Author: Editor

With the NOAA predicting another above-normal season, it’s time to invest in top hurricane stocks, as we noted on June 8, 2021.

“For 2021, a likely range of 13 to 20 named storms (winds of 39 mph or higher), of which 6 to 10 could become hurricanes (winds of 74 mph or higher), including 3 to 5 major hurricanes (category 3, 4 or 5; with winds of 111 mph or higher) is expected. NOAA provides these ranges with a 70% confidence,” says NOAA.

One of the latest ones to watch is Elsa.

According to The Weather Channel, “Tropical Storm Elsa is tracking northward through the Gulf of Mexico and will bring heavy rain, strong winds gusts, storm surge and isolated tornadoes to Florida through Wednesday. Elsa will then spread some of its impacts up the Southeast and mid-Atlantic coasts into late week.”

In addition, they note, “The 2021 Atlantic hurricane season is already off to a fast start, even faster than the 2020 season in several aspects.”

With the season just heating up, related stocks are just beginning to push higher.

Look at Generac Holdings (GNRC), for example.

When we mentioned this hurricane stock on June 8, it traded at $350. It’s now up to $427.

The company is the market leader in home standby generators and the leading global manufacturer of mobile generators for industrial use. Beyond the physical damage to homes and businesses, one of the biggest inconveniences of a powerful storm is electrical outages.

GNRC has a history of running higher around the beginning of the hurricane season. For the 2019 hurricane season, for example, it ran from about $54 to $100. For 2020, it ran from about $125 to $363. Now, it could move higher again.

 

The post One of The Top Hurricane Stocks to Own Now appeared first on Morningology.

Keep an eye on lithium stocks.

Over the last few days, General Motors announced its investing in a U.S. lithium project that could become one of the largest, reports Reuters.

They added, “The deal, announced on Friday, comes as automakers around the world scramble for access to lithium and other electric vehicle (EV) metals as internal combustion engines are phased out. GM said it will make a multimillion-dollar investment in and help develop Controlled Thermal Resources (CTR) Ltd’s Hell’s Kitchen geothermal brine project near California’s Salton Sea, roughly 160 miles (258 km) southeast of Los Angeles.”

Such a deal could force other major automakers to do lithium deals of their own, with companies like Albemarle (ALB), Lithium Americas (LAC), and American Lithium (LIACF) to name a few. All with demand expected to outstrip supply by 20% over the next four years, reports Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, as also noted by Reuters.

Even the International Energy Agency just warned that, “At least 30 times as much lithium, nickel and other key minerals may be required by the electric car industry by 2040 to meet global climate targets.”

Considering governments all over the world want millions of EVs on the roads, automakers will need a great deal of lithium supply.

The post This Could Be a Massive Catalyst for the Lithium Market appeared first on Morningology.

Cyberattacks are only getting worse.

Yet, companies and government officials still aren’t fully prepared.

For example, “The U.S. is currently not designed to act with the speed and agility necessary to defend the country in cyberspace. Our country has lost hundreds of billions of dollars to nation-state-sponsored intellectual property theft using cyber espionage,” as noted by the Cyberspace Solarium Commission, as reported by Fox Business.

Hospitals, schools, and financial institutions aren’t ready. “Nearly 29% of organizations haven’t tested their cyber defenses for a year and out of them more than half weren’t confident about whether their plans will work as per the expectations,” says FireEye, as reported by Cybersecurity Insiders.

So it came as no shock, the world was hit again.

Over the last few days, about 200 U.S. companies were hit with another major attack. In fact, according to the New York Post, “Huntress Labs, a cyber-security firm, said the colossal ransomware attack occurred first at Kaseya, a Florida-based IT company, and then spread through the corporate networks that use its software.”

In addition, according to NBC News, the hackers say they’ve locked about a million individual devices, and are demanding $70 million in Bitcoin to unlock them all.

The worst part – more attacks are likely.

