STOCK AND ETF

Derailments have been a persistent problem for trains since their inception, and they continue to be a concern today. In response to a recent derailment and toxic spill in Ohio, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg has called for various reforms, including safer tank cars, higher train staffing levels, and the deployment of electronically controlled pneumatic brakes (ECP). ECP is a technology that can significantly improve braking and reduce stopping distances by over 50%, according to Wells Fargo analyst Allison Poliniak-Cusic. Despite objections based on cost and reliability, Poliniak-Cusic believes that the recent accident and others like it will spur increased support for ECP. The history of train safety is marked by a pattern of accidents leading to technological advancements. In 1869, George Westinghouse invented the air brake, which allowed for more efficient stopping of trains using compressed air. This invention led to the creation of Westinghouse Air Brake, a company that

Last year was a difficult year for Carvana, the popular online used-car seller. For the first time in nine years, the company sold fewer cars than in the previous year, resulting in losses of $1.6 billion. The auto industry supply chain problems caused by the pandemic led to a shortage of new cars, which led to an increase in the price of used cars. Carvana was not prepared for this market drop, which was exacerbated by rapidly rising interest rates, making it more difficult for the company to sell cars. However, the company's CEO, Ernie Garcia III, said that the difficult transition the company had gone through in the past year would lead to a more efficient company in the future. Carvana is the second largest used-car retailer in America after CarMax. The company's losses ballooned to $806 million in 2022, and the number of cars sold in the fourth quarter of last year dropped 23% from a year earlier to about 87,000, while overall revenue declined 24%. The company has been a

On an early Wednesday morning, the shares of TSMC plummeted by 6% following the news that Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway had sold the majority of its stake in the Taiwanese chipmaker's stock. The sale, which constituted about 86% of the firm's position, was disclosed in the fourth-quarter 13F filings the previous night.   This sudden move was unexpected, especially given that Buffett's company usually holds onto investments for years. In fact, Berkshire Hathaway had only revealed its $4.1 billion stake in TSMC on November 14, and the company had already reduced its position to about $618 million in just a few months.   Berkshire Hathaway's decision to sell its shares came after the stock had already climbed around 18% from when it was first purchased. By the middle of 2022, chipmakers across the board had been reducing production to deal with oversupply issues. Despite this, TSMC seemed to have benefited from the artificial intelligence boom that had propelled

The Global X Robotics & Artificial Intelligence ETF (BOTZ) is a cutting-edge investment fund that seeks to tap into the potential of the rapidly growing fields of robotics and artificial intelligence. The fund takes a unique approach to investing, recognizing that these technologies have far-reaching applications that go beyond just industrial activity. BOTZ invests globally, spanning across multiple sectors and industries, in order to provide its investors with exposure to the most promising companies in the world of robotics and AI. Its portfolio includes some of the most recognizable names in the industry, such as NVIDIA, KEYENCE, ABB, INTUITIVE SURGICAL, and FANUC. The fund has a strong presence in countries like the United States, Japan, and Switzerland, and its weighted average market cap of 58,169 million reflects its commitment to investing in only the best and brightest companies in the industry. In recent years, the robotics and AI sectors have experienced tremend

In today's rapidly changing market, investors often struggle to choose the right stocks to invest in. Some opt for the easier route of buying an exchange-traded fund that holds a variety of well-known companies like Apple, Microsoft, and Amazon. Others, however, prefer to take a riskier approach and bet on popular stocks, like GameStop and AMC. Despite this, it's widely agreed that owning an index ETF is the safer option for investing, especially if the goal is to save for retirement. A diversified portfolio of companies is always a better choice than trying to predict the success of individual stocks. Recently, a screen was run to identify a list of dependable stocks for investors. The criteria for these stocks included a history of double-digit sales growth over the past five years and a projected profit growth of at least 10% for the next few years. Some of the companies that made the list include Accenture, Adobe, Analog Devices, Applied Materials, PayPal, Progressive, Huma

