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Gold & Silver Woes Remain As Relevance is Under Attack

Administrator — Tue, 15 May 2012 15:43:07 +0000

Gold remains under pressure on Tuesday, albeit at a far lower rate of pressure with a drop of only $0.37 to $1,554.19. Gold was at $1,580 just yesterday morning overseas and it was challenging $1,600.00 just last Thursday. As the dollar has appreciated, that has outweighed any of the safety net fears which should be worried about coming out of the European woes. Spot gold is now trading well under its 50-day moving average and its 200-day moving average.

The move is also weighing on the more speculative silver market. What is happening is a bit of an identity crisis as the metals markets are currently fighting for relevance. What happens when the shiny yellow metal’s natural purpose as a currency and inflation hedge and even when a risk-on trade is dwarfed by dollar gains and other macro-issues like trading margin requirements and more? This is called a fight for relevance.

SPDR Gold Shares (AMEX: GLD) is down 0.3% at $150.86 and the Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (AMEX: GDX) is down 1.1% at $40.51 as almost every single miner and exploration outfit is lower today. One of the only exceptions of any size is Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ: RGLD) as one of the few gold mining (well, royalties on mining) outfits that is up on the day with its shares up 0.7% at $62.14 but the volume is rather light.

Silver is down as well with the iShares Silver Trust (AMEX: SLV) down 0.7% at $27.22; shares of Silver Wheaton Corporation (NYSE: SLW) down 0.9% at $24.17.

What really has to happen for the gold and silver market to stabilize is perhaps multiple issues. The dollar has to stop rising so much, the ‘risk-on’ attitude has to return or at least not be so dead, the European meltdown has to stabilize, and/or the PIIGS resolution needs to go at least one or two days without dire news from Greece, Italy or one of the other PIIGS.

Looking at a brief chart and saying that both gold and silver are oversold technically is getting easier and easier to do. Unfortunately, oversold and overbought readings can go on and on even if trading bounces come based solely on short covering and speculative buying.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Commodities, Currency, International Markets, Metals Tagged: GFD, GLD, gold, SLV, SLW

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AIG, DELL, FWLT, HOG, KBR, MDR, NE, PLG, GOLD, RJF, SKS, TIVO, VLO, VE, WPRT)

Administrator — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 12:17:23 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls this Tuesday.

American International Group Inc. (NYSE: AIG) Raised to Outperform at Wells Fargo.

Dell Inc. (NASDAQ: DELL) Raised to Equal-weight at Morgan Stanley.

Foster Wheeler AG (NASDAQ: FWLT) Started as Overweight at JPMorgan.

Harley-Davidson, Inc. (NYSE: HOG) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.

KBR Inc. (NYSE: KBR) Started as Overweight at JPMorgan.

McDermott International Inc. (NYSE: MDR) Started as Overweight at JPMorgan.

Noble Corp. (NYSE: NE) Reiterated Buy with $50 target at Argus.

Platinum Group Metals Ltd. (NYSE: PLG) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Randgold Resources Ltd. (NASDAQ: GOLD) target raised at Goldman Sachs.

Raymond James Financial Inc. (NYSE: RJF) Started as Outperform at Wells Fargo.

Saks Inc. (NYSE: SKS) Reiterated Buy with $14 target at Argus.

TiVo Inc. (NASDAQ: TIVO) Started as Neutral at JPMorgan.

Valero Energy Corporation (NYSE: VLO) Raised to Top Pick at Citigroup.

Veolia Environnement S.A. (NYSE: VE) Raised to Buy at Nomura.

Westport Innovations Inc. (NASDAQ: WPRT) Started as Overweight at Piper Jaffray.