In anticipation of further cybersecurity issues, some of the top stocks to consider include FireEye (FEYE), Palo Alto (PANW), and Fortinet (FTNT). Investors can also pick up ETFs, including

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.

At $28.95, a share, BUG offers exposure to cyber stocks such as Fortinet, Palo Alto Networks, Check Point Software, Cyberark Software, and FireEye Inc.

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.”
At less than $43.19 a share, the ETF offers exposure to Fortinet, Proofpoint, Juniper Networks, VMWare Inc., Palo Alto Networks, Okta Inc., and Check Point Software.

The post The Top Ways to Trade the July 4th Ransomware Attack appeared first on Morningology.

Brace yourself for higher oil prices.

 

I just paid about $3.15 a gallon this morning.  Others, I’m sure, are paying far more.  

 

All as oil pushes back above $75 — the highest since 2018 – with OPEC meeting over an increase in global demand.  

 

“Going into formal deliberations being held remotely, Saudi Arabia, OPEC’s de facto leader, and Russia agreed Thursday to take up a proposal that includes a boost of about half a million barrels a day starting in August, according to people familiar with the talks, and then gradually increasing so-called OPEC+ output by a total two million barrels through December,” says The Wall Street Journal.

 

Unfortunately, that will still keep the oil market tight this summer, says UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo.  All as demand rises on reopenings, and summer driving season.  

 

Not helping, global oil demand is around 97.5 million barrels per day.  That could rise by another 2.2 million by year end, says Goldman Sachs, as noted by CNN.  That would leave us with a shortfall of about five million barrels a day.  

 

Stay tuned for more on this story.  We’re just waiting to see what OPEC decides.

The post Brace Yourself for Higher Gas Prices appeared first on Morningology.

Gene editing stocks are still exploding higher.

• CRISPR Therapeutics (CRSP) is up another $11 to $161.70
• Editas Medicine (EDIT) is up another $7.70 to $53.80
• Intellia Therapeutics (NTLA) is up another $31 to $182.72
• Beam Therapeutics (BEAM) is up another $16 to $127.13

All thanks to NTLA, which jumped after releasing “interim data from the Phase 1 trial of its collaboration with Regeneron on an experimental therapy for transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTR) – a protein misfolding disorder,” as noted in a company press release. 

“The data showed that for the six people that received a single 0.3 mg/kg dose of NTLA-2001, there was an 87% mean reduction in serum TTR, while there was a maximum 96% serum TTR reduction following a month’s treatment,” the company added.

The best part – all of the stocks noted above could see higher highs.

Better, “Intellia’s gene editing results decisively exceeded analyst expectations, launching the rest of the field into the spotlight overnight and maybe, just maybe, providing some fodder for the FDA to lighten up on its resistance to hosting gene editing trials in the U.S.,” reported FierceBiotech.  The results were a pretty big deal.

With further progress, we could be looking at a massive game changer here.

The post This is Why Gene Editing Stocks Could Race to Higher Highs appeared first on Morningology.

Every January, one of the best strategies is to invest in the top Dogs of the Dow.

While 2020 wasn’t a great year for the Dogs, most other years have done very well. 

In 2019, the Dogs were up 20%.  In 2018, they were up about 1%, but still beat the Dow, which fell close to 6%.  In 2017, the dogs were up 19%.  In 2016, they were up 16%.  In 2015, they were up 2.6%.  In 2014, they were up about 11%.

Better, all of the Dogs pay dividends.

As for the 2021 Dogs of the Dow, most are doing well so far.  Since January 2021:

• Chevon (CVX) with a yield of 6.05% — ran from $82 to $104
• IBM (IBM) with a yield of 5.23% – ran from $120 to $146
• Dow (DOW) with a yield of 5.11% – ran from $54 to $63
• Walgreens (WBA) with a yield of 4.72% – ran from $40 to $52
• Verizon (VZ) with a yield of 4.27% — fell slightly from $57 to $56.03
• 3M (MMM) with a yield of 3.37% – ran from $168 to $196
• Cisco (CSCO) with a yield of 3.23% — ran from $44 to $53
• Merck (MRK) with a yield of 3.24% — ran from $75 to $77
• Coca-Cola (KO) with a yield of 3.07% — ran from $52 to $54
• JP Morgan (JPM) with a yield of 2.89% — ran from $123 to $154

That’s a 90% win rate for the Dogs so far this year.

