Good morning. The Nasdaq and S&P 500 have hit new record highs this week. But it doesn't feel..
It's the monthly jobs numbers today and they're not going to be pretty and will be possibly the tip of the iceberg as we head into May.
| | | | DOW 34,196.89 | +0.95% | | | | S&P 4,266.47 | +0.58% | | | | NASDAQ 14,369.71 | +0.69% | | | | *As of market close | | • | Stocks traded higher on Thursday, with investors shrugging off inflation fears. | | • | Oil rose 0.2 percent, closing at $73.25 per barrel. | | • | Gold declined 0.5 percent, hitting $1,774 per ounce. | | • | Cryptocurrencies traded slightly higher, with Bitcoin last at $34,944. | | | | | | | | | | The World's Most Successful Conglomerate Buys… Itself | | | | The pandemic saw a rapid drop in companies paying out dividends or buying back shares. That trend has now reversed. Even though most stocks are above pre-pandemic levels and have been for some time, buybacks are still moving higher. One such company that's gotten into the buyback game in recent quarters is Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B). The conglomerate operated by Warren Buffett has been making small purchases of its shares, with an estimated $6.4 billion buyback in the current quarter.
» FULL STORY | | | | | | Insider Trading Report: FutureFuel Corp (FF) | | | | Donald Bedell, a director at FutureFuel Corp (FF), recently picked up 10,000 shares. The buy increased his stake by 17 percent, and came to a total purchase price of $9,660. This marks the first insider buy since a director picked up shares in March of 2020. Two insiders sold in 2020, otherwise, company insiders haven't been particularly active. Overall, company insiders own over 41 percent of shares. » FULL STORY | | | | | | Unusual Options Activity: SoFi Technologies (SOFI) | | | | Shares of fintech firm SoFi Technologies (SOFI) have been trading in a narrow range since the company's IPO via a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC. One trader sees the potential for a move higher in the coming weeks and months. That's based on a number of unusual options in the stock. The most interesting is the January $7.50 calls. With 210 days until expiration, over 8,300 contracts traded against an open interest of 228, for a 36-fold jump in volume.
» FULL STORY | | | | | | • | Jobless Claims Still Over 400,000 Per Week
For the second week in a row, jobless claims have held over 400,000, coming in at 411,000. That's a decline from last week's 418,000, but still higher than the estimated 380,000. In the meantime, in a sign of a slowly-recovering labor market, continuing claims dropped to 3.39 million. | | | | • | Big Tech Antitrust Legislation Moves Forward in House
A number of potential laws aimed at breaking up big tech companies advanced in the House of Representatives this week. One committee approved far-reaching legislation across six bill that will now potentially move to a floor vote. Big tech companies are lobbying against substantial changes in regulation, so the potential for the bills to be passed as-is remains uncertain. | | | | • | Biden to Meet with Senators on Compromise Infrastructure Deal
President Biden expects to meet with a group of 20 senators this week who have come up with a framework for a bipartisan infrastructure bill. The overall bill will create just $600 billion in new spending over the next 5 years, with other funds from existing spending also supporting an upgrade to the nation's infrastructure. | | | | • | Andreessen Horowitz Bets Big on Blockchain
Andreessen Horowitz is starting a third crypto fund, looking to raise $2.2 billion. The fund will look specifically at blockchain technologies, and represents the fund's largest specific asset class holding. The company's first fund in 2018 raised $300 million, and a second fund for blockchain last year raised $515 million, making this third fund a triple-down as the crypto sector endures a bear market. | | | | • | John McAfee Dies at 75
Tech software pioneer John McAfee has died at 75. The creator of antivirus software that still bears his name, McAfee spent the past year of his life in a Spanish prison, awaiting extradition to the United States over accusations of tax evasion. | | | | | | TOP | | LLY | 7.31% | | | M | 3.568% | | | TSLA | 3.541% | | | VMC | 3.27% | | | DR | 3.248% | | | BOTTOM | | BIIB | 6.115% | | | GNRC | 3.324% | | | AMBD | 3.017% | | | LVS | 2.717% | | | APD | 2.409% | | | | | | | | | Beneath the optimism, markets are at risk of becoming complacent – and vulnerable to shocks. Any signal that interest rates and bond yields could rise, even in the absence of pronounced inflationary pressure, could shatter market exuberance. | | - Gaurav Mallik, chief portfolio strategist at State Street Global Advisors, on why the stock market bounce this week isn't a sign of a return to a bull market, but why there could be some further drops ahead. | | |
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