If you enjoyed the top analyst upgrades and downgrades, you can join our free email newsletter that includes analyst summaries each morning sent right to your inbox. We also cover top issues such as IPOs, special financial exclusives, mergers and more. Sign up in the box below.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: AIG, DELL, FWLT, gold, HOG, KBR, MDR, NE, PLG, RJF, SKS, TIVO, VE, VLO, WPRT

24/7 Wall St. Closing Bell (AAPL, LNKD, DIS, MJN, GOLD, WDFC, GBX, SVU, AA, AOL, MSFT, CKSW, WOLF)

Paul Ausick — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 20:07:35 +0000

Markets opened lower this morning on the first trading day in the US following last week’s poor report on non-farm payrolls. Higher-than-expected inflation in China also caused led some observers to suggest that the Chinese government may introduce more measures to cool the economy. The US dollar index fell today, now down -0.21% at 79.720. Commodities were mixed, with wool posting the largest gain and orange juice the biggest loss. WTI crude oil closed down -0.8% at $102.46/barrel, and Brent crude trades down -0.60% at $122.69/barrel. Gold settled up 0.9% today, at $1,643.90/ounce.

The unofficial closing bells put the DJIA more than 130 points to 12,929.59 (-1.0%), the NASDAQ fell more than 33 points (-1.08%) to 3,047.08, and the S&P 500 fell -1.14% or nearly 16 points to 1,382.20.

There were several analyst upgrades and downgrades today, including Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) cut to ‘neutral’ at BTIG; LinkedIn Corp. (NYSE: LNKD) started as ‘hold’ at Needham; Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) cut to ‘neutral’ at Citigroup; Mead Johnson Nutrition Co. (NYSE: MJN) reiterated ‘outperform’ with target price of $82 at Credit Suisse; and Randgold Resources Ltd. (NASDAQ: GOLD) raised to ‘buy’ at Stifel Nicolaus.

Earnings reports since markets closed last night have led to some price changes as of the last half hour of trading today: WD-40 Co. (NASDAQ: WDFC) is up 0.56% at $45.03, and Greenbrier Companies (NYSE: GBX) is down -6.4% at $18.45. The new earnings season begins in earnest tomorrow with Supervalu Inc. (NYSE: SVU) reporting before markets open and Alcoa Inc. (NYSE: AA) reporting after the markets close.

Here’s our preview of the coming week’s top earnings reports.

Other standouts from today include the following stocks:

AOL Inc. (NYSE: AOL) is up 43% at $26.37 after posting a new 5-week high of $27.47 earlier today. The company sold a package of patents to Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) More coverage here.

ClickSoftware Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: CKSW) is down nearly -16% at $10.56. The workforce management software company lowered its first quarter outlook. More coverage here.

Great Wolf Resorts Inc. (NASDAQ: WOLF) is up more than 12% at $7.39 after posting a new 52-week high of $7.45 earlier today. The company is the target of a bidding war. More coverage here.

Soon-to-be-public Facebook Inc. paid $1 billion in cash and stock for photo-sharing site Instagram. More coverage here.

Stay tuned for Tuesday. Boston Fed President Eric Rosengren, Minneapolis Fed President Naryana Kocherlakota, Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher, and Atlanta Fed President Dennis Lockhart are all giving speeches. We have noted the following events on the schedule (all times Eastern):

7:30 a.m. – NFIB small business optimism index
10:00 a.m. – Wholesale trade
11.30 a.m. – 4-week bill auction
1:00 p.m. – 3-year note auction

Paul Ausick

Filed under: HI/LOW, Market Close Tagged: AA, AAPL, AOL, CKSW, DIS, GBX, gold, LNKD, MJN, MSFT, SVU, WDFC, WOLF

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AAPL, SCHW, ETN, ETFC, FFIV, HBAN, LNKD, MJN, PIR, GOLD, SBAC, AMTD, TYC, DIS, BAC, C, JPM)

Administrator — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 12:09:10 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls this Monday.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) Cut to Neutral at BTIG.

The Charles Schwab Corporation (NYSE: SCHW) Started as Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

Eaton Corporation (NYSE: ETN) named the value stock of the day at Zacks.

E*TRADE Financial Corporation (NASDAQ: ETFC) Started as Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

F5 Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ: FFIV) Cut to Hold at Stifel Nicolaus.

Huntington Bancshares Incorporated (NASDAQ: HBAN) Reiterated Neutral at Zacks.