Better, some of these stocks are pivoting higher from recent lows, making them potential buy opportunities, including Coca-Cola, IBM, and Dow Holdings Inc.

In addition, according to Barron’s, “Coming into 2020, $10,000 invested in the Dogs at the beginning of the decade would have turned into about $40,100. For the overall Dow industrials, $10,000 would have become about $35,500. With 2020 returns added in, the Dow has the edge on the Dogs, at about $38,400 to $37,400.”

The post This is One of the Best Trading Strategies to Use appeared first on Morningology.

Gene-editing stocks are exploding.

• CRISPR Therapeutics (CRSP) is up about $10 a share
• Editas Medicine (EDIT) is up about $4 a share
• Intellia Therapeutics (NTLA) is up about $40 a share
• Beam Therapeutics (BEAM) is up about $15 a share

All thanks to Intellia Therapeutics, Inc., a genome editing company that focuses on the development of therapeutics. It utilizes a biological tool known as the Clustered, Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats/CRISPR associated 9 (CRISPR/Cas9) system.

Just this morning, the NTLA stock just exploded after releasing “interim data from the Phase 1 trial of its collaboration with Regeneron on an experimental therapy for transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTR) – a protein misfolding disorder,” as noted in a company press release. 

“The data showed that for the six people that received a single 0.3 mg/kg dose of NTLA-2001, there was an 87% mean reduction in serum TTR, while there was a maximum 96% serum TTR reduction following a month’s treatment,” the company added.

Helping, RBC analyst Luca Issi, as quoted by Tip Ranks, says the data is a “major de-risking event for the platform,” and sees the shares surging by 35-45% on the news. Other names in the gene-editing space – BEAM, EDIT, CRSP – should also experience an uptick with the analyst also expecting to see retail money back in the mix. 

This could be game changing news for patients and physicians.

The post Gene Editing Stocks Exploding on Impressive Intellia News appeared first on Morningology.

We may be closer to an infrastructure deal.

President Biden is meeting with Democrats and Republicans, as Senators say they’re closer to a deal to revamp antiquated U.S. infrastructure.

“White House senior staff had two productive meetings today with the bipartisan group of Senators who have been negotiating about infrastructure,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said, as quoted by CNBC. “The group made progress towards an outline of a potential agreement, and the President has invited the group to come to the White House tomorrow to discuss this in-person.”

If we see progress, investors can always push into stocks such as Vulcan Materials (VMC), Fluor Corp. (FLR), United States Steel (X), Caterpillar (CAT), Nucor (NUE), and Freeport McMoRan (FCX). Another way to potentially cash in on the boom is with ETFs.

iShares Global Infrastructure Index ETF (IGF)

One of the best ways to diversify – at less cost is with an ETF, such as the iShares Global Infrastructure Index ETF (IGF). At $46 the ETF offers us exposure to Enbridge Inc., TC Energy Corp., Kinder Morgan, Duke Energy Corp., Williams Inc., and Exelon Corp.

SPDR S&P Global Infrastructure ETF (GII)

At $53, the ETF offers exposure to stocks including Enbridge Inc., TC Energy Corporation, Duke Energy Corporation, Kinder Morgan, Exelon Corporation, Xcel Energy, and Southern Company. Since bottoming out around $49 in March, the ETF ran to $55. While the GII ETF recently dipped to $53, weakness may be a great opportunity.

