stock picking strategies that investors can actively use
Strong Stocks that Should Be in the News
Many are little publicized and fly under the Wall Street radar They re virtually unknown to the general public Yet today s 220 Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buys were generated by the stock picking system that has more than doubled the market from 1988 through 2016 Its average gain has been a stellar 25 per year
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Zacks com provides investment resources and informs you of these resources which you may choose to use in making your own investment decisions Zacks is providing information on this resource to you subject to the Zacks Terms and Conditions of Service disclaimer
Past performance is no guarantee of future results Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment legal accounting or tax advice or a recommendation to buy sell or hold a security No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor It should not be assumed that any investments in securities companies sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking market making or asset management activities of any securities These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks The S P 500 is an unmanaged index Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release |
CMCSA | What Makes Comcast CMCSA A Strong Momentum Stock Buy Now | Momentum investing is all about the idea of following a stock s recent trend which can be in either direction In the long context investors will essentially be buying high but hoping to sell even higher And for investors following this methodology taking advantage of trends in a stock s price is key once a stock establishes a course it is more than likely to continue moving in that direction The goal is that once a stock heads down a fixed path it will lead to timely and profitable trades
While many investors like to look for momentum in stocks this can be very tough to define There is a lot of debate surrounding which metrics are the best to focus on and which are poor quality indicators of future performance The Zacks Momentum Style Score part of the Zacks Style Scores helps address this issue for us
Below we take a look at Comcast CMCSA a company that currently holds a Momentum Style Score of A We also talk about price change and earnings estimate revisions two of the main aspects of the Momentum Style Score
It s also important to note that Style Scores work as a complement to the Zacks Rank our stock rating system that has an impressive track record of outperformance Comcast currently has a Zacks Rank of 1 Strong Buy Our research shows that stocks rated Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy and 2 Buy and Style Scores of A or B outperform the market over the following one month period
You can see the current list of Zacks 1 Rank Stocks here
Set to Beat the Market
In order to see if CMCSA is a promising momentum pick let s examine some Momentum Style elements to see if this cable provider holds up
Looking at a stock s short term price activity is a great way to gauge if it has momentum since this can reflect both the current interest in a stock and if buyers or sellers have the upper hand at the moment It is also useful to compare a security to its industry as this can help investors pinpoint the top companies in a particular area
For CMCSA shares are up 0 9 over the past week while the Zacks Cable Television industry is down 1 2 over the same time period Shares are looking quite well from a longer time frame too as the monthly price change of 3 1 compares favorably with the industry s 1 38 performance as well
While any stock can see its price increase it takes a real winner to consistently beat the market That is why looking at longer term price metrics such as performance over the past three months or year can be useful as well Over the past quarter shares of Comcast have risen 11 57 and are up 33 16 in the last year On the other hand the S P 500 has only moved 3 72 and 6 92 respectively
Investors should also pay attention to CMCSA s average 20 day trading volume Volume is a useful item in many ways and the 20 day average establishes a good price to volume baseline a rising stock with above average volume is generally a bullish sign whereas a declining stock on above average volume is typically bearish CMCSA is currently averaging 17 197 116 shares for the last 20 days
Earnings Outlook
The Zacks Momentum Style Score also takes into account trends in estimate revisions in addition to price changes Please note that estimate revision trends remain at the core of Zacks Rank as well A nice path here can help show promise and we have recently been seeing that with CMCSA
Over the past two months 12 earnings estimates moved higher compared to none lower for the full year These revisions helped boost CMCSA s consensus estimate increasing from 2 75 to 2 93 in the past 60 days Looking at the next fiscal year 11 estimates have moved upwards while there have been no downward revisions in the same time period
Bottom Line
Given these factors it shouldn t be surprising that CMCSA is a 1 Strong Buy stock and boasts a Momentum Score of A If you re looking for a fresh pick that s set to soar in the near term make sure to keep Comcast on your short list |
CMCSA | Zacks com Featured Highlights Include Rent A Center Comcast Group 1 Automotive CDW And Amdocs | For Immediate Release
Chicago IL May 23 2019 Stocks in this week s article are Rent A Center Inc NASDAQ RCII Comcast Corp NASDAQ CMCSA Group 1 Automotive Inc NYSE GPI CDW Corp NASDAQ CDW and Amdocs Ltd NASDAQ DOX
5 High Flying Stocks Near 52 Week Highs that Can Scale Higher
A 52 week high level generally works as an indicator for investors as stocks near that level are perceived to be winners
More often than not investors wonder if the high price has made the stock overpriced While the apprehensions are not absolutely baseless all stocks hitting a 52 week high are not necessarily overpriced
In fact an investor might miss out on top gainers in an attempt to avoid the steep prices of stocks that are near their 52 week high mark
A stock can maintain the momentum and keep scaling new highs with time So one should take a more informed approach to understand if any further upside is left
A particular strategy advises investors to gamble on stocks that have scaled 52 week highs This is fairly a new approach in the investing rulebook Borrowing from the basics of Momentum investing this technique bets on the principle of buying high and selling higher
Though skeptics may raise a brow on the mettle of this 52 week high investment strategy we believe that this when clubbed with the right set of parameters will help rack up sizable gains A wide group of investors today favors winning stocks that have potential for further upside These investors have mastered the art of finding stocks that have strong potential and are still undervalued
Here we discuss a strategy to find the right stocks
Borrowing from the basics of momentum investing this technique bets on buy high sell higher
For the rest of this Screen of the Week article please visit Zacks com at
Disclosure Officers directors and or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and or hold long and or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and or hold long and or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material
About Screen of the Week
Zacks com created the first and best screening system on the web earning the distinction as the 1 site for screening stocks by Money Magazine But powerful screening tools is just the start That is why Zacks created the Screen of the Week to highlight profitable stock picking strategies that investors can actively use
Strong Stocks that Should Be in the News
Many are little publicized and fly under the Wall Street radar They re virtually unknown to the general public Yet today s 220 Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buys were generated by the stock picking system that has more than doubled the market from 1988 through 2016 Its average gain has been a stellar 25 per year
Follow us on Twitter
Join us on Facebook NASDAQ FB
Zacks Investment Research is under common control with affiliated entities including a broker dealer and an investment adviser which may engage in transactions involving the foregoing securities for the clients of such affiliates
Contact Jim Giaquinto
Company Zacks com
Phone 312 265 9268
Email
Visit
Zacks com provides investment resources and informs you of these resources which you may choose to use in making your own investment decisions Zacks is providing information on this resource to you subject to the Zacks Terms and Conditions of Service disclaimer
Past performance is no guarantee of future results Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment legal accounting or tax advice or a recommendation to buy sell or hold a security No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor It should not be assumed that any investments in securities companies sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking market making or asset management activities of any securities These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks The S P 500 is an unmanaged index Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release |
CMCSA | The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights Comcast CommScope J2 Global Molina Healthcare And Lithia Motors | For Immediate Release
Chicago IL May 23 2019 Zacks com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets Stocks recently featured in the blog include Comcast Corp NASDAQ CMCSA CommScope Holding Co Inc NASDAQ COMM j2 Global Inc NASDAQ JCOM Molina Healthcare Inc NYSE MOH and Lithia Motors Inc NYSE LAD
Here are highlights from Wednesday s Analyst Blog
Shrug Off Market Gyrations with These Top 5 Value Picks
After an exponential rise in the first four months of the year Wall Street has entered into a correction mode in May after trade related negotiations between the United States and China stalled abruptly However markets returned to their winning streak on May 21 despite the fact that major stock indexes are yet to recover the losses that they suffered in this month
Meanwhile the strong economic fundamentals of the United States have raised the possibility that recent stock market volatility may be a transitory phase and markets will continue their long term uptrends once trade issues are solved
Markets are likely to remain range bound in the near term A strong rally is unlikely for as long as this trade conflict continues However downside potential will be limited owing to solid U S economic fundamentals Meanwhile volatile trading may become a regular phenomenon in Wall Street At this stage it makes good sense to buy those stocks on the dip that could prove to be valuable once the rally resumes
Wall Street Tumbles as Trade War Resurfaces
On May 10 the U S government hiked existing tariff rates to 25 from 10 on 200 billion of Chinese exports In 2018 the Trump administration imposed 25 tariff on 50 billion of Chinese goods Moreover President Trump threatened to levy 25 tariff on another 325 billion of Chinese goods
China had imposed 110 billion tariffs on U S exports in 2018 Following the hike of U S tariff the Chinese authority imposed 25 tariff on an additional 60 billion U S goods effective Jun 1 2019
If negotiations continue there is no timeline specified on when the parties should reach an agreement However a consensus will certainly bode well for both economies On the other hand if no progress is made at all and a full fledged trade war rages the global economy too will see a slowdown along with the warring nations
Trump Declares National Emergency in Telecom
On May 15 President Donald Trump issued an executive order declaring a national emergency preventing U S corporates from using information and communications technology equipment from sources as this poses an unacceptable risk to the national security of the United States
Following the order the Department of Commerce added Chinese telecom behemoth Huawei Technologies and its affiliates to the Bureau of Industry and Security BIS Entity List Another Chinese telecom giant ZTE HK 0763 may also face the same fate The latest move by the U S government further jeopardized the trade relations between the two countries
However on May 21 the U S government said that it will provide a 90 day reprieve to Huawei before taking tough trade measures During these 90 days the U S government will issue temporary license to the U S suppliers of the Chinese telecom behemoth so that Huawei dose not face any immediate supply chain management issue
Several economists and market watchers are considering a decision on the part of the Trump administration to open a channel to find a meaningful solution to the year old trade spat between the two largest trading countries of the world
Our Top Picks
At this stage investors should be prepared to minimize fluctuations in their portfolio and consequently rebalance it with suitable financial assets to maintain stability Thus it would be prudent to pick up value stocks with a favorable Zacks Rank
We have narrowed down our search to five stocks Each of them carries a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy and a Value Score of B You can see the complete list of today s Zacks 1 Rank stocks here
Comcast Corp is a media and technology company worldwide It operates through the Cable Communications Cable Networks Broadcast Television Filmed Division Theme Parks and Sky segments
The forward price to earnings ratio P E for the current financial year is 14 6 lower than the industry average of 27 8 It has a PEG ratio of 1 17 lower than the industry average of 2 10 The company has expected earnings growth of 14 9 for the current year The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 3 2 over the last 30 days
CommScope Holding Co Inc provides premier infrastructure solutions for communications networks worldwide The forward P E ratio for the current financial year is 7 1 lower than the industry average of 52 6 It has a PEG ratio of 0 36 lower than the industry average of 9 64 The company has expected earnings growth of 12 8 for the current year The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 1 2 over the last 30 days
j2 Global Inc provides cloud based communications and storage messaging services The forward P E ratio for the current financial year is 12 3 lower than the industry average of 59 4 It has a PEG ratio of 1 53 lower than the industry average of 3 16 The company has expected earnings growth of 11 for the current year The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 4 over the last 30 days
Molina Healthcare Inc is a multi state healthcare organization that provides managed health care services to low income families and individuals under the Medicaid and Medicare programs and through the state insurance marketplaces
The forward P E ratio for the current financial year is 11 9 lower than the industry average of 14 1 It has a PEG ratio of 0 95 lower than the industry average of 1 01 The company has expected earnings growth of 2 5 for the current year The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 9 7 over the last 30 days
Lithia Motors Inc is one of largest automotive retailers featuring most domestic and import franchises The forward P E ratio for the current financial year is 10 3 lower than the industry average of 16 9 It has a PEG ratio of 1 45 lower than the industry average of 1 64 The company has expected earnings growth of 11 7 for the current year The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 8 6 over the last 30 days
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Past performance is no guarantee of future results Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment legal accounting or tax advice or a recommendation to buy sell or hold a security No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor It should not be assumed that any investments in securities companies sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking market making or asset management activities of any securities These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks The S P 500 is an unmanaged index Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release |
CMCSA | Why Is Comcast CMCSA Down 0 6 Since Last Earnings Report | A month has gone by since the last earnings report for Comcast CMCSA Shares have lost about 0 6 in that time frame outperforming the S P 500
