1.
Healthcare is still ‘stuck in a world of white coats’: 23andMe CEO
2021-09-24 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance Video23andMe CEO Anne Wojcicki joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss the politicization of medicine amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
2.
Anne Wojcicki on comparison to Elizabeth Holmes: ‘Theranos was never transparent’
2021-09-23 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance Video23andMe CEO Anne Wojcicki joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to weigh in on the Elizabeth Holmes saga and why it had ‘no’ impact on consumer trust of 23andMe.
3.
Influencers with Andy Serwer: Anne Wojcicki
2021-09-23 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoIn this episode of Influencers, Andy is joined by 23andMe co-founder & CEO, Anne Wojcicki, as they discuss the benefits of DNA testing, concerns over privacy in the healthcare industry, and the future of medicine.
4.
‘Absolutely’ a future where everyone's DNA sequenced at birth: 23andMe CEO
2021-09-22 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance Video23andMe Co-Founder & CEO Anne Wojcicki joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss the future of personal genomics.
5.
‘How payments should be invented’ for a fully digital world: David Marcus
2021-09-17 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoDavid Marcus, Head of F2, joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss how digital payments will integrate into Facebook's metaverse.
6.
Metaverse raises ‘scary’ question on surveillance of users: Kai-Fu Lee
2021-09-16 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoSinovation Ventures CEO Kai-Fu Lee joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss how artificial intelligence will raise new concerns over data privacy.
7.
Why Williams-Sonoma CEO calls the labor shortage a ‘big migration’
2021-09-10 14:11:13 by Yahoo Finance VideoWilliams-Sonoma CEO Laura Alber joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss the labor market and how Williams-Sonoma is attracting 'great talent' to the company.
8.
Influencers with Andy Serwer: Laura Alber
2021-09-09 14:50:32 by Yahoo Finance VideoIn this episode of Influencers, Andy speaks with Williams-Sonoma CEO & President, Laura Alber, as she shares the secrets of her success and how pandemic restrictions helped to boost sales at Williams-Sonoma.
9.
The labor market still 'as tight as a drum' despite Delta-driven slowdown
2021-09-09 09:10:42 by Javier E. David from Yahoo FinanceThis article first appeared in the Morning Brief. Get the Morning Brief sent directly to your inbox every Monday to Friday by 6:30 a.m. ET. Subscribe
Thursday, September 9, 2021
An economic riddle, wrapped in a pandemic
The current state of economic play can be accurately summarized using an artful (at least I’d like to think) paraphrase of Winston Churchill. In 1939, the historic wartime leader famously described Russia as "a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma."
On Wednesday, two key economic releases basically showed us how COVID-19 has essentially transformed the U.S. economy into a riddle of its own — but this one’s wrapped in a sizzling hot jobs market inside a pandemic.
With the market struggling to recover from last week’s payrolls disappointment, the Labor Department (ahem) JOLT-ed trading with July’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS).
Despite Wall Street’s hand-wringing over growth, the JOLTS data revealed that the labor market has literally never been hotter, with nearly 11 million unfilled jobs across the world’s largest economy, a series record.
Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book — a semi-regular temperature reading of the U.S. economic activity — found that growth “downshifted slightly” last month as a resurgence of COVID-19 infections took a toll on dining, travel and tourism. Nevertheless, business activity is still being defined by inflation, worker shortages and supply bottlenecks.
Taken together, the two releases underscored that, as the Delta-variant driven surge of infections becomes the meta-narrative for growth, the economy has learned to adapt. In fact, certain sectors (like technology, revived in part by the “stay-at-home trade” helping to curb the Nasdaq’s (^IXIC) recent losses) are actually thriving.
In a research note, veteran Wall Street economist Chris Rupkey at FWDBONDS came in from the top rope by calling this economic dichotomy “the strangest recovery from any recession” he’s ever seen as a professional economist.
Rupkey, a critic of the Fed’s ultra-accomodative monetary stimulus, said that the JOLTS data “tells us the labor market is tight as a drum with the demand for labor the highest in history.”
