What Caught Our Attention in the Investment World? – Week of July 6 – 10, 2020

By Kuldip K. Ambastha Brooks Brothers is a famous American retailing company, and was founded in 1818. Over the years, it has been a clothier of presidents (in the USA, 40 out of 45 [89% of these] individuals), royals, financiers, war heroes, and many other such prominent people. On Wednesday, July 8, 2020, the company …

What Caught Our Attention in the Investment World? – Week of June 29 – July 2, 2020

By Kuldip K. Ambastha Chesapeake Energy Corporation (CHK) of Oklahoma City, OK was in the news this week. The company was founded by Tom L. Ward (currently the Chairman and CEO of privately held MACH Resources) and the now-late Aubrey K. McClendon in 1989 with an initial funding of $50,000. Robert D. Lawler (aka: Doug …

What Caught Our Attention in the Investment World? – Week of June 22 – 26, 2020

By Kuldip K. Ambastha The coronavirus pandemic is continuing to damage the private sector significantly. This week, GNC Holdings (GNC) and the parent company (CEC Entertainment) of Chuck E. Cheese plus Peter Piper Pizza both announced plans for bankruptcy. GNC Holdings will be using the bankruptcy process to close all of its health and nutrition …

What Caught Our Attention in the Investment World? – Week of June 15 – 19, 2020

By Kuldip K. Ambastha Biogen Inc. (BIIB) had a -7.5% return on Thursday, June 18, 2020. On this day, Biogen Inc. lost a legal dispute (over a patent) being heard by a U.S. district court. The patent dispute centered on a multiple sclerosis treatment drug called Tecfidera, which uses dimethyl fumarate as its main active …

Dow Jones Index Volatility – Week of June 8 – 12, 2020

By Kuldip K. Ambastha The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) had a volatile ride this past week, due to several factors. Comments from Jerome Powell (the Chair of the U.S. Federal Reserve), GDP forecasting, unemployment rate (and jobless claims) data, and coronavirus pandemic data all played their own significant parts in the DJIA activity. The …

What Caught Our Attention in the Investment World? – Week of June 1 – 5, 2020

By Kuldip K. Ambastha The airline sector caught our attention this week, due to strong returns seen by various companies. In this piece, American Airlines Group (AAL), Delta Air Lines (DAL), JetBlue Airways Corporation (JBLU), Southwest Airlines (LUV), and United Airlines Holdings (UAL) will be focused on. On Wednesday, June 3, 2020, Southwest Airlines delivered …

What Caught Our Attention in the Investment World? – Week of April 20-24, 2020

By Kuldip K. Ambastha Snap Inc. (SNAP) stood out this week for positive reasons. On Wednesday, April 22, 2020, the stock had an astounding 36.7% return for the day. This return was driven by the company’s strong 1Q2020 results. Wall Street’s quarterly revenue expectations were surpassed. Snapchat has 229 million average daily active users as …

Retail Sales and Factory Output – Week of April 13-17, 2020

By Kuldip K. Ambastha The coronavirus pandemic continues to wreak havoc all around the world. In the USA, retail sales declined by 8.7%, making for a record decline. The previous record was 3.9% in November 2008, during the Great Recession / global financial crisis (GFC) era. Clothing and accessories sales declined 50.5%. Food services and …

What Caught Our Attention in the Investment World? – Week of April 6-10, 2020

By Kuldip K. Ambastha Carnival Corporation (CCL) is well-known as a cruise operator and as a prominent travel / leisure company. This British-American company has struggled recently due to the coronavirus pandemic seen worldwide. However, during this week, the company had strong days on Monday, April 6, 2020 and Tuesday, April 7, 2020, returning 20.3% …