Dow rose 38, advancers modestly ahead of decliners & NAZ finished down 54. The MLP index lost 3+ to the 249s & the REIT index went up 3+ to 378. Junk bond funds inched higher & Treasuries gained in price today. Oil continued higher in the 63s & gold rose 4 to 1286.
AMJ (Alerian MLP Index tracking fund)
![Live 24 hours gold chart [Kitco Inc.]](https://www.kitco.com/images/live/gold.gif?0.2180338269244485)
club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/PFE?a_aid=CD3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f7
The job market in the US has been incredibly strong, with more openings than workers available to fill those jobs. There are currently 5.6M open positions, a number that's slightly down (0.4%) from Apr 2018. While the number of openings has decreased very slightly, wages have continued to inch up. Pay has increased by 1.4%, with the average full-time worker in the US earning a median base pay of $52,807. Job growth varies depending upon the market you live in. Atlanta saw the biggest increase with 7.9% more openings than the same time last year, while wages grew by 2.2%. Houston saw the largest decline in job growth of the 10 metro areas. Job openings in Houston dropped 5.1% year-over-year, while wages fell by 0.6%. Job-seekers need to put up with the slight slowdown in perspective. While there are fewer openings, the market remains strong for people looking for a job. The job market remains strong, but there are some trends workers should worry about. Job automation may not be common, but some companies have begun testing & using technologies that could eliminate some lower-level positions. At the moment, automation has not majorly cut into the number of openings that need to be filled. That could change, however, if companies can't find the employees they need. In many ways, the rise of automation will happen not as an attempt to eliminate human workers, but as a response to the workforce not having enough available bodies. The problem is that once a warehouse or cashier position has been automated, it's not coming back to human workers. That makes it especially important for anyone looking to remain employed to develop skills that aren't easily automated. That means not relying on the fact the job openings remain plentiful, & instead continuing to develop skills even while employed.
Pres Trump & leading Dem lawmakers agreed a plan to overhaul US infrastructure would need $2T, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, said today. “We agreed on a number, which was very, very good,” he added. Rebuilding the country's aging infrastructure is one of the few bipartisan issues in American politics. Dems & Reps alike have stressed the importance of repairing & modernizing US transportation, broadband, water & power projects, & both parties have submitted separate funding proposals to achieve those goals. Yet the issue has languished on Capitol Hill — & the Trump administration's repeated attempts to refocus lawmakers thru the label of “infrastructure week” have become a running joke in Congress. Schumer said “there was good will in this meeting” between the White House and Democrats — a tone that was “different than some of the other meetings we’ve had,” he added. Speaking outside the White House just after the meeting, the Dem leaders also said that the 2 sides also found common ground on some of the priorities that an infrastructure plan should address. Pelosi told reporters that Trump agreed on the importance of broadband infrastructure, a signal that a broader, more modern definition of infrastructure will be the basis for further discussions. Schumer said that another meeting will take place in 3 weeks.
Trump and Democrats agreed $2 trillion is needed for infrastructure, Chuck Schumer says
Along with a string of successful promotions, technology-focused store upgrades helped McDonald's (MCD), another Dow stock & Dividend Aristocrat, beat expectations for earnings & revenue. But the company also said that its tech investments will mean higher expenses this year. The fast food giant raised its full-year outlook for selling, general & administrative expenses because of its tech investments, including its acquisition of Dynamic Yield. The company previously said that those expenses would decline by 4% this year, excluding currency changes, but now expects them to be unchanged from last year. The company is also forecasting that US commodity costs will increase by 2-3%, up from previous guidance of 1-2%. While net income fell to $1.33B from $1.38B a year earlier. However, EPS was flat at $1.72. Excluding an additional $47M of income tax costs, EPS was $1.78, beating the $1.75 expected. Net sales dropped 4% to $4.96B, topping expectations of $4.93B. Excluding currency fluctuations, revenue increased 2%. The refranchising initiative once again hit sales this qtr. While selling its corp-owned stores to franchisees helps cut costs, it also means that the company's reported revenue falls because of accounting differences. However, its strong same-store sales performance shows that customers are still eating plenty of its Happy Meals & Big Macs. The fast food giant reported global same-store sales growth of 5.4%, beating estimates of 3.4%. “We started the year strong with our 15th consecutive quarter of positive global comparable sales, reflecting continued broad-based momentum across each of our global segments,” CEO Steve Easterbrook said. In the US, sales at stores open at least a year increased by 4.5%. MCD attributed the growth to its promotions, like its hour-long free bacon giveaway, the 2 for $5 Mix & Match deal & Donut Sticks. The company also said that it is seeing a “net positive impact” from its store renovations for the first time. The stock went up 45¢.
If you would like to learn more about MCD, click on this link:
club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/MCD?a_aid=CD3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f7
McDonald's earnings beat estimates as promotions drive sales growth
Earnings did not give a big boost to stocks & the Alphabet (GOOG) selloff, down 99 (8%), cast a dark could over the entire market. The best earnings reports may be out already with the rest being less inspiring. Tomorrow the Fed will speak after the meeting & the big jobs report comes on Fri. More testing for the high stock values is coming.
