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Video game sales show no signs of slowing.

In the first half of the year, video game sales were up to $28.9 billion – up 15% year over year, according to the NPD Group.

For the second quarter, gaming sales totaled $14 billion — a 2% increase year over year.

In the first quarter, video game sales were 30% higher in the first quarter of the year rising to $14.92 billion. “Video game content (which includes new games, expansions, and DLC) went up by 25% to a total of 12.8 billion, while video game accessories (including microtransactions) went up 42%,” reported The Gamer.

Now, we’re learning Q3 video game sales were up another 7% to $13.3 billion.

“Consumer spending on the video game segment continued to grow in the third quarter, driven by console hardware such as the PlayStation 5, Switch and Xbox Series, and the subscription and mobile content segments,” said Mat Piscatella, games industry analyst at The NPD Group.

For September 2021, sales hit a record $4.4 billion, a 3% jump year over year. Year to date, sales are up to $42.3 billion, a 12% jump year over year.

So much for a post-pandemic slowdown in sales.

As we head into the holiday shopping season, video game sales could skyrocket even more. In fact, if that’s the case, you may want to keep an eye on Take Two Interactive (TTWO), Activision Blizzard (ATVI), Electronic Arts (EA), and Nintendo (NTDOY).

Or, take a look at gaming ETFs, such as:

The Global X Video Games & eSports ETF (HERO)

Since bottoming out around $27, the ETF is now up to $30.91. If it can break above double top resistance, HERO could see $33 next. Better, the ETF offers exposure to a potential $200 billion gaming opportunity. According to Global X, “The global gaming market increased more than 20% from 2019 to 2020, exceeding $175bn – larger than Hollywood or professional sports. Forecasts suggest the market could surpass $200bn by 2023.”

VanEck Video Gaming and eSports ETF (ESPO)

ESPO has been just as explosive, running from $63 to $74 since early October. The ETF is likely to benefit with the competitive video game audience expected to reach 495 million people.

 

The post The Top Video Game Stocks to Consider for New Year 2022 appeared first on Morningology.

Inflation is a bit out of control.

Just yesterday, we learned wholesale prices are through the roof at 8.6%, and show no signs of cooling off any time soon.

“Mostly dormant for decades, inflation has returned to the United States this year. The economy’s strong rebound from the 2020 coronavirus caught many businesses by surprise. Their scramble to meet unexpectedly strong demand has created shortages of labor, raw materials and goods and snarled traffic at ports and freight yards. The result has been higher prices, and the supply squeeze is expected to last at least well into 2022,” says Reuters.

Then, this morning, we learned the consumer price index was up 6.2% year over year. That’s the highest it’s been in about 31 years. Strip out food and energy, and the number was 4.6% — the fastest gain we’ve seen in about 30 years.

Meanwhile, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen still believe inflation is just temporary. From here, they see inflation possibly easing in about a year or so.

That’s not even close to comforting at this point.

So, what’s the best way to hedge against rising inflation?

Aside from gold, which is up about $27 to $1,856 at the moment, another way is to hedge with cryptocurrencies, like Bitcoin, which is nearing $70,000. There’s also the ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF (BITO), which jumped from about $39 to $44 over the last few days. And there’s the Horizon Kinetics Inflation Beneficiaries ETF (INFL), which we highlighted on October 20.

The INFL ETF reportedly offers protection in inflationary environments.

“Two areas that you’d be pretty hard pressed to argue against being inflationary over the past decade are higher education and health care,” hence INFL’s top holding, pharmaceutical service provider Charles River Laboratories, said the INFL’s co-portfolio manager, James Davolos, as quoted by CNBC in June 2021.

At $31.60 with an expense ratio of 0.85%, the ETF also holds a position in Franco Nevada Corp., ASK Ltd., Texas Pacific Land Corporation, Viper Energy, CBRE Group Inc., and Archer Daniels.

Since the start of October 2021, the ETF jumped from $29.25 to $31.60 – and could push higher along with inflationary threats.

The post With Inflation at 30-Year Highs, Consider These Trade Ideas appeared first on Morningology.

Electrified, shares of EVgo (EVGO) could see higher highs.

For one, the $1 trillion infrastructure bill “allocates $5 billion to expand EV-charging stations along highways and an additional $2.5 billion for other charging alternatives such as hydrogen-fueling infrastructure. President Joe Biden said the funding could help build more than 500,000 charging stations, and help make 50% of vehicles electric by 2030,” according to Barron’s.

Two, with EV demand still accelerating, we could see thousands of charging stations across the U.S. Three, with more than 800 fast charging spots, its network services more than 68 metropolitan areas across 35 states and more than 300,000 customer accounts.