ING noted that while some of the vacancies noted in the JOLTS data may have evaporated last month, “this report still suggests the appetite to hire is incredibly strong.”
The bank also reaffirmed a theme that’s become part of the post-nonfarm payrolls analysis: job creation is petering out simply because employers already have too many open jobs they can’t fill.
With approximately 50% of small businesses having unfilled positions, “the weakness [in payrolls] is primarily due to a lack of workers being willing or able to take the jobs available and [has] little to do with any perceived lack of demand,” according to ING.
The JOLTS data also has implications for soaring prices — expect things to get worse before they get better, because employers feel compelled to continue hiking pay. Pointing to a “quit rate” that shows employees leaving their old jobs in favor of new ones at an all-time high, ING said companies “no longer think purely about having to raise pay to attract staff but also need to consider raising pay for staff retention purposes.”
To be sure, a seeming bumper crop of jobs may be cold comfort for workers in industries like bars, restaurants and retail shops, where job creation is clearly going the wrong way.
However, it does suggest that — if workers so desire and if they have the requisite skills — they may be able to obtain employment in other sectors like construction, manufacturing and retail trade, where hiring remains robust.
By Javier E. David, editor at Yahoo Finance. Follow him at @Teflongeek
Yahoo Finance Highlights
Apple is facing a mountain of controversies, but investors don't seem to care
Bitcoin prices just got smashed, but this crypto insider still sees $160,000
Student loan crisis arose from 'giving families a blank check,' author explains
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Follow Yahoo Finance on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Flipboard, LinkedIn, YouTube, and reddit
10.
Lululemon (LULU) Option Traders Cautious Before Earnings
2021-09-08 15:25:18 by InvestopediaTrading volumes indicate that traders have been buying puts and selling calls in anticipation of a negative earnings report.
11.
Raising minimum wage to $15/hr was one of my ‘proudest moments’: Patrik Frisk
2021-09-03 15:01:51 by Yahoo Finance VideoUnder Armour President & CEO Patrik Frisk joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss the company's decision to raise its minimum wage.
12.
DocuSign (DOCU) Option Traders Making Bearish Bets
2021-09-02 15:20:51 by InvestopediaThe open interest for DocuSign (DOCU) shows an increasing number of put options, and option premiums are unusually high right now.
13.
Influencers with Andy Serwer: Patrik Frisk
2021-09-02 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoIn this episode of Influencers, Andy is joined by Under Armour President & CEO Patrik Frisk as they discuss new challenges for the retail industry, big changes for college athletics, and how raising the wage floor is affecting Under Armour's business overall.
14.
Under Armour sees ‘lots of opportunities’ in college athlete endorsements: CEO
2021-09-02 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoUnder Armour President and CEO Patrik Frisk joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss new NCAA rules regarding endorsements for college athletes.
15.
Why Under Armour CEO says supply chain issues are causing ‘less discounting’:
2021-09-01 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoUnder Armour President & CEO Patrik Frisk joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss pandemic-related supply chain issues and their impact on price.
16.
2 Nasdaq ETFs for Q4 2021
2021-08-31 16:17:58 by InvestopediaInvestors who want to own stocks in the technology sector may decide to buy exchange traded funds (ETFs) that track the Nasdaq. When investors refer to the Nasdaq, they typically refer to the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index, which is comprised of more than 2,500 companies.
17.
Influencers with Andy Serwer: Billie Jean King
2021-08-26 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoIn this episode of Influencers, Andy is joined by Billie Jean King, legendary tennis player and author of the new book 'All In', as she shares stories from her childhood, her thoughts on the new generation of activist athletes, and why she says women need to 'follow the money'.
18.
Billie Jean King: A ‘dream’ watching Naomi Osaka and Simone Biles speak out
2021-08-26 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoTennis legend Billie Jean King joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to share her thoughts on the next generation of activist athletes.
19.
Influencers with Andy Serwer: Ian Bremmer
2021-08-19 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoIn this episode of Influencers, Andy speaks with Eurasia Group President, Ian Bremmer, about the U.S. decision to pull out of Afghanistan, implications for President Biden, and what it means for America’s standing as a global superpower.