Will the recent negative trend continue leading up to its next earnings release or is Comcast due for a breakout Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late let s take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important drivers Comcast Benefits from Growth in High Speed Internet RevenuesComcast reported first quarter 2019 adjusted earnings of 76 cents per share that beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by a dime The figure jumped 16 9 year over year Consolidated revenues increased 17 8 year over year to 26 86 billion but lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 27 31 billion However revenues on a pro forma basis considers Sky transaction occurred in Jan 1 2017 declined 3 3 year over year Cable Communication Revenue DetailsRevenues climbed 4 2 from the year ago quarter to 14 28 billion Total Customer Relationships increased 300K to 30 7 million High speed Internet revenues increased 10 1 year over year to 4 58 billion primarily driven by an increase in the number of residential high speed Internet customers and rate adjustments Total high speed Internet customer net additions were 375K Business Services revenues were up 9 5 to 1 89 billion on increasing number of customers for its products Wireless revenues increased 21 4 to 225 million supported by an increase in the number of customer lines Comcast added 170K wireless lines in the reported quarter Other revenues increased 7 from the year ago quarter to 413 million on an increase in X1 licensing revenues and higher sales from security and automation services Total security and automation customer net additions were 17K at the end of the first quarter Advertising revenues declined 4 5 to 556 million primarily due to lower political advertising revenues Voice revenues were 990 million down 1 6 year over year owing to a declining number of residential voice customers Video revenues dropped 0 5 to 5 63 billion reflecting a decline in the number of residential video customer count Total video customer net losses were 121K while total voice customer net losses were 53K At the end of the first quarter 67 3 of Comcast s residential customers received at least two Xfinity products NBCUniversal Revenues Decline Y YRevenues declined 12 5 year over year to almost 8 31 billion Cable Networks revenues dropped 9 2 from the year ago quarter to 2 87 billion primarily due to lower distribution down 6 8 content licensing other down 12 and advertising revenues down 12 8 Broadcast Television revenues plunged 29 4 from the year ago quarter to 2 47 billion owing to a drop in advertising down 44 3 and distribution other revenues down 3 2 Filmed Entertainment revenues increased 7 4 from the year ago quarter to 1 77 billion Theatrical revenues rose 5 1 on strong collections from How to Train Your Dragon The Hidden World and Us Home Entertainment revenues increased 7 4 buoyed by strong sales of Dr Seuss The Grinch Content licensing revenues climbed 11 5 year over year Theme Parks revenues were 1 28 billion almost unchanged from the year ago quarter Sky Revenue DetailsPro Forma Revenues declined 5 year over year to almost 4 80 billion At constant currency cc revenues increased 1 9 Direct to consumer revenues declined 7 2 up 0 4 at cc from the year ago quarter to 3 83 billion Content revenues jumped 29 5 38 at cc to 370 million on increased penetration of premium sports and movie channels on third party pay TV networks in the United Kingdom and higher monetization of the company s slate of original programming Notably the company won exclusive sports rights in Italy and Germany Advertising revenues deteriorated 6 up 0 7 at cc from the year ago quarter to 593 million Pro Forma Total Customer Relationships increased 112K to 23 7 million in the reported quarter Operating DetailsConsolidated programming production costs increased 15 3 from the year ago quarter to 8 57 billion As percentage of revenues programming production costs contracted 70 basis points bps on a year over year basis Consolidated adjusted EBITDA increased 18 1 from the year ago quarter to 8 55 billion Pro Forma including Sky operations adjusted EBITDA increased 6 4 Segment wise Cable Communications adjusted EBITDA increased 9 8 from the year ago quarter to 5 73 billion Cable Communications operating expenses increased 0 8 on a year over year basis on higher video programming costs Cable Communications results include a loss of 103 million from the wireless business compared with a loss of 189 million in the year ago quarter NBCUniversal adjusted EBITDA increased 2 9 from the year ago quarter to 2 34 billion primarily owing to 78 7 growth in Filmed Entertainment adjusted EBITDA Sky s adjusted EBITDA on a pro forma basis declined 17 down 11 3 at cc to 663 million Notably Sky s operating costs and expenses fell 2 7 up 4 4 at cc to 4 13 billion Consolidated operating income increased 11 6 year over year to 5 18 billion However operating margin contracted 110 bps from the year ago quarter to 19 3 Cash Flow LiquidityAs of Mar 31 2019 cash and cash equivalents were 10 74 billion down from 11 10 billion as of Dec 31 2018 Consolidated total debt was 109 09 billion down from 111 74 billion as of Dec 31 2018 In first quarter 2019 Comcast generated 7 23 billion of cash from operations compared with 5 47 billion a year ago Capital expenditures increased 6 0 to 2 1 billion NBCUniversal s capital expenditures rose 68 2 to 453 million owing to continued investments in Theme Parks Sky reported capital expenditures of 259 million primarily reflecting investments in customer premise equipment including continued deployment of Sky Q Free cash flow was 4 60 billion in the reported quarter During the quarter Comcast paid dividends worth 869 million
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then
It turns out fresh estimates have trended upward during the past month
VGM Scores
At this time Comcast has a nice Growth Score of B though it is lagging a bit on the Momentum Score front with a C Charting a somewhat similar path the stock was allocated a grade of B on the value side putting it in the top 40 for this investment strategy
Overall the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of B If you aren t focused on one strategy this score is the one you should be interested in
Outlook
Estimates have been trending upward for the stock and the magnitude of this revision looks promising It comes with little surprise Comcast has a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy We expect an above average return from the stock in the next few months |
CMCSA | Has Comcast CMCSA Outpaced Other Consumer Discretionary Stocks This Year | Investors focused on the Consumer Discretionary space have likely heard of Comcast CMCSA but is the stock performing well in comparison to the rest of its sector peers By taking a look at the stock s year to date performance in comparison to its Consumer Discretionary peers we might be able to answer that question
Comcast is one of 244 companies in the Consumer Discretionary group The Consumer Discretionary group currently sits at 8 within the Zacks Sector Rank The Zacks Sector Rank considers 16 different groups measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the sector to gauge the strength of each group
The Zacks Rank emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find stocks with improving earnings outlooks This system has a long record of success and these stocks tend to be on track to beat the market over the next one to three months CMCSA is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of 1 Strong Buy
Over the past 90 days the Zacks Consensus Estimate for CMCSA s full year earnings has moved 8 66 higher This signals that analyst sentiment is improving and the stock s earnings outlook is more positive
Our latest available data shows that CMCSA has returned about 25 32 since the start of the calendar year In comparison Consumer Discretionary companies have returned an average of 16 75 As we can see Comcast is performing better than its sector in the calendar year
Looking more specifically CMCSA belongs to the Cable Television industry a group that includes 11 individual stocks and currently sits at 164 in the Zacks Industry Rank On average this group has gained an average of 25 14 so far this year meaning that CMCSA is performing better in terms of year to date returns
Investors with an interest in Consumer Discretionary stocks should continue to track CMCSA The stock will be looking to continue its solid performance |
CMCSA | Is Comcast CMCSA Stock Undervalued Right Now | The proven Zacks Rank system focuses on earnings estimates and estimate revisions to find winning stocks Nevertheless we know that our readers all have their own perspectives so we are always looking at the latest trends in value growth and momentum to find strong picks
Of these perhaps no stock market trend is more popular than value investing which is a strategy that has proven to be successful in all sorts of market environments Value investors rely on traditional forms of analysis on key valuation metrics to find stocks that they believe are undervalued leaving room for profits
In addition to the Zacks Rank investors looking for stocks with specific traits can utilize our Style Scores system Of course value investors will be most interested in the system s Value category Stocks with A grades for Value and high Zacks Ranks are among the best value stocks available at any given moment
One company to watch right now is Comcast CMCSA CMCSA is currently holding a Zacks Rank of 2 Buy and a Value grade of A The stock is trading with a P E ratio of 13 67 which compares to its industry s average of 18 08 Over the past year CMCSA s Forward P E has been as high as 14 59 and as low as 11 94 with a median of 13 33
Investors should also note that CMCSA holds a PEG ratio of 1 15 This metric is used similarly to the famous P E ratio but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock s expected earnings growth rate CMCSA s industry currently sports an average PEG of 1 53 CMCSA s PEG has been as high as 1 19 and as low as 0 93 with a median of 1 11 all within the past year
Another notable valuation metric for CMCSA is its P B ratio of 2 61 The P B ratio is used to compare a stock s market value with its book value which is defined as total assets minus total liabilities This company s current P B looks solid when compared to its industry s average P B of 3 06 CMCSA s P B has been as high as 2 67 and as low as 2 04 with a median of 2 35 over the past year
Value investors also use the P S ratio The P S ratio is is calculated as price divided by sales This is a prefered metric because revenue can t really be manipulated so sales are often a truer performance indicator CMCSA has a P S ratio of 1 98 This compares to its industry s average P S of 2 04
Finally investors will want to recognize that CMCSA has a P CF ratio of 8 32 This figure highlights a company s operating cash flow and can be used to find firms that are undervalued when considering their impressive cash outlook This company s current P CF looks solid when compared to its industry s average P CF of 9 38 CMCSA s P CF has been as high as 8 49 and as low as 4 40 with a median of 5 08 all within the past year
These figures are just a handful of the metrics value investors tend to look at but they help show that Comcast is likely being undervalued right now Considering this as well as the strength of its earnings outlook CMCSA feels like a great value stock at the moment |
WFC | U S regulator wants to loosen leash on Wells Fargo sources | By Patrick Rucker WASHINGTON Reuters A leading U S regulator wants to make it easier for Wells Fargo NYSE WFC to pay employees when they leave loosening a restriction in place since a phony accounts scandal hit the bank last year according to people familiar with the matter The initiative comes as President Donald Trump is trying to lighten rules on Wall Street and the bank regulator Keith Noreika acting Comptroller of the Currency OCC must weigh whether to vet new Wells Fargo executives If Noreika s approach prevails the OCC could go easier on Wells Fargo and any other large banks sanctioned in the future Since Noreika took control of the OCC in May he has advocated easing up on sanctions imposed on Wells Fargo in the wake of the scandal over abusive sales practices according to current and former officials Wells Fargo reached a 190 million settlement in September 2016 after admitting that its sales staff opened as many as 2 1 million accounts without customers consent Since then the estimate has climbed to as many as 3 5 million As part of the deal with regulators incoming Wells Fargo executives can face a vetting from the OCC while severance payouts must be cleared by the OCC and a sister agency the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation But Noreika wants officials to work faster when they review severance pay and the agency can choose to waive its check on incoming executives Wells Fargo declined comment on the reviews Hundreds of Wells Fargo employees have had their severance payouts frozen when they left as regulators tried to determine what role those employees might have had in the scandal Under one proposal floated by the OCC departing employees would collect severance automatically if regulators could not finish their review within weeks according to one current and two former officials who were not authorized to discuss an internal debate Under another scenario the OCC could push for payouts to a Wells Fargo employee without waiting for the FDIC to concur The FDIC has the final say on severance and until now the decisions have always been made jointly The FDIC has resisted hurrying its severance reviews according to those familiar with the discussions But the current FDIC chief Martin Gruenberg could be replaced within weeks by a President Trump nominee If that happens and Noreika prevails it could provide relief for Wells Fargo as it faces fresh scrutiny for wrongly charging customers for car insurance and mortgages Noreika is expected to leave the OCC in coming weeks but the matter could be settled by Joseph Otting the former banker who is Trump s permanent pick for the OCC Otting is expected to favor a similar light touch approach to financial rules PAYOUTS The golden parachute rule is meant to halt payouts to employees who played a role in a bank s problems but Noreika has said too many innocent Wells Fargo employees are caught up in the reviews In a June 5 letter to a former Wells Fargo employee made public by the OCC Noreika said that he had personally called Gruenberg to expedite a payment In the weeks after that letter was sent sources said the OCC has proposed speeding up the reviews but the FDIC pushed back against setting artificial deadlines according to one official The OCC has sought ways to make regulatory reviews more efficient and complete in weeks not months OCC spokesman Bryan Hubbard said while declining to discuss inter agency deliberations The FDIC defended the pace of its severance audits which in some cases have taken months to finish When delays occur it is generally because the applying institution provided incomplete or inconsistent information said Barbara Hagenbaugh spokeswoman for the FDIC Severance payouts are simple to calculate for rank and file Wells Fargo employees who can get two weeks pay for each year of work It gets more complex for senior executives who get a mix of salary bonuses stocks and other perks For example James Strother the bank s former chief counsel who retired this summer was among senior Wells Fargo executives that had 32 million in payouts frozen in March But Strother has yet to repay a 310 000 interest free loan Wells Fargo granted him in 2001 a year before such insider loans were banned according to securities filings and the bank Mr Strother has informed us that he does plan on paying back the loan as required and expected said Diana Rodriguez a spokeswoman for Wells Fargo Strother declined to comment
According to several former officials the FDIC has authority to scrutinize such loans under their golden parachute review adding another layer of complexity to the process |
WFC | Trump likely to pick Fed s Powell to lead central bank source | By Steve Holland WASHINGTON Reuters President Donald Trump is likely to pick Federal Reserve Governor Jerome Powell as the next head of the U S central bank a source familiar with the matter said on Monday prompting investors to push down yields on Treasury notes The Republican president who is considering Powell current Fed Chair Janet Yellen and three others for the top central bank job will announce his decision on Thursday a White House official said separately By picking Powell a soft spoken centrist and Fed governor since 2012 Trump would get the combination of a leadership change and the continuity offered by somebody who has been a part of the Yellen run Fed that has kept the economy and markets steady in recent years Powell 64 has supported Yellen s general direction in setting monetary policy and in recent years has shared her concerns that weak inflation justified a continued cautious approach to raising interest rates Powell has not offended people and that s a huge advantage in Washington He s the kind of guy who can get through Senate confirmation and this administration has so many other problems to deal with said John Silva chief economist at Wells Fargo NYSE WFC The main challenger to Powell is Stanford University economist John Taylor a favorite of conservative Republicans who believe monetary policy has been too loose under Yellen and want the central bank to rely more on rules when setting rates Taylor has spent the last two decades refining and pushing for wider use of a rule that sets out where rates should be given certain conditions of inflation and the broader economy His rule implies they should be higher than they are now Critics say that a Taylor run Fed would run the risk of tightening monetary policy too fast and choking off the recovery from the 2007 2009 financial crisis and recession The race for the Fed job has shifted between Yellen who was nominated by former President Barack Obama to a one year term in 2014 Powell and Taylor in recent weeks Financial markets had pushed Treasury yields higher on talk Taylor would get the job Benchmark 10 year Treasury notes US10YT RR were yielding 2 37 percent in mid afternoon trading on Monday down from 2 43 percent on Friday
The Fed which is holding a two day policy meeting this week has lifted rates twice this year and is expected to do so again in December |
