Nasdaq could plunge 15 percent or more, Morgan Stanley's Mike Wilson warns

Morgan Stanley's Michael Wilson believes the stock market is entering a destructive phase.

"The Nasdaq could correct by 15 percent plus, the S&P 500 probably goes down about 10 [percent]," the firm's chief U.S. equity strategist said Thursday.

His comments came on CNBC's "Trading Nation," where he was speaking publicly on Monday's correction warning research note for the first time. Wilson contends financial conditions are tightening more than most investors appreciate, and a correction has already started.

"The market has just been getting narrower and narrower. So what we've seen is every sector within the S&P has gone through about a 20 percent correction on valuation except for two: technology and consumer discretionary �� basically growth stocks," Wilson said. "Our view is that this rolling bear market has to complete itself by hitting those two sectors, and we think that's actually begun."

Wilson, who was one of last year's biggest bulls, sees this shift from growth to value stocks creating a lot of trouble because technology and consumer discretionary groups make up nearly half the S&P.

"If the growth stocks get hit disproportionately hard, it's going to be very difficult for that money to leak into other parts of the market without having some loss of value," he said.

Wilson's S&P year-end target is 2,750 �� 4 percent below the index's record high of 2,872 hit on Jan. 26 and about 3 percent from current levels.

As for next year, he doesn't see the situation getting much better.

"There are definitely a lot of signs already that there's a view that things are going to slow materially next year whether there is a recession or not," Wilson said. "

However, he isn't bailing on stocks altogether. Wilson likes energy, utilities, industrials and financials as a rotation from growth to value picks up steam.

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show chapters A ‘rolling bear market’ is already claiming victims, Mike Wilson goes into correction mode    18 Hours Ago | 04:57 Disclaimer

Somewhat Critical Media Coverage Somewhat Unlikely to Impact Miller Industries (MLR) Share Price

Media coverage about Miller Industries (NYSE:MLR) has been trending somewhat negative this week, Accern Sentiment reports. The research firm ranks the sentiment of news coverage by analyzing more than twenty million blog and news sources in real-time. Accern ranks coverage of publicly-traded companies on a scale of negative one to one, with scores nearest to one being the most favorable. Miller Industries earned a daily sentiment score of -0.09 on Accern’s scale. Accern also assigned news headlines about the auto parts company an impact score of 46.4626409572006 out of 100, meaning that recent news coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an effect on the stock’s share price in the next few days.

Separately, ValuEngine downgraded shares of Miller Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 2nd.

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Shares of NYSE MLR traded down $0.35 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $25.55. The company had a trading volume of 30,540 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,450. The stock has a market cap of $290.71 million, a P/E ratio of 11.26 and a beta of 0.58. Miller Industries has a 1 year low of $23.90 and a 1 year high of $29.00. The company has a current ratio of 2.22, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.05.

Miller Industries (NYSE:MLR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 9th. The auto parts company reported $0.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $159.16 million during the quarter. Miller Industries had a net margin of 4.13% and a return on equity of 12.93%.

About Miller Industries

Miller Industries, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of towing and recovery equipment. It offers wreckers, such as conventional tow trucks and recovery vehicles that are used to recover and tow disabled vehicles and other equipment; and car carriers, which are specialized flat-bed vehicles with hydraulic tilt mechanisms that are used to transport new or disabled vehicles and other equipment.

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The Most Misunderstood Day Job

Day trading is one of the most-hyped �� yet misunderstood �� trading styles. There��s a lot of bogus information out there and plenty of misconceptions about what it takes to be successful as a day trader.

I��ve been a consistently profitable day trader for over 15 years and use my experience to teach the students in my trading challenge how to trade penny stocks and more.

Based on the knowledge I��ve gained over my career, here are some day trading tips and strategies to succeed in the stock market. Later on, I��ll show you nine mistakes I��ve made in my career, so you don��t have to make them yourself.

First off, what is day trading?

The term ��day trading�� is often tossed around and used incorrectly, so let��s set the record straight on what it is �� and what it isn��t.

Day trading refers to the purchase and sale of a stock within the same day. If a position is held overnight or longer, it��s not day trading.

Day trading isn��t exclusive to just one market, but it��s perhaps most commonly known as a method for trading in the stock market.

Since I��m a day trader of penny stocks and that��s the focus of my teachings, here I��ll stick with day trading tips and strategies to succeed in this market.

Of course, day trading could involve buying and selling in other markets, such as the foreign exchange market (aka forex trading). But that��s not my beat.

How can you profit from day trading?

As a day trader in the stock market, you��ll use various short-term trading methods, setups and strategies to help you profit by capitalizing on the price fluctuations of stocks.

Can you profit from day trading? Of course you can. I��ve built my entire career on it. Plenty of traders are quick to say you can��t �� but these are usually people who have tried it and lost money because they didn��t bother to learn the basics before they started trading.

If you put in the time to learn before jumping in with both feet, you don��t have to be one of them.

Is day trading risky? Yes, it can be. There are plenty of scammers out there who want to take advantage of you. Some brand themselves as teachers and make false promises, claiming they can teach you the ��secrets�� of the market and help make you a millionaire in a matter of weeks.

Others will try to take advantage of you as a new investor with pump-and-dump schemes. If you fall for the hype, you��ll likely end up as one of the infamous 90%-plus percent of traders who fail. But if you seek out a real trading education, you��ll learn to spot these scams a mile away.

Fortunately, I know how to spot the scammers a mile away. And I can help you avoid them.

And just to be clear, the risk inherent to day trading is largely what makes it possible to be profitable.

Good luck making overnight double- or triple-digit gains from Coca-Cola or Boeing or any other large stock.

Since it carries a high risk level, many traders with large accounts or financial advisers tend to steer clear of day trading. That��s why they scoff at day trading. Fine by me, because it��s less competition!

One of the big benefits of day trading is that it doesn��t require a lot of money to get started, so you can reap opportunities even if you have a small account. But you must learn how to mitigate risk.

To truly become a profitable day trader, it��s critical to learn the mechanics of the market and how to identify patterns and to master short-term trading strategies that can deliver profits.

It also means avoiding costly mistakes.

Regards,

Tim Sykes
for The Daily Reckoning

Heritage Commerce (HTBK) Now Covered by Raymond James

Raymond James started coverage on shares of Heritage Commerce (NASDAQ:HTBK) in a research report report published on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The brokerage issued an outperform rating and a $19.00 price objective on the financial services provider’s stock.

Other analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Brean Capital reaffirmed a buy rating on shares of Heritage Commerce in a research report on Monday, April 16th. BidaskClub lowered shares of Heritage Commerce from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Monday, May 14th. ValuEngine lowered shares of Heritage Commerce from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 18th. Zacks Investment Research lowered shares of Heritage Commerce from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, May 3rd. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Heritage Commerce from $17.50 to $19.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Monday, April 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The company currently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $18.63.