20.
Four reasons why Biden ‘failed’ in Afghanistan withdrawal
2021-08-18 13:30:50 by Yahoo Finance VideoEurasia Group President Ian Bremmer joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss America's 'disasterous' withdrawal from Afghanistan.
21.
NVIDIA (NVDA) Option Traders Bearish Before Earnings
2021-08-17 20:10:37 by InvestopediaA sizable number of put options remain in the open interest for NVIDIA, and option premiums are at an unusually elevated level right now.
22.
Cisco (CSCO) Option Traders Unconfident Before Earnings
2021-08-17 19:40:37 by InvestopediaA sizable number of put options remain in the open interest for Cisco, and option premiums are at an unusually elevated level right now.
23.
Bremmer: There's a 'real chance' Afghanistan withdrawal destroys Biden's presidency
2021-08-17 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoEurasia Group President Ian Bremmer joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss the U.S. decision to pull out of Afghanistan.
24.
What former YUM! CEO learned from the ‘epic fail’ of Crystal Pepsi
2021-08-13 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoFormer YUM! Brands Chairman & CEO, David Novak, joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss the creation of Crystal Pepsi in the early 1990s.
25.
Gov't stimulus is 'keeping people from working': Fmr YUM! Brands CEO
2021-08-12 15:07:35 by Yahoo Finance VideoDavid Novak, host of 'How Leaders Lead' podcast, joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss the health of the U.S. labor market.
26.
Influencers with Andy Serwer: David Novak
2021-08-12 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoIn this episode of Influencers, Andy is joined by David Novak, former Chairman & CEO of YUM! Brands, as they discuss the U.S. economic recovery, the power of ‘purposeful recognition’ in leadership, and David's experience running one of the largest fast-food companies in the world.
27.
Baidu (BIDU) Option Traders Set for Earnings Boost
2021-08-11 20:35:29 by InvestopediaCall option numbers are growing in the open interest for BIDU and option premiums are unusually high right now.
28.
What all great leaders have in common
2021-08-11 13:58:33 by Yahoo Finance VideoFormer YUM! Brands Chairman & CEO, David Novak, joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss common characteristics among all great leaders
29.
eBay (EBAY) Option Traders Placing Pessimistic Bids
2021-08-10 21:19:09 by InvestopediaTrading volumes indicate that traders have been buying puts and selling calls in anticipation of an unfavorable earnings report from eBay (EBAY).
30.
We essentially “wouldn't have social media companies” without Section 230: Marty Baron
2021-08-06 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoFormer Washington Post Executive Editor Marty Baron joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss the social media giants and their impact on the news business.
31.
Goldman Sachs raises S&P 500 price target, but path higher 'is unlikely to be a smooth one'
2021-08-05 15:36:28 by Emily McCormick from Yahoo FinanceGoldman Sachs is getting more bullish on stocks.
The Wall Street firm on Thursday upgraded its year-end price target for the S&P 500 (^GSPC) to 4,700, up from the 4,300 seen previously. That new target would represent an upside of nearly 7% from closing prices on Wednesday, and add to what has already been a more than 17% year-to-date gain for the blue-chip index.
Goldman also expects the S&P 500 to close out 2022 at 4,900, raising this from a previous target of 4,600.
A combination of higher-than-expected S&P 500 company earnings and low interest rates informed the firm's rosier forecast.
"We expect earnings growth will be the primary driver of U.S. equity returns in 2H 2021 and 2022, as it has been so far this year," David Kostin, Goldman Sachs chief U.S. equity strategist, wrote in a note. "Year-to-date, EPS [earnings per share] growth has accounted for all of the S&P 500's 17% price return. Looking forward, we forecast that modest equity risk premium ('ERP') compression will offset rising interest rates, resulting in an S&P 500 valuation multiple that remains roughly flat."
Goldman Sachs' baseline forecast assumes that the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield will climb to 1.6% by the end of the year, rising from its current level of around 1.2%. If rates remain where they are and no downgrades occur for growth expectations, however, the S&P 500 could climb even further to 4,950, Kostin added.