LinkedIn Corporation (NYSE: LNKD) Started as Hold at Needham.

Mead Johnson Nutrition Company (NYSE: MJN) Reiterated Outperform with $82 target at Credit Suisse.

Pier 1 Imports Inc. (NYSE: PIR) Maintained Hold but raised estimates at Argus.

Randgold Resources Limited (NASDAQ: GOLD) Raised to Buy at Stifel Nicolaus.

SBA Communications Corporation (NASDAQ: SBAC) Raised to Buy at Citigroup.

TD Ameritrade Holding Corporation (NASDAQ: AMTD) Started as Neutral at Goldman Sachs.

Tyco International Ltd. (NYSE: TYC) Raised to Buy at Argus.

Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) Cut to Neutral at Citigroup.

Credit Suisse has previewed top banks and noted on Bank of America Corporation (NYSE: BAC), Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C), and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM): “We look BAC, C and JPM to benefit from improved trading in 1Q.” The firm talked up loan growth and demand and sees attractive valuations with improved profitability and greater capital deployment.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: AAPL, AMTD, BAC, C, DIS, ETFC, ETN, FFIV, gold, HBAN, JPM, LNKD, MJN, PIR, SBAC, SCHW, TYC

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AMZN, BIP, XLS, GM, GPRN, ICE, LLTC, PRXL, PKD, PVH, GOLD, RIO, LUV, SHW, TXN)

Administrator — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 12:15:49 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls this Monday. Some of these calls are moving the shares this morning.

Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) Raised to Buy at BofA/ML.

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. (NYSE: BIP) Cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.

Exelis, Inc. (NYSE: XLS) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan.

General Motors Company (NYSE: GM) Started as Overweight at Morgan Stanley.

Groupon, Inc. (NASDAQ: GRPN) Cut to Neutral with $20 target at BofA/ML; Cut to Sell at Stifel Nicolaus.

IntercontinentalExchange, Inc. (NYSE: ICE) named as Bull of the Day at Zacks.

Linear Technology Corporation (NASDAQ: LLTC) Cut to Neutral at UBS.

PAREXEL International Corporation (NASDAQ: PRXL) Cut to Neutral at Stern Agee.

Parker Drilling Company (NYSE: PKD) named as Value stock of the day at Zacks.

PVH Corporation (NYSE: PVH) Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse.

Rangold Resources Limited (NASDAQ: GOLD) Cut to Neutral at Nomura.

Rio Tinto PLC (NYSE: RIO) Raised to Overweight at Barclays.

Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV) named as Bear of the Day at Zacks.

The Sherwin-Williams Company (NYSE: SHW) Cut to Neutral at BofA/ML.

Texas Instruments Inc. (NASDAQ: TXN) Cut to Neutral at UBS.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: AMZN, BIP, GM, gold, GPRN, ICE, LLTC, LUV, PKD, PRXL, PVH, RIO, SHW, TXN, XLS

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (BHI, ICE, LXK, MTG, MU, RDN, GOLD, SWY, TSLA, XL)

Administrator — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 12:03:00 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls this Monday.

Baker Hughes Inc. (NYSE: BHI) Cut to Market Perform at Wells Fargo

IntercontinentalExchange, Inc. (NYSE: ICE) named as Bull of the Day at Zacks.

Lexmark International Inc. (NYSE: LXK) Cut to Market Perform at Bernstein.

MGIC Investment Corp. (NYSE: MTG) Started as Market Perform at Keefe Bruyette Woods.

Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MU) Cut to Perform at Oppenheimer.

Radian Group Inc. (NYSE: RDN) Started as Market Perform at Keefe Bruyette Woods.

Randgold Resources Limited (NASDAQ: GOLD) Cut estimates at Goldman Sachs.

Safeway Inc. (NYSE: SWY) Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse.

Tesla Motors, Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) Raised to Buy at Wunderlich.

