US Stocks Preview Ahead of the Open
- Solid earings this morning from both sides of the Atlantic are fueling risk-appetite today with global markets rising and US futures flat after being lower earlier
- JP Morgan (JPM) CEO Jamie Dimon said he thinks the Fed did the right thing pausing rate hikes and he does not see a recession in the US over the next couple of years
- Pininterest will place its IPO today, pricing it at $19 per share, $2 above the high end of its indicated placement range and trade under the symbol PINS; attention will be intense when trading begins, with investors curious to see if Lyft’s (LYFT) performance is replicated-Lyft is trading 17% below its recent IPO placement price
- The United States will announce March retail sales data at 8:30 AM today. Economists expect a 1.0% m/m increase compared to a 0.2% m/m declin in the prior period.
- The vote on Brazil’s pension reform bill-central to President Jair Bolsonaro’s reform agenda-was delayed from yesterday until next Tuesday, weighing on Brazilian stocks
- China is experiencing an outbreak of African swine fever in its pork population, requiring higher imports and sending global pork prices higher
- Read more on the healthcare sell-off: Band-Aid Please! Health Care Stocks Lick Their Wounds and Search for Ointment Amid a Sector Meltdown
- A trade deal is getting closer: Get the Pens! US-China trade deal could be signed as soon as late May
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- Value stocks you need to check out: Everyone loves OUTSTANDING VALUE! These TOP BUY QUALITY VALUE stocks are what your portfolio needs NOW!
- The VIX is little changed this morning and is currently at 12.12 after closing at 12.6 yesterday
- SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) April 18 OTM Calls and April 17 OTM Puts, iShares MSCI Brazil ETF (EWZ) May 17 OTM Puts and iShares China Large-Cap ETF (FXI) April 18 OTM Calls & Puts are the most actively traded options contracts in US pre-market trading this morning
- US 10-Year Treasury Bonds are higher with yields down -3.62 basis points to 2.5578%
- The US Treasury 2s-10s Spread has narrowed 1.41 basis points to 0.18%
- WTI Crude is currently down -0.45% to USD$63.76/bbl with the Brent-WTI spread up USD$0.49 to USD$7.35/bbl
- Gold is currently little changed 0.13% to USD$1275.59/oz
Stocks Trending in the News
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- Alcoa (AA) reported first quarter results that were worse than expected. Alcoa reported a 23 cents per share loss in the first quarter, worse than the 9 cents per share loss expected. Adjusted ebitda of $467 million was better than the $403 million expected. Revenue in the first quarter of $2.72 billion trailed the $2.81 billion expectation. Alcoa cut its aluminum demand growth forecast to 2-3%, down from 3-4%. Alcoa also cut its global aluminum deficit guidance to 1.5-1.7 million metric tons, down from 1.7-2.1 million metric tons. Alcoa is rated “Top Short” in our US Large-Cap Global Top Stock Ideas
- BBT&T (BBT) reported first quarter results ahead of consensus. BB&T first quarter adjusted EPS if $1.05 beat $1.03 consensus. BB&T first quarter net interest margin of 3.51% came a touch ahead of 3.49% consensus. Credit loss provisions in the quarter totaled $155 million. BB&T said it continues to prepare for its integration with SunTrust Bank (STI). BB&T is rated “Attractive” in our US Large-Cap Global Top Stock Ideas. SunTrust Bank is rated “Neutral” in our US Large-Cap Global Top Stock Ideas.
- Citizens Financial Group (CFG) reported first quarter results ahead of consensus. Citizens Financial Group first quarter adjusted EPS if $0.93 beat $0.89 consensus. Citizens Financial Group first quarter net interest margin of 3.25% came a touch ahead of 3.27% consensus. Credit loss provisions in the quarter totaled $85 million. Citizens Financial Group posted net interest income growth of 6%. Citizens Financial Group is rated “Neutral” in our US Large-Cap Global Top Stock Ideas.