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Heritage Commerce traded up $0.02, reaching $16.96, during trading on Wednesday, according to MarketBeat Ratings. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 164,782 shares, compared to its average volume of 233,634. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.66. Heritage Commerce has a 1 year low of $12.76 and a 1 year high of $18.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $680.31 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.62.

Heritage Commerce (NASDAQ:HTBK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, missing the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $0.24 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $28.54 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $29.45 million. Heritage Commerce had a net margin of 21.93% and a return on equity of 12.22%. equities analysts anticipate that Heritage Commerce will post 1.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

In related news, Director Jack W. Conner sold 23,000 shares of Heritage Commerce stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.98, for a total value of $390,540.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 61,812 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,049,567.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Michael Eugene Benito sold 6,000 shares of Heritage Commerce stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.00, for a total transaction of $102,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 41,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $707,200. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 32,500 shares of company stock worth $552,110. Corporate insiders own 5.40% of the company’s stock.

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. John W. Rosenthal Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Heritage Commerce by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. John W. Rosenthal Capital Management Inc. now owns 229,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,789,000 after purchasing an additional 3,100 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank increased its holdings in Heritage Commerce by 5.3% in the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 63,200 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,042,000 after purchasing an additional 3,200 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Heritage Commerce by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 386,815 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,374,000 after purchasing an additional 4,785 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its holdings in Heritage Commerce by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 98,542 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,510,000 after purchasing an additional 6,693 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in Heritage Commerce in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $165,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.11% of the company’s stock.

Heritage Commerce Company Profile

Heritage Commerce Corp operates as the bank holding company for Heritage Bank of Commerce that provides various commercial and personal banking services to residents and the business/professional community in California. It offers a range of deposit products for business banking and retail markets, including interest and non-interest bearing demand, savings accounts, certificate of deposit, money market accounts, and time deposits.

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Slowing Sales Volumes Threaten eBay's Rebound Hopes

Investors had a few good reasons to keep their expectations for eBay's (NASDAQ:EBAY) second-quarter results in check. Its sales growth pace had badly trailed fully integrated e-commerce rivals like Amazon.com�(NASDAQ:AMZN) and Walmart�(NYSE:WMT), after all. And the online marketplace has announced lower profitability due to the expensive investments management is making in the business.

eBay's recent earnings report didn't change the big-picture narrative that paired market-share challenges with reduced profit margins.

Let's take a closer look.

Image source: Getty Images.

Reduced growth rates

The pool of active buyers expanded by 4% to mark no improvement over the prior quarter's sluggish pace. Before the past six months, eBay had been growing this core metric at a 5% rate for over a year, but trends have worsened slightly, especially in the U.S. segment.

The slower expansion put pressure on the marketplace's sales volumes, which rose at the slowest rate in nine months in the U.S. market while just holding steady in the international segment. eBay's overall volume ticked up by 7%, compared to 33% sales gains achieved by Amazon and by Walmart's e-commerce segment.

eBay's unit sales slowed for the third straight quarter, too, with the number of product sales holding flat, compared to a 1% uptick in the prior quarter and a 2% increase in the holiday quarter. Overall, these numbers show that the marketplace's growth initiatives, including improvements to product pages and other customer experience upgrades, haven't delivered faster volume gains.

Profitability pressures

Meanwhile, eBay's transaction fees, its main source of profits, ticked down to 8.1% from 8.2% in the marketplace segment while holding steady at 22.7% in the StubHub division. Expenses were a bigger drag on earnings, though. Sales and marketing costs jumped to 30.6% of sales from 28.9% and product development ate up 11.1% of sales compared to 10.8% in the prior year.

Combined, these cost boosts overwhelmed smaller savings in other areas to push profitability lower as operating margin dropped to 25.2% of sales from 26.4%. That result still kept eBay far more profitable than its integrated retailing peers. Walmart's operating margin was 4.2% last quarter, and Amazon's comparable metric was 2.8%.

Looking ahead

In a press release detailing the results, CEO Devin Wenig and his team stressed the fact that eBay made progress along its goals this quarter, including by making it easier to buy and sell products on its platform. "We continued to execute our strategy," executives said, "making improvements to the core eBay experience." The extra spending, meanwhile, was in service of pursuing "significant opportunities" in areas like advertising and payments, Wenig explained.

Investors can look for the core business to speed up in the second half of fiscal 2018, but the gains will be muted. In fact, executives lowered their revenue outlook and now expect sales to rise between 6% and 7%, down from the prior target range of between 7% and 9%. Lower tax expenses imply that profits should stop at between $2.28 per share and $2.32 per share, or a bit higher than the prior forecast range. But eBay is now expecting operating margin to fall to about 27%, the low end of its guidance range, mainly due to extra costs associated with its acquisition of a selling platform in Japan.

These top- and bottom-line targets translate into continued growth for the e-commerce giant, but at a slower pace than the company enjoyed in fiscal 2017. Management had entered the year hoping to achieve another period of accelerating growth, but instead eBay might see steady, or slightly decreasing, sales volume gains.

CSX (CSX) Stock Surges More Than 3% on Earnings Beat

CSX (NASDAQ:CSX) ended Tuesday with a positive note as the company’s stock surged on its latest quarterly earnings results, which were released after the market closed.

The Jacksonville-based transportation and real estate company had a record second quarter as it reaches its midpoint of fiscal 2018, bringing in net earnings of $877 million, which amounted to roughly $1.01 per share. The figure was a 72% improvement over its year-ago net earnings of $510 million, as well as an 83.6% per-share improvement over its year-ago income of 55 cents per share.

The figure also topped the Wall Street consensus estimate of 87 cents per share in earnings, according to data compiled by FactSet. CSX’s second-quarter revenue increased by 6% compared to the year-ago quarter to $3.10 billion, topping analysts’ expectations of $3 billion in sales, according to data compiled by FactSet.

Plus, the company’s expenses were down by 8% compared to the year-ago quarter, or 2% when excluding its prior year’s restructuring charges. CSX’s operating income for the period soared 34% year-over-year to $1.28 billion when compared to the $957 million from the year-ago quarter.

“I could not be more proud of our hardworking CSX employees for achieving these record-setting results,” said James M. Foote, president and CEO. “I expect continued improvement in our safety, service and financial performance.”

CSX stock was up about 0.7% during regular trading hours on Tuesday before the company’s quarterly earnings report, which sent shares popping about 3.3% after the bell.

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Hot Cheap Stocks To Own Right Now

tags:SIRI,USG,IBM,GD,

��Buy and hold�� isn��t a trading strategy.