Four, by 2040, the company expects for nearly 28% of all U.S. vehicles to be battery electric, which could provide massive growth opportunities, as well. Five, EVGO is guiding for $54 million, with its sights set on $596 million by 2025.

By 2027, EVGO sees revenue as high as $1.289 billion.

Helping, according to Tip Ranks, more than 130 million people (39% of population) live within 10 miles of an EVGO charging station.

Even better, EVGO and General Motors announced plans for more fast charging stations. In fact, the two want to deploy 3,250 charging stalls by 2025. “the charging stalls are direct current fast chargers, which can charge an EV far more quickly than those that use older-generation chargers. With the right EV, a DC fast charger can deliver about 150 miles of range in as little as eight minutes,” says Barron’s.

 

The post One of the Top Ways to Trade an Electrified Charging Station Boom appeared first on Morningology.

We’re sitting ducks.

After all these years, we’re still not ready for cyberattacks.

In late August 2021, the U.S. State Department was hit with a cyberattack.

In fact, according to Sam Curry, chief security officer at Cybereason, as quoted by Infosecurity-Magazine.com, “The recent cyber-attack against the U.S. State Department is a reminder that anyone and everyone can be hit and will be hit.”

Cities, hospitals, schools, and many companies aren’t ready.

Just yesterday Robinhood (HOOD) said hackers made off with the personal information of seven million users. Hackers also made off with personal information including names, birthdates, zip codes. Thankfully, they didn’t access social security numbers or bank account details.

“Robinhood previously warned in disclosures with the Securities and Exchange Commission that due to the pandemic, there is an “’Increased risk that we may experience cybersecurity-related incidents as a result of our employees, service providers and other third parties working remotely on less secure systems and environments,’” as noted by the New York Post.

Still, in this day and age, for companies, governments, and even hospitals to be so poorly prepared is pure laziness and ridiculous.

Top Ways to Invest in the Cybersecurity Threat

Global X Cybersecurity ETF (BUG)

“The Global X Cybersecurity ETF (BUG) seeks to invest in companies that stand to potentially benefit from the increased adoption of cybersecurity technology, such as those whose principal business is in the development and management of security protocols preventing intrusion and attacks to systems, networks, applications, computers, and mobile devices,” says Global X.

Over the last several months, the BUG ETF exploded from about $24.50 to about $34.80. From here, we could see a potential test of $40, near-term, as the cyber situation intensifies. Some of the ETFs top holdings include Fortinet, Crowdstrike, Palo Alto, Okta Inc., and Rapid7 Inc. to name a few. What’s nice about an ETF is that it offers a good deal of exposure at less cost.

iShares Cybersecurity and Tech ETF (IHAK)

According to iShares, “The iShares Cybersecurity and Tech ETF seeks to track the investment results of an index composed of developed and emerging market companies involved in cyber security and technology, including cyber security hardware, software, products, and services.”

IHAK ran from a low of about $38 to $48 over the last few months on the cyber threat. From here, it could see $60 a share. Some of its top holdings include Zscaler, Fortinet, Docusign Inc., Okta Inc. Proofpoint Inc., and Palo Alto.

Palo Alto Networks (PANW)

PANW is one of the biggest cybersecurity firms in the world. Even after running from a low of $360 to $519, it could still see higher highs. We’ll learn how well the company has been doing when it releases Q1 2022 earnings after markets close on November 18, 2021.

Analysts seem to like the stock, too.

Deutsche Bank recently raised its price target to $560 from $515, with a buy rating. Wedbush raised its target to $600 from $470, with an outperform rating.

The post Robinhood Hacked: Top Ways to Invest in Cyber Threats appeared first on Morningology.

Investors are flocking to infrastructure stocks.

All on the passage of a $1 trillion bill over the weekend, which includes funding for:

The bill includes funding for:

• Roads, bridges, major projects: $110 billion
• Passenger and freight rail: $66 billion
• Public transit: $39 billion
• Airports: $25 billion
• Port infrastructure: $17 billion
• Transportation safety programs: $11 billion
• Electric vehicles: $7.5 billion
• Zero and low-emission buses and ferries: $7.5 billion

Revitalization of communities: $1 billion

Stocks like Caterpillar, US Steel, Steel Dynamics, Nucor, Vulcan Materials, Fluor, Martin Marietta, and Eagle Materials to name a few, took off.

Even the Global X US Infrastructure ETF (PAVE) is pushing higher on the news.

Hopefully, we’ll start to see big improvements to US infrastructure soon.

Remember, just months ago, the American Society of Civil Engineers gave the country a C- — an improvement from a D+ in 2017.