XL Group, Plc (NYSE: XL) named as Bear of the Day at Zacks.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Analyst Calls Tagged: BHI, gold, ICE, LXK, MTG, MU, RDN, SWY, TSLA, XL

Randgold, a Mali Coup, and the Price of Timbuktu (GOLD)

Administrator — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 15:38:34 +0000

Randgold Resources Limited (NASDAQ: GOLD) is paying a price for where it does business. The political situation in the African nation Mali is in a coup. The gold mining outfit has extensive exposure to Mali. For those readers who are not familiar with Mali, this is the nation where Timbuktu is located.

Randgold holds the following interests: an 80% controlling interest in the Loulo mine located in western Mali; Morila mine in Mali; 89% controlling interest in the Tongon mine located in the neighboring country of Côte dIvoire; 83.25% controlling interest in the Massawa project in Senegal; and 45% interest in the Kibali project, which is located in the Democratic Republic of Congo, as well as a gold deposit at Gounkoto in Mali.

All the company has noted so far about the ‘situation’ in Mali is that it is keeping a close watch on developments there “where elements of the army appear to have mounted a coup attempt.” The CEO also said the current state of affairs in the country was calm although exact details were unclear.

Further noted, “Randgold was in touch with its sources within the country and would make a statement once it had obtained more clarity on the situation. In the meantime, he said, operations at Loulo and Gounkoto as well as at the company’s Morila joint venture were running normally.”

These situations are often very volatile and it is impossible to know all of the details from afar. The Randgold ADRs are down 12% at $90.94 against a 52-week range of $73.10 to $120.73.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Accounting, ADR, Commodities, Corporate Governance, Currency, Editor's Picks, Emerging Markets, International Markets, Law, Luxury, Metals Tagged: gold

Why Gold Traders Are So Concerned (GLD, GDX, AU, GOLD, ABX)

Administrator — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 19:40:28 +0000

Asking a technician or chartist about directional movement is often mind-numbing for fundamental investors. Basing future price movement prediction solely on the past without a care about the underlying fundamentals and without a care about the news headlines confuses many investors. That being said, most investors at least are cognizant of some chart events being important or at least that sometimes they should at least review of chart. After last week’s gold pricing action many investors may be very nervous if you look at the chart of the SPDR Gold Shares (NYSE:GLD).

After taking a look at the “GLD” chart the concerns are growing. Since its major move at the end of 2008 there had not been a single time that the SPDR Gold Trust shares had violated the key 200-day moving average. If you look at the mining ETF via the Market Vectors Gold Miners ETF (NYSE: GDX), the gold bulls may argue that the mining sector violated the 200-day moving average on multiple occasions and still traded higher! Some technicians may watch other metrics on the GLD for long-term trends but many will fear that this means that the monstrous run higher at a minimum cannot recover at the same pace. Other technicians may argue that gold has peaked outright, just like Dennis Gartman has raised concern about recently.

It is at least somewhat interesting that Goldman Sachs recently lowered the ratings of AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. (NYSE: AU) as well as Randgold Resources Limited (NASDAQ: GOLD) this morning, both were downgraded to “Sell” from an already cautious “Neutral” rating. AngloGold is somehow up almost 1% at $41.52 today and Rangold is down 0.3% at $101.50. Meanwhile, Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE: ABX) was recently raised to “Sector Outperform” from “Sector Perform” by Scotia Capital.

What is so confusing for many gold bugs and investors alike is that the news headlines would make you think that gold has everything going for it. Iran flexing its muscle… The Euro Zone debt crisis… The possibility that the Euro disappears or is altered… Sovereign debt credit rating downgrades… China’s central bank buying gold… Uncertainty… and more. It is the rise of the U.S. Dollar again that is capping gold’s positive aspects. Besides that, gold reached the point that many market participants just cannot afford to use the metal for anything now.

If you go back to the “GLD” as the measurement for most spot gold investors today, that would be $157.36 as to where the 200-day moving average is now versus $154.90 after a 0.2% drop today. The “GLD” chart below from stockcharts.com shows a 3-year history for our readers.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Charts, Currency, Luxury, Metals, Technical Analysis Tagged: ABX, AU, GDX, GLD, gold

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (AKS, AU, FTE, GGP, HON, LAZ, PNW, GOLD, TEF, TEVA, TMK, UNFI, URI, MTN, WCG)

Administrator — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 13:23:47 +0000

These are some of the top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls this Monday morning.