WFC | Good news for overburdened small banks if Powell picked for Fed chair | By Michelle Price and Pete Schroeder WASHINGTON Reuters Jerome Powell s nomination by President Donald Trump to serve as the next head of the U S Federal Reserve if announced later this week could be a boon for smaller lenders given his desire as a current Fed board governor to focus on bank size when reviewing rules introduced after the 2008 crisis Powell is seen as the favorite among five candidates with current Fed chair Janet Yellen s term due to expire in February 2018 and an announcement is possible on Thursday this week Trump is choosing from a slate of candidates ranging from Yellen an economist who is seen as the most cautious on changing the so called Dodd Frank banking reforms of 2010 to economist John Taylor a proponent of deregulation Trump has pledged to deregulate the financial sector to boost economic growth but the industry has had to wait for several key federal agency appointments The chairmanship of the Fed is widely seen as one of the most important of these positions due to the central bank s extensive banking oversight role If picked Powell who is a lawyer and former investment banker rather than an economist will bring to the job both knowledge of the financial industry and a stated desire to lighten the regulatory load especially on smaller banks Powell who has been a Federal Reserve board governor since 2012 played a key role in drafting new bank regulations after the 2008 crisis and will likely offer more continuity for Wall Street than other candidates analysts said However as Fed chair he would be freer to pursue his stated agenda of adjusting or eliminating some rules that he sees as redundant or inefficient John Silvia chief economist at Wells Fargo NYSE WFC said Powell s experience at the Fed equipped him to maneuver the institution through a difficult period adding As an attorney he can probably look critically at a lot of regulations that have emerged Handed broad new powers by the 2010 Dodd Frank financial reform law the Fed plays a leading role in the oversight of the biggest financial institutions in the world including overseeing annual bank stress tests and monitoring any non banks deemed critical to the financial system The Fed has recently begun to review how it wields its newly acquired powers to potentially offer some regulatory relief given the crisis is now ten years ago Powell has been at the heart of this debate There was always going to be a time when we would look back and say all this innovative new regulation is it done right Powell 64 said at a Reuters event this month Can we achieve this safety and soundness objective this stability objective at a lower cost to consumers and financial institutions can we do it more efficiently what parts of it are essential what parts of it are redundant Speaking during the same Reuters event Powell said higher capital and liquidity requirements and stress tests to show how a bank could handle market shocks along with so called living wills outlining how a bank can be unwound have made the financial system safer and must be preserved But his top priority he continued is to ensure the rules are better tailored to the institution concerned and that smaller banks should enjoy a lighter touch In particular Powell has said that the so called Volcker Rule banning banks from proprietary trading is not appropriate for smaller banks who pose less systemic risk and should be re written to include a narrower range of institutions The Fed governor is also open to improving the transparency of the stress testing process and tweaking other rules such as the enhanced supplementary leverage ratio which requires banks to hold more capital As Powell gets to work he will have a close ally on the Fed board in the form of Randal Quarles a lawyer who was appointed to the role of Fed vice chair for supervision on Oct 13 to lead the bank s regulatory work A former private equity investor Wall Street lawyer and Under Secretary to the U S Treasury Quarles has also advocated tempering some of the Dodd Frank banking regulations As Fed vice chair for supervision Quarles is considered the official in charge of regulatory matters but he will still report to and have to work closely with the new Fed chair I have known him for 25 years as a close friend I think he s a terrific appointment and I look forward to reuniting with him Powell said in October |
WFC | Wells Fargo WFC Beats On Q1 Earnings Revenue Falls Y Y | Have you been eager to see how Wells Fargo Company NYSE WFC performed in Q1 in comparison with the market expectations Let s quickly scan through the key facts from this San Francisco based money center bank s earnings release this morning An Earnings BeatWells Fargo came out with adjusted earnings per share of 1 00 beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 97 cents Higher net interest income was primarily responsible for this earnings beat How Was the Estimate Revision Trend You should note that the earnings estimate for Wells Fargo depicted neutral stance prior to the earnings release The Zacks Consensus Estimate has remained stable over the last 7 days Also Wells Fargo has a decent earnings surprise history Before posting earnings beat in Q1 the company delivered positive surprises in three of the prior four quarters Overall the company surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by an average of 1 01 in the trailing four quarters Wells Fargo Company Price and EPS Surprise
Revenue Came In Lower Than Expected Wells Fargo posted revenues of 22 billion lagging the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 22 1 billion Also it was lower than the year ago number Key Stats to Note
Pre tax pre provision profit PTPP 8 2 billionROA net income to average assets 1 15 ROE net income applicable to common stock to shareholders equity 11 54 What Zacks Rank SaysThe estimate revisions that we discussed earlier have driven a Zacks Rank 3 Hold for Wells Fargo However since the latest earnings performance is yet to be reflected in the estimate revisions the rank is subject to change While things apparently look favorable it all depends on what sense the just released report makes to the analysts You can see How the Market Reacted So FarFollowing the earnings release Wells Fargo shares were down around 1 2 in the pre trading session This is in line to what the stock witnessed in the prior day s session Clearly the initial reaction shows that the investors have not considered the results in their favor However the full session s price movement may indicate a different picture Check back later for our full write up on this Wells Fargo earnings report later Zacks Hidden TradesWhile we share many recommendations and ideas with the public certain moves are hidden from everyone but selected members of our portfolio services Would you like to peek behind the curtain today and view them Starting now for the next month I invite you to follow all Zacks private buys and sells in real time from value to momentum from stocks under 10 to ETF to option movers from insider trades to companies that are about to report positive earnings surprises we ve called them with 80 accuracy You can even look inside portfolios so exclusive that they are normally closed to new investors |
CMCSA | Triumph and controversy Team Sky s era of domination | By Christian Radnedge LONDON Reuters When Team Sky launched in London in 2010 with the ambition of having a British winner of the Tour de France within five years there was more than a modicum of scepticism at the undoubtedly flashy new boys in the peloton Not that there was inexperience as British Cycling s Dave Brailsford was installed as team principal and brought with him the marginal gains strategy that would underpin the team s successes and controversies over almost a decade of extraordinary success Six out of seven Tour de France titles three of which were won by different riders and Chris Froome holding all three major tour titles at once would be impressive enough in isolation but coming after more than 100 years of Britain failing to get a man on the Tour podium the success and the speed with which it was achieved were nothing short of astonishing The broadcaster which has announced it will end its association with the team next year had already enjoyed a fruitful partnership with the national cycling federation and with Brailsford s persuasion a team was built to nurture young British talent and win cycling s biggest prizes At the time reports said the investment was worth 30 million pounds 37 6 million over four years but by 2017 their budget for that year alone was 31 1 million pounds Such figures dwarfed anything the rest of the peloton could muster and soon led to a seething undercurrent of animosity Bradley Wiggins finished 24th in Team Sky s tentative debut at the Tour de France in 2010 and two years later became the first British winner of cycling s most prestigious event With Wiggins also leading British domination of the cycling program at the 2012 London Olympics Brailsford was the toast of the sporting world The whole principle came from the idea that if you broke down everything you could think of that goes into riding a bike and then improved it by one percent you will get a significant increase when you put them all together Brailsford said that year expanding on his marginal gains philosophy At a time when trust in cycling was at an all time low on the back of Lance Armstrong and relentless doping revelations Sky seemed a shining beacon for their focus on technical improvements and their insistence on winning clean But soon the halo began to slip The team struggled to explain the delivery of a mystery jiffy bag for Wiggins at the 2011 Criterium du Dauphine race in France and Brailsford s belated claim that it was a flu treatment that needed to come from England did not convince many onlookers A 14 month U K Anti Doping investigation into its contents eventually hit a dead end due to a lack of accurate medical records being available In March this year a damning report by the British government s Digital Culture Media and Sport select committee said that the team had cynically abused the anti doping system by using therapeutic use exemption certificates PR DAMAGE Froome won the Tour in 2013 and would go on to win another three but he too came under the microscope for an adverse analytical finding for asthma drug salbutamol He was later cleared of any wrongdoing by the governing UCI but the PR damage had been done Despite winning the Giro d Italia again another milestone for a British rider Froome endured his worst reception in France being jostled and spat at on this year s Tour as critics accused Sky of crossing the ethical line Geraint Thomas won his maiden title in the race to give the team a timely boost considering the Welshman s lack of connection to any controversies By then it was clear what a force the Sky machine had become from that flashy but nervous launch in London in 2010 with its huge entourage clad in black and blue leading the way wherever they went Even their buses went out in front There was no doubting who Wiggins was referring to at his own team s season launch earlier this year We want to be a team who engages with the public not hidden in a big black bus behind screens he said after even he fell out with his former employers It was changes further up the food chain that probably spelt out the end of Sky s association as last year James Murdoch resigned as Sky plc chairman following the majority control takeover by U S cable group Comcast Corp NASDAQ CMCSA Murdoch had been the main driver of Sky s involvement in cycling He was a keen fan of the sport and the push to make the team the best in the world had not been simply a business decision but one of personal passion too With Murdoch gone so too it seems is the passion as Sky pursues other aspects of its business As far as shaking up the world of cycling and putting British riders to the fore the sponsorship has undoubtedly been a spectacular success
The team hopes to continue beyond next year but any potential new backer is highly unlikely to be able to match Sky s investment levels suggesting that the end of one of the most dominant eras in the history of the sport is about to draw to a close |
CMCSA | Cycling Sky to end team sponsorship after 2019 season | Reuters The future of Team Sky has been cast into doubt after its owner and sponsor broadcaster Sky confirmed it will end involvement in professional cycling after the 2019 season the British based outfit said on Wednesday The decision means the hugely successful team which has won eight Grand Tours since 2012 will need to begin the search for another source of funding from the beginning of 2020 and continue to compete under a new name While Sky will be moving on at the end of next year the team is open minded about the future and the potential of working with a new partner should the right opportunity present itself team principal Dave Brailsford said in a statement We aren t finished yet by any means There is another exciting year of racing ahead of us and we will be doing everything we can to deliver more Team Sky success in 2019 Team Sky was founded in 2010 with an ambitious goal of securing a first Tour de France victory by a British cyclist within five years a feat they achieved two years later when Bradley Wiggins triumphed in Paris Chris Froome claimed the first of four Tour de France wins a year later and became the first cyclist in more than 30 years to hold all three Grand Tour titles at the same time when he added the 2017 Vuelta a Espana and 2018 Giro d Italia to his list of honours Earlier this year Froome s team mate Geraint Thomas became the third Briton to win the Tour de France for Sky who have amassed 322 overall victories since their formation The end of 2019 is the right time for us to move on as we open a new chapter in Sky s story and turn our focus to different initiatives including our Sky Ocean Rescue campaign Sky Chief Executive Jeremy Darroch said In an open letter to fans on Wednesday Team Sky said changes at the satellite broadcaster had played a part in Sky s decision to withdraw from cycling Froome took to Twitter to thank brilliant partners Sky and said the team would do everything possible to survive once their main sponsor pulled out I can t predict the future but this is a really special team he said We plan to be together in 2020 if at all possible We will all be doing everything we can to help make that happen in different colours with a new partner but with the same values focus and desire to win They Sky have been brilliant partners and it s been an incredible journey we have shared together They have helped me personally every step of the way and I will always be grateful for their support MORAL HIGH GROUND U S cable group Comcast Corp NASDAQ CMCSA outbid Rupert Murdoch owned Twenty First Century Fox Inc NASDAQ FOX at an auction earlier this year to take control of Sky in a deal valued at 40 billion Fox which owns a minority stake in Team Sky also confirmed that 2019 would be the last year of its involvement in cycling We can t predict what will happen from 2020 and there are no guarantees Team Sky said in the letter Whatever happens we will make sure there is clarity one way or the other about the future of the Team before the Tour de France next July Team Sky s dominance of the cycling landscape has not been without controversy for an outfit backed by a huge budget that has strived to take the moral high ground with a zero tolerance doping policy The 33 year old Froome was investigated and subsequently cleared of wrongdoing by cycling s world governing body UCI over an Adverse Analytical Finding AAF for an asthma drug at last year s Vuelta days before the Tour de France in July The team was also investigated by the U K Anti Doping Agency UKAD over a mystery package ordered by former team doctor Richard Freeman and delivered to Wiggins at the 2011 Criterium du Dauphine Brailsford told lawmakers that the package contained the legal decongestant Fluimucil and UKAD closed its investigation after 14 months without issuing any anti doping charges citing a lack of contemporaneous evidence
Team Sky however was criticised by UKAD for not keeping accurate medical records and also drew flak from British parliamentarians who alleged the team had crossed an ethical line by using permitted medication to enhance performances |
CMCSA | Biopic tells Justice Ginsburg s story long before Notorious R B G | By Lisa Richwine LOS ANGELES Reuters Seven years ago a nephew of Ruth Bader Ginsburg asked the U S Supreme Court justice to help him with a screenplay that would chronicle one of her early cases seeking equal rights for men and women That story written with extensive input from the justice debuts in theaters on Christmas in the movie On the Basis of Sex starring Felicity Jones The Oscar nominated actress plays a young Ginsburg as she juggles being a new mother and trying to establish a law career in the 1960s and 1970s For some people she is a divisive person said the nephew and screenwriter Daniel Stiepleman For other people she s a superhero For me she s Aunt Ruth That s the person I wrote on screen with human foibles and problems and opportunities and a home life As Stiepleman was writing Ginsburg became a cultural icon nicknamed Notorious R B G inspired by late rapper Notorious B I G A hero to U S liberals her image is seen on coffee mugs and T shirts and she even has her own action figure A documentary RBG showed the octogenarian in the gym lifting weights enhancing her status among fans On the Basis of Sex tells the story of a landmark discrimination case that Ginsburg argued with her tax attorney husband Martin in 1972 It involved Charles Moritz a single man who was denied a 296 tax deduction because he was a male caregiver Ginsburg and her husband who died in 2010 successfully argued the denial represented gender based discrimination This film is part fact part imaginative Ginsburg told National Public Radio correspondent Nina Totenberg recently but what s wonderful about it is that the imaginative parts fit in with the story so well Stiepleman said he focused on the Moritz case because it was the only instance when the Ginsburgs argued in court together and it coincided with a time when they were navigating their marriage Martin Ginsburg played by Armie Hammer is shown as a devoted husband who helps with cleaning and cooking an unusual partnership for the era The writer spent several days digging through his aunt s files at the Library of Congress In the evenings he asked her for insight about her marriage Ginsburg told Totenberg that she reviewed the script s first three drafts When her nephew called about the initial version she told him I m in the middle of reading the Affordable Care Act Can you call me back in 30 minutes according to Stiepleman He called back and she said OK page one And we went through it like it was a contract line by line She wanted the law to be right she wanted the way the law is practiced to be right and she wanted Uncle Martin to be right Stiepleman said The film is being distributed by Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA Corp s Focus Features Asked if the 85 year old Ginsburg who joined the country s highest court in 1993 would ever retire Stiepleman said he dare not speculate
But he added You cannot underestimate the degree to which she reveres the court I can t imagine why she would ever want to stop being a part of that |
CMCSA | US Telecoms Giant Comcast to Make Blockchain Software Available in 2019 | American global telecommunications conglomerate Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA aims to make its blockchain initiative Blockgraph commercially available in 2019 according to a press release published Dec 21 Comcast is currently working with NBCUniversal to test Blockgraph s capabilities with plans of incorporating it into its addressable offering in early 2019 states the release |
CMCSA | Comcast Rises 3 | Investing com Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA rose by 3 04 to trade at 34 08 by 15 55 20 55 GMT on Wednesday on the NASDAQ exchange
The volume of Comcast shares traded since the start of the session was 16 39M Comcast has traded in a range of 32 61 to 34 14 on the day
The stock has traded at 36 8600 at its highest and 32 6200 at its lowest during the past seven days |