The firm's updated price target also assumes that a version of President Joe Biden's tax reform plans will get passed before year-end and generate a modest drag on corporate profits. Goldman Sachs expects the federal statutory corporate tax rate to be increased to 25% from its current level of 21%, and that "roughly half of the magnitude of other corporate tax proposals, such as the proposed foreign income tax hike, will become law, as will a hike in the upper income capital gains tax rate."
Overall, S&P 500 earnings per share will likely rise 45% over last year to $207, Kostin said, with this outlook upgraded from the firm's previous forecast for $193.
But even given the supportive backdrop of ongoing earnings growth and low rates, stocks are unlikely to see a straight trajectory up and to the right for the rest of the year, Kostin warned.
"The path to our year-end target is unlikely to be a smooth one," Kostin said. "In the near-term, we expected upward revisions to EPS estimates and declining concerns about the Delta variant spread to drive equity upside, but the path of the virus and its economic impact have proven difficult to predict."
"Later in the year, uncertainty around fiscal and monetary policy will likely drive volatility," he added. "Market participants will remain closely attuned to signals from the Fed in coming months, and equity prices will be sensitive to any surprises."
—
Emily McCormick is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter: @emily_mcck
Read more from Emily:
May jobs report: Economy adds back 559,000 jobs, unemployment rate fell to 5.8%
Charlie Munger on Robinhood and GameStop frenzy: 'It's a dirty way to make money'
Charlie Munger says Costco 'has one thing that Amazon does not have'
Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance
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32.
Jeff Bezos helped the Washington Post ‘take advantage of the gift the internet had to offer': Marty Baron
2021-08-05 11:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoFormer Washington Post Executive Editor, Marty Baron, joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss his experience working under Amazon Founder Jeff Bezos.
33.
Influencers with Andy Serwer: Marty Baron
2021-08-05 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoIn this episode of Influencers, Andy is joined by legendary journalist & former Washington Post Executive Editor, Marty Baron, for a discussion on the state of the media industry, his experience covering the Trump administration, and why he decided to walk away from the news business.
34.
You're not imagining how placid markets have been
2021-08-05 09:03:50 by Myles Udland from Yahoo FinanceThis article first appeared in the Morning Brief. Get the Morning Brief sent directly to your inbox every Monday to Friday by 6:30 a.m. ET. Subscribe
Thursday, August 5, 2021
It's been almost a year since the S&P 500 fell 5%
Heading into August, market observers were again reminded that this month tends to be the toughest one for the S&P 500 Index (^GSPC).
The operative statistic that made the rounds this week reminded investors that on six occasions since 2010, the month of August has seen the S&P 500 take a loss.
And while investors will certainly be reminded of this same data next year — seasonality data does, after all, come back every season — it is understandable if market watchers are perhaps a bit more sensitive to any inkling of bad news this year.
After all, it's been a long time since the overall market has faced much pressure at all.
In his latest monthly chartbook circulated on Wednesday, Keith Lerner, chief market strategist at Truist Advisory Services, highlighted the following chart. It reminded investors that we're currently in the midst of the second-longest period of the last decade without a 5% drop in the S&P 500.
The last time the S&P 500 dropped more than 5% peak to trough, the calendar read "2020." And only 2017's market, in which an entire year came and went without the index dropping 5%, eclipses this current run.
"Historically, stocks tend to see two or three 5%-plus pullbacks a year, but the last one that occurred was last fall," Lerner wrote. "We see periodic setbacks as the admission price to the markets, and put a greater emphasis on the primary trend, which we view as higher over the next 12 months."
Looking at only returns for the S&P 500, of course, never tells the full story of the market.
And this year perhaps even heightens that theme.
The meme trade, the SPAC boom, and the rush of new IPOs hitting the market have made for plenty of single-stock volatility.
And look no further than the action we've seen in shares of Robinhood (HOOD), which gained 24% on Tuesday and another 50% on Wednesday as the stock was halted at least three times for volatility early in yesterday's session.
