Reopening Political Rhetoric Drives Markets Forward

The political rhetoric of the day preached across our fair land referred to plans of cooperation within states and across states that we will lead to a successful reopening of our economy in the US assuming a successful flattening of the curve campaign against COVID-19. For the life of me and at this point, I cannot fully understand their plans, however, today’s optimism, founded or not, seemed to fuel the markets forward throughout the day. The S&P 500 closed up by +3.06% with the consumer discretionary & information technology sectors leading the way both jumping +4.2%. The Dow closed gained +2.39% with Dow component Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) closing at $146.03.share up by +4.5% as it beat Q1, 2020 earnings expectations. International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) will conduct its 2020 Annual Meeting of Stockholders on Tuesday, April 28, 2020, at 10:00 a.m. EDT via a virtual meeting. The decision has been taken keeping in mind the safety of its members along with public emergency orders and recommendations to limit travel for business activities as the COVID-19 pandemic still threatens. As per reports, four locations of Procter & Gamble Company’s (PG) Tide Cleaners in Greater Cincinnati are offering free laundry services to medical personnel and first responders during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Nasdaq gained +3.95% & the Russell 2000 was up by +2.09%.

FAANG stocks continued their progress from yesterday. Amazon (AMZN) closed at $2,283/share, up by +5.28% as we all are ordering more online across the board & Netflix (NFLX) jumped +4.24% closing $413.55/share as video-streaming demand continues to spike during the COVID-19 crisis. Rounding out the results, Facebook (FB) closed at $178.17/share, up by +1.93%, Apple (AAPL) closed at $287.05/share adding +5.05%, & Alphabet (GOOG) closed at $1,269.23/share gaining +4.24%. 

Oil prices dropped another -9.8% closing at $20.22/bbl and the energy sector was off by -.5%. Chevron (CVX) closed at $84.61/share down -.35% and Exxon (XOM) closed at $42.43/share down -.77%. Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) closed at $14.90/share down by -2.8%.

The 2-yr US treasury yield dropped by 1 basis point to .22% & the 10-yr yield moved stayed flat at .75%. The U.S. Dollar Index weakened by -.05% to 98.85.

Gold prices closed higher again today closing at 1,740/oz & silver prices rose closing at $15.93/oz.

Significant economic reports today included the Import and Export Prices for March report where import prices dropped -2.3% & export prices dropped -1.6% in March.

Here are three of stocks in focus today:

Shares of Neubase Therapeutics (NBSE) rose to $8.85/share (an all-time new High) prior to closing at $8.63/share up +1.77% today. Neubase recently announced positive preclinical data from its pharmacokinetics studies in non-human primates (“NHPs”) and in vitro pharmacodynamics data in patient-derived cell lines. NeuBase believes these data validate the key advantages of the proprietary NeuBase peptide-nucleic acid (“PNA”) antisense oligonucleotide (PATrOL™) platform and support the Company’s decision to advance the development of its Huntington’s disease (“HD”) and myotonic dystrophy type 1 (“DM1”) programs, as well as the potential expansion of its therapeutic pipeline into other indications. Dr. George Church, professor of genetics at Harvard Medical School and member of the National Academy of Sciences, stated, “Given the activity and broad biodistribution observed in these studies and the potential for easier target definition, I believe the PATrOL™ technology may have a potent impact on the future of drug development and treatment of genetic diseases.” Investment banks BTIG, HCW, Oppenheimer & Guggenheim maintain analyst coverage with BUY ratings on NBSE that include a price target that ranges in a $13-$15/share target price range.

Shares of North American silver and gold producer, Hecla Mining Company (HL), rose to $2.50/share prior to closing up +1.72% at $2.36/share. Hecla recently announced actions taken in response to COVID-19, cash balances and preliminary silver and gold production results at the end of the first quarter. Learn more here.

Shares of Virgin Galactic Holdings (SPCE), a vertically integrated aerospace company,  charged up +23.09% today to close at $19.03/share. They will be reporting their Q1 earnings after the close on Tuesday, May 5.

Economic Reports

On Monday, we did receive any significant economic reports.

On Tuesday, the Import and Export Prices for March report came in where import prices dropped -2.3% & export prices dropped -1.6% in March.

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 include the following:

• Retail Sales for March
• Industry Production and Capitalization Utilization for March
• The Empire State Manufacturing Index for April
• The NAHB Housing Market Index for April
• The weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index, Business Inventories for February, and Net Long-Term TIC Flows for February.