  The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) crackdown on crypto staking has sent ripples throughout the cryptocurrency industry and has affected the shares of Coinbase, one of the leading cryptocurrency exchanges. The crackdown came after charges were levied against some of Coinbase's competitors, leading to concerns among investors and a drop in the company's stock. On Friday, shares of Coinbase fell by 4.2% after a 13% drop on Thursday, wiping out roughly half of its year-to-date rally. Despite this, the stock is still up by over 60% in 2023.   One of Coinbase's competitors, Kraken, was the target of the SEC's latest enforcement action. The exchange was required to pay $30 million to settle charges that it offered unregistered securities through its staking program and was forced to shut down its staking program for US customers. The SEC's settlement with Kraken came hours after Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong warned the public of rumors that the SEC would like to

Credit Suisse, the Swiss multinational investment bank, has reported a fourth-quarter and full-year net loss that missed expectations. The bank's CEO, Ulrich Koerner, has described the results as “completely unacceptable.” The lender's full-year loss came in at 7.3 billion Swiss francs, which was worse than the expected 6.53 billion Swiss francs.   Credit Suisse is currently undergoing a multi-year transformation program, aimed at simplifying and transforming its business. The program was announced in October 2022, under pressure from investors, to return to stable profitability following chronic underperformance in its investment bank and a litany of risk and compliance failures. The CEO of the bank stated that 2022 was a crucial year for Credit Suisse and that the bank was “executing at pace” on its strategic plan to create a “simpler, more focused bank.” In November 2022, Credit Suisse projected a 1.5 billion Swiss franc loss for the fourth quarter due to large-scale r

Societe Generale, one of France's largest banks, recently reported its 2022 annual financial results, which showed a 64% drop in net profits. The decrease in profits was primarily due to lower activity in its domestic banking unit, currency effects, and increased operating expenses. Despite this drop, the bank's results were higher than market expectations, with a net income of 2.02 billion euros for the year.   Revenues for the bank rose by 8% over the year, reaching 28.1 billion euros. This growth can be attributed to the bank's ongoing projects and business developments, as well as its strong performance in its international retail banking and specialized financial services segments. Meanwhile, operating expenses increased by 5.9% over the last 12 months to 18.6 billion euros. This increase can be attributed to the bank's ongoing investments in technology and digital transformation initiatives. One of the key metrics used to assess a bank's financial health

Maersk, the world's largest container shipping firm, recently reported its financial results for the fourth quarter of 2022 and the full year. Despite a decline in earnings in the fourth quarter, the company posted its best-ever full-year results, with an underlying EBITDA of $36.84 billion.   The company's exceptional performance in 2022 was largely due to a continued rise in ocean freight rates. However, this positive trend has now peaked, and a normalization of rates is expected to negatively impact earnings. This was highlighted by former CEO Søren Skou in the company's third-quarter earnings report, when he warned of "dark clouds on the horizon." Despite the challenges ahead, new CEO Vincent Clerc remains optimistic and determined to drive the company's transformation and operational excellence. He stated that in 2022, the company not only achieved its best financial result but also strengthened its partnerships with customers by supporting their supp

Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY), the embattled retailer, saw its stock drop 48% on Tuesday following the announcement of its equity offering to raise up to $1.025 billion. This move has been labeled by analysts as a "last ditch effort to secure its future." Despite the company's recent 92% increase in stock price on Monday, ahead of the offering announcement, its financial struggles have left investors cautious.   The company has been struggling with conserving cash, as it balances on the brink of bankruptcy. Accumulated debt and losses have surpassed $1 billion by the end of 2022. A recent regulatory filing warns of a default notice from JPMorgan and the lack of funds to repay loans. Short interest in BBBY's shares is currently standing at 53% of the float, according to data from S3 Partners. Despite the negative outlook on the company, the overall trend in meme stocks has seen a resurgence in popularity this year. GameStop (GME) and AMC (AMC) have both seen incre