Big bets placed by investors on the re-opening trade, then on higher interest rates, and then on big cap tech stocks have led to an environment that Canaccord Genuity strategist Tony Dwyer told Yahoo Finance Live last month was one of a "rolling correction" in the market. In other words, there has been plenty of pain to go around underneath the surface for portfolio managers this year.
Moreover, Lerner also addresses a recent Morning Brief idea of what "peak growth" may or may not mean for markets, writing that "the peak in economic momentum often injects market volatility but does not typically end a bull market."
But to steal a phrase from Fed Chair Jay Powell, before we can talk about talking about any kind of end to this or any bull market the S&P 500 first needs to drop 5%. And at least for right now, we're still waiting.
By Myles Udland, reporter and anchor for Yahoo Finance Live. Follow him at @MylesUdland
Yahoo Finance Highlights
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What former Gap CEO told Kanye West about the celebrity's clothing deal with Gap
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35.
Moderna (MRNA) Option Traders Ready for Earnings Boost
2021-08-04 19:07:39 by InvestopediaA sizable number of purchased call options and sold put options remain the open interest for MRNA, and option premiums are unusually high right now.
36.
Election fraud claims are 'a fiasco for our democracy': Marty Baron
2021-08-04 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoFormer Washington Post Executive Editor, Marty Baron, joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss President Trump's disproven claims about 2020 election fraud.
37.
Activision (ATVI) Option Traders Ready to Level Up
2021-08-02 20:45:58 by InvestopediaTrading volumes show that option traders have been buying calls and selling puts in expectation of a positive earnings announcement.
38.
NXPI Option Traders Change Frequencies Ahead of Earnings
2021-07-30 16:11:18 by InvestopediaTrading volumes indicate that traders have been buying calls and selling puts in anticipation of a positive earnings report.
39.
Finance overlooks climate because it's ‘mesmerized by the magic of markets’: WWF International President
2021-07-30 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoWWF International President Pavan Sukhdev joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss ESG investing and Wall Street's effort on climate change.
40.
Amazon (AMZN) Option Traders Primed for Disappointment
2021-07-29 16:32:39 by InvestopediaA sizable amount of put options remain in the open interest for Amazon, and option premiums are unusually high right now.
41.
T-Mobile (TMUS) Option Traders Bearish Into Earnings
2021-07-29 16:20:13 by InvestopediaTrading volumes indicate that traders have been selling calls and buying puts in anticipation of a negative earnings report.
42.
Proposed carbon tariffs ‘not a bad thing’: WWF International President
2021-07-29 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoWWF International President Pavan Sukhdev joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss a proposed carbon tax and President Biden's policies on climate change.
43.
Influencers with Andy Serwer: Pavan Sukhdev
2021-07-29 10:00:00 by Yahoo Finance VideoIn this episode of Influencers, Andy is joined by WWF International President Pavan Sukhdev as they discuss environmental conservation, ESG investing, and whether corporations are walking the talk on climate.
44.
PayPal (PYPL) Option Traders Ready to Retest Highs
2021-07-28 18:44:42 by InvestopediaOption trading volumes indicate that traders have been buying calls and selling puts in anticipation of a positive earnings announcement.
45.
WWF International President: Bitcoin ‘is not a currency’
2021-07-28 13:16:42 by Yahoo Finance VideoWWF International President Pavan Sukhdev joins 'Influencers with Andy Serwer' to discuss the environmental impact of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.
46.
Facebook (FB) Option Traders Ready to 'Like' Earnings
2021-07-27 18:38:21 by InvestopediaA significant amount of call options remains in the open interest for Facebook, and option premiums are unusually high right now.
47.
Alphabet (GOOG) Option Traders Searching for New Highs
2021-07-27 18:18:29 by InvestopediaThe trading volumes indicate that traders have been selling puts and buying calls in anticipation of a positive earnings report.
48.
Qualcomm (QCOM) Option Traders Bullish Into Earnings
2021-07-27 17:42:57 by InvestopediaTrading volumes indicate that traders have been buying calls and selling puts in anticipation of a positive earnings announcement.
49.