CMCSA | Forget Trade Tensions Focus On US Economy 4 Top Picks | On May 13 trade tensions took a heavy toll on U S stocks once again The Dow and the S P 500 suffered their worst losses since Jan 3 triggered by China s decision to impose retaliatory tariffs on American goods worth 60 billion While some conciliatory noises emerged from the White House China s state sponsored media adopted an abrasive tone on the simmering trade conflict Meanwhile key members of the Federal Reserve stated that the American economy is much stronger relative to China And investors should focus on its resilience and ignore medium term turbulence in the equity markets This is why it makes sense to invest in select consumer discretionary stocks at this time Kashkari Rosengreen Emphasize US Economy s StrengthAccording to Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari the United States holds the edge in its trade conflict with China Despite the continuing slide in equity markets Kashkari believes major economic metrics remain stable as the trade war intensifies Speaking to CNBC he said the United States is in a very strong position compared to China Firstly the U S economy is much larger and is much less sensitive to trade On the other hand much of China s prosperity is linked to the export driven nature of its economy In fact exports make up a much larger chunk of the economy compared to the United States This is why the United States has the advantage in a retaliatory battle of escalating tariffs Boston Fed President Eric Rosengreen echoed Kashkari s views on America s economic strength He said that if the trade conflict was short lived it would have little impact on the U S economy Rosengreen also thinks that the domestic economy is robust enough to withstand the trade issues that are coming up right now Economic Indicators Remain RobustU S GDP increased at 3 2 in the first quarter of 2019 exceeding the consensus estimate of 2 1 by a wide margin The figure is also significantly higher than the pace of 2 2 recorded in the last quarter of 2018 This is also the first time since 2018 that first quarter GDP has breached the 3 barrier Read Meanwhile the unemployment rate declined from 3 8 to 3 6 in April This is the lowest level registered since December 1969 and significantly better than the estimated rate of 3 8 Also the economy added 263 000 jobs last month This marks the 100th consecutive month of job growth for the U S economy Read Factory orders rebounded in March increasing 1 9 This is the largest increase experienced since August 2018 Strong demand for transportation equipment was the primary reason for the resurgence in factory orders An increase in orders for electronic equipment and computers also contributed to March s gains Our ChoicesComments from top Fed officials indicate that the U S economy remains robust in the midst of significant equity market turbulence This is why it holds the edge in a likely protracted trade war with China These statements are borne out by recently released data which serve to underline America s economic strength Investing in consumer discretionary stocks the powerhouse of the U S economy remains prudent at this time However picking winning stocks may be difficult This is where our comes in Here V stands for Value G for Growth and M for Momentum and the score is a weighted combination of these three scores Such a score allows you to eliminate the negative aspects of stocks and select winners However it is important to keep in mind that each Style Score will carry a different weight while arriving at a VGM Score We have narrowed down our search to the following stocks each of which has a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy and good VGM Score You can see G III Apparel Group Ltd NASDAQ GIII is a leading manufacturer and distributor of apparel and accessories under licensed brands owned brands and private label brands G III Apparel Group has a VGM Score of A The company s expected earnings growth for the current year is 15 3 The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 6 5 over the last 60 days Comcast Corporation NASDAQ CMCSA is a global media and technology company with three primary businesses Comcast Cable NBCUniversal and Sky Comcast has a VGM Score of B The company s projected growth rate for the current year is 14 4 The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 3 3 over the last 30 days Marine Products Corporation NYSE MPX designs manufactures and distributes recreational fiberglass powerboats Marine Products has a VGM Score of B The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 6 6 over the last 30 days Johnson Outdoors Inc NASDAQ JOUT is a designer manufacturer and marketer of diving camping watercraft and marine electronics products Johnson Outdoors has a VGM Score of B The company s projected growth rate for the current year is 1 5 Today s Best Stocks from Zacks Would you like to see the updated picks from our best market beating strategies From 2017 through 2018 while the S P 500 gained 15 8 five of our screens returned 38 0 61 3 61 6 68 1 and 98 3 This outperformance has not just been a recent phenomenon From 2000 2018 while the S P averaged 4 8 per year our top strategies averaged up to 56 2 per year |
CMCSA | The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights G III Comcast Marine Products And Johnson Outdoors | For Immediate ReleaseChicago IL May 15 2019 Zacks com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets Stocks recently featured in the blog include G III Apparel Group Ltd NASDAQ GIII Comcast Corporation NASDAQ CMCSA Marine Products Corp NYSE MPX and Johnson Outdoors Inc NASDAQ JOUT Here are highlights from Tuesday s Analyst Blog Forget Trade Tensions Focus on the U S Economy 4 Top StocksOn May 13 trade tensions took a heavy toll on U S stocks once again The Dow and the S P 500 suffered their worst losses since Jan 3 triggered by China s decision to impose retaliatory tariffs on American goods worth 60 billion While some conciliatory noises emerged from the White House China s state sponsored media adopted an abrasive tone on the simmering trade conflict Meanwhile key members of the Federal Reserve stated that the American economy is much stronger relative to China And investors should focus on its resilience and ignore medium term turbulence in the equity markets This is why it makes sense to invest in select consumer discretionary stocks at this time Kashkari Rosengreen Emphasize US Economy s StrengthAccording to Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari the United States holds the edge in its trade conflict with China Despite the continuing slide in equity markets Kashkari believes major economic metrics remain stable as the trade war intensifies Speaking to CNBC he said the United States is in a very strong position compared to China Firstly the U S economy is much larger and is much less sensitive to trade On the other hand much of China s prosperity is linked to the export driven nature of its economy In fact exports make up a much larger chunk of the economy compared to the United States This is why the United States has the advantage in a retaliatory battle of escalating tariffs Boston Fed President Eric Rosengreen echoed Kashkari s views on America s economic strength He said that if the trade conflict was short lived it would have little impact on the U S economy Rosengreen also thinks that the domestic economy is robust enough to withstand the trade issues that are coming up right now Economic Indicators Remain RobustU S GDP increased at 3 2 in the first quarter of 2019 exceeding the consensus estimate of 2 1 by a wide margin The figure is also significantly higher than the pace of 2 2 recorded in the last quarter of 2018 This is also the first time since 2018 that first quarter GDP has breached the 3 barrier Read 5 Consumer Discretionary Stocks to Buy as Q1 GDP Surges Meanwhile the unemployment rate declined from 3 8 to 3 6 in April This is the lowest level registered since December 1969 and significantly better than the estimated rate of 3 8 Also the economy added 263 000 jobs last month This marks the 100th consecutive month of job growth for the U S economy Read Unemployment Hits 50 Year Low 6 Business Services Picks Factory orders rebounded in March increasing 1 9 This is the largest increase experienced since August 2018 Strong demand for transportation equipment was the primary reason for the resurgence in factory orders An increase in orders for electronic equipment and computers also contributed to March s gains Our ChoicesComments from top Fed officials indicate that the U S economy remains robust in the midst of significant equity market turbulence This is why it holds the edge in a likely protracted trade war with China These statements are borne out by recently released data which serve to underline America s economic strength Investing in consumer discretionary stocks the powerhouse of the U S economy remains prudent at this time However picking winning stocks may be difficult This is where our VGM Score comes in Here V stands for Value G for Growth and M for Momentum and the score is a weighted combination of these three scores Such a score allows you to eliminate the negative aspects of stocks and select winners However it is important to keep in mind that each Style Score will carry a different weight while arriving at a VGM Score We have narrowed down our search to the following stocks each of which has a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy and good VGM Score You can see the complete list of today s Zacks 1 Rank stocks here G III Apparel Group Ltd is a leading manufacturer and distributor of apparel and accessories under licensed brands owned brands and private label brands G III Apparel Group has a VGM Score of A The company s expected earnings growth for the current year is 15 3 The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 6 5 over the last 60 days Comcast Corporation is a global media and technology company with three primary businesses Comcast Cable NBCUniversal and Sky Comcast has a VGM Score of B The company s projected growth rate for the current year is 14 4 The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 3 3 over the last 30 days Marine Products Corp designs manufactures and distributes recreational fiberglass powerboats Marine Products has a VGM Score of B The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has improved by 6 6 over the last 30 days Johnson Outdoors Inc is a designer manufacturer and marketer of diving camping watercraft and marine electronics products Johnson Outdoors has a VGM Score of B The company s projected growth rate for the current year is 1 5 Today s Best Stocks from ZacksWould you like to see the updated picks from our best market beating strategies From 2017 through 2018 while the S P 500 gained 15 8 five of our screens returned 38 0 61 3 61 6 68 1 and 98 3 This outperformance has not just been a recent phenomenon From 2000 2018 while the S P averaged 4 8 per year our top strategies averaged up to 56 2 per year See their latest picks free Media ContactZacks Investment Research800 767 3771 ext 9339 Past performance is no guarantee of future results Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment legal accounting or tax advice or a recommendation to buy sell or hold a security No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor It should not be assumed that any investments in securities companies sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking market making or asset management activities of any securities These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks The S P 500 is an unmanaged index Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release |
CMCSA | Here Is Why Growth Investors Should Buy Comcast CMCSA Now | Growth investors focus on stocks that are seeing above average financial growth as this feature helps these securities garner the market s attention and deliver solid returns However it isn t easy to find a great growth stock
By their very nature these stocks carry above average risk and volatility Moreover if a company s growth story is over or nearing its end betting on it could lead to significant loss
However it s pretty easy to find cutting edge growth stocks with the help of the Zacks Growth Style Score part of the Zacks Style Scores system which looks beyond the traditional growth attributes to analyze a company s real growth prospects
Comcast CMCSA is one such stock that our proprietary system currently recommends The company not only has a favorable Growth Score but also carries a top Zacks Rank
Research shows that stocks carrying the best growth features consistently beat the market And for stocks that have a combination of a Growth Score of A or B and a Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy or 2 Buy returns are even better
Here are three of the most important factors that make the stock of this cable provider a great growth pick right now
Earnings Growth
Arguably nothing is more important than earnings growth as surging profit levels is what most investors are after And for growth investors double digit earnings growth is definitely preferable and often an indication of strong prospects and stock price gains for the company under consideration
While the historical EPS growth rate for Comcast is 14 3 investors should actually focus on the projected growth The company s EPS is expected to grow 14 7 this year crushing the industry average which calls for EPS growth of 10 3
Cash Flow Growth
Cash is the lifeblood of any business but higher than average cash flow growth is more beneficial and important for growth oriented companies than for mature companies That s because high cash accumulation enables these companies to undertake new projects without raising expensive outside funds
Right now year over year cash flow growth for Comcast is 15 3 which is higher than many of its peers In fact the rate compares to the industry average of 12
While investors should actually consider the current cash flow growth it s worth taking a look at the historical rate too for putting the current reading into proper perspective The company s annualized cash flow growth rate has been 9 3 over the past 3 5 years versus the industry average of 7
Promising Earnings Estimate Revisions
Beyond the metrics outlined above investors should consider the trend in earnings estimate revisions A positive trend is a plus here Empirical research shows that there is a strong correlation between trends in earnings estimate revisions and near term stock price movements
The current year earnings estimates for Comcast have been revising upward The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the current year has surged 2 9 over the past month
Bottom Line
Comcast has not only earned a Growth Score of B based on a number of factors including the ones discussed above but it also carries a Zacks Rank 1 because of the positive earnings estimate revisions
You can see the complete list of today s Zacks 1 Rank Strong Buy stocks here
This combination positions Comcast well for outperformance so growth investors may want to bet on it |
WFC | Global growth Sure But still not much inflation pressure Reuters poll | By Anu Bararia and Hari Kishan BENGALURU Reuters The global economy is on its best roll in years and set to do better in 2018 but economists in Reuters polls around the world mostly said synchronous growth is not about to spawn significant price pressures Indeed while several major central banks have shifted their bias away from ultra easy monetary policy with a few notable exceptions inflation remains below their targets and is generally set to stay that way in the year ahead It is becoming a familiar refrain Another quarter another set of upward revisions to our global growth forecasts another downward revision to our global inflation forecasts said Janet Henry global chief economist at HSBC But for developed world central banks the task is getting ever harder Tackling both low inflation and rising financial stability risks will demand a delicate balancing act by central banks and a more nuanced approach to inflation targeting if the global expansion is to be sustained In Reuters surveys taken Oct 3 24 of more than 500 economists across Asia Europe and the Americas 2017 and 2018 growth forecasts for nearly three quarters of the 48 economies polled were raised or left unchanged Global economic growth as a whole is forecast at 3 5 percent this year steady compared with a poll published three months ago but a tad lower than the recently upgraded view from the International Monetary Fund While the consensus forecast for 2018 also remained steady at 3 6 percent a majority who answered an additional question said the risk to their forecasts were skewed more to the upside However respondents cut their 2017 inflation forecasts for nearly two thirds of the economies surveyed Around 40 percent of the 134 economists who answered an extra question said global inflation pressures won t pick up until 2019 or beyond while a quarter said they were unlikely to rebound at all The rest said they will before end 2018 Erik Nelson a strategist at Wells Fargo NYSE WFC in New York said for their global growth forecasts which are roughly in line with the Reuters consensus inflation picking up faster than expected is the number one risk If inflation picks up a lot more than we are expecting either in the United States or other economies and central banks have to tighten a little more aggressively than we currently think then there is probably some downside risk for those forecasts Nelson said CHALLENGE FOR CENTRAL BANKS Global central banks are at different stages in removing monetary policy accommodation with persistently weak inflation nearly everywhere complicating decision making Low inflation expectations may have become self fulfilling so low inflation is likely more persistent than what central banks think said Mikael Milhoj senior analyst at Danske Bank The U S Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates in December and twice next year according to economists who largely said risks were skewed more to a slower pace of hikes Uncertainty over who U S President Donald Trump will choose to head the Fed when Chair Janet Yellen s term ends on Feb 1 has also clouded the outlook One of the candidates Trump has interviewed and is seriously considering according to reports former Treasury undersecretary John Taylor was deemed in a Reuters poll as likely to adopt the most radical change to current policy were he to be appointed After more than two years of purchases worth over 2 trillion euros in total the European Central Bank is expected to announce at its meeting on Thursday that it will trim asset purchases to 40 billion euros a month from January and continue buying securities for another six or nine months The rising risk of a disorderly Brexit won t deter the Bank of England the only major central bank dealing with inflation running well above its target from making what a majority of economists say will be a policy error by raising rates for the first time in a decade on Nov 2 The Chinese economy Asia s largest and the world s second biggest is forecast to expand 6 4 percent next year but faces twin risks of managing its massive debt pile as well as a highly inflated property market Inflation there is expected to be more muted at 1 6 percent this year down from last year s 2 0 percent due to weak food price rises but is expected to pick up to 2 2 percent in 2018 Asia s third largest economy India is predicted to grow 6 7 percent in 2018 its weakest pace in four years following disruptions caused by a government currency ban late last year and a new national tax launched in July And the biggest economy in Latin America Brazil s is likely to outpace Mexico for the first time in five years this year thanks to record low interest rates It will grow 2 3 percent in 2018 the poll found
