Broad Markets Edge Higher – Energy, Material, Industrials Lead

Tuesday markets managed to move a little forward again today as protests and reopening measures across the US proceed and clash simultaneously.  The following sectors led the way: energy +2.7%, materials, +1.8% & industrials, +1.3% as the balance of the 11 sectors ended in the green too. The S&P 500 closed up .82% at 3080.82, the Dow gained 1.05% as Dow 30 components Visa (V) closed at $193.36/share up +1.0%, Goldman Sachs (GS) closed at $204.14/share, +2.1% & Microsoft (MSFT) closed at $184.91/share, up 1.1%. The Nasdaq moved up .59% while the Russell 2000 added nearly a point again up .91% as small caps were in favor again.

Powering the energy sector’s lead today, oil prices rose 3.8% to close at $36.80/bbl. Chevron (CVX) closed at $94.69/share up 2.05%, Exxon (XOM) closed at $47.31/share up by 2.23% & Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) closed at $14.75/share up by a solid 6.81% or nearly 14% in the last two days. 

The popular FAANG stocks moved a little higher as follows: Facebook (FB) closed at $232.72/share, up by .35% as Trump currently wages war against both them Facebook and Twitter, Amazon (AMZN) closed at $2,472.41/share, up .06%,  Apple (AAPL) closed at $323.34/share up by .46%, & Netflix (NFLX) added .33% closing at $427.31/share, & Alphabet (GOOG) closed at $1,439.22/share up by .52%.

The 2-yr US treasury yield moved higher by 2 basis points ending at .16% & the 10-yr yield increased equally ending at 68%. The U.S. Dollar Index weakened by .1% to end at 97.72. 

Gold and silver took a step back today after their recent run-up. Gold prices ended at $1,728/oz (-12) while silver prices closed at $18.18/oz (-.05). North American silver and gold producer Hecla Mining Company (HL) closed at $3.29/share down 8.36% while First Majestic Silver (AG) lost 5.96% closing at $10.09/share.

MOVERS

A couple of equities from e-commerce and tech moved significantly as follows:

• Shares of e-commerce platform for buying and selling used cars while obeying social-distancing restrictions Carvana (CVNA) closed at $109.12/share up 18.80%. Recently the company added to its balance sheet by selling 5 million shares of class A stock at $98.59/share. 

• Shares of connected law enforcement technology firm Axon Enterprises, Inc. (AAXN) rose another 9.03% today after yesterday’s monster 18.94% jump closing at $97.85/share after they recently beat earnings expectations.

TOMORROW

Tomorrow’s significant economic data report schedule will provide the following:

• The ADP Employment Change report for May
• The ISM Non-Manufacturing Index for May
• The Factory Orders for April
• The weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index

WATCH LIST

• Keep an eye on INVO Bioscience (INVOD) which was recently funded and saw their 1-20 reverse split take effect today and will be trading under the symbol INVOD for the next 19 days. They now have ~7.8M shares in this newly minted low or tight float play. Shares closed at $2.22/share up 2.07% and is trading tightly and with a spread that you can drive a truck through.

• I am also looking for Atossa Therapeutics (ATOS) to possibly hit us with further news regarding their now 2 COVID-19 treatment programs as early as this week. Recently ATOS announced the successful results from in vitro testing of AT-H201, Atossa’s proprietary COVID-19 drug candidate, and are seeking IRB and FDA approval to move into the clinic. ATOS also recently announced that it has begun the development of a second COVID-19 program using its proprietary drug candidate AT-301, to be administered by nasal spray as is teaming with nasal spray specialist firm Summit Biosciences. AT-301 is Atossa’s proprietary formula intended for nasal administration in patients immediately following a diagnosis of COVID-19 but who have not yet exhibited symptoms severe enough to require hospitalization. Atossa confirmed that it is intended for at-home use to proactively reduce symptoms of COVID-19 and to slow the infection rate so that a person’s immune system can more effectively fight SARS-CoV-2 (coronavirus). Atossa also intends to conduct testing to determine whether AT-301 can be used as a prophylaxis to prevent or mitigate SARS-CoV-2, with the goal that it could become a “bridge to the vaccine” and be useful in the next phase of the coronavirus pandemic. Shares of ATOS closed $2.52/share up 2.44% after. ATOS has approximately 9.2M shares issued and outstanding placing it in the low-float category and hit a $3.25 52-week high this year.