Dow Jones Industrials
AMJ (Alerian MLP Index tracking fund)
Higher prescription drugs sales & restrained
spending together gave drugmaker Pfizer (PFE), a Dow stock, a 9% jump in Q1
profit as it easily topped profit expectations. Sales
of breast cancer drug Ibrance & blood thinner Eliquis both jumped
over 20% to more than $1B each, & Xeljanz for
rheumatoid arthritis saw sales soar 30%, lifting prescription drug sales
by 3%. EPS was 68¢. EPS,
adjusted for non-recurring costs, was 85¢, beating
projections by 8¢. "Pfizer is off to a very good start in 2019," new CEO Albert Bourla said. PFE has several drug approvals in the US or elsewhere during
the qtr, including US approval of its biosimilar version, or
near-copy, of injected breast & gastric cancer drug Herceptin &
approval of Ibrance for men. The company expects US approvals this
year for biosimilar medicines for cancer & rheumatoid arthritis, plus
approval of tafamadis for a rare, tough-to-diagnose heart disorder with
no current treatment. However, the heavily
touted experimental pain drug tanezumab flopped in late-stage testing,
so the company is halting its development. The biggest US drugmaker by revenue posted sales of $13.12B, up from $12.91B in 2018's Q1. PFE raised its full-year EPS forecast by a penny, to $2.83-2.93 & reaffirmed its Jan forecast for sales of $52- 54B. The stock rose 1.02.
If you would like to learn more about PFE, click on this link:club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/PFE?a_aid=CD3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f7
Pfizer 1Q profit jumps 9% on higher drug sales, lower costs
The job market in the US has been incredibly strong, with more openings than workers available to fill those jobs. There are currently 5.6M open positions, a number that's slightly down (0.4%) from Apr 2018. While the number of openings has decreased very slightly, wages have continued to inch up. Pay has increased by 1.4%, with the average full-time worker in the US earning a median base pay of $52,807. Job growth varies depending upon the market you live in. Atlanta saw the biggest increase with 7.9% more openings than the same time last year, while wages grew by 2.2%. Houston saw the largest decline in job growth of the 10 metro areas. Job openings in Houston dropped 5.1% year-over-year, while wages fell by 0.6%. Job-seekers need to put up with the slight slowdown in perspective. While there are fewer openings, the market remains strong for people looking for a job. The job market remains strong, but there are some trends workers should worry about. Job automation may not be common, but some companies have begun testing & using technologies that could eliminate some lower-level positions. At the moment, automation has not majorly cut into the number of openings that need to be filled. That could change, however, if companies can't find the employees they need. In many ways, the rise of automation will happen not as an attempt to eliminate human workers, but as a response to the workforce not having enough available bodies. The problem is that once a warehouse or cashier position has been automated, it's not coming back to human workers. That makes it especially important for anyone looking to remain employed to develop skills that aren't easily automated. That means not relying on the fact the job openings remain plentiful, & instead continuing to develop skills even while employed.
Job Openings Slightly Down, But Pay Inches Up
Pres Trump & leading Dem lawmakers agreed a plan to overhaul US infrastructure would need $2T, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, said today. “We agreed on a number, which was very, very good,” he added. Rebuilding the country's aging infrastructure is one of the few bipartisan issues in American politics. Dems & Reps alike have stressed the importance of repairing & modernizing US transportation, broadband, water & power projects, & both parties have submitted separate funding proposals to achieve those goals. Yet the issue has languished on Capitol Hill — & the Trump administration's repeated attempts to refocus lawmakers thru the label of “infrastructure week” have become a running joke in Congress. Schumer said “there was good will in this meeting” between the White House and Democrats — a tone that was “different than some of the other meetings we’ve had,” he added. Speaking outside the White House just after the meeting, the Dem leaders also said that the 2 sides also found common ground on some of the priorities that an infrastructure plan should address. Pelosi told reporters that Trump agreed on the importance of broadband infrastructure, a signal that a broader, more modern definition of infrastructure will be the basis for further discussions. Schumer said that another meeting will take place in 3 weeks.
Trump and Democrats agreed $2 trillion is needed for infrastructure, Chuck Schumer says
Along with a string of successful promotions, technology-focused store upgrades helped McDonald's (MCD), another Dow stock & Dividend Aristocrat, beat expectations for earnings & revenue. But the company also said that its tech investments will mean higher expenses this year. The fast food giant raised its full-year outlook for selling, general & administrative expenses because of its tech investments, including its acquisition of Dynamic Yield. The company previously said that those expenses would decline by 4% this year, excluding currency changes, but now expects them to be unchanged from last year. The company is also forecasting that US commodity costs will increase by 2-3%, up from previous guidance of 1-2%. While net income fell to $1.33B from $1.38B a year earlier. However, EPS was flat at $1.72. Excluding an additional $47M of income tax costs, EPS was $1.78, beating the $1.75 expected. Net sales dropped 4% to $4.96B, topping expectations of $4.93B. Excluding currency fluctuations, revenue increased 2%. The refranchising initiative once again hit sales this qtr. While selling its corp-owned stores to franchisees helps cut costs, it also means that the company's reported revenue falls because of accounting differences. However, its strong same-store sales performance shows that customers are still eating plenty of its Happy Meals & Big Macs. The fast food giant reported global same-store sales growth of 5.4%, beating estimates of 3.4%. “We started the year strong with our 15th consecutive quarter of positive global comparable sales, reflecting continued broad-based momentum across each of our global segments,” CEO Steve Easterbrook said. In the US, sales at stores open at least a year increased by 4.5%. MCD attributed the growth to its promotions, like its hour-long free bacon giveaway, the 2 for $5 Mix & Match deal & Donut Sticks. The company also said that it is seeing a “net positive impact” from its store renovations for the first time. The stock went up 45¢.
If you would like to learn more about MCD, click on this link:
club.ino.com/trend/analysis/stock/MCD?a_aid=CD3289&a_bid=6ae5b6f7
McDonald's earnings beat estimates as promotions drive sales growth
Earnings did not give a big boost to stocks & the Alphabet (GOOG) selloff, down 99 (8%), cast a dark could over the entire market. The best earnings reports may be out already with the rest being less inspiring. Tomorrow the Fed will speak after the meeting & the big jobs report comes on Fri. More testing for the high stock values is coming.
Dow Jones Industrials
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