Global X US Infrastructure Development ETF (PAVE)

At $25.50, PAVE offers exposure to Nucor Corp., Trane Technologies, Eaton Corp., Deere & Co., Emerson Electric, Sempra Energy, and Vulcan Materials. Since bottoming out around $21 earlier this year, the ETF 4ran from $27.50. While the ETF dipped to about $25, weakness may also be an opportunity with this idea, as well.

The post Three Top Ways to Trade a Potential Infrastructure Bill appeared first on Morningology.

Use any weakness in electric vehicle stocks as an opportunity.

Not only do countries all over the world want millions of electric vehicles on the roads, the International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates we could see 135 million EVs in the next 10 years.

General Motors just announced it will boost global spending on EVs to 435 billion through 2025.

Ford increased its spending to more than $30 billion by 2030.

Piper Jaffray analyst Alexander Potter noted, “We have spent the past few months assembling a brand-by-brand, region-by-region forecast for battery electric vehicle (BEV) sales,” as quoted by Barron’s. “Looking ahead, he forecasts EV penetration at 45% of new car sales by 2030.”

Even better, analysts at Ernst & Young say that EV sales could outpace combustion engines in Europe, China, and the U.S. in the next 12 years. By 2045, they added, non-EV sales could make up less than 1% of the global auto market.

While that’s great news for Tesla (TSLA), Nio Inc. (NIO), and Li Auto (LI) to name a few, it’s also great for related EV ETFs such as the Global X Autonomous & Electric Vehicles ETF (DRIV) and the iShares Self-Driving EV and Tech ETF (IDRV).

It’s also great news for charging station stocks.

After all, if we’re going to see EV dominance, we’ll need plenty of charging stations.

At the moment, there aren’t enough charging stations.

However, according to NBC News, “That’s a concern that President Joe Biden wants to address, with $174 billion of his proposed infrastructure bill to be used to promote electric vehicles. About 10 percent of that would help fund a nationwide network of 500,000 chargers.”

That being said, one of the top charging station stocks to consider is Blink Charging (BLNK), which is about to join the Russell 2000.

In addition, according to NBC News, “ChargePoint saw its first-quarter revenues jump by 24 percent to $40.5 million this year, a surge largely driven by rapid growth in the EV market. Sales of battery cars were up 45 percent during the first quarter, compared to a year earlier. To take advantage of that growth, ChargePoint added another 6,000 active ports — the electric equivalent of a gas pump — during the quarter. It now has 112,000 active charge ports.”

With the EV boom only accelerating, don’t get left behind.

The post Use Weakness in Electric Vehicle Stocks as an Opportunity appeared first on Morningology.

Bitcoin is getting crushed.

Just weeks after testing an all-time high of $63,682, Bitcoin is in free-fall.

Last checked, it’s down another 11% to $29,365, and could test $22,015, worst case scenario. Some technical analysts say Bitcoin could fall to as low as $20,000, says CNBC.

All thanks to China.

According to CNN, “State media reported that the southwestern Chinese province of Sichuan ordered a halt to all crypto mining operations and cut off the power supply to many mining facilities. The province is a major hub for mining, the process of using powerful computers to run and solve algorithms that generate new cryptocurrency coins and verify transactions.”

There are also concerns the crypto market could see strict regulatory policies.

However, while the U.S. may favor strict policies with cryptocurrencies, Hester Peirce, Commission of the U.S. SEC is concerned. In fact, according to her interview with the Financial Times, “I am concerned that the initial reaction of a regulator is always to say ‘I want to grab hold of this and make it like the markets I already regulate.’ I am not sure that’s going to be great for innovation.”

Until this new round of fear in the crypto market passes, some of the top crypto miners, and investors could plunge even more. That includes MicroStrategy (MSTR) for example, which now holds 105,000 tokens. Other top stocks plunging on the news include Marathon Digital (MARA), Riot Blockchain (RIOT), Bit Digital (BTBT), and HIVE Blockchain (HVBTF).

All could be solid short opportunities at current prices.

The post How to Trade the Bitcoin Free-Fall Below $30K appeared first on Morningology.