For other stories from the Reuters global long term economic outlook polls package |
WFC | Mediadata Solutions drops nearly 8 after Q3 rev miss in line guidance | Mediadata Solutions NASDAQ MDSO shares are down 7 89 following a Q3 report that beat EPS estimates but missed on revenue The company reaffirms its FY17 guidance with revenue from 538M to 562M consensus 553 55M and non GAAP net income of 69M to 74M Key metrics subscription revenue 118 4M 17 professional services revenue 217M 17 remaining adjusted subscription backlog 117M 15 total multi year subscription backlog 898M 57 Financials GAAP gross margin 77 5 180 bps operating margin 15 7 330 bps cash flow from operations 30 9M 480 Y Y cash and equivalents 553 6M Press release Previously Medidata Solutions beats by 0 02 misses on revenue Oct 26 Now read |
WFC | U S investigating forex trading at Wells Fargo WSJ | Reuters Federal prosecutors are investigating foreign exchange trading at Wells Fargo NYSE WFC Co and have subpoenaed information from the firm the Wall Street Journal reported citing people familiar with the matter The investigation according to the report relates to a single trade and ensuing dispute with client Restaurant Brands International Inc owner of Burger King Tim Horton and Popeye s An email to the company s press office was not returned The investigation which is in early stages is being conducted by the U S Attorney s Office for the Northern District of California the Journal reported A spokeswoman for that office did not respond to inquiries Wells Fargo learned of an issue associated with a foreign exchange transaction for a single client The matter was reviewed the client was promptly notified regarding the issue and Wells Fargo leadership took steps to hold accountable the individuals who were involved bank spokeswoman Elise Wilkinson wrote in an email message to Reuters Wilkinson said last Friday that four Wells Fargo forex employees Simon Fowles Bob Gotelli Jed Guenther and Michael Schauffler were no longer with the bank The third largest U S bank has been trying to recover from a sales scandal over as many as 3 5 million fake accounts created by its employees in an effort to meet aggressive sales targets The lender has since uncovered other problems including with auto loans life insurance and mortgages The forex problems are the first indication Wells Fargo s issues may extend to its institutional businesses which according to Wells Fargo have seen relatively little impact from the scandal |
CMCSA | Comcast Falls 3 | Investing com Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA fell by 3 31 to trade at 36 91 by 10 15 15 15 GMT on Tuesday on the NASDAQ exchange
The volume of Comcast shares traded since the start of the session was 4 83M Comcast has traded in a range of 36 90 to 38 48 on the day
The stock has traded at 38 9200 at its highest and 36 9100 at its lowest during the past seven days |
CMCSA | WSJ Megyn Kelly to exit NBC with full value of deal | Megyn Kelly is nearing a deal with NBC News NASDAQ CMCSA that will let her walk away from the network with all of the value left on her three year 69M contract The Wall Street Journal reports With more than half her contract remaining that likely means exiting with more than 30M The discussion s now centered on nonfinancial matters including noncompete nondisclosure according to the report
After hours CMCSA 0 7 Now read |
CMCSA | Report Cable companies issuing refunds for The Match | Major cable companies across the country said they will refund customers who bought the right to watch The Match between Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson on Friday an event that ultimately was streamed for free Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA Charter Spectrum and Cox Communications all have vowed to issue refunds for the purchase price of 19 99 USA Today reported Saturday The ballyhooed pay per view event was produced by Turner Sports Because of a problem with the interface for B R Live another Turner property the event was made available via live stream at no cost Mickelson won the 9 million winner take all event in Las Vegas in 22 holes Comcast will proactively issue a 19 99 credit to any Xfinity TV customer who purchased The Match pay per view event the company said in a statement We hope Turner and Bleacher Report will do the same given that the event was made available by them for free on The Bleacher Report website On Saturday Charter Spectrum and Cox Communications issued statements to USA Today confirming they would refund customers who had paid We are issuing proactive credits to anyone who paid for The Match through Cox Cox Communications said in its statement Since Turner streamed the event for free to a broader audience at the last minute due to technical issues we are happy to make it right for those who already paid
Turner Sports and AT T NYSE T which operates Direct TV haven t commented on whether they will issue refunds Field Level Media |
CMCSA | Flyers hire NHL veteran Fletcher as GM | The Philadelphia Flyers hired Chuck Fletcher as their executive vice president and general manager on Monday He replaces Ron Hextall who was fired Nov 26 At the conclusion of a rigorous review of GM candidates Chuck Fletcher clearly stood out from the field of talented and capable executives we considered Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA Spectacor chairman and CEO David Scott said in a statement Chuck has earned success throughout his impressive NHL career and offers the right mix of expertise business acumen and leadership qualities that the Flyers need today as we work to achieve our ultimate goal the Stanley Cup Championship Fletcher 51 has worked with NHL teams for 25 years and most recently served as a senior adviser with the New Jersey Devils He was the GM of the Minnesota Wild from 2009 18 but his contract was not renewed in the spring During his tenure there the Wild compiled a 399 298 89 record and qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs in each of his last six seasons which is the second longest active streak in the NHL In Minnesota Fletcher was willing to take risks in free agency signing defenseman Ryan Suter and forward Zach Parise to big contracts in 2012 and adding Eric Staal as a free agent in 2016 Hextall had been criticized for being too patient and failing to make aggressive moves The franchise went 165 128 58 under Hextall I want to see if we have solutions in house and handle those internally Fletcher said Monday If we can t find solutions internally we will look externally The goal is to make the playoffs this year There s no reason we can t be a playoff team now
The Flyers are 11 12 2 and in 15th place in the NHL s Eastern Conference Since the 2012 13 season the Flyers have missed the playoffs three times and lost in the conference quarterfinals three times Field Level Media |
CMCSA | Comcast Falls 3 | Investing com Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA fell by 3 17 to trade at 37 91 by 12 31 17 31 GMT on Tuesday on the NASDAQ exchange
The volume of Comcast shares traded since the start of the session was 9 13M Comcast has traded in a range of 37 84 to 39 29 on the day
The stock has traded at 39 6600 at its highest and 37 4400 at its lowest during the past seven days |
CMCSA | Are You Looking For A Top Momentum Pick Why Comcast CMCSA Is A Great Choice | Momentum investing revolves around the idea of following a stock s recent trend in either direction In the long context investors will be essentially be buying high but hoping to sell even higher With this methodology taking advantage of trends in a stock s price is key once a stock establishes a course it is more than likely to continue moving that way The goal is that once a stock heads down a fixed path it will lead to timely and profitable trades
Even though momentum is a popular stock characteristic it can be tough to define Debate surrounding which are the best and worst metrics to focus on is lengthy but the Zacks Momentum Style Score part of the Zacks Style Scores helps address this issue for us
Below we take a look at Comcast CMCSA a company that currently holds a Momentum Style Score of B We also talk about price change and earnings estimate revisions two of the main aspects of the Momentum Style Score
It s also important to note that Style Scores work as a complement to the Zacks Rank our stock rating system that has an impressive track record of outperformance Comcast currently has a Zacks Rank of 1 Strong Buy Our research shows that stocks rated Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buy and 2 Buy and Style Scores of A or B outperform the market over the following one month period
You can see the current list of Zacks 1 Rank Stocks here
Set to Beat the Market
Let s discuss some of the components of the Momentum Style Score for CMCSA that show why this cable provider shows promise as a solid momentum pick
A good momentum benchmark for a stock is to look at its short term price activity as this can reflect both current interest and if buyers or sellers currently have the upper hand It is also useful to compare a security to its industry as this can help investors pinpoint the top companies in a particular area
For CMCSA shares are up 1 53 over the past week while the Zacks Cable Television industry is down 0 56 over the same time period Shares are looking quite well from a longer time frame too as the monthly price change of 5 54 compares favorably with the industry s 3 98 performance as well
While any stock can see a spike in price it takes a real winner to consistently outperform the market Shares of Comcast have increased 13 19 over the past quarter and have gained 37 54 in the last year In comparison the S P 500 has only moved 8 35 and 12 86 respectively
Investors should also take note of CMCSA s average 20 day trading volume Volume is a useful item in many ways and the 20 day average establishes a good price to volume baseline a rising stock with above average volume is generally a bullish sign whereas a declining stock on above average volume is typically bearish Right now CMCSA is averaging 14 581 611 shares for the last 20 days
Earnings Outlook
The Zacks Momentum Style Score encompasses many things including estimate revisions and a stock s price movement Investors should note that earnings estimates are also significant to the Zacks Rank and a nice path here can be promising We have recently been noticing this with CMCSA
Over the past two months 13 earnings estimates moved higher compared to none lower for the full year These revisions helped boost CMCSA s consensus estimate increasing from 2 73 to 2 92 in the past 60 days Looking at the next fiscal year 12 estimates have moved upwards while there have been no downward revisions in the same time period
Bottom Line
Taking into account all of these elements it should come as no surprise that CMCSA is a 1 Strong Buy stock with a Momentum Score of B If you ve been searching for a fresh pick that s set to rise in the near term make sure to keep Comcast on your short list |
CMCSA | Zacks com Featured Highlights Include Verint Systems Comcast Popular CACI International And AMETEK | For Immediate ReleaseChicago IL May 9 2019 Stocks in this week s article are Verint Systems Inc NASDAQ VRNT Comcast Corp NASDAQ CMCSA Popular Inc NASDAQ BPOP CACI International NYSE CACI and AMETEK Inc NYSE AME 5 High Flying Stocks Near 52 Week Highs That Can Scale HigherA 52 week high generally works as an indicator for investors as stocks near that level are perceived to be winners Notably investors often wonder if the stock is overpriced considering the high price level While the apprehensions are not absolutely baseless all stocks hitting a 52 week high are not necessarily overvalued In fact an investor might miss out on top gainers in a bid to avoid the steep prices of stocks that are near the 52 week high mark Also as a stock keeps scaling new highs with time one should take a more calculated approach to understand if any further upside is left Here we discuss a strategy to find the right stocks Borrowing from the basics of momentum investing this technique bets on buy high sell higher 52 Week High A Good IndicatorMany a time stocks hitting a 52 week high fail to scale higher despite potential This is because investors fear that the stocks are overvalued and a price crash is impending In fact overvaluation is quite natural for most of these stocks as investors focus or willingness to pay premium has helped them reach the level But that does not always mean an imminent decline Factors such as robust sales surging profit levels earnings growth prospects and strategic acquisitions that encouraged investors to bet on these stocks could keep them motivated if there is no tangible negative In other words the momentum might continue Also when a string of positive developments dominate the market investors find their under reaction unwarranted even if there are no company specific driving forces For the rest of this Screen of the Week article please visit Zacks com at Disclosure Officers directors and or employees of Zacks Investment Research may own or have sold short securities and or hold long and or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material An affiliated investment advisory firm may own or have sold short securities and or hold long and or short positions in options that are mentioned in this material About Screen of the WeekZacks com created the first and best screening system on the web earning the distinction as the 1 site for screening stocks by Money Magazine But powerful screening tools is just the start That is why Zacks created the Screen of the Week to highlight profitable stock picking strategies that investors can actively use Strong Stocks that Should Be in the NewsMany are little publicized and fly under the Wall Street radar They re virtually unknown to the general public Yet today s 220 Zacks Rank 1 Strong Buys were generated by the stock picking system that has more than doubled the market from 1988 through 2016 Its average gain has been a stellar 25 per year Follow us on Twitter Join us on Facebook NASDAQ FB Zacks Investment Research is under common control with affiliated entities including a broker dealer and an investment adviser which may engage in transactions involving the foregoing securities for the clients of such affiliates Contact Jim GiaquintoCompany Zacks comPhone 312 265 9268Email Visit Zacks com provides investment resources and informs you of these resources which you may choose to use in making your own investment decisions Zacks is providing information on this resource to you subject to the Zacks Terms and Conditions of Service disclaimer Past performance is no guarantee of future results Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment legal accounting or tax advice or a recommendation to buy sell or hold a security No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor It should not be assumed that any investments in securities companies sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking market making or asset management activities of any securities These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks The S P 500 is an unmanaged index Visit for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release |
