Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG), the famed operator of quick-service Mexican restaurants, soared to a new high on Friday after reporting fourth-quarter results.  #-ad_banner-#Earnings of $2.53 a share were up 30% year over year, matching analysts’ estimates. And the company handsomely beat on the top line, reporting a 21% year-over-year revenue increase to $844.1 million. During the conference call that followed the earnings announcement, the company discussed that an increase in prices on its menu is likely later in 2014, a direct results of higher costs for crucial inputs like beef and… Read More

Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG), the famed operator of quick-service Mexican restaurants, soared to a new high on Friday after reporting fourth-quarter results.  #-ad_banner-#Earnings of $2.53 a share were up 30% year over year, matching analysts’ estimates. And the company handsomely beat on the top line, reporting a 21% year-over-year revenue increase to $844.1 million. During the conference call that followed the earnings announcement, the company discussed that an increase in prices on its menu is likely later in 2014, a direct results of higher costs for crucial inputs like beef and avocados. This is something that investors have also heard from other restaurant companies in recent weeks, and thus likely came as less of a surprise. On the back of better-than-expected sales guidance for 2014, analysts were quick to boost their sales targets. Morgan Stanley, for example, raised its full-year same-store sales growth forecast from 5.8% to 6.9%. Currently, Chipotle has more than 1,500 restaurants worldwide and is planning on opening up to 195 new restaurants this year. Like many companies, Chipotle also spoke favorably to the idea of increasing its stock buyback program, which speaks to the company’s confidence in… Read More

The stock markets of 2013 and 2014 now share one thing in common: They’ve each had a 5% pullback. #-ad_banner-#It happened just once last year (in late May and June after investors sensed that the Federal Reserve would start to taper) and already has happened in 2014, just 35 days into the trading year. How unusual was the market action last year? It was only the fifth year in the past 50 with one or fewer pullbacks of 5%, according to Bespoke Investment Research. In other words, such pullbacks should be expected several times a year. As I noted last… Read More

The stock markets of 2013 and 2014 now share one thing in common: They’ve each had a 5% pullback. #-ad_banner-#It happened just once last year (in late May and June after investors sensed that the Federal Reserve would start to taper) and already has happened in 2014, just 35 days into the trading year. How unusual was the market action last year? It was only the fifth year in the past 50 with one or fewer pullbacks of 5%, according to Bespoke Investment Research. In other words, such pullbacks should be expected several times a year. As I noted last week, there aren’t especially good reasons for the current round of market weakness, so the damage may stay contained at current levels. (Unless margin selling kicks in, which is my biggest worry right now, as it induces a vicious cycle of further selling.) Still, the market pullback has created a chance to scour for fresh openings. And one of my favorite research moves is to identify stocks with heavy insider buying that have now fallen below levels where insiders bought in. These stocks of course can fall further (given that insiders are notoriously bad market timers), but the recent insider… Read More

Even after a horrendous January and amid the bear market talk dominating the financial news, I remain bullish on the stock market. I will even so far as to say that one interest rate-sensitive sector that thrived in 2013 will continue its winning ways into next year.#-ad_banner-#​ There is no question that January was a difficult month for the stock market. A combination of the Federal Reserve starting to dial back on its massive bond-buying program, emerging-market fears and even the end of Ben Bernanke’s term as Fed chairman fueled investor anxiety. In addition, interest rates started a… Read More

Even after a horrendous January and amid the bear market talk dominating the financial news, I remain bullish on the stock market. I will even so far as to say that one interest rate-sensitive sector that thrived in 2013 will continue its winning ways into next year.#-ad_banner-#​ There is no question that January was a difficult month for the stock market. A combination of the Federal Reserve starting to dial back on its massive bond-buying program, emerging-market fears and even the end of Ben Bernanke’s term as Fed chairman fueled investor anxiety. In addition, interest rates started a slow climb higher, prompting an overreaction on the sell side.  Uncertainty is stocks’ #1 enemy. Seeing as some of the past month’s uncertainty has been realized, I think the overall downward price trend will soon stabilize, forcing stocks back into their long-term upward drift.  But rather than speculate about the future, let’s look at what actually occurred in the first month of 2014, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average as a guide.  After hitting an all-time high near 16,600 at the end of December, the Dow dropped to just under 15,700 by Jan. 31. Yet it’s crucial to remember the… Read More

As we all know, the goal of trading is to make money. But sometimes traders think like analysts, and being right about a market’s direction overshadows the primary directive — making money. So when the stock market gives us fits and starts, and crosscurrents like emerging markets and the Federal Reserve make equities treacherous, it makes sense to look for other opportunities.#-ad_banner-# As they say, there is always a bull market somewhere, and right now, it looks as if the Japanese yen is in the early stages of one. And for those who cannot or prefer not to… Read More