- E-Trade Financial (ETFC) reported first quarter results that beat consensus expectations. First quarter EPS of $1.09 beat $0.93 consensus. E-Trade Financial first quarter revenue was $755 million, ahead of $738 million consensus. First quarter net interest income was $492 million. Daily average trades were 279,405. E-Trade Financial is rated “Neutral” in our US Large-Cap Global Top Stock Ideas
- Las Vegas Sands (LVS) reported first quarter adjusted EPS of 91 cents, beating consensus of 86 cents. Revenue of $3.65 billion beat $3.5 billion consensus. Macau revenue of $2.33 billion came ahead of $2.2 billion expected. Las Vegas Sands confirmed work on the Four Seasons Suites Macau and Londoner Macau “is progressing.” Las Vegas Sands is rated “Unattractive” in our US Large-Cap Global Top Stock Ideas and “Neutral” in our US Consumer Discretionary Global Top Stock Ideas.
- Nestle (SWX:NESN) reported first quarter results that beat expectations. Nestle saw strong sales growth in North America with higher prices and solid pet care sales. Nestle posted organic sales growth of 3.4% in the Americas, above the 2.8% growth expected. Total sales were 22.18 billion Swiss francs. Nestle saw significant price gains in Brazil, its biggest market. Nestle’s performance puts in a position to deliver sales growth in the mid to single digits. Nestle is rated “Attractive” in our European Large-Cap Global Top Stock Ideas
- SunTrust Bank (STI) reported first quarter results ahead of consensus. SunTrust Bank first quarter adjusted EPS if $1.33 beat $1.30 consensus. SunTrust Bank first quarter net interest margin of 3.27% matching consensus of 3.27%. Credit loss provisions in the quarter totaled $155 million. Sun Trust said it continues to prepare for its integration with BBT&T (BBT) and will not use its remaining $500 million authorization for share repurchases. SunTrust Bank is rated “Attractive” in our US Large-Cap Global Top Stock Ideas. SunTrust Bank is rated “Neutral” in our US Large-Cap Global Top Stock Ideas.
- United Rentals (URI) reported first quarter results that beat expectations. First quarter EPS of $3.31 beat $3.03 consensus. United Rentals first quarter revenue was $2.12 billion, ahead of $2.06 billion consensus. United Rentals reaffirmed revenue guidance for full year 2019 of $9.15-$9.55 billion. United Rentals CEO said he expects a strong year saying “customer sentiment remains positive.” United Rentals is rated “Neutral” in our US Large-Cap Global Top Stock Ideas and “Neutral” in our US Industrials Global Top Stock Ideas
International Stock Markets Recap
- The Euro Stoxx 600 is currently up +0.21%, the FTSE 100 is down -0.14%, the DAX has risen +0.52%, and the CAC 40 is up +0.27%
- Automobiles & Parts (+0.92%), Media (+0.32%), and Insurance (-0.03%) stocks are the top performers in the Euro Stoxx 600 today
- Health Care (-0.14%), Real Estate (-0.03%), and Basic Resources (+0.03%) stocks are the worst performers in the Euro Stoxx 600 today
- Investor sentiment for European stocks is negative with the advance/decline ratio for the Euro Stoxx 600 currently at 0.97x
- 242 stocks in the Euro Stoxx 600 are at 4-week highs while 69 stocks are at 4-week lows
- 164 stocks in the Euro Stoxx 600 are overbought while 8 stocks are oversold according to the 16-day RSI Measure
- The Nikkei 225 finished down –0.84%, the Hang Seng ended down -0.54%, the Hang Seng China Enterprise declined -0.68%, and the CSI 300 was -0.37%
- Investor sentiment for Japanese stocks finished negative with the advance/decline ratio for the Nikkei 225 closing at 0.18x
- 62 stocks in the Nikkei 225 hit 4-week highs while 26 stocks reached 4-week lows
- 19 stocks in the Nikkei 225 closed overbought while 9 stocks closed oversold according to the 16-day RSI Measure
- Investor sentiment for Hong Kong stocks finished negative with the advance/decline ratio for the Hang Seng closing at 0.32x
- 9 stocks in the Hang Seng hit 4-week highs while 4 stocks reached 4-week lows
- 5 stocks in the Hang Seng closed overbought while 0 stocks closed oversold according to the 16-day RSI Measure