  Uber Technologies Inc has reported a blowout earnings for the fourth quarter of 2022, marking the end of the pandemic's impact on the company's mobility business. The rideshare giant has stated that it will focus on delivering profits this year, as demand for airport and office rides has helped the company bounce back from pandemic lows. This news has caused Uber's shares to surge nearly 8% in premarket trading. In the fourth quarter of 2022, the company's revenue rose 49% to $8.61 billion, beating the estimate of $8.49 billion. Rideshare revenue increased by 82% during this period, which highlights the continued demand for Uber's services. The company also reported a surprising profit of 29 cents per share, while analysts had estimated a loss of 18 cents per share. This strong performance has boosted the company's confidence in achieving profitability on a GAAP basis this year. Uber's CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi, stated that the company has separated from it

  Yum Brands, the multinational fast-food giant, has reported its Q4 earnings for the year 2022, which have surpassed analysts’ expectations, largely driven by strong sales at Taco Bell. The company reported net income of $371 million, or $1.29 per share, up from $330 million, or $1.11 per share, in the same period last year. The company’s net sales rose 7% to $2.02 billion, while the global same-store sales increased 6%. Taco Bell, which is one of the strongest performers in Yum's portfolio, reported 11% same-store sales growth, beating StreetAccount estimates of 6.7%. This strong performance was due in part to the popularity of the Mexican Pizza, which sold 45 million units during the quarter, despite being only available for four months of the year. The Mexican-inspired chain’s CEO, David Gibbs, announced that the international footprint of Taco Bell had surpassed 1,000 locations during the quarter, with 40% of those restaurants built in the last two years. However, the result

The retail industry has been facing challenges in recent years, with changing consumer habits, economic headwinds and the COVID-19 pandemic affecting sales and profits. However, some retailers have been able to weather the storm and even thrive, and are now presenting great investment opportunities for those looking to add deep value stocks to their portfolio. Two such companies are Williams-Sonoma (WSM) and Qurate Retail Group (QRTEA).   Williams-Sonoma is a specialty retailer of high-quality products for the home, including furniture, decor, kitchenware, and bedding, among others. The company has reported solid comparable-store revenue growth of 8.1% in the fiscal 2022 third quarter, despite the economic headwinds and high inflation. This is due to the company's ability to keep its store shelves stocked and meet the demand, a competitive advantage over many other retailers. This has enabled the company to grow its earnings per share by 18% through the first nine months of the

  The Neuberger Berman Group portfolio manager, Steve Eisman, who is famous for betting against subprime mortgages right before the global financial crisis, sees an oncoming market regime shift in the higher interest-rate era. This shift will result in new leaders replacing the big companies that have dominated the investment landscape over the past decade or so. Eisman warns that paradigms change over time and sometimes the change happens suddenly. He cites Thomas Kuhn’s 1962 book The Structure of Scientific Revolutions to explain how one regime is replaced by another and how it can be a wrenching and prolonged process. According to Eisman, previous paradigm shifts have included the transition from big conglomerates like General Electric Co. in the 1990s to the technology firms of the dotcom bubble and financial stocks of the early 2000s. The dominance of banks famously came crashing down in 2008, but even then, some financial names rallied in 2009 and 2010. A prolonged period of lo

The recent Nasdaq bear market has taken a toll on many consumer stocks, especially those in the tech industry. However, as with all bear markets, there may be opportunities for growth as the market recovers. In this article, we will explore three consumer tech stocks that may offer potential for recovery and growth: Airbnb, Pinterest, and Roku. Airbnb is a company that has revolutionized the vacation and residential real estate industry by turning unused properties into short-term rentals. It has leveraged technology, such as artificial intelligence, to better understand customers and set competitive rates. In the first three quarters of 2022, Airbnb brought in $6.5 billion in revenue and turned profitable with $1.6 billion in net income. Despite its growth, Airbnb's stock has taken a hit from the bear market and currently sells at a 50% discount from its all-time high and a price-to-sales ratio of 10. With its continued growth and the transformative impact it has had on the indust