As we all know, the goal of trading is to make money. But sometimes traders think like analysts, and being right about a market’s direction overshadows the primary directive — making money. So when the stock market gives us fits and starts, and crosscurrents like emerging markets and the Federal Reserve make equities treacherous, it makes sense to look for other opportunities.#-ad_banner-# As they say, there is always a bull market somewhere, and right now, it looks as if the Japanese yen is in the early stages of one. And for those who cannot or prefer not to trade spot currencies or futures, the CurrencyShares Japanese Yen Trust (NYSE: FXY) provides a liquid way to play. I will leave the fundamentals of the Japanese economy to others to analyze. From a charting point of view, there is plenty to like, and given the yen’s status as a safe-haven currency, the turmoil in emerging markets and volatility domestically add additional luster. The analysis is rather simple. After a two-year bear market in which FXY fell from $130 to a low of $92.75 at the end of last year, technical indicators are looking up. For example, on the weekly chart,… Read More

What do Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO), Campbell’s Soup (NYSE: CPB) and Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) all have in common? In short, they’ve all survived some of the biggest economic catastrophes the world has ever seen. While thousands of business have come and gone since the early 1900s, these companies have managed to prosper through more than a century of political and economic turbulence. So what’s allowed these companies to continually generate shareholder wealth despite two world wars, the Great Depression, and countless bear markets and recessions? It’s simple: They all belong to a select group of investments that we like… Read More

What do Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO), Campbell’s Soup (NYSE: CPB) and Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) all have in common? In short, they’ve all survived some of the biggest economic catastrophes the world has ever seen. While thousands of business have come and gone since the early 1900s, these companies have managed to prosper through more than a century of political and economic turbulence. So what’s allowed these companies to continually generate shareholder wealth despite two world wars, the Great Depression, and countless bear markets and recessions? It’s simple: They all belong to a select group of investments that we like to call “Legacy Assets.” #-ad_banner-#For those of you aren’t familiar, “Legacy Assets” is a distinction my colleague David Forest has reserved for companies that have rewarded shareholders for generations. Not only do these companies often sport durable brand names and impenetrable economic moats, their strong competitive advantages have led them to consistently outperform the market for decades. But it’s not just the companies themselves that have stood the test of time. The products they make have remained virtually unchanged. In some cases, the same products have been generating wealth for more than 200 years. While tech companies like Apple and… Read More

Whether this industry’s products are in a mansion owned by the wealthiest 1% or a poverty-stricken housing project, it plays an unmistakable role in nearly every family.#-ad_banner-#​ These products have nothing to do with basic needs like food or shelter — they fall strictly into the “want” category. Yet this demand is so strong that this industry is an $84 billion global behemoth. Even the global economic downturn of 2007 to 2009 barely affected this industry’s sales. Those of you who have had children are probably familiar with this business — the toy industry, to be specific. I… Read More

Whether this industry’s products are in a mansion owned by the wealthiest 1% or a poverty-stricken housing project, it plays an unmistakable role in nearly every family.#-ad_banner-#​ These products have nothing to do with basic needs like food or shelter — they fall strictly into the “want” category. Yet this demand is so strong that this industry is an $84 billion global behemoth. Even the global economic downturn of 2007 to 2009 barely affected this industry’s sales. Those of you who have had children are probably familiar with this business — the toy industry, to be specific. I am amazed at how recession-resistant this industry is, and I think the world’s largest toy company is poised to be a great investment in 2014.   Mattel (NYSE: MAT) is a household name in the western world. Named for founders Harold “Matt” Matson and Elliot Handler, the company was born in a garage workshop in 1945. Mattel started out as a picture frame manufacturer but soon became a toy company after Matson and Handler found success selling dollhouse furniture built from scrap wood. Mattel’s first big break came when it acquired the rights to make products for the popular Mickey… Read More

The subject of female condoms might make some people blush, but the company responsible for manufacturing them has nothing to be embarrassed about.#-ad_banner-#​ In fact, the Female Health Co. (Nasdaq: FHCO) is doing a public service by making its FC2 condom available to women in 143 countries, especially where preventing unwanted pregnancy and protection against HIV are paramount. To many investors, FHCO is the epitome of a socially responsible investment. The FC2 isn’t as well-known as its male counterpart, so FHC has leaned on public agencies to help spread the word, allowing internal efforts to focus on production. Read More

The subject of female condoms might make some people blush, but the company responsible for manufacturing them has nothing to be embarrassed about.#-ad_banner-#​ In fact, the Female Health Co. (Nasdaq: FHCO) is doing a public service by making its FC2 condom available to women in 143 countries, especially where preventing unwanted pregnancy and protection against HIV are paramount. To many investors, FHCO is the epitome of a socially responsible investment. The FC2 isn’t as well-known as its male counterpart, so FHC has leaned on public agencies to help spread the word, allowing internal efforts to focus on production. Once FC2 gained the FDA’s approval in 2009, FHC was off and running, with ownership of patents worldwide. It first reached out to larger cities where HIV/AIDS infections and sexually transmitted diseases were most prevalent. FHC worked with health care providers and agencies to gain a foothold among the public. The company also zeroed in on colleges and universities where on-campus organizations benefited from grants to put together programs that helped make the FC2 a household name among young women. The reliance on public entities has allowed FHC to operate with no debt and high net profit margins — to… Read More