“Many of the country’s roads, bridges, airports, dams, levees and water systems are aging and in poor to mediocre condition. And they’re in need of a major federal investment to keep from getting worse and to withstand the harsh effects of a changing climate, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers,” as reported by NPR at the time.

Plus, according to the ASCE, 47% of the 617,000 bridges are more than 50 years old. More than 46,000 of them were deemed “structurally deficient.”

While there’s a good deal of excitement for these stocks, be cautious. With related Infrastructure stocks pricing in a good amount of news to date, we could begin to see a “sell the news” reaction from profit takers.

Stay tuned for more on this developing story.

The post Infrastructure Stocks Pop on Passage of $1 Trillion Bill – But be Cautious appeared first on Morningology.

Bitcoin just hit an all-time high of 66,556.

All thanks to massive interest from retail and institutional investors.

JP Morgan even just doubled down on its prediction for $146,000 BTC. “The re-emergence of inflation concerns among investors during September/October 2021 appears to have renewed interest in the usage of bitcoin as an inflation hedge,” JPMorgan’s Nikolaos Panigirtzoglou said.

In addition, according to cryptocurrency exchange Kraken, “BTC has been priming itself for a supply shock thanks to further accumulation by long-term holders. This accumulation may be a driver for BTC’s recent move past $60,000. The latest on-chain data indicates that this supply shock trend is growing,” as quoted by Daily HODL.

There’s also no shortage of bulls.

Fundstrat Global Advisors’ Tom Lee, for example, says Bitcoin could run to $100,000 this year.
Fidelity’s director of global macro, Jurrien Timmer, as noted by Yahoo Finance, says Bitcoin could hit $100,000 by 2023.

“So this move up [in bitcoin] has come without the help of momentum chasers, which I think is a good sign because it means there is something else making bitcoin go up. And, that is the fundamental demand for bitcoin and its network. When I come up with $100,000 [for bitcoin prices], that’s a conservative estimate based on the intersections of my supply model and my demand model.”

Remember, if Bitcoin investing isn’t for you, the miners hold a good deal of potential, too.

Marathon Patent Group (MARA) is up $11 today to $75.74.

Since bottoming out around $30 in September, the MARA stock raced to $75.74. The company also produced 417.7 self-mined bitcoins during Oct 2021, increasing total bitcoin holdings to approximately 7,453 with a fair market value of approximately $457.4 million.

Riot Blockchain (RIOT) is up $5.43 to $36.92.

Riot Blockchain produced 464 BTC, an increase of approximately 433% over its October 2020 production of 87 BTC. Year to date, the Company produced a total of 2,921 BTC, an increase of approximately 257% over its BTC production during the same 2020 period of 818 BTC.

Even the Global X Blockchain ETF (BKCH) is up $3.40 to $38.41 today.

Over the last few weeks, BKCH ran from a low of $23 to $38.47 and could be headed higher with Bitcoin prices. With an expense ratio of 0.50%, some of the ETF’s top holdings include Marathon Digital, Coinbase Global, Hut 8 Mining, HIVE Blockchain, and Canaan Inc., for ex.

The post Crypto Boom: Top Reasons Bitcoin Could See Higher Highs appeared first on Morningology.

It’s that time of year again.

Every year, Americans (about 90% of them, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine) make their New Year’s resolution to lose weight, diet, and exercise more, which usually ends in passing on the resolution until next year.

It’s a seasonal phenomenon that many of us are all too familiar with.

This year won’t be much different, as we head into the season between our ritualistic Thanksgiving “stuffing,” holiday parties, and the December holidays.

It’s when we start feeling “fat” and worry about our added “baggage” that we promise ourselves that next year will be different…

It’s why we often see fitness stocks push higher around the end of the year.

Look at Planet Fitness (PLNT), for example.

Over the last few years, the stock gets a respectable boost on demand. This year seems to be no different. In fact, the stock is up $9.51 at the moment on increased demand and earnings.

In its most recent quarter, the company saw adjusted profit of 25 cents a share, which was far better than forecasts for 18 cents. Sales of $1254.3 million was also better than estimates for $135 million.

“We are emerging from the pandemic stronger than ever, having achieved the highest sequential net member growth of any third quarter in company history, with membership levels reaching 97% of our all-time peak,” said CEO Christopher Rondeau, as quoted by Barron’s.

The company is also forecasting full-year revenue of between $570 million and $580 million, which is up nicely from a prior range of $530 million to $540 million. PLNT also expects adjusted EPS of between 75 cents and 80 cents from earlier forecasts for 65 to 70 cents.