Big Tech earnings, Federal Reserve decision: What to know this week
2021-07-25 15:43:24 by Emily McCormick from Yahoo FinanceTraders are gearing up for a busy week of corporate earnings results from the mega-cap technology stocks this week. This will come alongside a slew of economic data reports and a monetary policy decision from the Federal Reserve.
The biggest names in the S&P 500 — including Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT), Amazon (AMZN), Facebook (FB) and Alphabet (GOOGL) — are set to report second-quarter results this week. The reports will add to what has already been an exceptional earnings season: So far, 24% of companies in the S&P 500 have reported second-quarter results, and of these, 88% have topped Wall Street's earnings per shares estimates, according to an analysis from FactSet. The blended earnings growth rate for the blue-chip index, which includes both companies' reported growth rates and the estimated rates for the companies have yet to report, stands at 74.2%, which would be the highest since the fourth quarter of 2009.
Earnings results from technology companies Snap (SNAP) and Twitter (TWTR) last week underscored the strength in the internet advertising market, suggesting a strong backdrop that likely also benefitted bigger ad-driven companies like Facebook and Alphabet. Snap's second-quarter revenue growth came in at 116%, or the biggest jump in four years, and the stock rocketed to a record high following the results. Both Snap and Twitter grew active users more than expected, and their estimates topping second-quarter revenues suggested better monetization of these increased users.
According to JPMorgan analyst Doug Anmuth, Snap's results especially "will likely raise the bar for other ad names," including Alphabet and Facebook. The companies report results on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively.
"GOOGL shares are well-owned, but GOOGL remains one of our Top Ideas in 2021 as we believe: 1) reopening will remain a tailwind for Search and YouTube ads, especially as overall spend continues to shift online and travel continues to recover; 2) overall margins will remain meaningfully above pre-pandemic levels ... 3) Cloud growth will remain solid at 40%+ while profit losses continue to improve; and 4) greater capital returns are likely on the heels of the $50 billion incremental buyback authorization last quarter," Anmuth wrote in a note published July 22.
As for Facebook, "advertising should continue to benefit from reopening and we are encouraged by newer initiatives around Reels and Shops, as well as the creator economy, audio, and AR/VR [augmented reality/virtual reality] a bit further out," Anmuth added.
Alphabet has been the best performer of the Big Tech FAANG stocks so far in 2021, with shares rising 52% compared to the S&P 500's 17.5% gain for the year-to-date. As a company that derives meaningful revenue from travel-related advertising revenue, Alphabet has been viewed as a key beneficiary of the broader economic reopening that began to occur in the spring of this year. Other software names, by contrast, have generally been viewed as bigger beneficiaries of a stay-at-home and work-from-home environment.
Alphabet's second-quarter revenue, excluding traffic acquisition costs (TAC), is expected to grow 46% to $46.1 billion, according to Bloomberg data, which would mark the fastest top-line growth for the company since the fourth quarter of 2012.
Still, other online advertisers are also poised to get a boost from the reopening environment, with marketers more open to spend as pandemic-related uncertainty eased. Facebook's revenues likely grew 49% over last year to $27.9 billion for the second quarter, accelerating slightly from the 48% rate in the first three months of 2021. That growth would come even as the company continues to contend with some decreased ad-targeting abilities after a recent Apple update that allowed users to opt out of tracking in apps including Facebook on iOS devices.
And Apple, for its part, likely also had a strong fiscal third-quarter, according to Wall Street's estimates. Though consensus analysts expect to see that revenue growth slowed sequentially to 24% from the second quarter's 54%, a boost from Apple's latest iPhone upgrade cycle will likely still be at play, according to Wedbush analyst Dan Ives.
"While the chip shortage was an overhang for Apple during the quarter, we believe the iPhone and Services strength in the quarter neutralized any short term weakness that the Street was anticipating three months ago," Ives said in a note published July 21. "Taking a step back we believe based on our recent Asia supply chain checks that iPhone 13 demand will be similar/slightly stronger than iPhone 12 out of the gates which speaks to our thesis that this elongated 'supercycle' will continue for Cupertino well into 2022."
