By Chris Johnson, Quantitative Specialist, Money Morning - • Print | Email
The real estate market is surging with opportunity as America continue to reopen for business, and this option play could you cash in on the pent up demand.
Since our last play in this market, our readers have locked in 256% gains, and climbing.
Now we're playing one of the most beloved names in this sector.
Get the full details in this latest from "Fast Profits with Money Morning"...
By Chris Johnson, Quantitative Specialist, Money Morning - • Print | Email
It feels like 10 years ago, but it's really only been about seven weeks since that fateful April 20, when a COVID-19-driven collapse in demand pummeled West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures. Prices hit the floor, fell through it, and landed in negative territory at -$37.63 a barrel.
In those seven weeks, WTI has rocketed almost 200%. The S&P Oil & Gas Exploration and Production Select Industry Index has risen nearly 70%, though it's still down more than 24% for the year.
Over the past few days, though, oil benchmarks have been creeping 2% and 3% lower, which in my experience is a big, neon sign saying "Selling Ahead." And several marquee energy stocks like Occidental Petroleum Corp. and Halliburton Co. are also flashing sell-off warnings.
This reminds me of the old Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote Looney Tunes cartoons – remember them? One of the (many) cheesy running gags had Wile chasing Road Runner only to overshoot him at a cliff. Wile would hang there in midair for a second, have a "Maalox moment," and then drop.
That's not all that different than what's happening in crude right now. Both the commodity and most of its associated stocks entered what market technicians like me call "overbought" territory. Now they're dropping like rocks. Investors are starting to figure out if they're in over their heads.
How do I know? The answer is worth exploring because it can make you a sharper trader. There's one simple, small number you can look at in any stock chart that can tell you instantly how to play it.
I'll get into that briefly and then I'll tell you how to play the oil patch's precarious "Wile E. Coyote" situation… Full Story
By Chris Johnson, Quantitative Specialist, Money Morning - • Print | Email
Shelling out money for shares that cost $1,000 apiece can be off-putting, no matter their actual value or how well they perform.
Never mind that "cheap" is often cheap for a good reason; there's an understandable, but mostly incorrect, perception that the lower the share price, the better the bargain.
But it's undeniable: Stocks like Alphabet Inc., Autozone Inc., and Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. are all caught up in dynamite trends.
They're far outpacing the market, and there's no reason for them to stop anytime soon.
And yet, plenty of regular investors take a look at the quote and think they'll have to settle for fractional shares, or worse, give the company a miss altogether.
So today, our Chris Johnson is going to share the cure for "Stock Sticker Shock."
By Chris Johnson, Quantitative Specialist, Money Morning - • Print | Email
While the S&P 500 has moved back above 3,000 for the first time since late February and many investors are enjoying the long-side profits, it's important to remember that you shouldn't rush in unprotected.
Especially investors who now have even bigger portfolios to defend.
You see, the market could turn vicious in a heartbeat.
On the one hand there are the economics risks of the coronavirus and on the other, the "money migration" that was sparked by that same technical breakout above 3,000 is also a signal that we could walk into an overextended, "overbought" situation in the market.
That means hedging is more important than ever.
But there's another hedging move that's even easier - and it won't cost you a dime...
By Chris Johnson, Quantitative Specialist, Money Morning - • Print | Email
Catchphrases like the "Death of Retail!" or the "Retail Apocalypse!" have been flying all over the media for around a decade now. Whales like Amazon and Walmart have been crushing the competition since way, way before the coronavirus upended life and commerce around the world.
Just take a look at this exchange-traded fund. I've been talking about it in my Markets Livestream because it's returned almost 5% this year. I'm talking about the ProShares Decline of the Retail Store ETF. And get this: It's trading under the ticker EMTY.
The name and ticker say it all, but still… Ouch. Someone on Wall Street has an edgy sense of humor…
In 2019, more than 9,300 store closings were announced, and the COVID-19 pandemic promises to eclipse that grim record. I'm reading now that Cushman & Wakefield estimate a whopping 12,000 big chain stores could fold in 2020.
Look – it would be unfair to lay all of this at the feet of Amazon and Walmart; for retailers, business conditions can be fluid at the best of times, and the COVID-19 pandemic has been absolutely brutal for most of the consumer spending-driven U.S. economy.
