Trader Talk

A worker wearing a protective mask adjusts a torque wrench inside the service area at a Harley-Davidson dealership in Oakland, California, on Thursday, July 16, 2020. David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images The dark side of good earnings: Companies are talking about turning “furloughs” into permanent layoffs. You knew this was coming. It’s

Shake Shack, one of the many storefront businesses boarded in downtown Brooklyn over the fears of looting. Erik McGregor | Getty Images Just looking at the earnings for Apple, Amazon, Facebook and Google, you might get the impression that everything is going swimmingly for second- and third-quarter earnings. But that’s not the case. “We continue to

Amazon, Facebook, and Apple are only the most recent examples of a notable trend: earnings much better than expected. The reopening story may be getting rocky, but one pleasant surprise has been earnings. They are far noisier than normal, but in general they have been better than expected. Much better. And that is one of

Jason Gorevic, CEO, Teladoc Scott Mlyn | CNBC Earnings reports are coming in fast and furiously, and with a large percentage of companies declining to provide guidance, reporters and analysts are combing through corporate press releases and earnings calls for signs of how business is doing.  Semiconductors continue to be the all-round winner Equipment maker

The stock market is holding up well because it believes three things are happening: 1) a vaccine is coming, 2) there will be almost infinite stimulus from the Federal Reserve, and 3) the second quarter was the worst quarter for corporate profits and those profits will slowly improve. But there’s a subtext to much of

A customer leaves a Sherwin-Williams Co. store Daniel Acker | Bloomberg | Getty Images With one-third of the S&P 500 reporting, there’s a battle shaping up between two stories. One is somewhat bearish: The reopening is slowing, and the second half will not see the V-shaped recovery anticipated at the height of reopening euphoria in

People walk past a TD Bank in Brooklyn, New York. Drew Angerer | Getty Images Earnings keep coming in, and while some high-profile companies are continuing to refuse providing guidance, many are making very interesting comments about the state of their industries. Here’s a few: Stock trading really strong. A solid report from TD Ameritrade.

Coca-Cola President and CEO James Quincey attends a press conference with International Olympic Committee (IOC) president and China Mengniu Dairy CEO and Executive Director, as part of the 134th Session of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) at the SwissTech Convention Centre in Lausanne, on June 24, 2019. Fabrice Coffrini | AFP | Getty Images With

A Goldman Sachs sign is seen on at the company’s post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Brendan McDermid | Reuters It doesn’t look like Wall Street is going back to work in any great numbers, at least any time soon. That seems to be the message from major money center banks

A tag hangs from a Steelcase London Ltd. desk chair in the former offices of Duff Capital Advisors LP in Greenwich, Connecticut. Daniel Acker | Bloomberg | Getty Images With nearly half of the S&P 500 declining to provide earnings guidance, simple verbal commentary from a CEO or CFO —whether in a quarterly earnings press

People pass a sign for JPMorgan Chase at it’s headquarters in Manhattan, New York City. Spencer Platt | Getty Images Earnings season, which officially starts Tuesday with JPMorgan and Wells Fargo, is going to be wild — and unpredictable. Here’s why: About 40% of companies are not providing any guidance at all. As a result,

You’ve heard about the trade war with China. There may be a separate, potential “financial war” brewing. The Securities and Exchange Commission wants you to know more about what is happening with Chinese companies that list in the United States. The regulators also want you to know that they are having a really hard time

A man in a surgical mask walks by the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) after more cases of coronavirus were confirmed in New York City, New York, U.S., March 10, 2020. Andrew Kelly | Reuters Next week brings an end, mercifully, to the first half of 2020. That’s the good news. The bad news: Wall

Good news for investors: Your broker-dealer is going to have to disclose a lot more about what he or she is advising you to buy or sell.   Regulation Best Interest, or Reg BI, is coming into effect June 30 after more than two years of controversy and discussion. It requires broker-dealers — those who

In this photo illustration a Robinhood Markets logo seen displayed on a smartphone. Rafael Henrique | SOPA Images | LightRocket via Getty Images The interest in beaten-up stocks in energy, travel and leisure is taking some, well, bizarre turns. I’ve written recently about the importance of retail traders in the recent rally, but the interest

A trader walks by the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on the first day that traders are allowed back onto the historic floor of the exchange on May 26, 2020 in New York City. Spencer Platt | Getty Images The stunning jobs report caps a near-perfect week for market bulls. Three main “buckets” have moved

The New York Stock Exchange trading floor, closed since March 23, is partially reopening on Tuesday. “I’m ready,” floor trader Jonathan Corpina of Meridian Equity Partners said. “We have been waiting a long time, we are prepared. Our customers are ready.” Corpina acknowledged some trepidation about returning, a feeling of “walking into the unknown.” “For

The New York Stock Exchange floor is reopening — sort of. The decision to partially reopen the floor on May 26, which has been closed since March 23, involved a complicated stew of business, legal and medical issues that many larger businesses throughout the United States will be facing —particularly those where people are required

Retail investors are trading more.  The move to $0 commissions is likely a major factor. But there are more things occurring to encourage retail trading, including stay-at-home orders and market volatility. Add it all up and you get electronic brokers reporting trading volumes that are up 100% year over year. In the first quarter alone,

A cyclist passes a boarded up store during the coronavirus pandemic on April 28, 2020 in New York City. John Lamparski | Getty Images April’s 12% rally in the S&P 500 has been based largely on hopes for a reopening of the U.S. economy, but if you want to know how fragile the reopening may