Meanwhile, e-commerce behemoth Amazon is heading into its first-ever earnings report without founder Jeff Bezos at the helm. The stock has underperformed so far in 2021, rising 12.3% for the year-to-date, after jumping by more than 76% in 2020 amid a pandemic-fueled boom in e-commerce demand.
"We expect strong top-line growth in '21, albeit decelerating versus pandemic-charged '20, led by e-commerce growth of +27% y/y (vs. +42% y/y), including a strong 2Q and solid growth in 3Q-4Q as AMZN comps the pandemic surge," Cowen analyst John Blackledge wrote in a note.
An early Prime Day sales extravaganza is poised to help boost Amazon's second-quarter top-line growth. The two-day event took place in late June this year, or at the end of the second quarter, compared to July 2019 and October 2020. And on the bottom-line, Amazon's faster-growing, high-margin Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud computing platform likely continued to help boost profitability.
Federal Reserve decision
The Federal Reserve kicks off its latest two-day meeting on Tuesday, with a monetary policy decision and press conference from Fed Chair Jerome Powell set to take place Wednesday afternoon.
The Fed's June monetary policy statement and updated Summary of Economic Projections were taken as much less accommodative than many market participants expected, with the central bank raising its median forecasts for U.S. economic growth and core inflation over the next two years. The projections suggested the Fed might be more inclined to adjust policy in light of a fast-recovering economy experiencing rising inflation.
The Fed's first monetary policy move would impact the central bank's quantitative easing program, with asset purchases still taking place at a rate of $120 billion per month. Powell's discussions around these purchases have shifted throughout his recent public appearances, suggesting more serious consideration among FOMC members to announce the start of tapering. In April, for instance, Powell said the economy was "a long way from" achieving the Fed's employment and inflation targets that would trigger a pivot to less accommodative monetary policy. But after the Fed's June meeting, Powell said the economy was "still a ways off" from the central bank's goals.
"Next week’s FOMC meeting should be less eventful than June’s hawkishly-perceived meeting. There will be no new interest rate forecasts ‘dots’ so attention will focus on the post-meeting statement and Chair Powell’s press conference," JPMorgan economist Michael Feroli wrote in a note. "We believe the statement’s wording around asset purchases will be unchanged, but we expect that Powell will relate that the Committee discussed tapering again and that the economy is slowly getting closer to passing the 'substantial further progress' test to actually start tapering.
However, in the weeks since the Fed's June meeting, more concerns arose around the Delta variant of the coronavirus, which triggered a sell-off in markets last week and which might increase monetary policymakers' perceptions of the risks still present in the economy. At the same time, however, the risk that fast-rising inflation might need to be curbed with a monetary policy adjustment has also increased, with core consumer prices and producer prices each rising faster-than-expected in June.
But on net, the Fed is likely to maintain a wait-and-see approach before making any adjustments, according to Feroli.
"Powell’s mid-July Congressional testimony raised the prospect that the FOMC statement would introduce an asymmetric policy bias: standing prepared to adjust policy if the Fed 'saw signs that the path of inflation or longer-term inflation expectations were moving materially and persistently beyond levels consistent with our goal,'" Feroli said. "Since that testimony the rise of the Delta variant has injected some downside growth risks into the outlook, and this should help the doves argue for retaining the current symmetric policy bias."