For the entirety of my trading career I have tried to avoid buying and holding. Every time I put on a trade I do so with a clear exit plan in mind. I NEVER go into positions with the intention to hold them for an undetermined amount of time.

Until now��

There��s one market and one investment that has made me completely change my attitude about ��buy and hold�� as a trading strategy��

That��s the bitcoin market.

I know, bitcoin has come down a lot this past week (it��s since stabilized). But to me, that��s perfectly fine. I��m happy about it, in fact. You should be too. It just gives you the opportunity to buy cheaper before bitcoin rises again.

And it will rise again…

My trading career was built on my ability to spot and follow trends. While some traders can find success trading counter-trend setups, I have always focused on riding momentum and chasing prevailing market trends.

I keep all of this in mind when considering an exit plan for my bitcoin position. And because I see no major reversals in the trend I cannot develop a solid exit plan.

Hot Cheap Stocks To Own Right Now: Sirius XM Radio Inc.(SIRI)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Rick Munarriz]

  Optimists may want to look at Sirius XM Radio (NASDAQ:SIRI) for inspiration at this point. Helios and Matheson may be trading for pocket change now, but Sirius XM stock bottomed out at $0.05 in early 2009, and there other similarities beyond the penny stock pricing.

• [By ]

  Remember, Apple (AAPL) had run because its service-revenue stream made the tech giant part of an elite group of companies. It joined Costco (COST) , Netflix (NFLX) , and SiriusXM (SIRI) , Spotify (SPOT) and Amazon (AMZN) (home of Amazon Prime) as companies that charge you recurring fees that you don't seem to notice or care about. So, Apple's stock no longer represents the tug to the group, and each company has to develop a separate power base away from Cupertino.

• [By Rick Munarriz]

  The market didn't exactly jump for joy with Sirius XM Holdings (NASDAQ:SIRI)�following its first-quarter results on Wednesday. Revenue rose 6.3% to hit $1.375 billion, in line with analyst expectations but the satellite radio provider's weakest top-line growth since 2011.�Free cash flow, operating cash flow, and earnings grew even faster, up 31%, 34%, and 40%, respectively. Sirius XM's profit of $0.06 a share did beat Wall Street's bottom-line target.��

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  Toronto Dominion Bank raised its position in shares of Sirius XM Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:SIRI) by 36.7% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 130,110 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 34,955 shares during the quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank’s holdings in Sirius XM were worth $812,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Hot Cheap Stocks To Own Right Now: USG Corporation(USG)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Warren Buffett likes to hold his stock positions for the long run, and his experience with USG (NYSE:USG) has been typical of his other long-term investments. The Oracle of Omaha started buying shares of the manufacturer of Sheetrock drywall and other building materials back in 2000, accumulating a sizable stake that has ballooned to more than 30% of the company. USG ended up going through bankruptcy in order to get a handle on its asbestos liability claims, but thanks largely to Buffett's involvement, the building materials company not only survived bankruptcy but also saw share prices soar briefly on hopes that USG would once again fully participate in the then-strong housing boom.

• [By Jason Hall, George Budwell, and Chuck Saletta]

  And while it may not always work out well to simply copy the moves other investors make, it can pay off to use their buying and selling moves as jumping-off points in your own research. We asked three real-world investors for their insight, and they wrote about two recent Buffett buys of�Apple Inc.�(NASDAQ:AAPL) and�USG Corporation�(NYSE:USG), and a recent Baker Brothers buy of�Heron Therapeutics Inc�(NASDAQ:HRTX).�

• [By Jordan Wathen]

  As USG Corporation (NYSE:USG) drags its feet on an offer to sell the company for $42 per share, Berkshire intends to use its 30.8% ownership stake to motivate its top brass to make a deal. Berkshire told Bloomberg it intends to vote its shares against USG's board members who are up for re-election at this year's annual meeting, a clear message that Buffett is ready to cash in, even if USG's management and board are not.

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  ValuEngine upgraded shares of USG (NYSE:USG) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Tuesday.

  A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Credit Suisse Group upgraded shares of USG from an underperform rating to a neutral rating and dropped their target price for the company from $35.00 to $24.00 in a research note on Friday, April 27th. Jefferies Group reiterated a hold rating and issued a $40.00 target price on shares of USG in a research note on Monday, April 23rd. SunTrust Banks boosted their target price on shares of USG from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 17th. Buckingham Research boosted their target price on shares of USG from $34.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, April 16th. Finally, Nomura boosted their target price on shares of USG from $39.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. The stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $39.00.

• [By Ethan Ryder]

  USG Co. (NYSE:USG) – Equities research analysts at SunTrust Banks reduced their Q3 2018 earnings per share estimates for shares of USG in a report issued on Monday, July 9th. SunTrust Banks analyst K. Hughes now forecasts that the construction company will post earnings of $0.57 per share for the quarter, down from their previous estimate of $0.61. SunTrust Banks currently has a “Hold” rating and a $44.00 price target on the stock. SunTrust Banks also issued estimates for USG’s FY2018 earnings at $2.05 EPS, Q3 2019 earnings at $0.71 EPS and FY2019 earnings at $2.53 EPS.

Hot Cheap Stocks To Own Right Now: International Business Machines Corporation(IBM)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Here’s a brief look at the five losers: General Electric Co. (NYSE: GE), International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM),�Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM), Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE: MRK) and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ).

• [By ]

  On Tuesday, he'll be tuning into UnitedHealth Group (UNH) , Goldman Sachs (GS) , Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) and IBM (IBM) . Cramer had great things to say about all four companies.

• [By Douglas A. McIntyre]

  International Business Machines Corp. (NYSE: IBM) has made another reality show of its most exciting technology. It has a system that can effectively debate a human, and perhaps win. The debate system almost certainly won’t help IBM revenue and the erosion the struggling company has done to its share price.

Hot Cheap Stocks To Own Right Now: S&P GSCI(GD)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Lou Whiteman]

  For investors looking to put new money to work in a defense prime today, I'd recommend General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) over either Raytheon or Northrop Grumman. General Dynamics currently trades at a 20% discount to its rivals on a price-to-earnings basis and at a 13% discount on a price-to-sales basis due to continued weakness in its business jet division. There's more risk to General Dynamics, but there is also more potential upside should it get its aerospace business on track and close that valuation gap.

• [By Max Byerly]

  General Dynamics (NYSE:GD) had its price objective reduced by stock analysts at Royal Bank of Canada from $232.00 to $12.39 in a research report issued on Friday, The Fly reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the aerospace company’s stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price target indicates a potential downside of 93.65% from the stock’s current price.

