Thursday Action
“The Dow jumped 284 points, or 2.9 percent Thursday to 10,258, and the S&P 500 rose 35 points, or 3.3 percent to 1103. Stocks turned higher Thursday as China denied that it was reviewing its euro zone bond holdings, a story that drove stocks lower into Wednesday’s close.” (CNBC) — But the financial news networks are still looking at the downside to this market, as shown by some of the following articles:
Stocks on track for worst May since 1962
1,000 point Dow slide in June?
Stock prices to fall again, sit-and-wait before buying
Japan Unemployment Rate Unexpectedly Rises, Prices Fall Further
Bond Sales Fall to Least in Decade, Yields Soar: Credit Markets
Warning: Crash dead ahead. Sell. Get liquid. Now.
Guy Adami said I wouldn’t be long anything right now.
Karen Finerman said that as a value investor, it’s really hard to trade around the tape. “We just have the names that we like.”
Alright, enough of this doom-and-gloom, let’s talk positive. I am liking the fact that my Piotroski screen that I mentioned yesterday yielded a stock (TSM) that was up 4.5% today, but part of that had to do with the overall market rally. Today’s action in TSM resulted from volume of 13.8m versus a 3 mo. daily average volume of 15.6m, so I actually would’ve liked to see higher than average volume in the stock to be a little bit higher. Granted, I did not buy the stock at the open today (or at all), but the new addition to the screen definitely put it on a watch list.
Another positive story (depending on how you view things) is the fact that mortgage rates are nearing record lows again, which is positive for “main street.” For current homeowners, this is a great time to refinance your mortgage which could put more money in your pocket on a monthly basis. For potential home buyers (if you didn’t already take advantage of the new home buyer tax credit), purchasing a home at a time where sub-five-percent 30 year fixed mortgages are attainable may be very helpful to your personal long-term cash flow.
The Friday before Memorial Day Weekend could be a low volume trading day, as is typical for the day prior to a holiday weekend. I found a pretty nice article about trading around this holiday which you can read here.
Below are a few investment blogs for your viewing pleasure:
– Have a great Friday tomorrow!–
About the Author: Mike is the founder of this site, www.mikefanelli.com He has extensive professional experience in accounting and financial analysis, and is currently a licensed CPA in the state of North Carolina.
