By Tom Burnett CFA Many investors are looking for individual names or stocks to participate in a particular investment theme. For example, the adverse ransomware attacks on large companies or enterprises has led to a focus on companies that can prevent or minimize cyber attacks. One way to find individual…
By Tom Burnett CFA The current pictures displayed in the charts of interest rates over the past six months are strikingly similar. The rate increases that began in the fourth quarter of 2021 have continued their trends in 2022. For example, the yield on the Ten-Year Treasury bond closed 2021 at 1.51%…
By Tom Burnett CFA On April 1, 2022, the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced the employment situation for March 2022. Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 431,000 and the unemployment rate fell from 3.8% to 3.6%. The number of unemployed persons fell by 318,000 to 6.0 million. In February 2020,…
By Tom Burnett CFA CNBC Market Pro presents a quarterly survey of leading Wall Street market strategist forecasts for year-end S/P 500 Index target prices. The latest survey (March 24, 2022) offers 15 separate target prices. We monitor these Surveys and will present our summaries as they are updated…
By Tom Burnett CFA In response to inflation (40- year high in the U.S.) and an aggressive Federal Reserve policy change, interest rates have begun to move higher. On March 16, 2022, the Fed announced its first increase in the Fed Funds rate since 2018. The 25 basis point increase is clearly the first…