• [By Lee Jackson]

  This company, like other major defense prime contractors, had a very solid year and is also on the Merrill Lynch US 1 list.�General Dynamics Corp. (NYSE: GD) is engaged in business aviation, land and expeditionary combat vehicles and systems, armaments, munitions, shipbuilding and marine systems, and information systems and technologies.

• [By Lisa Levin] Companies Reporting Before The Bell Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE: TMO) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $2.4 per share on revenue of $5.63 billion. Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.41 per share on revenue of $37.16 billion. Twitter, Inc. (NYSE: TWTR) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $0.11 per share on revenue of $605.26 million. Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ: CMCSA) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.59 per share on revenue of $22.75 billion. General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE: GD) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $2.52 per share on revenue of $7.6 billion. The Boeing Company (NYSE: BA) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $2.58 per share on revenue of $22.24 billion. Anthem, Inc. (NYSE: ANTM) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $4.91 per share on revenue of $22.52 billion. Viacom, Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAB) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $0.79 per share on revenue of $3.04 billion. Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $3.61 per share on revenue of $6.61 billion. Rockwell Automation Inc. (NYSE: ROK) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $1.81 per share on revenue of $1.66 billion. Wipro Limited (NYSE: WIT) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $0.07 per share on revenue of $2.15 billion. The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (NASDAQ: GT) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $0.46 per share on revenue of $3.82 billion. Owens Corning (NYSE: OC) is projected to report quarterly earnings at $0.97 per share on revenue of $1.62 billion. T. Rowe Price Group, Inc. (NASDAQ: TROW) is estimated to report quarterly earnings at $1.71 per share on revenue of $1.29 billion. Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Inc. (NYSE: DPS) is expected to report quarterly earnings at $1.04 per share on revenue of $1.57 billion. Sirius XM Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: SI
• [By Lou Whiteman]

  General Dynamics (NYSE:GD)�stock has had an odd couple of years, gaining more than 17% in 2017 but still lagging most of its defense rivals. Interest in defense stocks, including General Dynamics, has ebbed in recent months, but the company still trades at a discount to some of its chief rivals.

IBM Scores More International Deals

Since International Business Machines (NYSE:IBM) began its latest transformation, the tech company has been building up its capabilities in fast-growing areas. These areas include cloud computing, analytics, artificial intelligence, security, and blockchain, to name a few.

The breadth of what IBM can offer its clients and the company's global reach are two of IBM's key advantages, putting it in the running for big contracts that span multiple technologies. A recent $320 million deal with Denmark's KMD is a prime example. IBM has announced a handful of additional international deals this month, made possible by the company's investments over the past few years.

IBM's Global Center for Watson IoT in Munich, Germany. Image source: IBM.

A 40-year partnership

The Australian federal government announced on July 5 that it had signed a five-year, AU$1 billion deal with IBM. That translates into about $750 million at the current exchange rate. This is a Whole of Government agreement, meaning that all government agencies will have access to the technologies IBM is providing. It's also the highest-value contract ever signed by the Australian Government.

IBM has a 40-year relationship with the Australian Government, and it has existing deals with some government agencies. This new deal covers IBM hardware, software, cloud-based solutions, and artificial intelligence, as well as initiatives in quantum computing, cybersecurity, and blockchain. The main goal is to digitize government services by introducing more self-service and automation.

The Australian Government expects to realize significant cost savings over the course of the five-year agreement, driven by new efficiencies enabled by IBM's solutions. "For agencies it will be more simple and cost efficient to engage with IBM, while our technologies make it possible for government to deliver smarter, integrated, always-on digital services for citizen," said David La Rose, managing director of IBM Australia and New Zealand.

Signing deals in Europe

Also on July 5, IBM announced the launch of Dock, a $500 million joint venture with Italian bank Banca Carige. Dock's purpose is to "improve the competitiveness of Carige's more than 500 branches and over 1 million clients" with artificial intelligence, big data, and analytics.

At first, Dock will be focused on Banca Carige. The bank expects meaningful cost reductions as it shifts to a hybrid infrastructure, with some workloads moving to the cloud. The bank also plans to automate some branch processes, which could improve service and introduce additional cost savings.

But Dock's potential goes beyond a single bank. In the long run, IBM is positioning Dock "to lead the region's banking sector toward a future full of new professional skills and opportunities such as digital banking and Cloud storage."

This joint venture wasn't the only deal IBM signed in Europe this month. The company announced on July 3 that six large European companies that already use IBM Cloud had signed agreements involving artificial intelligence, analytics and blockchain. "Enterprises across�Europe�are gravitating to the IBM Cloud because it helps them modernize their existing infrastructures by gaining access to exciting technologies like AI, blockchain, IoT, analytics and more," said Sebastian Krause, general manager of IBM Cloud Europe.

Koopman Logistics in the Netherlands has implemented IBM Blockchain technology to track its supply chain and digitize records. Italian publisher Gruppo 24 Ore is using IBM Watson to allow tax professionals to search through 1.5 million documents related to the Italian tax code. French bank Credit Mutuel plans to deploy IBM Watson virtual assistants across all of its business lines. Spain's Teckel Medical is running its AI symptom checker on the IBM cloud. The UK's RS Components launched an IBM Cloud-powered peer-to-peer marketplace. And German lighting solutions company Osram AG has opted for a hybrid cloud solution from IBM.

Financial information wasn't disclosed, but it's safe to say that these deals are much smaller than the Dock joint venture and the Australian Government agreement.

Momentum going into earnings

IBM is scheduled to report its second-quarter results on July 18. Investors will be expecting revenue growth -- the average analyst estimate calls for a 3.6% increase year over year. The company's first-quarter results were somewhat disappointing, with revenue adjusted for currency roughly flat.

IBM's ability to win large deals involving the hottest technologies should give investors confidence that the company is on the right track. IBM will face a revenue headwind later this year as it laps the launch of its latest mainframe system, but new business could be enough to offset that decline.

Best Energy Stocks To Watch Right Now

tags:MCF,BPT,MMP,XOM, Related DNR Mid-Morning Market Update: Markets Open Higher; Ruby Tuesday Misses Q3 Views Mid-Afternoon Market Update: Dow Surges 100 Points; Sunedison Shares Tumble Following Report Of SEC Probe The Vetr community has downgraded $DNR to 1.5-Stars (Vetr) Related HLX Mid-Day Market Update: Crude Oil Surges 6%; Gap Shares Drop Following March Sales Figures Morgan Stanley Sees Helix Energy Shares More Than Doubling, Upgrades To Overweight

Toward the end of trading Friday, the Dow traded up 0.33 percent to 17,598.98 while the NASDAQ climbed 0.15 percent to 4,855.43. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.40 percent to 2,050.03.

Leading and Lagging Sectors

On Friday, energy shares gained by 2.70 percent. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included Denbury Resources Inc. (NYSE: DNR), up 14 percent, and Helix Energy Solutions Group Inc (NYSE: HLX), up 16 percent.