Earnings Calendar
Monday: Lockheed Martin (LMT) before market open; Tesla (TSLA) after market close
Tuesday: Centene (CNC), UPS (UPS), 3M (MMM), SiriusXM Holdings (SIRI), Sherwin-Williams (SHW), General Electric (GE), Stanley Black & Decker (SWK), Polaris (PII), Waste Management Inc (WM), Boston Scientific Corp (BSX), JetBlue (JBLU), Fiserv (FISV), Raytheon Technologies (RTX), Invesco (IVZ), Lamb Weston Holdings (LW) before market open; Apple (AAPL), Starbucks (SBUX), Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Alphabet (GOOGL), Teladoc Health (TDOC), Visa (V), Microsoft (MSFT), Mondelez International (MDLZ), Juniper Networks (JNPR), The Cheesecake Factory (CAKE) after market close
Wednesday: Humana (HUM), CME Group (CME), Pfizer (PFE), McDonald's (MCD), Six Flags Entertainment (SIX), Boeing (BA), Moody's Corp (MCO), General Dynamics Corp (GD), Teledyne Technologies (TDY), Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMY) before market open; Facebook (FB), Ford (F), Xilinx (XLNX), PayPal (PYPL), ServiceNow (NOW), Lam Research Corp (LRCX), Align Technology (ALGN) after market close
Thursday: Merck & Co (MRK), Intercontinental Exchange (ICE), T Rowe Price Group (TROW), Comcast Corp (CMCSA), Spirit Airlines (SAVE), Valero Energy (VLO), Hilton Worldwide Holdings (HLT), The Carlyle Group (CG), Mastercard (MA), Molson Coors Beverage Co (TAP), Keurig Dr. Pepper (KDP), Yum! Brands (YUM), PG&E (PCG), Citrix Systems (CTXS), S&P Global Inc (SPGI) before market open; Amazon (AMZN), Overstock.com (OSTK), Albertsons Co (ACI), Altria Group (MO), T-Mobile (TMUS), World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), Twilio (TWLO), Pinterest (PINS), Mohawk Industries (MHK), Upwork (UPWK), Skyworks Solutions (SWKS), United States Steel (X), Gilead Sciences (GILD),
Friday: Caterpillar (CAT), VF Corp (VFC), Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM), Chevron Corp (CVX), Danimer Scientific (DNMR), Procter & Gamble (PG), AbbVie (ABBV), Charter Communications (CHTR) before market open
Economic Calendar
Monday: New home sales, month-on-month, June (4.0% expected, -5.9% in May); Dallas Fed Manufacturing Activity Index, July (32.3 expected, 31.1 in June)
Tuesday: Durable goods orders, June preliminary (2.0% expected, 2.3% in May); Durable goods orders excluding transportation, June preliminary (0.8% expected, 0.3% in May); Non-defense capital goods orders excluding aircraft, June preliminary (0.8% expected, 0.1% in May); Non-defense capital goods shipments excluding aircraft, June preliminary (0.8% expected, 1.1% in May); FHFA House Price Index, month-on-month, May (1.6% expected, 1.8% in April); S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller 20-City Composite Index, month-on-month, May (1.50% expected, 1.62% in April); S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller 20-City Composite Index, year-on-year, May (16.20% expected, 14.88% in April); Conference Board Consumer Confidence, July (124.0 expected, 127.3 in June); Richmond Federal Reserve Manufacturing Index, July (20 expected, 22 in June)
Wednesday: MBA Mortgage Applications, week ended July 23 (-4.0% during prior week); Advance Goods Trade Balance, June (-$88.0 billion expected, -$88.1 billion in May); Wholesale Inventories, month-on-month, June preliminary (1.1% expected, 1.3% in May); FOMC Monetary Policy Decision
Thursday: Initial jobless claims, week ended July 24 (380,000 expected, 419,000 during prior week); Continuing claims, week ended July 17 (3.192 million expected, 3.236 million during prior week; GDP annualized, quarter-on-quarter, second quarter (8.5% expected, 6.4% in first quarter); Personal consumption, second quarter (10.5% expected, 11.4% in first quarter); Core personal consumption expenditures, quarter-over-quarter, second quarter (6.0% expected, 2.5% in first quarter); Pending home sales, month-on-month, June (0.5% expected, 8.0% in May)
Friday: Personal income, June (-0.4% expected, -2.0% in May); Personal spending, June (0.7% expected, 0.0% in May); PCE deflator, month-on-month, June (0.6% expected, 0.4% in May); PCE deflator, year-on-year, June (4.0% expected, 3.9% in May); PCE core deflator, month-on-month, June (0.6% expected, 0.4% in May); PCE core deflator, year-on-year, June (3.7% expected, 3.4% in May); University of Michigan Sentiment, July final (80.8 expected, 80.8 in prior print)
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Emily McCormick is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter: @emily_mcck
Read more from Emily:
May jobs report: Economy adds back 559,000 jobs, unemployment rate fell to 5.8%
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