The New York Stock Exchange is showing something that we would be more concerned about than optimistic. Margin debt at the NYSE grew for the ninth consecutive month and hit another record high in......
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Several large retailers accuse MasterCard Inc. (NYSE: MA) and Visa Inc. (NYSE: V) of setting unfair fees that damage the retailers’ sales prospects and margins while enriching the credit card......
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Imagine not just loaning the government money for free, but at negative nominal rates. Another fresh Treasury auction of 10-year inflation-protection TIPS just went off yet again at negative interest......
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WisdomTree Investments Inc. (NASDAQ: WETF) has been winning and winning due to its great Japan bet on a hedged Japan Equity ETF, which moved to eliminate the currency risks of the yen devaluation......
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U.S. equity markets opened sharply lower again this morning, but this time reacting to yesterday’s comments by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke that the Fed could slow its bond purchases in the next few......
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Shares of Barrick Gold Corp. (NYSE: ABX) and Silver Wheaton Corp. (NYSE: SLW) were halted shortly after noon today following a Chilean court ruling that blocks further work at Barrick’s Pascua-Lima......
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Shares of Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) have touched a new low for 2013 this morning. Today’s overall weak market has something to do with the sell-off, but there could be a couple of other concerns......
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After last night’s dismal company earnings report, Sears Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: SHLD) does not appear to have many options left in its efforts to turn around the sinking ship. The company spun-off......
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High-flying energy company InterOil Corp. (NYSE: IOC) is getting another stock price boost this morning after revealing that the company is in “exclusive” negotiations with Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE:......
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The economy is improving, banks are beginning to ease standards for lending and mortgage rates are near their record lows. These factors are making it easier for Americans to wade into the real......
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Sterne Agee analyst Vijay Rakesh has given a snapshot on various semiconductor sector plays ahead. While many fundamental analysts have keyed in on fundamentals, one of Rakesh’s angles is......
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Ever since the Chinese government began — or at least threatened to begin — imposing restrictions on new bank lending, the country’s businesses have had to get creative in order to get......
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The durable goods report for April is turning out to look incredibly durable at 3.3% for the month. Bloomberg had the consensus estimate of 1.1% and Dow Jones had the consensus at 1.3%. Even the......
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Investors and traders are usually on the lookout for new research ideas that will generate higher income or more profits. 24/7 Wall St. reviews many analyst research calls from Wall Street and from......
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Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) reported first-quarter fiscal 2013 results before markets opened this morning. The specialty retailer posted a diluted earnings per share (EPS) loss of $0.09......
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AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) has come up with a brilliant way to increase revenue in its wireless unit. Its explanation of the new fees is almost too complicated to understand. The action is brilliant,......
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Just as Google Inc.’s (NASDAQ: GOOG) battle with European Union regulators has died down, the United States may bring antitrust charges against the company. According to Reuters: U.S.......
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Rather than put up more money in its bid to acquire control of Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S), Japan’s Softbank Corp. plans to offer the U.S. government the ability to approve one of the 10 members of......
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Today, Germany confirmed that its first-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) rose by a mere 0.1%. There was some excitement that the largest economy in Europe had dodged a recession, which is......
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Germany Misses Recession Germany confirmed that its first-quarter gross domestic product rose only 0.1%. There was some excitement that the largest economy in Europe had dodged a recession, something......
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Earnings from Sears Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: SHLD) were so awful that Wall Street pushed its stock price down close to 10%. The question is whether the company can overcome the lack of attraction......
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Old Procter & Gamble Co. (NYSE: PG) chief executive A.G. Lafley will rejoin the company he used to run and replace CEO Bob McDonald. For Lafley to turn P&G around, he will have to change......
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Sears might as well start working toward just give up on being a retailer. This is a decade-long turnaround that just cannot seem to turn around. Sears Holdings Corp. (NASDAQ: SHLD) reported that its......
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Pandora Media Inc. (NYSE: P) reported first quarter 2014 results after markets closed today. For the quarter, the Internet radio company posted an adjusted diluted earnings per share (EPS) loss of......
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Affymax, Inc. (NASDAQ: AFFY) has been in more than trouble. Its very future is at stake as far as investors (and speculators) are concerned. The company is restructuring, but this restructuring may......