Best Energy Stocks To Watch Right Now: Contango Oil & Gas Company(MCF)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Stephan Byrd]

  COPYRIGHT VIOLATION NOTICE: “Contango Oil & Gas (MCF) Short Interest Update” was originally published by Ticker Report and is owned by of Ticker Report. If you are reading this article on another site, it was copied illegally and republished in violation of US and international copyright & trademark laws. The correct version of this article can be read at https://www.tickerreport.com/banking-finance/3346537/contango-oil-gas-mcf-short-interest-update.html.

Best Energy Stocks To Watch Right Now: BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust(BPT)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Joseph Griffin]

  News headlines about BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust (NYSE:BPT) have been trending somewhat positive this week, Accern Sentiment reports. Accern identifies negative and positive news coverage by monitoring more than 20 million blog and news sources in real time. Accern ranks coverage of publicly-traded companies on a scale of negative one to positive one, with scores closest to one being the most favorable. BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust earned a daily sentiment score of 0.09 on Accern’s scale. Accern also gave media headlines about the oil and gas company an impact score of 46.2072909143413 out of 100, meaning that recent news coverage is somewhat unlikely to have an impact on the stock’s share price in the next several days.

• [By Sean Williams]

  As a case in point, consider BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust (NYSE:BPT), which is currently paying out an extrapolated $5.10 a year, based on the $1.275 per share it divvied out in April. This is good enough for a better than 17% annual yield, albeit it should be noted that the Trust's payout differs each quarter depending on its royalty revenue and cash earnings.�

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  The stock market had a tumultuous session on Wednesday, as major benchmarks started the day weak but bounced back in the afternoon. Investors weren't happy with the current state of geopolitical uncertainty, with trade disputes threatening to become larger problems than ever. But the release of the minutes of the latest meeting of the Federal Reserve's monetary policy committee convinced many that the central bank will be slow to do lasting damage to the economic expansion, remaining measured in the pace of its interest rate increases. Moreover, some companies had good news that sent their shares higher. Tiffany (NYSE:TIF), BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust (NYSE:BPT), and Ralph Lauren (NYSE:RL) were among the best performers on the day. Here's why they did so well.

Best Energy Stocks To Watch Right Now: Magellan Midstream Partners L.P.(MMP)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Reuben Gregg Brewer]

  To put a number on its distribution growth, Phillips 66 Partners has increased its disbursement for 16 consecutive quarters (every quarter since its IPO) at a compound annual growth rate of 31%. That's roughly the target it laid out for its first five years as a public entity. That is, of course, off of a low starting base. The year-over-year increase in the first-quarter distribution was around 20% -- still a very impressive number when peers like Enterprise and Magellan Midstream Partners�(NYSE:MMP) are offering up mid-to-high single-digit increases. (Kinder Morgan's dividend growth will be huge in the coming years, but that's a function of increasing the dividend after a painful cut.)� �

• [By Tyler Crowe, Reuben Gregg Brewer, and Travis Hoium]

  With these interesting trends emerging, there's no doubt that investors are looking at this industry. To help investors start their search for great energy investments, we asked three of our investing contributors to each highlight a stock they see as a great buy now. Here's why they picked Magellan Midstream Partners (NYSE:MMP), Brookfield Renewable Partners (NYSE:BEP), and SunPower (NASDAQ:SPWR).

• [By Matthew DiLallo]

  Several high-yielding dividend stocks have taken it on the chin this year due to a sell-off in the stock market and rising interest rates. That one-two punch has hit pipeline stocks the hardest, with several top-notch companies tumbling by a double-digit percentage since the start of the year. Three that stand out as excellent options to consider buying now that they're on sale are Magellan Midstream Partners (NYSE:MMP), Antero Midstream Partners (NYSE:AM), and Enbridge (NYSE:ENB).

Best Energy Stocks To Watch Right Now: Exxon Mobil Corporation(XOM)

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By JJ Kinahan]

  In addition to reports from T and VZ, these are some of the other major companies reporting earnings this week:

  Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) and Eli Lilly and Co. (NYSE: LLY) report before market open on Tuesday, Apr. 24 Boeing Co (NYSE: BA) reports before the open on Wednesday, Apr. 25 Twitter Inc. (NYSE: TWTR) reports before the open Wednesday, Apr. 25 and Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) reports after the close the same day Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) reports after market close Wednesday, Apr. 25 and General Motors Company (NYSE: GM) reports before the open Thursday, Apr. 26 Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC) and Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) all report after market close Thursday, Apr. 26 Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) and Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM) report before the open Friday, Apr. 27

  Information from TDA is not intended to be investment advice or construed as a recommendation or endorsement of any particular investment or investment strategy, and is for illustrative purposes only. Be sure to understand all risks involved with each strategy, including commission costs, before attempting to place any trade.

• [By Paul Ausick]

  Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) traded down about 0.7%, at $77.77 in a 52-week range of $72.16 to $89.30. Over the past 12 months, Exxon stock has traded down about 4.9%.

• [By John Bromels]

  If you're looking for a compelling oil and gas industry investment, why not start at the top? The biggest U.S. oil and gas company,�ExxonMobil�(NYSE:XOM), had been outperforming the biggest U.S. independent oil and gas exploration and production company,�ConocoPhillips�(NYSE:COP), for years as the oil price downturn hurt profits.

• [By Reuben Gregg Brewer]

  Dividends are a cash return on your investment in a stock -- effectively, companies are paying you to own their shares. Since you own part of the companies in which you are investing, and thus have a right to a portion of the earnings, it only makes sense that you should expect a piece of the action via a dividend payment. Here are three companies that take returning cash to shareholders very seriously, and that also have sizable yields: ExxonMobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM), Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK), and W.P. Carey Inc. (NYSE:WPC).