Between the pandemic recovery, and the holiday season, PLNT may be setting up for another solid quarter of growth.

The post This May Be One of the Top Gym Stocks to Own Right Now appeared first on Morningology.

The Federal Reserve just announced it’ll slow its bond-buying program.

In fact, by mid-November, it’s expected to slow the program by $15 billion a month. 

That includes reducing net asset purchases of Treasuries by $10 billion, and mortgage-backed securities by $5 billion.  All as the central bank reverses course on historic stimulus.  However, the Fed is still “prepared to adjust the pace of purchases if warranted by changes in the economic outlook,” as quoted by Barron’s.  

That should keep markets calm should economic growth weaken.  

In addition, the Federal Reserve still believes inflation is transitory, noting that, “Supply and demand imbalances related to the pandemic and the reopening of the economy have contributed to sizable price increases in some sectors.”

And while the Fed left interest rates unchanged, markets are expecting hikes by 2022.  

In fact, according to Kitco.com, Bank of America expects the Fed to raise interest rates five times, with the first coming in the fourth quarter of 2022.  

Other analysts are betting the Fed will hike rates twice in 2022, and another three times by 2023, says CNBC.  Fed funds future contracts show a 75% chance of a hike by Summer 2022.  

It’ll be interesting to see what comes next. Stay tuned for more.

The post FOMC Statement: It’s Time to Taper appeared first on Morningology.

Tesla (TSLA) is pulling back.

After exploding from $750 to a high of $1,209.75, the stock is down about $45 at the moment.

For one, the EV stock was overdue for a healthy pullback after a $500 move. It’s also wildly overbought on RSI, MACD, and Williams’ %R. Typically, when these indicators align in overbought territory, the stock will pull back.

Two, the deal with Hertz isn’t signed yet, according to Elon Musk.

In fact, according to a Musk tweet, “If any of this is based on Hertz, I’d like to emphasize that no contract has been signed yet” in reference to the rally.

However, according to Hertz, the Tesla order was made and deliveries are underway.

“As we announced last week, Hertz has made an initial order of 100,000 Tesla electric vehicles and is investing in new EV charging infrastructure across the company’s global operations,” noted a Hertz press release, as quoted by Yahoo Finance.

“Deliveries of the Teslas already have started, and consumer reaction to our commitment to lead in electrification has been beyond our expectations,” the company added.

Three, Tesla just recalled about 12,000 vehicles over software communication issues. Reportedly, the issue could cause a false forward-collision warning, or unexpected activation of the brakes, as noted by the National Highway Traffic Administration, as highlighted by CNBC.

With everything going on, investors may want to wait for the pullback to exhaust itself before taking a position. Once it does finish pulling back, we’d like to see Tesla closer to $1,500, as the electric vehicle story becomes even hotter.

The post This is Why Shares of Tesla Are Pulling Back appeared first on Morningology.

Drug maker stocks are pushing higher on a new California ruling.

• Teva Pharmaceuticals (TEVA) is up about 10%
• Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) up about $4 a share
• Endo International (ENDP) is up about 7%
• AbbVie (ABBV) is up about $2.60

All after Orange County Superior Court Judge Peter Wilson issued a tentative ruling in favor of the drug makers in a $50 billion opioid case. The original suit accused the companies of causing or contributing to the opioid crisis with misleading marketing. It also argued the companies should have to pay $50 billion toward efforts to end the epidemic.

However, Judge Wilson rejected the claims and said the drug makers were not legally liable.

“There is simply no evidence to show that the rise in prescriptions was not the result of the medically appropriate provision of pain medications to patients in need,” Wilson said, as quoted by Barron’s. “The Court finds that Plaintiffs failed to prove an actionable public nuisance for which the defendants, of any of them, are legally liable.”

This is the first trial win for drug companies in the more than 3,300 lawsuits filed, says Reuters.

The Opioid Crisis Has Gotten Worse

It’ll be interesting to see what happens next – and how the U.S. plans to end the opioid issue.

At the moment, according to Time, U.S. opioid-related deaths were up by 30% in 2020 to 93,000. In Canada, deaths jumped 89% year over year.

Worse, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse:

• Roughly 21 to 29 percent of patients prescribed opioids for chronic pain misuse them
• Between 8 and 12 percent of people using an opioid for chronic pain develop an opioid use disorder.
• An estimated 4 to 6 percent who misuse prescription opioids transition to heroin.
• About 80 percent of people who use heroin first misused prescription opioids

Again, it’ll be interesting to see how the U.S. plans to deal with the issue.

The post Drug Maker Stocks Pop on Ruling from California Superior Court appeared first on Morningology.