So the big players have clearly cemented their positions. But here's the thing: They're not the only game in town. Nor is all retail dead – not by a longshot.
It's just that, to use an "SAT word," retail has almost completely bifurcated; there are now two separate retail sectors emerging.
Let me tell you all about the one you want to be in for the long haul… Full Story
Let me tell you all about the one you want to be in for the long haul...
By Chris Johnson, Quantitative Specialist, Money Morning - • Print | Email
Gold is trading higher by about 15% year-to-date; a global pandemic and widespread economic destruction will tend to drive investors toward the safe havens.
And with no end date on COVID-19 and the increasing likelihood of a lurch down to March lows, there's plenty of headroom for more gold gains.
And that makes right now the perfect time to make this smart move.
For the past month or so, gold has been trading around $1,700 and $1,775.
In fact, our Chris Johnson believes $1,700 is a technical floor, or a "launch pad" from which gold can rocket higher – 15% or even 20% from here.
So yes, this is the right time to own gold.
But you don't have to be content with those profits alone.
Make sure you're holding these gold shares before gold moves another cent higher...
By Chris Johnson, Quantitative Specialist, Money Morning - • Print | Email
Despite some tentative, decidedly mixed moves to "reopen" in some parts of the country, anonymous cell phone location data shared with USA Today reveals the vast majority of Americans are still spending more than 80% of their time inside their homes. Different data shared by the states shows that COVID-19 infection and hospitalizations have kind of plateaued nationwide, but are still growing in some places.
The economic picture is much worse – week after week of jaw-dropping first-time claims numbers. Around 20.5 million jobs vanished in April, putting unemployment at 14.7%. That's its highest level since 1939 and the Great Depression; the broader "U6" number is 22.8%. GDP has shrunk 4.7% on a quarterly annualized basis.
Look – I don't mean to belabor the point, or scare or depress anyone; I'm looking forward just as much as anyone to the day this pandemic and recession show up in the rearview mirror.
I only mention the negatives here because they stand in such stark contrast to the markets. Stocks are starting to give back just a little of their gains as I write this, so let's get to the bottom of what's going on – quickly… Full Story
By Chris Johnson, Quantitative Specialist, Money Morning - • Print | Email
Most investors cringe when they hear the term "technical analysis."
And I get that: With a "short list" of about 75 terms, the technical-analysis realm can be a complicated one.
But it doesn't have to be.
I've been doing this for a long, long time.
So I can tell you that the real short list can be whittled down to just one single indicator.
That's right – just one.
And once you've fully grasped this one technical indicator, you can make the leap from "investing" to "trading" – where the biggest profits are attainable.
Today, I'm going to introduce you to technical trading. I'm going to tell you all about the only technical indicator you need to understand.
And I'll finish by setting you up for your first technical-analysis-driven trade… Full Story
And I'll finish by setting you up for your first technical-analysis-driven trade...
By Chris Johnson, Quantitative Specialist, Money Morning - • Print | Email
Let me paint you a picture: Imagine your house, safe and sound. You want to insure it, so you buy a policy and pay regular premiums on it. Of course, if the unthinkable happens, you're covered.
Now imagine you've got no policy, and, one day, your house is starts to burn… You desperately call Allstate or Metlife to find that a policy is getting way more expensive with each passing second (though, I'm pretty sure no insurance company would write a policy under those circumstances).
The thing is, millions of people who wouldn't go a day without homeowners' insurance balk at "insuring" their portfolios with proper, inexpensive, and proportional hedging. Then when the "fire" starts, they're either paying through the nose… or going without.
In fact, this very subject came up just the other day on my Markets Live stream, and by the time we were through with the session, we were all a lot smarter – and better protected.
And the timing is good: The next leg down may have already just started… Full Story
And the timing is good: The next leg down may have already just started...
By Fast Profits Team, Money Morning - • Print | Email
Fast Profits guest and editor of Night Trader Chris Johnson is joining the Fast Profits Team today to give away a fast moving opportunity.
He just got a signal that this stock is about to rally, making for an ideal option play.
This trade could easily double your money or more...