WFC | High noon for the ECB Draghi at the QE Corral | By Balazs Koranyi FRANKFURT Reuters Not for the first time European Central Bank President Mario Draghi is facing a tricky balancing act With the euro zone economic recovery well into its fifth year the time has come to cut stimulus Yet overly ambitious tightening could choke off the very growth Draghi has fostered threatening to undo years of work Draghi also has to find common ground between policy hawks who argue the ECB has spent its firepower so any further stimulus has negligible effect and doves who point to persistently weak inflation as evidence the bank has not met its price stability mandate The compromise is likely to be a cut in bond purchases at Thursday s policy meeting twinned with a lengthy extension of stimulus and a commitment to keep rates low for many years to come Such a move would ensure that easy policy persists while also reducing the ECB s reliance on unconventional tools and potentially paving the way to exit bond purchases The problem is that while growth is on its best run in a decade unemployment remains high wage growth is barely visible and inflation will probably not rise back to the ECB s target before the end of the decade The bond purchases have depressed borrowing costs but the ECB is slowly running out of debt to buy so it either takes a step toward the exit or redraws the rules of the program a potentially controversial move that may send the wrong signal A Reuters poll of economists concluded the ECB Central Bank it will start trimming its monthly asset purchases to 40 billion euros from 60 billion euros in January It was mostly split on whether the program would last six or nine more months after that Sources close to the ECB s pre meeting discussions say the a nine month extension seems likely with debate over monthly volumes between 25 and 40 billion euros a month But the real issue will be whether to keep the asset buys open ended making another extension possible or signal an eventual end of bond purchases as demanded by hawks including powerhouse Germany While this debate is still open sources speaking to Reuters said it is more likely the bank would maintain the flexibility and even signal a willingness to increase asset buys if the outlook sours That says UBS is crucial We view the duration of the extension in net asset purchases as more important than the monthly size in ensuring the ECB s ability to manage the expectations around its future policy New bond purchases will add little to inflation But they will buy the ECB some time as it waits for growth to finally translate into inflation In a glimmer of hope for policymakers Germany s largest trade union recently asked for a 6 percent wage hike for nearly 4 million workers an ambitious move which could lift wages across the board as many employee groups look to IG Metall to set the trend Euro zone inflation currently at 1 5 percent remains well below the ECB s target of almost 2 percent and expectations are for it to stay that way at least until 2019 HURRICANES While the euro zone enjoys its growth run the United States the world s biggest economy probably suffered a major hit last quarter mostly due to the disruptions from hurricanes An advance release of third quarter data at the end of the coming week is likely to show growth slowing to 2 6 percent from 3 1 percent with a decline in retail sales industrial production homebuilding and home sales blamed on Hurricanes Harvey and Irma Rebuilding efforts are however expected to boost GDP growth in the fourth quarter and in early 2018 suggesting that the dip is temporary and will be mostly compensated for in the coming quarters Damages from the hurricanes will likely total around 150 billion with an unusually large portion of that coming from business interruption to refineries petrochemical plants restaurants and residential construction Wells Fargo NYSE WFC said predicting that hurricanes shaved about 0 9 percentage points off Q3 growth But economists added that if the weather distortions fade quickly the U S Federal Reserve would remain on course to hike rates before the end of the year given that the economy is essentially at full employment
A compromise on a tax reform package and a growth rebound could also solidify expectations for two more hikes next year analysts added |
WFC | Wells Fargo scrutinized by regulator for auto insurance program NYT | Reuters Wells Fargo Co N WFC engaged in deceptive auto insurance practices failed to properly manage risks and hasn t set aside enough funds to pay back affected customers the New York Times reported citing a confidential report by federal regulators The report prepared by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency OCC criticizes the Wall Street bank for forcing numerous borrowers to buy unneeded auto insurance as well as its handling of the problems once they were unveiled the newspaper reported The preliminary regulators report stated that Wells Fargo may have underestimated costs related to reimbursing harmed customers and that the bank s practices could be curbed or be kept under close watch according to the New York Times report Wells Fargo was slapped with costly lawsuits involving auto insurance and mortgage loans in July even as the bank tries to put the year old phony accounts scandal behind it where employees were found having created over 2 million accounts without customer authorization
Wells Fargo and the OCC did not immediately respond to requests for comment |
WFC | Wells Fargo fires forex bankers investigates unit WSJ | Reuters Wells Fargo Co N WFC the third largest U S bank by assets has fired four foreign exchange bankers amid an investigation into that business by both the bank and regulators the Wall Street Journal reported citing people familiar with the matter and the bank The foreign exchange investigation now shows there is also trouble in Wells Fargo s investment banking arm the WSJ reported
Wells Fargo did not respond immediately to a Reuters request for comment |
WFC | Fed Chair Mania Possesses Bond Traders Looking for Next Big Move | Bloomberg Bond traders better not be tired of handicapping who President Donald Trump will nominate to be the next Federal Reserve chair because it could be a major driver of profits or losses in coming days
The choice between Stanford University economist John Taylor and Fed Board Governor Jerome Powell has the potential to jolt the bond market in a year defined by low volatility and a tug of war between bulls and bears that s kept yields in a tight range Powell considered the Republican Party s alternative to renominating Janet Yellen leads on betting website PredictIt In a twist on Friday traders were left to ponder a partnership atop the world s most influential central bank Trump told Fox Business News that pairing them at the Fed is a possibility
For the 10 year Treasury yield Powell could spark a five basis point drop while Taylor would cause a 10 basis point leap according to Priya Misra at TD Securities The yield curve from two to 10 years may flatten by 20 basis points in short order with a Taylor nomination said Michael Schumacher at Wells Fargo NYSE WFC Securities Currency traders are on edge too The dollar could gain as much as 3 percent with a Taylor pick while sinking 0 5 percent under Powell said Steven Englander at Rafiki Capital Management
Altogether bond and currency traders are scratching their heads as they prepare for the decision between the candidates that Trump s advisers are reportedly steering him toward An announcement is expected within two weeks Some are already adding options positions referred to as Taylor puts to hedge against the prospect of a sharp rise in short term rates
Listening to Wall Street strategists it s clear that the markets are poised to move in very different directions depending on the pick And that matters with the 10 year yield near 2 4 percent which Bill Gross at Janus Henderson Group has said would signal the start of a bear market
Schumacher head of rates strategy at Wells Fargo In terms of being the one candidate who could really disrupt the markets it s probably Taylor By contrast he sums up Powell in two words Minimal reaction
Ian Lyngen head of U S rates strategy at BMO Capital Markets says Taylor is by far the most bearish selection while Powell is benign
Subadra Rajappa head of U S rates strategy at Societe Generale PA SOGN has two categories for Fed chair Taylor falls under hawkish picks while Powell is status quo
Alex Li head of U S rates strategy at Credit Agricole PA CAGR puts Taylor on the hawkish extreme while Powell is a natural compromise
Justin Lederer an interest rate strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald sees 10 year Treasury yields jumping 10 basis points on a Taylor nomination while rates would probably barely move with a Powell pick
Analysts expect Powell to maintain many of the policies the Fed has pursued under Yellen s leadership By contrast Taylor s eponymous rule calls for a fed funds rate above the current 1 16 percent effective rate
Complicating things further the Senate s narrow approval of a budget vehicle for tax cuts Trump s top legislative priority drove 10 year yields to their highest close since July The yield curve from two to 10 years steepened the opposite of what s expected with a Taylor win
There s a lot riding on the pick including for Trump He has consistently pointed to U S stocks reaching record highs under his administration With higher rates Taylor could bring that to a halt An Evercore ISI survey of investors tags him as the worst candidate for equities On the other hand some conservatives have concerns about Powell an appointee of former President Barack Obama
That s not to say traders are ready to completely rule out Yellen A report that she was back at the White House on Friday sent 10 year Treasury yields briefly lower before market participants realized it was for a routine meeting
Trump told Fox that he likes Yellen a lot and said he has three people that I m looking at
To hammer home just how conflicted the bond market is consider that two longtime titans of bond trading are on opposite sidelines
Dan Fuss vice chairman of Loomis Sayles Co My preference on this which may or may not be followed would be that you don t have a radical change in leadership Powell is as close as the names being bantered Powell is as close to the center line as you can possibly get even more so than Janet Yellen So that would be good
Lacy Hunt chief economist at Hoisington Investment Management Co You need someone that has a good grasp of the issues and can stand up to the staff Volcker was good at that Only John Taylor has the capabilities
What to Watch
A bit more influential economic data relative to last week but focus will remain on the Fed chair decision
Oct 23 Chicago Fed National Activity Index
Oct 24 Markit U S manufacturing services and composite PMIs Richmond Fed manufacturing
Oct 25 MBA mortgage applications durable goods orders capital goods orders FHFA housing price index new home sales
Oct 26 Wholesale inventories initial jobless claims continuing claims retail inventories advance goods trade balance pending home sales Kansas City Fed manufacturing
Oct 27 GDP annualized QoQ personal consumption core PCE QoQ University of Michigan sentiment current conditions inflation expectations
No scheduled Fed speakers
Treasury auction schedule ramps up with 26 billion two year note sale on Oct 24 34 billion five year note sale Oct 25 and 28 billion seven year sale on Oct 26 |
WFC | Wells Fargo declares 0 39 dividend | Wells Fargo NYSE WFC declares 0 39 share quarterly dividend in line with previous Forward yield 2 81 Payable Dec 1 for shareholders of record Nov 3 ex div Nov 2 Now read |
WFC | Wells Fargo Takes 75 Million From Top Executives Amid Scandal | Wells Fargo NYSE WFC has stripped 75 million away from two top executives amid their scandal over bogus accounts The bank released a much anticipated report on Monday outlining the investigation of their poor sales practices
Pinned for the blame are former CEO John Stumpf and former community banking executive Carrie Tolstedt As a result Wells Fargo is taking back 47 million in pay from Mrs Tolstedt and 28 million from Mr Stumpf This is in addition to what was taken away from the executives last year 41 million in stock from Mr Stumpf and 19 million of stock from Mrs Tolstedt
The board and management have taken decisive action to address issues raised by investigation promote accountability strengthen oversight and rebuild trust said the bank in a statement
The Wells Fargo board announced it has recovered 180 million over the scandal just from executive compensations From the 180 million 69 million is from Mr Stumpf and 67 million is from Mrs Tolstedt
The bank is progressing towards rebuilding customers trust On Monday afternoon Wells Fargo was trading down 0 33 to 54 66
Zacks Hidden Trades While we share many recommendations and ideas with the public certain moves are hidden from everyone but chosen members of our portfolio services Would you like to peek behind the curtain today and view them Starting today and for the next month you can follow all Zacks private buys and sells in real time Our experts cover all kinds of trades value momentum ETFs stocks under 10 stocks that corporate insiders are buying up and companies that are about to report positive earnings surprises You can even look inside portfolios so exclusive that they are normally closed to new investors |
CMCSA | Democrats Republicans make last pitch as campaigns clatter to hectic end | By John Whitesides WASHINGTON Reuters Bitter U S political campaigns thundered to a hectic unpredictable finish on election eve on Monday as candidates scoured the country for votes in dozens of crucial races that opinion polls showed were still razor close Control of both chambers of the U S Congress and 36 governor s offices are up for grabs on Tuesday in an election widely seen as a referendum on the first two years of Republican President Donald Trump s leadership In the final stretch Trump has ramped up his hard line rhetoric on immigration and cultural issues including warnings about a caravan of migrants headed to the border with Mexico and liberal mobs and touted a growing U S economy that he said would be threatened by Democrats He amplified that message with an advertisement linking Democrats and immigrants to violent crime which aired on NBC on Sunday night Even fellow Republicans had criticized the spot as racially divisive when it first debuted online last week NBC Universal a unit of Comcast Corp NASDAQ CMCSA on Monday said it would no longer run the 30 second spot CNN had earlier refused to run it calling it racist After further review we recognize the insensitive nature of the ad and have decided to cease airing it across our properties as soon as possible a spokesperson for the network said in a email Trump planned to spend a final day on the campaign trail on Monday hitting the Midwestern states of Ohio Indiana and Missouri at the end of a six day pre election sweep focused mostly on competitive U S Senate races It s all fragile Everything I told you about it can be undone and changed by the Democrats if they get in Trump told supporters in a conference call on Monday aimed at getting out the vote Opinion polls and election forecasters favor Democrats to pick up the minimum of 23 seats they need on Tuesday to capture a majority in the U S House of Representatives which would enable them to stymie Trump s legislative agenda and investigate his administration But Republicans are favored to retain their slight majority in the U S Senate currently at two seats which would let them retain the power to approve U S Supreme Court and other judicial nominations on straight party line votes But 75 or more of the 435 House races remain competitive forecasters said and control of the Senate is likely to come down to a half dozen close contests in Arizona Nevada Missouri North Dakota Indiana and Florida Democrats also are threatening to recapture governor s offices in several key battleground states such as Michigan Wisconsin Ohio and Pennsylvania a potential help for the party in those states in the 2020 presidential race Trump who frequently warns of voter fraud and has claimed without evidence that millions of fraudulent votes were cast in 2016 said on Twitter on Monday that law enforcement should be on the lookout for illegal voting Democratic former President Barack Obama delivered donuts to campaign volunteers in a House district in suburban Virginia where Democrat Jennifer Wexton a state senator is challenging Republican incumbent Barbara Comstock in a fiercely contested race Obama said the country s character and its commitment to decency and equality are on the ballot on Tuesday All across the country what I m seeing is a great awakening he said People woke up and said Oh we can t take this for granted We ve got to fight for this Trump s polarizing style has spurred record turnout cranking up enthusiasm in both parties as voters cast ballots to oppose or support the president Approximately 40 million early votes including absentee vote by mail and in person ballots will likely be cast by Election Day according to Michael McDonald a professor at the University of Florida who tracks the figures In the last such congressional elections in 2014 there were 27 5 million early votes The numbers suggest turnout will be very high for a non presidential election McDonald wrote on his U S Elections Project website He estimated turnout would reach 45 percent that would be the highest for a midterm election in 50 years
For all Reuters election coverage see |
CMCSA | NBC Fox News Facebook pull Trump campaign ad linking immigration crime | NEW YORK Reuters NBC Fox News and Facebook O FB pulled a campaign ad linking a caravan of Central American migrants and a cop killer which U S President Donald Trump endorsed and CNN deemed racist the media companies said on Monday The primetime TV ads on NBC paid for by Donald J Trump for President ran during a Sunday Night Football broadcast It intercut courtroom footage of Luis Bracamontes an undocumented Mexican immigrant convicted of killing two sheriff s deputies in California in 2014 with scenes of the caravan which has been moving slowly through Mexico toward the United States The ad was placed on the popular football broadcast to encourage voters to choose candidates from Trump s Republican Party in elections on Tuesday that will determine whether Republicans retain control of the U S Congress After further review we recognize the insensitive nature of the ad and have decided to cease airing it across our properties as soon as possible said a spokesperson for NBC Universal owned by Comcast Corp O CMCSA in a statement on Monday The ad was earlier rejected by CNN which labeled it racist CNN has made it abundantly clear in its editorial coverage that this ad is racist When presented with an opportunity to be paid to take a version of this ad we declined Those are the facts the network tweeted on Saturday Fox News issued a statement about taking down the ad shortly after NBC according to a CNN report Upon further review Fox News pulled the ad yesterday and it will not appear on either Fox News Channel or Fox Business Network Marianne Gambelli Fox News president of advertisement sales said in a statement Facebook Inc joined in and said it no longer allowed paid promotion of the ad because it violated its policies regarding sensational content However it did not block Facebook users from sharing the video The company said it held advertising on its platform to a higher standard This ad violates Facebook s advertising policy against sensational content so we are rejecting it a Facebook spokesman said in a statement While the video is allowed to be posted on Facebook it cannot receive paid distribution
For all Reuters election coverage see |