• [By Garrett Baldwin]
  The 10-year Treasury rate fell back under 3% today, as markets continue to eye interest rates and chatter about the U.S. Federal Reserve's goal to rein in inflation. The rate check comes as the U.S. Commerce Department prepares to release an update on Q1 GDP. Markets expect that GDP will decline to 2.0%�That figure would be a big decline from the 2.9% that the Commerce Department reported for the fourth quarter of 2017. Crude oil prices are sliding as a slew of geopolitical stories weigh on trader sentiment. Yesterday, French President Emmanuel Macron said he anticipates that U.S. President Donald Trump will restore sanctions on the Iranian government. Trump is also widely expected to pull out of the Iranian Nuclear Deal. While that would be bullish for prices, markets are paying more attention to rising U.S. production and news that Venezuela is cutting supply at a time that demand is soaring. Three Stocks to Watch Today: MSFT, AMZN, INTC Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) added another 2.3% after the firm reported stronger-than-expected earnings after the bell on Thursday. The firm reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.95 on top of $26.81 billion in revenue. Wall Street had expected EPS of $0.85 on top of $25.7 billion in revenue. Shares of Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN) popped more than 6.7% after the firm crushed earnings and revenue expectations after the bell Thursday. The company announced that its profits doubled year over year. However, the firm did announce that its string of investments will require an uptick in prices. Among the coming hikes on customers will be the rise in a subscription for Prime. The firm will hike a Prime subscription from $99 to $119 per year. Shares of Intel Corp. (Nasdaq: INTC) popped more than 7% after the company reported a huge jump in data-center revenue. The firm's strong earnings report follows a string of solid reports from other firms in the semiconductor space. The firm reported EPS of $0.87, a figure that
• [By JJ Kinahan]

  Oil supermajors Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) and Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM) report earnings before market open on Friday, Apr. 27. As crude oil prices have continued to climb in 2018, both stocks have gotten a couple of analyst upgrades in recent months.  

Market Update: Nifty IT underperforms with Infosys down 5%; DEN Networks, Hathway down 8-10%

The Indian benchmark indices�have�slipped into the red�this Thursday afternoon�with the Nifty�shedding�23�points and is trading at 10,746 mark.�The Sensex is trading�lower�by�81�points at 35,564.

The metal and the IT index are the biggest drag to the market weakness. The top IT losers include�names�like Infosys which is down over 5 percent followed by KPIT Tech, Tech�Mahindra and Wipro.

The top metal losers include names like NALCO, Hindustan Zinc, Jindal Steel and Power, SAIL, Tata Steel, Vedanta and Hindalco Industries.

After the 41st AGM, Reliance Industries has slipped into the red which has also dragged the Nifty energy index down. The other stock which�have lost some ground include�GAIL India.

related news Reliance Industries turns flat post AGM; Telecom & Cable TV stocks bleed up to 14% Bharti Airtel, Idea slips as Reliance Jio doubles customer base to 215 mn

Following the launch of JioGigaFiber and registering a customer base of 215 million, other telecom stocks have come under pressure. Bharti Airtel is down 1.5 percent while Idea Cellular is trading�flat.�DEN Networks and Hathway Cable have fallen 8-10 percent.

Nifty�realty�is down 1 percent with loses from DLF, Godrej Properties, HDIL, Phoenix Mills, Prestige Estates, Sobha and Unitech.

However, Nifty metal is down over 1 percent dragged by Hindustan Zinc, Hindalco Industries, Jindal Steel & Power, NALCO, Tata Steel and Vedanta.

The top gainers among Nifty constituents were Yes Bank,�UltraTech Cement, ITC, HPCL and Hero MotoCorp which gained 1-2 percent.

The most actively traded stocks on the NSE are Reliance Industries, Infosys, Shriram Transport, Maruti Suzuki and Titan Company.

The top NSE losers included�Infosys, Titan Company, Vedanta, Tata Motors and Bharti Airtel.

Some of the top gainers on BSE are IL&FS Transport which jumped 10 percent followed by Future Lifestyle, GATI,�Firstsource Solutions and Muthoot Finance.

The top losers included Hathway which tanked 12 percent while DEN Networks is trading lower by 8 percent. HCC, Titan Company and Vakrangee are the other losers.

Britannia Industries, Graphite India, Hindustan Unilever�and HEG�are�some�of the very�few stocks that hit fresh 52-week high in the�afternoon�trade.

On the other hand,�141�stocks have hit new 52-week low including BHEL, DEN Networks, Dena Bank, Grasim Industries, Hathway Cable, Finolex Industries, Kwality, Max Financial, Punj Lloyd and Tata Motors among others.

The breadth of the market favoured�declines, with�712�stocks advancing,�962�declining and�385�remaining unchanged. On BSE,�986�stocks advanced,�1319�declined and�155�remained unchanged.

Disclosure: Reliance Industries Ltd. is the sole beneficiary of Independent Media Trust which controls Network18 Media & Investments Ltd.

  First Published on Jul 5, 2018 12:52 pm

Mark Mobius: Trump will win the trade fight with China �� and here��s how to play it

With markets closing early today and not opening at all tomorrow, the big bears just might take a break from growling about the many headwinds that stocks are facing.

This one in California was just spotted relaxing in a hot tub and sipping a margarita:

But as the bears like to point out when they��re not chilling, this Independence Day sees the U.S. government locked in a worrisome trade fight with the country that��s aiming to become the world��s No. 1.

So will the U.S. beat China in this battle? Yes, says storied investor Mark Mobius for our call of the day.

��I think at the end of the day, the U.S. is going to win this one, because the U.S. is the biggest importer in the world, and China needs the U.S.,�� he told CNBC in an interview late yesterday.

What would victory look like in this case?

��Winning means getting some concessions and a reduction in the trade deficit,�� Mobius says.

President Donald Trump is right to view the huge trade gap with China as a problem, according to the former Templeton star manager.

��I agree with him completely,�� Mobius says, referring to Trump. ��The U.S. has been taken for a ride �� let��s face it �� over the last 20 or 30 years. It��s time to start saying, ��Look, there has to be some reciprocity between these two countries, because it��s just crazy to have this kind of deficit.����

Read more: Why Trump thinks he can win a fight over trade with other countries

And see: China can��t match Trump in a tariff fight, but it does have other weapons

The longtime emerging-markets bull offers a way for investors to bet on the eventual American triumph.

��What I would buy now is those countries who are going to be exporting to the U.S. instead of China �� like Bangladesh , Turkey TUR, -0.33% �, Vietnam VNM, -1.57% �,�� Mobius says. ��These are all big producers of garments and shoes and consumer goods.��

You can watch his comments to CNBC via the video clip below.

Don��t miss: Mark Mobius is ready to invest in North Korea

Key market gauges

Futures for the Dow YMU8, +0.63% �, S&P 500 ESU8, +0.50% and Nasdaq-100 NQU8, +0.67% are higher, after the Dow DJIA, +0.15% �, S&P SPX, +0.31% �and Nasdaq Composite COMP, +0.76% closed with gains yesterday.

Europe SXXP, +1.04% is advancing, after Asia finished mixed. Oil CLQ8, +1.22% and gold� GCQ8, +0.60% are moving up, as the dollar index DXY, -0.30% falls. Bitcoin BTCUSD, -0.66% is changing hands around $6,600.

See the Market Snapshot column for the latest action.

Check out: Which markets are closed on July 4th?

The chart Schwab On the one hand...

��With competing headwinds and tailwinds, the U.S. stock market has been largely range-bound since the January-February correction,�� writes Schwab��s Liz Ann Sonders as she offers the handy chart above (h/t Daily Shot).