AK Steel Holding Corporation (NYSE: AKS) Raised to Outperform from Market Perform at Wells Fargo.
AngloGold Ashanti Ltd. (NYSE: AU) Cut to Sell from Neutral by Goldman Sachs.

France Telecom S.A. (NYSE: FTE) Cut to Underperform as Bear of the Day at Zacks Investment Research.
General Growth Properties Inc. (NYSE: GGP) Cut to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE: HON) Raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks Investment Research.

Lazard Ltd. (NYSE: LAZ) Raised to Outperform from Neutral at Credit Suisse.
Pinnacle West Capital Corporation (NYSE: PNW) Cut to Neutral from Outperform at Credit Suisse.
Randgold Resources Limited (NASDAQ: GOLD) Cut to Sell from Neutral at Goldman Sachs.
Telefonica, S.A. (NYSE: TEF) Cut to Neutral from Overweight at HSBC.
Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (NASDAQ: TEVA) Reiterated Buy with $52 target at Canaccord Genuity.
Torchmark Corp. (NYSE: TMK) Raised to Neutral from Underperform at Credit Suisse.
United Natural Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ: UNFI) Raised to Buy from Hold at Canaccord Genuity.
United Rentals, Inc. (NYSE: URI) Raised to Top Pick at RBC.
Vail Resorts Inc. (NYSE: MTN) Started as Outperform at Credit Suisse.
WellCare Health Plans, Inc. (NYSE: WCG) named as value stock of the day at Zacks Investment Research.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: AKS, AU, FTE, GGP, gold, HON, LAZ, MTN, PNW, TEF, TEVA, TMK, UNFI, URI, WCG

Top Analyst Upgrades & Downgrades (BIG, CHS, DAL, ERII, PPG, PLXS, GOLD, RGLD, SD, SWK, SPWRA, RIG, TSL, VICL, VVUS, YRCW)

Administrator — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 12:25:18 +0000

These are some of Friday’s top analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations seen from Wall Street research calls.

Big Lots Inc. (NYSE: BIG) Raised to Outperform at Wedbush.
Chico’s FAS Inc. (NYSE: CHS) Cut to Neutral at Citigroup.
Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) Raised to Outperform as Bull of the Day at Zacks.
Energy Recovery Inc. (NASDAQ: ERII) Started as Neutral at Credit Suisse.
PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE: PPG) named as Value stock of the Day at Zacks.
Plexus Corporation (NASDAQ: PLXS) named Bear of the Day at Zacks.
Randgold Resources Limited (NASDAQ: GOLD) Cut to Hold at Canaccord Genuity.
Royal Gold, Inc. (NASDAQ: RGLD) Cut to Sector Perform at National Bank.
SandRidge Energy, Inc. (NYSE: SD) Cut to Hold at Stifel Nicolaus.
Stanley Black & Decker Inc. (NYSE: SWK) Raised to Buy at Argus.
SunPower Corporation (NASDAQ: SPWRA) Cut to Underperform at Macquarie.
Transocean Ltd. (NYSE: RIG) Cut to Underperform at Macquarie.
Trina Solar Limited (NYSE: TSL) Cut to Neutral at Macquarie.
Vical Inc. (NASDAQ: VICL) Started as Outperform with $7 target at Credit Suisse.
VIVUS, Inc. (NASDAQ: VVUS) Started as Outperform with $15 target at Credit Suisse.
YRC Worldwide Inc. (NASDAQ: YRCW) Raised to Hold fro Sell at Stifel Nicolaus.

JON C. OGG

Filed under: Analyst Calls Tagged: BIG, CHS, DAL, ERII, gold, PLXS, PPG, RGLD, RIG, SD, SPWRA, SWK, TSL, VICL, VVUS, YRCW