CMCSA | Cable group urges antitrust probe of Comcast and Trump tweets support | WASHINGTON Reuters President Donald Trump tweeted his support on Monday for a call by a cable industry group to investigate alleged anti competitive practices by Comcast Corp NASDAQ CMCSA the world s biggest entertainment company The American Cable Association ACA which represents hundreds of smaller cable and broadband providers on Monday said in a statement that it has asked the Justice Department s antitrust division to investigate Comcast s business practices focusing on harms stemming from the dominant communications firm s control of cable systems TV stations and regional sports networks concentrated in some of the largest local markets in the country Trump appeared to agree with the industry group s call for a probe which it said it made to the Justice Department in a Nov 6 letter American Cable Association has big problems with Comcast They say that Comcast routinely violates Antitrust Laws Trump said on Twitter Comcast s shares dipped following the president s tweet but quickly recovered most of their losses in a market that was broadly lower Comcast shares were down about 0 2 percent in late trading It is not the first time that Trump has weighed in on regulatory issues related to media companies In July he said the Federal Communications Commission s decision to reject Sinclair Broadcast Group s purchase of Tribune Media was disgraceful Two years ago when Trump was the Republican presidential candidate he had denounced AT T NYSE T Inc s deal to buy Time Warner Inc NYSE TWX whose businesses included CNN which Trump has repeatedly attacked The ACA said in its call for a probe that with the expiration of requirements that were imposed on Comcast following its 2011 acquisition of NBC Universal its ability to raise programming prices in local markets is unmatched by any similar problem created by the AT T TW combination The ACA said it was particularly concerned about its members access to regional sports networks ACA expects and there is every reason for DOJ Justice Department to expect Comcast NBCU to act on its natural incentives and use its capabilities to harm rivals unless the government somehow either through structural or behavioral remedies deals with them the group said in its letter Comcast did not respond to the president s tweet but said that the ACA letter was without merit and constitutes an inappropriate attempt to gain leverage in the commercial marketplace
At Comcast NBCUniversal we are competing in this dynamic environment the way we always have by continuing to innovate and conducting our business in compliance with antitrust laws and other legal requirements the company said in a statement |
WFC | Wells Fargo brokerage to return 3 4 million for risky products | By Elizabeth Dilts NEW YORK Reuters A brokerage industry regulator on Monday ordered Wells Fargo Co N WFC to return 3 4 million 2 56 million pounds to customers after selling them inappropriate investment products the latest sign that a culture of problematic sales practices has bled into areas outside its consumer bank From July 2010 to May 2012 Wells Fargo brokers sold risky exchange traded products ETPs to at least 1 300 affected accounts with moderate and conservative risk profiles The bank also failed to make sure brokers unloaded the products from customer accounts within 30 days according to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority FINRA The products value shifted based on market volatility over short durations but some Wells brokers mistakenly believed they could be used as long term hedges against a market downturn FINRA said Although Wells the third largest U S lender had procedures in place to ensure the products were sold only under certain circumstances the bank failed to implement them correctly FINRA said In doing so the bank violated two securities rules Wells identified the problem and began remediation efforts in May 2012 around the time it faced a separate penalty from FINRA for similar violations related to other types of ETPs In cooperating fully with FINRA we have made significant policy and supervision changes including the discontinuation of the ETPs in focus Wells Fargo spokeswoman Shea Leordeanu said on Monday Wells did not admit or deny wrongdoing in reaching the settlement Wells Fargo has been embroiled in a wider sales practices scandal that was touched off more than a year ago It reached a 190 million settlement with bank regulators and a Los Angeles prosecutor after its employees opened bank accounts in customers names without their permission Since then Wells has acknowledged that thousands of employees opened perhaps 3 5 million phony accounts to hit sales targets over a period of several years The bank also said its employees had sold unwanted auto insurance a mortgage rate lock feature and other add on products that customers did not request However the questionable sales practices appeared to have had limited impact so far on its wealth management business called Wells Fargo Advisors Last November Wells management told lawmakers the bank had fired hundreds of employees with brokerage licenses for improper sales practices but the workers technically were employed by the retail bank On a conference call with analysts on Friday to discuss third quarter results Chief Executive Officer Tim Sloan said its internal reviews have found the sales scandal did not affect Wells wealth or investment management businesses Last year FINRA launched a review of cross selling programs in which brokerages also try to sell clients products from other parts of the bank like mortgages The regulator said this order was unrelated to that review Brokerages frequently reach settlements with FINRA over violations that result in refunds to clients
In this version of the story FINRA corrects paragraph 2 to reflect that at least 1 300 accounts were affected instead of at least 1 300 customers |
WFC | California extends ban on Wells Fargo business for at least another year | By Dan Freed Reuters California will extend sanctions against Wells Fargo Co N WFC for at least another year Treasurer John Chiang said on Monday after the state suspended doing business with the bank in 2016 as punishment for a sales practices scandal Chiang cited progress by the bank in certain areas but expressed concern over an alarming drumbeat of news reports of egregious or illegal actions over the past year in extending the sanctions which apply only to business his office oversees In a statement Wells Fargo spokesman Gabe Boehmer said the bank is in the business of banking not politics and had met and exceeded all of Treasurer Chiang s expectations The sanctions announced in September 2016 include suspending Wells Fargo as a managing underwriter on state negotiated bond sales California manages a 75 billion investment portfolio and is the nation s largest issuer of municipal debt The sanctions also suspend state investments in all Wells Fargo securities and halt the use of Wells Fargo as a broker dealer for investment purchasing Boehmer said on Monday Wells Fargo loaned 500 million this year to California s Department of Water Resources and had underwritten 800 million in bond issuance for the state this year He declined to disclose how much business Wells Fargo did with California before the ban was enacted Wells Fargo has acknowledged opening perhaps 3 5 million accounts in customers names without their permission signing others up for unwanted auto insurance charging some for a mortgage rate lock feature they did not request and tacking other costly add ons to accounts California s decision comes less than a week after Ohio Governor John Kasich extended the state s ban on Wells Fargo saying the bank had not done enough to turn around its culture New York City Chicago Massachusetts and Illinois have all enacted similar bans though Boehmer said Chicago recently lifted its ban |
WFC | Wells Fargo brokerage to return 3 4 million for risky products | By Elizabeth Dilts NEW YORK Reuters A brokerage industry regulator on Monday ordered Wells Fargo NYSE WFC Co to return 3 4 million to customers after selling them inappropriate investment products the latest sign that a culture of problematic sales practices has bled into areas outside its consumer bank From July 2010 to May 2012 Wells Fargo brokers sold risky exchange traded products ETPs to at least 1 300 affected accounts with moderate and conservative risk profiles The bank also failed to make sure brokers unloaded the products from customer accounts within 30 days according to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority FINRA The products value shifted based on market volatility over short durations but some Wells brokers mistakenly believed they could be used as long term hedges against a market downturn FINRA said Although Wells the third largest U S lender had procedures in place to ensure the products were sold only under certain circumstances the bank failed to implement them correctly FINRA said In doing so the bank violated two securities rules Wells identified the problem and began remediation efforts in May 2012 around the time it faced a separate penalty from FINRA for similar violations related to other types of ETPs In cooperating fully with FINRA we have made significant policy and supervision changes including the discontinuation of the ETPs in focus Wells Fargo spokeswoman Shea Leordeanu said on Monday Wells did not admit or deny wrongdoing in reaching the settlement Wells Fargo has been embroiled in a wider sales practices scandal that was touched off more than a year ago It reached a 190 million settlement with bank regulators and a Los Angeles prosecutor after its employees opened bank accounts in customers names without their permission Since then Wells has acknowledged that thousands of employees opened perhaps 3 5 million phony accounts to hit sales targets over a period of several years The bank also said its employees had sold unwanted auto insurance a mortgage rate lock feature and other add on products that customers did not request However the questionable sales practices appeared to have had limited impact so far on its wealth management business called Wells Fargo Advisors Last November Wells management told lawmakers the bank had fired hundreds of employees with brokerage licenses for improper sales practices but the workers technically were employed by the retail bank On a conference call with analysts on Friday to discuss third quarter results Chief Executive Officer Tim Sloan said its internal reviews have found the sales scandal did not affect Wells wealth or investment management businesses Last year FINRA launched a review of cross selling programs in which brokerages also try to sell clients products from other parts of the bank like mortgages The regulator said this order was unrelated to that review Brokerages frequently reach settlements with FINRA over violations that result in refunds to clients
FINRA corrects paragraph 2 to reflect that at least 1 300 accounts were affected instead of at least 1 300 customers |
WFC | California extends Wells Fargo ban for one year | Noting new reports of egregious unethical or illegal actions by Wells Fargo NYSE WFC California Treasurer John Chiang extends the ban on the bank from doing underwriting work for one of the country s largest issuers of municipal debt While the ban prohibits Wells Fargo from being hired as an underwriter it can still bid on bond deals awarded through competitive auctions and earlier this year won the bidding for a 604M CA issue Speaking on the earnings call last week CEO Tim Sloan said there s been a little bit of impact as California and other municipalities have put the bank on probation Now read |
WFC | Cryptocurrency Ethereum Causing Tidal Waves | Shock and disgust It s the only way to describe it
Five of Canada s largest banks have been to screw over their customers
This reminds us a lot of the Wells Fargo NYSE WFC we saw a few months back and there seems to be some sort of sick trend in the banking world
Makes me glad to work in Fintech where ideas are fresh and leaders know that adding value to clients is what will ultimately drive their vision forward
Today s Highlights
The Fed Dots
ETHEREUMania
BoE coming up
Please note All data figures and graphs are valid as of March 16th All trading carries risk Only risk capital you can afford to lose
Market Overview
Looks like the markets got everything they wanted and more yesterday A quarter point rate hike from the Fed and a sweeping victory against populism in the Netherlands
Stock markets around the world are rejoicing and all major indices are currently in green
The Fed has not made any major changes to their previous assessment and would like to hike rates twice more this year
Here we can see their long term projection in the fun filled Fed dot plots Each dot represents one Fed member and where he thinks rates will be in the future
The US dollar actually had an adverse effect on the Fed announcement Instead of rising with the higher interest rates it fell as traders who have been buying the rumor over the past two weeks have now sold the news
Gold and silver have spiked up on the weaker dollar and timid crude oil got some confidence on the back of reduced inventories in the United States
Wow Ethereum Wow
Cryptocurrency Ethereum is making massive moves and causing tidal waves Both here in the office and on the eToro social trading network it s all anybody can talk about
For those of you who are not familiar Ethereum is currently the hottest digital coin in the tech community It s a lot like Bitcoin but allows for the execution of smart contracts that know where when and how to send money based on predefined parameters In laymen s terms think programmable money
eToro added Ether as a CFD for our clients to trade on the price fluctuations in January On February 14th the price broke above 12 per coin for the first time ever and has not looked back since This morning the price has reached an astonishing 43 a coin That s more than 350 gain in a month
There are several things driving the market at the moment First is the proposed Hyperledger project which includes more than 100 of the world s top financial institutions is now considering using the Ethereum blockchain to create a global monetary settlement system
Second is talk in the Ethereum community of upgrading to a new system called Casper that is faster and stronger than the current format
The incredible moves we re seeing here are reminiscent of the price of Bitcoin in May of 2013 when it moved from 3 to 126 inside a week We all know what happened after that
People are seeing the potential in this new blockchain and embracing it They remember what happened to Bitcoin and many are seeing this as an opportunity to get in on the ground floor
There are three people in the eToro network who are cryptocurrency activists The are
Bitcoin Banker
JayNemesis Video Game Developer
YoniAssia CEO and Founder of eToro
They all posted comments saying that though this is an extremely high risk and high volatile market that on the long term we ll be seeing a much higher price
Coming Up Next
The Bank of Japan has made no changes to their interest rates causing the USD JPY to briefly visit 113 The Swiss National Bank event is happening at this very moment while I m writing to you
At 12 00 GMT we ll get the Bank of England s Monetary interest rate decision and Monetary Policy Statement No changes are expected but the pound sterling will likely see increased volatility as the market digests the BoE s projections
30 minutes later we ll get some key data from the United States which could move the markets and tomorrow will kick off the G20 meetings that will last into the weekend
Disclosure This content is for information and educational purposes only and should not be considered investment advice or an investment recommendation Past performance is not an indication of future results All trading carries risk Only risk capital you re prepared to lose |
WFC | Wells Fargo To Lose 30 from Now On | Eight years and one fake accounts fiasco later Wells Fargo s uptrend is approaching its end
The last time we wrote about Wells Fargo NYSE WFC was in late January 2016 Fourteen months ago the stock was trading below 49 a share after a decline from 58 74 It was a 10 drop which for the bank s investors meant a 17 capital loss In the titled Wells Fargo Bulls Do Not Be Afraid we suggested the bears would probably drag the price a little lower but eventually a new all time high should be expected so there was not reason to worry The positive outlook was based entirely on the Elliott Wave analysis of the chart below
The stock market s way to progress is by drawing a five wave in the direction of the trend Hence we assumed Wells Fargo was declining in wave 4 of the same pattern Fourth waves usually retrace back to the 38 2 of wave of the third wave In that case WFC was not there yet so we thought more downside was likely That was before the fake account scandal in September 2016
Once the scandal erupted the market did what it was supposed to do anyway Walls Fargo s stock price plunged to 43 53 in October after it became clear the bank was going to pay a 185 million fine for opening over 2 million bank account or credit cards without its customers knowledge or permission As a consequence 5300 employees were fired while chairman and CEO John Stumpf was forced to retire
But as Elliotticians very well know news do not determine the market s direction As predicted the stock quickly rebounded in wave 5 which in late February 2017 reached the vicinity of 60 a share Here is how Wells Fargo s weekly chart looks like today
Wave 4 took more time than we thought because wave b developed as a triangle However nothing changed and the bulls returned to lift the price beyond the top of wave 3 completing the five wave rally which has been in progress since the low in March 2009 Unfortunately every impulse is followed by a three wave correction of similar degree against it If this is the correct count Wells Fargo investors should get ready for another sell off towards the 40 mark |
WFC | 4 Trades For The Upside In Wells Fargo | Here is your Bonus Idea with links to the full Top Ten
It has been six months since the scandal with Wells Fargo NYSE WFC opening fake accounts for customers without them knowing it No one is in jail yet for this fraud and it seems most people have already forgotten about it So probably no one will go to jail Too bad but par for the course in Financial Services see Corzine
The stock price took a hit following the scandal falling about 10 to a low in mid September and then consolidated It held there for 6 weeks but as soon as the election was over it jumped with all over financial names It exceeded its all time high from November 2016 by the first week in December and started to pull back When it hit the 50 day SMA it found support in early January From then it started higher in a slow trend up that ran until the FOMC meeting 2 weeks ago The stock pulled back fast to its 100 day SMA last week and found support almost 7 lower