•  Gold & Silver stocks pulled back today as the commodities pulled back and equities rose could see a reversal again tomorrow in Hecla (HL) & First Majestic (AG).

Lastly, if you have a minute I would suggest that you take a minute to read these recent stories related to COVID-19: 

All this mask “research” is great but does any of it work? YES, face masks do a great job of stopping a coronavirus and… 

Wasting Time on SARS-CoV-2 Testing and… My COVID-19 Book Publishes June 5, 2020, on Amazon Kindle!

Economic Reports

• On Monday, we received the following reports:
  • The ISM Manufacturing Index Report for May moved up to 43.1% but still below expansion levels as reopening continues
  • The Construction spending report confirmed a decrease of 2.9% month/month in April while total residential spending was decreased by 4.5% & total nonresidential spending declined by 1.8%
• On Tuesday, we did not receive anything of significance

Investing & Inspiration

“I believe the returns on investment in the poor are just as exciting as successes achieved in the business arena, and they are even more meaningful!” -Bill Gates

“Every portfolio benefits from bonds; they provide a cushion when the stock market hits a rough patch. But avoiding stocks completely could mean your investment won’t grow any faster than the rate of inflation.” – Suze Orman

“The tax on capital gains directly affects investment decisions, the mobility, and flow of risk capital… the ease or difficulty experienced by new ventures in obtaining capital, and thereby the strength and potential for growth in the economy.” – John F. Kennedy

“If all the economists were laid end to end, they’d never reach a conclusion.
-George Bernard Shaw

“The riskiest thing we can do is just maintain the status quo.
I get up at 4:30 in the morning, seven days a week, no matter where I am in the world. I think it is important for people who are given leadership roles to assume that role immediately. What I’ve really learned over time is that optimism is a very, very important part of leadership.” Bob Iger, Ceo of Disney

“There are old traders and there are bold traders, but there are very few old, bold traders.”-Ed Seykota

“Let this scenario play out on its own, in its own fashion. As you watch it unfold, you will soon be grateful that you choose the peaceful path. Remember — those who live by the sword, die by the sword.”

“As long as you enjoy investing, you’ll be willing to do the homework and stay in the game.” -Jim Cramer

“I rarely think the market is right. I believe non-dividend stocks aren’t much more than baseball cards. They are worth what you can convince someone to pay for it.” -Mark Cuban

“Michael Marcus taught me one other thing that is absolutely critical: You have to be willing to make mistakes regularly; there is nothing wrong with it. Michael taught me about making your best judgment, being wrong, making your next best judgment, being wrong, making your third best judgment, and then doubling your money.” -Bruce Kovner

“The policy of being too cautious is the greatest risk of all.” -Jawaharlal Nehru

“The only true test of whether a stock is “cheap” or “high” is not its current price in relation to some former price, no matter how accustomed we may have become to that former price, but whether the company’s fundamentals are significantly more or less favorable than the current financial-community appraisal of that stock.” -Philip Fisher

“I learned to avoid trying to catch up or double up to recoup losses. I also learned that a certain amount of loss will affect your judgment, so you have to put some time between that loss and the next trade.” -Richard Dennis

“The four most dangerous words in investing are: ‘this time it’s different.” -Sir John Templeton

“Money doesn’t make you happy. I now have $50 million but I was just as happy when I had $48 million.” -Arnold Schwarzenegger

Tomorrow

Tomorrow’s significant economic data report schedule will provide the following:

• The ADP Employment Change report for May
• The ISM Non-Manufacturing Index for May
• The Factory Orders for April
• The weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index