��If a few things go right in the near-term, including an easing of trade tensions, stocks could break out on the upside. But there are the aforementioned catalysts for a break out on the downside as well.��

The buzz

Concerns about trade tensions are putting pressure on China��s yuan USDCNY, -0.3420% �, which has fallen below a closely watched level of 6.700 per U.S. dollar. The People��s Bank of China is sounding supportive, saying it��ll keep the exchange rate at a reasonable and balanced level.

The Trump administration has moved to block China Mobile CHL, -0.27% from accessing the U.S. market, citing national security concerns

A few years after leaving the public markets, Dell is taking a back door to return. Here��s what you need to know about its maneuver with VMware VMW, +10.24% �.

On the data front, we��re due to get June car sales today, so Ford F, +0.27% �, GM GM, +0.25% and the like could make moves, as May figures for factory orders also arrive.

Check out: MarketWatch��s Economic Calendar

Tesla TSLA, -2.30% engineering chief Doug Field is leaving the auto maker. While Elon Musk & Co. have achieved a major production milestone, investors shouldn��t do a victory lap until we actually see black ink in this year��s second half, says one MarketWatch column.

The SEC and FBI have joined the investigation into how Facebook FB, +1.56% handled information about its user.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel reached a migration deal with one of her coalition partners, easing concerns that the issue would upend her government. But there��s another crunch meeting today.

Famed lawyer Alan Dershowitz says he has faced ��shunning�� on Martha��s Vineyard for defending Trump.

How To Talk To Your Kids About Not Inviting Alan Dershowitz To Your Summer Party This Year

— Ivan the K�� (@IvanTheK) July 2, 2018

Roger Federer is wearing duds from Fast Retailing��s 9983, +0.71% Uniqlo at Wimbledon, as the tennis star ends more than two decades of sponsorship by Nike NKE, -1.67% �.

Visa��s stock V, +0.04% ��appears to be setting up for another major move higher,�� says The Kobiessi Letter in its latest ��Chart of the Week.��

The quote

��Any attempt to dive the boys and their coach out will not be taken lightly because there are significant technical challenges and risks to consider.�� ��The British Cave Rescue Council talks about what��s next for the Thai soccer team that was missing.

Some reports have suggested the group of 13 might have to stay in the cave for months.

Read more: Lost boys found alive in Thai caves may need to learn to scuba to get free

Random reads

Go here tips for getting great photos of July 4th fireworks with a smartphone.

More from the phones beat: Samsung devices spontaneously text photos to random contacts.

What do those boarding-pass codes mean? Here��s your decoder ring.

Getty has picked its 15 most iconic photos in World Cup history.

Charity gets a big phone bill after losing a GPS tracker that it placed on a stork.

Jaws are dropping as the NBA��s best team becomes even better.

Water main breaks in the city where the Declaration of Independence was signed:

BREAKING: Huge water main break at 12th and Walnut in Center City. @KYWNewsradio pic.twitter.com/dOxscEN6GB

— Tim Jimenez (@TimJRadio) July 3, 2018

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Victor Reklaitis is a London-based markets writer for MarketWatch. Follow him on Twitter @VicRek.

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Comment Related Topics U.S. Stocks Markets NY Stock Exchange NASDAQ Quote References TUR -0.10 -0.33% VNM -0.25 -1.57% YMU8 +153.00 +0.63% ESU8 +13.75 +0.50% NQU8 +47.75 +0.67% DJIA +35.77 +0.15% SPX +8.34 +0.31% COMP +57.38 +0.76% SXXP +3.93 +1.04% CLQ8 +0.90 +1.22% GCQ8 +7.50 +0.60% DXY -0.28 -0.30% BTCUSD -43.42 -0.66% USDCNY -0.0228 -0.3420% CHL -0.12 -0.27% VMW +15.05 +10.24% F +0.03 +0.27% GM +0.10 +0.25% TSLA -7.88 -2.30% FB +3.04 +1.56% 9983 +350.00 +0.71% NKE -1.33 -1.67% V +0.05 +0.04% Show all references MarketWatch Partner Center Most Popular Here��s the updated list of 78 stores Sears is closing in September Alan Dershowitz says he��s been ��shunned�� on Martha��s Vineyard for defending Trump Warriors add DeMarcus Cousins; jaws drop as NBA��s best team gets better Why Apple stock is still a buy �� even at $200 a share Neymar suffers the most painful injury in sports history... or so it would seem Community Guidelines �� FAQs BACK TO TOP MarketWatch Site Index Topics Help Feedback Newsroom Roster Media Archive Premium Products Mobile Company Company Info Code of Conduct Corrections Advertising Media Kit Advertise Locally Reprints & Licensing Your Ad Choices   Dow Jones Network WSJ.com Barron's Online BigCharts Virtual Stock Exchange Financial News London WSJ.com Small Business realtor.com Mansion Global

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Intraday Data provided by SIX Financial Information and subject to terms of use. Historical and current end-of-day data provided by SIX Financial Information. All quotes are in local exchange time. Real-time last sale data for U.S. stock quotes reflect trades reported through Nasdaq only. Intraday data delayed at least 15 minutes or per exchange requirements. Advanced Search Stocks Columns Authors Topics No results found iShares MSCI Turkey ETF U.S.: Nasdaq: TUR $30.12 -0.10 (-0.33%)

Volume	303.8K
Open	$29.98
High	$30.16
Low	$29.88
P/E Ratio	0
Div Yield	6.1
Market Cap	N/A

VanEck Vectors Vietnam ETF U.S.: NYSE Arca: VNM $15.72 -0.25 (-1.57%)

Volume	209.5K
Open	$15.80
High	$15.80
Low	$15.65
P/E Ratio	0
Div Yield	0.97
Market Cap	N/A

E-Mini Dow Sep 2018 U.S.: CBOT: YMU8 $24,439.00 +153.00 (+0.63%)

Volume	44734
Open	$24,298
High	$24,441
Low	$24,203
P/E Ratio	0
Div Yield	0
Market Cap	N/A

E-Mini S&P 500 Future Sep 2018 U.S.: CME: ESU8 2,741.00 +13.75 (+0.50%)

Volume	175.4K
Open	2,727
High	2,741
Low	2,721
P/E Ratio	0
Div Yield	0
Market Cap	N/A

E-Mini Nasdaq 100 Index Sep 2018 U.S.: CME: NQU8 7,164.25 +47.75 (+0.67%)

Volume	61332
Open	7,114
High	7,165
Low	7,097
P/E Ratio	0
Div Yield	0
Market Cap	N/A

Dow Jones Industrial Average DJ-Index: DJIA 24,307.18 +35.77 (+0.15%)

Volume	244.1M
Open	24,162
High	24,319
Low	24,078
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Market Cap	N/A

S&P 500 Index S&P Base CME: SPX 2,726.71 +8.34 (+0.31%)

Volume	1.8B
Open	2,705
High	2,727
Low	2,699
P/E Ratio	0
Div Yield	0
Market Cap	N/A

Investing Lessons From the World Cup: Pursue Excellence

Once every four years, most of the planet turns its attention to the soccer pitch for an unrivaled sporting pageant: the World Cup. And while Motley Fool co-founder David Gardner is not a superfan when it comes to futbol, he's a lover of sport in general, so it should come as little surprise that he, like billions of people around the globe, has his mind on the competition. But, at the Fool, our ongoing competition is to help you beat the market, so whatever he's doing, he's liable at some point to try to imagine it through an investor's lens.