Friday saw a push higher off of support indicating a confirmation of a reversal to the upside The RSI also turned up off of the oversold area and the MACD started to level in its decline There is support at 54 85 and 53 65 then 51 30 right at the 200 day SMA Resistance above stands at 56 30 and 57 30 followed by 60 Short interest is low under 1 and the company is expected to report earnings next April 13th before the open
Options this week are biased to hold it near 55 with the large open interest on the put side there For the reporting week the biggest open interest in the put side stands above at 56 and then on the call side at 58 5 and 59 5 Longer dated June options show a mass of open interest building from 55 to 62 5 on the call side with size from 50 to 55 on the put side
Wells Fargo Ticker WFC
Trade Idea 1 Buy the stock with a stop at 54 75
Trade Idea 2 Buy the stock and add an April 13 Expiry 55 5 53 Put Spread 70 cents for protection and selling a June 60 Covered Call 67 cent credit to fund it
Trade Idea 3 Buy a April 13 Expiry 54 56 58 Call Spread Risk Reversal 25 cents
Trade Idea 4 Buy the June 55 Call 2 70 and sell the April 13 Expiry 54 56 Strangle 1 55 credit
After reviewing over 1 000 charts I have found some good setups for the week These were selected and should be viewed in the context of the broad picture reviewed Friday which heading into the end of the first Quarter sees equity markets showing some signs of cracking with the IWM the worst
Elsewhere look for Gold to continue in its uptrend while Crude Oil continues lower The US Dollar Index also looks to continue lower while US Treasuries continue higher in their consolidation range The Shanghai Composite looks to continue a slow grind up and Emerging Markets continue to look strong
Volatility looks to remain low but drifting higher into more normal levels This could hold back equities in the very short term The equity index ETF s SPDR S P 500 NYSE SPY iShares Russell 2000 NYSE IWM and PowerShares QQQ Trust Series 1 NASDAQ QQQ all had their biggest pullbacks of the year leaving the IWM at the edge of support the SPY pulling back and the QQQ consolidating Use this information as you prepare for the coming week and trad em well
DISCLAIMER The information in this blog post represents my own opinions and does not contain a recommendation for any particular security or investment I or my affiliates may hold positions or other interests in securities mentioned in the Blog please see my Disclaimer page for my full disclaimer |
CMCSA | Comcast Rises 5 | Investing com Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA rose by 5 19 to trade at 35 89 by 09 32 13 32 GMT on Thursday on the NASDAQ exchange
The volume of Comcast shares traded since the start of the session was 1 07M Comcast has traded in a range of 35 66 to 35 96 on the day
The stock has traded at 36 6600 at its highest and 34 0500 at its lowest during the past seven days |
CMCSA | Comcast Rises 3 | Investing com Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA rose by 3 01 to trade at 36 30 by 10 57 14 57 GMT on Monday on the NASDAQ exchange
The volume of Comcast shares traded since the start of the session was 4 61M Comcast has traded in a range of 35 59 to 36 33 on the day
The stock has traded at 36 5100 at its highest and 34 0500 at its lowest during the past seven days |
CMCSA | Comcast Rises 3 | Investing com Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA rose by 3 33 to trade at 37 19 by 10 59 14 59 GMT on Tuesday on the NASDAQ exchange
The volume of Comcast shares traded since the start of the session was 10 30M Comcast has traded in a range of 36 12 to 37 33 on the day
The stock has traded at 37 3100 at its highest and 34 0500 at its lowest during the past seven days |
CMCSA | Comcast CMCSA Q1 Earnings Surpass Estimates | Comcast CMCSA came out with quarterly earnings of 0 76 per share beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 0 66 per share This compares to earnings of 0 62 per share a year ago These figures are adjusted for non recurring items
This quarterly report represents an earnings surprise of 15 15 A quarter ago it was expected that this cable provider would post earnings of 0 62 per share when it actually produced earnings of 0 64 delivering a surprise of 3 23
Over the last four quarters the company has surpassed consensus EPS estimates four times
Comcast which belongs to the Zacks Cable Television industry posted revenues of 26 86 billion for the quarter ended March 2019 missing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 1 64 This compares to year ago revenues of 22 79 billion The company has topped consensus revenue estimates two times over the last four quarters
The sustainability of the stock s immediate price movement based on the recently released numbers and future earnings expectations will mostly depend on management s commentary on the earnings call
Comcast shares have added about 22 9 since the beginning of the year versus the S P 500 s gain of 16 8
What s Next for Comcast
While Comcast has outperformed the market so far this year the question that comes to investors minds is what s next for the stock
There are no easy answers to this key question but one reliable measure that can help investors address this is the company s earnings outlook Not only does this include current consensus earnings expectations for the coming quarter s but also how these expectations have changed lately
Empirical research shows a strong correlation between near term stock movements and trends in earnings estimate revisions Investors can track such revisions by themselves or rely on a tried and tested rating tool like the Zacks Rank which has an impressive track record of harnessing the power of earnings estimate revisions
Ahead of this earnings release the estimate revisions trend for Comcast was favorable While the magnitude and direction of estimate revisions could change following the company s just released earnings report the current status translates into a Zacks Rank 2 Buy for the stock So the shares are expected to outperform the market in the near future You can see the complete list of today s Zacks 1 Rank Strong Buy stocks here
It will be interesting to see how estimates for the coming quarters and current fiscal year change in the days ahead The current consensus EPS estimate is 0 71 on 27 81 billion in revenues for the coming quarter and 2 84 on 112 46 billion in revenues for the current fiscal year
Investors should be mindful of the fact that the outlook for the industry can have a material impact on the performance of the stock as well In terms of the Zacks Industry Rank Cable Television is currently in the bottom 38 of the 250 plus Zacks industries Our research shows that the top 50 of the Zacks ranked industries outperform the bottom 50 by a factor of more than 2 to 1 |
CMCSA | Comcast Falls 3 | Investing com Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA fell by 3 09 to trade at 34 55 by 14 01 18 01 GMT on Wednesday on the NASDAQ exchange
The volume of Comcast shares traded since the start of the session was 13 60M Comcast has traded in a range of 34 51 to 36 26 on the day
The stock has traded at 36 6600 at its highest and 34 5100 at its lowest during the past seven days |
CMCSA | Comcast beats by 0 04 beats on revenue | Comcast NASDAQ CMCSA Q3 Non GAAP EPS of 0 65 beats by 0 04 GAAP EPS of 0 62 beats by 0 01 Revenue of 22 14B 5 0 Y Y beats by 310M Shares 1 55 PM Press ReleaseNow read |
CMCSA | Comcast CMCSA Gains As Market Dips What You Should Know | Comcast CMCSA closed at 42 57 in the latest trading session marking a 1 43 move from the prior day The stock outpaced the S P 500 s daily loss of 0 23 Meanwhile the Dow lost 0 01 and the Nasdaq a tech heavy index lost 0 05
Prior to today s trading shares of the cable provider had gained 5 51 over the past month This has outpaced the Consumer Discretionary sector s gain of 3 93 and the S P 500 s gain of 3 16 in that time
Investors will be hoping for strength from CMCSA as it approaches its next earnings release which is expected to be April 25 2019 On that day CMCSA is projected to report earnings of 0 66 per share which would represent year over year growth of 6 45 Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of 27 31 billion up 19 81 from the year ago period
Looking at the full year our Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of 2 84 per share and revenue of 112 46 billion These totals would mark changes of 11 37 and 19 respectively from last year
Any recent changes to analyst estimates for CMCSA should also be noted by investors These revisions typically reflect the latest short term business trends which can change frequently As such positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company s business and profitability
Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near term stock prices We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear actionable rating model
The Zacks Rank system ranges from 1 Strong Buy to 5 Strong Sell It has a remarkable outside audited track record of success with 1 stocks delivering an average annual return of 25 since 1988 Over the past month the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 3 5 higher CMCSA is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of 2 Buy
Valuation is also important so investors should note that CMCSA has a Forward P E ratio of 14 77 right now For comparison its industry has an average Forward P E of 24 08 which means CMCSA is trading at a discount to the group
We can also see that CMCSA currently has a PEG ratio of 1 17 This metric is used similarly to the famous P E ratio but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock s expected earnings growth rate CMCSA s industry had an average PEG ratio of 2 09 as of yesterday s close
The Cable Television industry is part of the Consumer Discretionary sector This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 195 putting it in the bottom 24 of all 250 industries
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups Our research shows that the top 50 rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1
Be sure to follow all of these stock moving metrics and many more on Zacks com |
CMCSA | 3 Top Dimensional Mutual Funds To Buy Right Now | Dimensional Fund Advisor offers investment solutions from different asset classes to institutional and individual investors investment consultants and financial advisors With a workforce of more than 1300 Dimensional Fund Advisor has 13 offices in nine different countries including the United States
It invests in both domestic and foreign equities fixed income securities retirement income funds real estates and commodity markets As of Dec 31 2018 Dimensional Fund Advisor had nearly 517 billion of assets under management For the past three decades the company has been providing investment management strategies to its clients Founded 37 years ago this fund family is headquartered in Austin TX
Below we share with you three top ranked Dimensional Fund Advisor mutual funds Each has earned a Strong Buy and is expected to outperform its peers in the future Investors can
DFA Tax Managed U S Marketwide Value Portfolio II seeks to provide long term capital appreciation The Tax Managed Value Portfolio achieves its objective by investing a significant part of its assets in the Tax Managed U S Marketwide Value Series of DFA Investment Trust Company The fund invests the majority of its assets in securities of American companies DFMVX has three year annualized returns of 11 4
As of February 2019 DFMVX held 1 195 issues with 4 00 of its assets invested in Comcast Corp NASDAQ CMCSA Class A
DFA Tax Managed U S Equity Portfolio aims for long term capital appreciation while reducing federal income taxes on returns The fund usually purchases a diverse group of securities of U S companies by taking a market capitalization weighted approach The fund invests the majority of its assets in securities of U S companies DTMEX has three year annualized returns of 13 4
DTMEX has an expense ratio of 0 22 compared with the category average of 0 94
DFA Enhanced U S Large Company Portfolio Institutional Class aims for total return that is more than the total return performance of the broader S P 500 Index The fund invests most of its assets in short term fixed income obligations that are enveloped by swaps futures and other derivatives of S P 500 in order to gain exposure to large U S companies The fund may also invest directly in securities of large U S companies DFELX has three year annualized returns of 13 2
David A Plecha is one of the fund managers of DFELX since 1996
To view the Zacks Rank and past performance of all Dimensional Investments mutual funds investors can
Want key mutual fund info delivered straight to your inbox
Zacks free Fund Newsletter will brief you on top news and analysis as well as top performing mutual funds each week |
CMCSA | Is Comcast CMCSA Stock Outpacing Its Consumer Discretionary Peers This Year | Investors focused on the Consumer Discretionary space have likely heard of Comcast CMCSA but is the stock performing well in comparison to the rest of its sector peers By taking a look at the stock s year to date performance in comparison to its Consumer Discretionary peers we might be able to answer that question
Comcast is one of 245 individual stocks in the Consumer Discretionary sector Collectively these companies sit at 3 in the Zacks Sector Rank The Zacks Sector Rank gauges the strength of our 16 individual sector groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups
The Zacks Rank is a successful stock picking model that emphasizes earnings estimates and estimate revisions The system highlights a number of different stocks that could be poised to outperform the broader market over the next one to three months CMCSA is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of 2 Buy
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CMCSA s full year earnings has moved 2 99 higher within the past quarter This means that analyst sentiment is stronger and the stock s earnings outlook is improving
According to our latest data CMCSA has moved about 23 35 on a year to date basis At the same time Consumer Discretionary stocks have gained an average of 20 48 This means that Comcast is performing better than its sector in terms of year to date returns
Breaking things down more CMCSA is a member of the Cable Television industry which includes 11 individual companies and currently sits at 186 in the Zacks Industry Rank This group has gained an average of 23 15 so far this year so CMCSA is performing better in this area
CMCSA will likely be looking to continue its solid performance so investors interested in Consumer Discretionary stocks should continue to pay close attention to the company |
WFC | Gold Prices Higher as Dollar Weakness Continues | Investing com Gold prices rose for the second day in a row buoyed by continued dollar weakness while ongoing political tensions between the U S and North Korea lifted sentiment
Gold futures for December delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 8 71 or 0 68 to 1 293 72 a troy ounce
Gold s bullish start to the week continued as safe haven demand remained elevated amid ongoing geopolitical uncertainty on the Korean Peninsula while dollar weakness supported an uptick in demand for the precious metal
Gold has benefited from the U S dollar s fall along with geopolitical tensions For the remainder of this year we believe that gold is likely to mirror the dollar and follow fear wrote Scott Wren senior global equity strategist at Wells Fargo NYSE WFC Investment Institute in a Monday research note
Gains in gold however were capped after the Catalan government Carles Puigdemont said he wanted to delay any formal declaration of independence easing geopolitical uncertainty in the region
We propose to suspend the effect of the independence declaration in order to work towards putting into practice the result of the referendum Today we are making a gesture of responsibility in favour of dialogue Catalan president Carles Puigdemont said in speech to the Spanish parliament
Dollar denominated assets such as gold are sensitive to moves in the dollar A dip in the dollar makes gold cheaper for holders of foreign currency and thus increases demand
Despite the uptick in gold recent data points toward possible weakness as net bullish bets on gold fell to 203 900 according to a report from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission CFTC on Friday
In other metals trading silver futures rose 1 20 to 17 17 while platinum futures added 1 92 to 936
Copper traded at 3 065 up 1 12 while natural gas rose by 1 87 to 2 89 |
WFC | Gold Falls In Asia As Market Awaits Fed Minutes | Investing com Gold prices eased in Asia on Wednesday ahead of minutes from the Fed due later in the day and expected to show a largely hawkish stance on the need for a December hike and into next year
Gold futures for December delivery on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 0 27 to 1 290 1 a troy ounce
Overnight gold prices rose for the second day in a row buoyed by continued dollar weakness while ongoing political tensions between the U S and North Korea lifted sentiment
Gold s bullish start to the week continued as safe haven demand remained elevated amid ongoing geopolitical uncertainty on the Korean Peninsula while dollar weakness supported an uptick in demand for the precious metal
Gold has benefited from the U S dollar s fall along with geopolitical tensions For the remainder of this year we believe that gold is likely to mirror the dollar and follow fear wrote Scott Wren senior global equity strategist at Wells Fargo NYSE WFC NYSE WFC Investment Institute in a Monday research note
Gains in gold however were capped after the Catalan government Carles Puigdemont said he wanted to delay any formal declaration of independence easing geopolitical uncertainty in the region
We propose to suspend the effect of the independence declaration in order to work towards putting into practice the result of the referendum Today we are making a gesture of responsibility in favour of dialogue Catalan president Carles Puigdemont said in speech to the Spanish parliament
Dollar denominated assets such as gold are sensitive to moves in the dollar A dip in the dollar makes gold cheaper for holders of foreign currency and thus increases demand
Despite the uptick in gold recent data points toward possible weakness as net bullish bets on gold fell to 203 900 according to a report from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission CFTC on Friday |
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