When it comes to picking investments, stock guys like me have it easy.#-ad_banner-# Let’s say we’re looking for a stock. Well, we like spaghetti. We know that other people like spaghetti. We know that the Whatsamattayou Pasta Co. is the largest manufacturer of dried pasta in the country. The company makes money, and the stock looks undervalued. We buy.  Bond guys have it much tougher. They have to be way better than stock guys at math and economics and reading the tea leaves. That’s why I really respect the work they do. No wonder the colorful political pundit… Read More

When it comes to picking investments, stock guys like me have it easy.#-ad_banner-# Let’s say we’re looking for a stock. Well, we like spaghetti. We know that other people like spaghetti. We know that the Whatsamattayou Pasta Co. is the largest manufacturer of dried pasta in the country. The company makes money, and the stock looks undervalued. We buy.  Bond guys have it much tougher. They have to be way better than stock guys at math and economics and reading the tea leaves. That’s why I really respect the work they do. No wonder the colorful political pundit James Carville once said he’d like to be reincarnated as the bond market — that way, he could “scare the hell out of everybody.”  So, when I decided to write about the bond market, I had to approach it from a stock guy’s perspective. As I’ve mentioned, I’m not a “wiggle reader,” as I like to call chartists. However, the charts on the 10-year Treasury yield have grabbed my attention big time: This one-year chart is pretty self-explanatory: Rates are trending lower. And there’s money to be made. Bond prices have an inverse relationship to bond yields: Prices… Read More

This $103 billion aircraft manufacturer is about to experience some turbulence.#-ad_banner-# It might just be a rogue cloud or a bigger storm brewing, but there’s no telling how investors will react to the latest string of disconcerting news for this company. A couple of items might even be enough to overshadow the fact that Boeing just beat analysts’ estimates for the fifth consecutive quarter. Yes, it could get that bumpy for Boeing (NYSE: BA). BA was pummeled this week after the company announced lower-than-expected forecasts for 2014 — but no signals of a continuation of record-breaking jet orders. You can’t… Read More

This $103 billion aircraft manufacturer is about to experience some turbulence.#-ad_banner-# It might just be a rogue cloud or a bigger storm brewing, but there’s no telling how investors will react to the latest string of disconcerting news for this company. A couple of items might even be enough to overshadow the fact that Boeing just beat analysts’ estimates for the fifth consecutive quarter. Yes, it could get that bumpy for Boeing (NYSE: BA). BA was pummeled this week after the company announced lower-than-expected forecasts for 2014 — but no signals of a continuation of record-breaking jet orders. You can’t say the same for Boeing’s archrival, France-based Airbus (PAR: AIR), which is making headway in Southeast Asia. Vietnamese carrier VietJetAir is about to order 62 Airbus aircraft for a reported $9 billion, with more orders to come.  Now is a great time to invest in Vietnam, considering it’s expected to become the third-fastest-growing market in the world. Boeing has estimated of the 33,000 commercial aircraft it expects will be required in the next two decades, the U.S. will account for just 20%, with the bulk coming from emerging markets like Vietnam. About Boeing’s aircraft: Lately, its Dreamliner 787 has gotten… Read More

There is perhaps no better investment opportunity than when a company comes out and says it’s worth more after receiving a takeover offer. This is especially true when there are a number of suitors for that same company. #-ad_banner-#​In these situations, the “belle of the ball” becomes sought after, and the bidding war begins. The highest bidder wins the prize — and shareholders make off with a bunch of money and profits. This could well be what plays out with Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC). Charter Communications (Nasdaq: CHTR), backed by billionaire John Malone’s Liberty Media… Read More

There is perhaps no better investment opportunity than when a company comes out and says it’s worth more after receiving a takeover offer. This is especially true when there are a number of suitors for that same company. #-ad_banner-#​In these situations, the “belle of the ball” becomes sought after, and the bidding war begins. The highest bidder wins the prize — and shareholders make off with a bunch of money and profits. This could well be what plays out with Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC). Charter Communications (Nasdaq: CHTR), backed by billionaire John Malone’s Liberty Media (Nasdaq: LMCA), has offered to buy Time Warner Cable for $132.50 a share. If Time Warner Cable and Charter can swing a deal, the combined company would have cable systems stretching from Maine to California. However, TWC rejected Charter’s bid as too low; TWC is looking for $160 a share. The most interesting aspect of the Charter offer is that it’s an opening bid, which is a bid that gets the two sides to the negotiating table.  Another company that is interested in buying Time Warner Cable is Comcast Corp. (Nasdaq: CMCSA). Comcast is the largest cable provider in the… Read More