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U.S. equity markets opened sharply lower this morning, taking a lead from Japan’s Nikkei, which fell more than 7% for the day. Japan’s government bond yields spiked until the Bank of Japan......
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Gap Inc. (NYSE: GPS) is showing that its turnaround is keeping up momentum. The problem is that the owner of Gap, Banana Republic, Old Navy and Athleta is not getting aggressive on its 2013 guidance.......
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Last year it was Super-storm Sandy and this year we have recently had devastating weather that has hit Oklahoma in the form of one of the most devastating tornado reports on record. Now the National......
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It has been hard to ignore the rise in bond yields on the longer end of the Treasury curve in recent days. The market keeps looking for clues from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and even from......
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In one of the longest running lobbying battles in Washington, sugar growers have once again prevailed over big food and beverage makers like Hershey Co. (NYSE: HSY) and The Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO)......
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The New York Federal Reserve branch’s Liberty Street Economics latest blog posting indicates that the New York Fed staff is targeting stronger growth and perhaps better prices ahead. The change......
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Just over 13 million U.S. mortgage loans are currently underwater, meaning that homeowners owe more on the mortgages than the property is worth. The number is shrinking, but homeowners with negative......
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Sales of new cars in May are forecast to rise as much as 8% year-over-year in the U.S. and bounce back to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of more than 15 million new cars sold in 2013. The......
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The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) reported this morning that U.S. home prices rose 1.9% sequentially in the first quarter of 2013. Compared to the first quarter of 2012, the house price index......
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The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City is headed by President Esther George, and she is the current policy hawk of 2013, after Richmond’s Jeff Lacker had been the big hawk in 2012. George may......
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Each year, 24/7 Wall St. identifies 10 important brands sold in America that we predict will disappear before 2014. This year’s list reflects the brutally competitive nature of certain industries and......
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The U.S. Census Bureau this morning released data on new single-family home sales for April. Sales rose 2.3% month-over-month, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 454,000, from an upwardly......
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The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) today reported the U.S. natural gas stocks increased by 89 billion cubic feet last week, at the lower end of a range of an expected build of between......
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Last year was a good year for oil and gas stocks, but unless a company had a refining and marketing operation, it was not a great year. Share prices rose by at least 80% for pure-play refiners, while......
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Weekly jobless claims data have been released by the U.S. Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics and may offer at least some support for a very weak equity market this morning. Those......
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Before markets opened this morning, specialty retailer rue21 Inc. (NASDAQ: RUE) and private equity firm Apax Partners announced that they had reached a definitive agreement under which funds......
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Ralph Lauren Corp. (NYSE: RL) reported fourth-quarter and fiscal-year 2013 company earnings before markets opened this morning. For the quarter, the apparel company posted adjusted diluted earnings......
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Dollar Tree Inc. (NASDAQ: DLTR) reported first-quarter 2013 results before markets opened this morning. The discount retailer posted diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.59 on revenues of $1.87......
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Investors frequently get to see the analyst upgrades and Buy ratings from Wall Street firms. What investors often do not get to see is when analyst downgrade stocks to sell or to avoid. 24/7 Wall St.......
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The consumer is the key to the economy improving. The consumer is also the key for revenue growth and success for the major U.S retail REITs. The International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) just......
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The world of biotech investing is always a difficult one. Often a binary event, such as U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval or a life-saving capital raise, is the difference between not......
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Investors and traders seem to be constantly looking for fresh research ideas that will lead to higher income or more profits. 24/7 Wall St. reviews many fresh research calls each morning to find......
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Manufacturing in China contracted this month, according to the HSBC Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), a preliminary reading of manufacturing activity. The figure came in at 49.6. Any number below 50......
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Consumer Reports released its new ratings of the best and worst airlines. Virgin America was at the top of the list. Spirit Airlines Inc. (NASDAQ: SAVE) was at the bottom. Southwest Airlines Co.......
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Lenovo Earnings The news about Hewlett-Packard Co.’s (NYSE: HPQ) earnings may have been better than expected, but they cannot compare nearly to PC maker rival Lenovo. For some reason it has......
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