In this segment, he notes that the teams that tend to win World Cups aren't usually shockers -- they are among the favorites, because they consistently deliver excellence. So, too, in the stock market: Instead of "buy low sell high," he says, "buy high, and try not to sell." Allow him to explain why that works.

A full transcript follows the video.

This video was recorded on June 20, 2018.

David Gardner: Observation No. 3. Another thing I love about the World Cup is, let's go with the word Excellence. I love that excellence is rewarded. Most of the time, the team that plays better wins the game. Ask yourself, who's playing on those teams? Generally, the most excellent players that each country can muster. I like excellence in sportsmanship outside of the actual scores of the game, and so often, we see that. I think this is just as instructive for us, again, in investing and in business.

I've often said -- in fact, one of my legacy lines, down the road -- is this: "I try to find excellence, buy excellence, and add to excellence over time. I sell mediocrity. That's how I invest." That's how I hope you invest. I think, being in pursuit of excellence in all areas of your life should be a lifelong endeavor.

Let me be very clear: in a world where many people think buy-low-sell-high is the proper way to invest, and I guess it has them looking for things that have been hit or near 52-week lows or things that don't seem to be going so well, we've done better by reversing that old axiom. I like to say, instead of buy-low-sell-high, how about this? Buy high and try not to sell. When you're buying high, what that means is, you're buying stocks that have already done really well. And guess what? They usually keep doing well if the factors in place that have led them to be excellent are real, if they're not flash-in-the-pan companies.

Being in constant pursuit of excellence, finding the best companies of our time, and you and I getting our money invested in them, we hope earlier, ahead of the mainstream, and then, especially -- this is a key to Rule Breaker Investing -- we keep holding well past when the mainstream and Wall Street have typically sold. We're trying to find excellence, buy excellence, and add to excellence over time. We're going to sell mediocrity. That's how we invest.

Just to glide over briefly to the business realm where I think about excellence, here's a thought for you. You may have heard -- I guess I'm full of old saws this week -- this old saw. It's talking about hiring for companies. Here's the line, maybe you've heard it, maybe you've used it: As hire As, while Bs hire Cs, and Cs hire Ds.

What's that's conveying is, the A players at a company typically can be expected, when they're making hiring decisions, when they're in their job interviews with multiple candidates, the As at your company are looking for other people who are awesome, because they know how important that is. They're pretty awesome themselves in the first place, so they know what awesome looks like. As hire As.

Whereas, Bs, B players, these are still good employees at your company -- presumably. I sure hope they are. I generally liked getting a B when I got one in college. I didn't take umbrage that I hadn't gotten an A. Bs, though, because they're not As, sometimes they may either lack a view into what is awesome; or, a slightly darker side of human nature, they want to hire people who won't look quite as good as they are, or might be subservient to them in some way. So, Bs hire Cs. And guess what? Cs hire Ds.

The focus, I think -- and this is something we've done at The Motley Fool for years now, feel free to swipe a page from our playbook if you're not already doing this -- I think you should have your As doing your hiring. That even means, if you're hiring a techie, maybe it's not just all techies interviewing that techie. Maybe there are people from other teams that are A players, and you're making sure they're in there doing some of the hiring decisions even outside of their own team. As hire As. Again, a focus on excellence. I think that's something that's so on display when we watch the World Cup or the Olympics together.

Will Nike Deliver on Its Promises Next Week?

Nike�(NYSE:NKE) has been telling investors for the past several quarters that it was building toward a rebound in its core U.S. market. You had to squint to see evidence of that shifting trend in its last few quarterly reports, but management's comments in late March made it clear that this long-anticipated recovery had just started.

As a result, Nike is expected to reveal solid sales and profitability numbers in its quarterly report on Thursday, June 28. Let's examine exactly what investors will be looking for in this announcement.

Image source: Getty Images.

Sales and profits in the U.S.

Nike generates more than half of its sales from outside of the United States, but its home market is still important to overall revenue and profit trends. The segment has been pressured for close to two years as customers shifted their shopping habits online and forced retailers to use price cuts to work through a big inventory buildup.

The most recent results didn't show that sales trend reversing. In fact, revenue was down 6% in the U.S. last quarter, compared to a 5% drop in the prior quarter. However, Nike lessened its reliance on price cuts, which allowed gross profit margin to fall by just 0.7 percentage points. That result beat management's forecast and also marked a solid improvement over the prior quarter's 1.2-percentage-point drop.

The bigger news was management's shifting tone toward more optimism about the U.S market. Back in December executives said they were hoping the segment might begin to stabilize soon. By March, the comments were much brighter. "We now see a significant reversal of trend in North America," CEO Mark Parker said in late March.

As a result, investors are looking for the U.S. market to show roughly flat sales results in the context of improving gross profit margin trends on Thursday.

International gains

Nike's bigger international footprint has helped protect its earnings from the type of collapse that rival Under Armour�has endured. The Chinese market in particular is important for investors to watch, since management has staked a large portion of its future growth on that division.

While the sports apparel industry niche in the U.S. is projected to hold steady at about 50 million people, China's should soar to 10 times that total over the next few years. That's a key reason why Nike believes it can expand sales there in the low to mid-teen percentage range between now and 2022. Parker is likely to spend plenty of time on Thursday talking about demand trends there, which recently showed healthy growth of almost 20%. �

The new fiscal year

Executives suggested back in March that Nike's new fiscal year would bring broad improvements to the business. Sales growth is likely to return to positive territory in the U.S. in fiscal 2019, they said, and faster gains in international markets should also support what they called "strong" growth in profitability.

Nike didn't issue specific numbers to back up those general forecasts, and so investors have had to hold tight until the fiscal fourth-quarter announcement for their first look at the company's 2019 outlook. Positive earnings reports over the last few weeks, both from rivals and from retailing partners, have suggested that this prediction might include robust sales and profit growth. But now it's up to Nike to deliver on the optimism it has helped build on Wall Street over the past few months.