Friday, September 30, 2016

The Morning Call---Deutschebank on the brink?

The Morning Call

9/30/16

The Market
         
    Technical

The indices (DJIA 18143, S&P 2151) sold off yesterday.  Volume was flat and breadth deteriorated.  The VIX jumped 13%, but still closed below its 100 day moving average and in a short term downtrend---which remains supportive of stocks.  Nonetheless, it is still in a very short term uptrend. 

The Dow ended [a]  above its 100 day moving average, now support, [b] above its 200 day moving average, now support, [c] within a short term uptrend {18096-19830}, [c] in an intermediate term uptrend {11420-24247} and [d] in a long term uptrend {5541-19431}.

The S&P finished [a] above its rising 100 day moving average, now support, [b] above its 200 day moving average, now support, [c] within a short term uptrend {2131-2367}, [d] in an intermediate uptrend {1946-2548} and [e] in a long term uptrend {862-2400}. 

The long Treasury rebounded, again on volume, closing above its 100 day moving average and well within very short term, intermediate term and long term uptrends.  It remains in a very upbeat two week run in prices---suggesting that the odds of a December rate hike are shrinking and/or investors are looking for a safety trade.

GLD fell, finishing below its 100 day moving average and within a short term trading range.  It has now made a fourth lower high---not a plus for our GDX holding,
               
Bottom line: the Averages are back staring at their 100 day moving averages and the lower boundaries of their short term uptrend.  However, until they break below those levels, nothing is happening, technically speaking, to suggest a loss of upside momentum.    Key levels to watch:  support exists at their 100 day moving averages and the lower boundaries of their short term uptrends, resistance at their recent highs (18668/2194).
           
    Fundamental

       Headlines

            More less negative economic news was released yesterday, including weekly jobless claims and the August trade deficit.  Other data: second quarter GDP was slightly ahead of expectations while August pending home sales were below.  Still the GDP number was the most important and it showed a modicum of progress.

            Overseas, EU economic sentiment improved but German unemployment rose.

            ***overnight, September Japanese inflation fell, unemployment rose and household spending fell; the September Chinese Markit manufacturing PMI was flat (50.1); September  EU inflation rose 0.4%, in line while unemployment was reported at 10.1%, also in line; second quarter UK economy grew 0.7%; and last but certainly not least, in a Fed conference, Yellen stated that the Fed is close to hitting a ceiling on US government bond purchases and may have to resort to corporate bonds and stocks (does that sound like an interest rate hike is coming in December?).

            Elsewhere, the cognitive dissonance is gathering steam on the proposed OPEC production cut.

            More importantly, some large hedge funds have starting pulling money out of Deutschebank.  This is exactly what occurred at Bear, Lehman and AIG.  Remember insolvency occurs not because of lack of profitability or assets but lack of liquidity.  To be fair, the derivatives market (where the real risk and volatility shows up) was fairly calm, meaning that while some institutions withdrew funds no one was attempting to reduce counterparty risk---which would be the real sign of panic.   That doesn’t mean that it won’t happen; but in its absence the downside in stock prices is likely limited.

            Is Deutschebank the next Lehman (medium)?

            Deutschebank’s options (medium and a must read):

Bottom line: the economic data continued to improve yesterday, but also continued the trend where the positive news has been that things weren’t as negative as expected.  I am not saying that this is not a plus; but being less negative is different from more positive.

More important, Wednesday’s chorus of Deutschebank deniers was met yesterday by a number of hedge funds pulling funds out of their prime broker accounts.  That does not bode well for the bank’s liquidity or solvency; though as I noted above, trading in their derivatives portfolio remained calm as opposed to the Market performance.  At the moment, this news could quickly turn into a horror story.  But just as quickly it could dissipate; after all, the history of the current Market has been to either ignore bad news or to reinterpret as good news.

That said, I continue to believe that the Market is giving investors a great opportunity to shift their asset allocation to a more conservative stance (like more cash).

            My thought for the day:  One of investors’ biggest problems is believing that they are less biased than they really are.  If you question that statement, then odds are it is true in your case.  We all suffer from biases, some more so than others; but we all do it.  Coming to grip with that is the best thing you can do towards becoming a better investor.

    News on Stocks in Our Portfolios
 
McDonald's (NYSE:MCD) declares $0.94/share quarterly dividend, 5.6% increase from prior dividend of $0.89.

Accenture (NYSE:ACN): FQ4 EPS of $1.31 beats by $0.01.
Revenue of $8.49B (+7.6% Y/Y) beats by $60M

Economics

   This Week’s Data

            August pending home sales fell 2.4% versus expectations of a 0.5% increase.

            August personal income rose 0.2%, in line; spending was flat versus estimates of a 0.2% increase.

   Other

            Imprison bad bankers (medium):

Politics

  Domestic

Saudi Arabia reacts to 9/11 vote (medium):

  International War Against Radical Islam

            France’s new sharia police (medium):

Visit Investing for Survival’s website (http://investingforsurvival.com/home) to learn more about our Investment Strategy, Prices Disciplines and Subscriber Service.




Thursday, September 29, 2016

The Morning Call---OPEC surprises

The Morning Call

9/29/16

The Market
         
    Technical

The indices (DJIA 18339, S&P 2171) continued their advance yesterday.  Volume was up slightly and breadth improved.  The VIX dropped another 5%, closing below its 100 day moving average and ending in short term downtrend---which is supportive of stocks.  Nonetheless, it remains in a very short term uptrend. 

The Dow ended [a]  above its 100 day moving average, now support, [b] above its 200 day moving average, now support, [c] within a short term uptrend {18087-19821}, [c] in an intermediate term uptrend {11420-24247} and [d] in a long term uptrend {5541-19431}.

The S&P finished [a] above its rising 100 day moving average, now support, [b] above its 200 day moving average, now support, [c] within a short term uptrend {2128-2364}, [d] in an intermediate uptrend {1946-2548} and [e] in a long term uptrend {862-2400}. 

The long Treasury declined slightly (though much of the fixed income complex was up) with volume remaining high and ended above its 100 day moving average and well within very short term, intermediate term and long term uptrends.  It remains in a very upbeat two week run in prices---suggesting that the odds of a December rate hike are shrinking. 

GLD fell, finishing below its 100 day moving average and within a short term trading range.  It has now made a fourth lower high---not a plus for our GDX holding, though it was up over 2%.
               
Bottom line: the Averages held to their upward momentum, closing positively viz a viz all key indicators.  The OPEC news was well received and could provide more fuel for the current uptrend.  Key levels to watch:  support exists at their 100 day moving averages and the lower boundaries of their short term uptrends, resistance at their recent highs (18668/2194).
                       
    Fundamental

       Headlines

            The economic stats continued their somewhat backhanded winning ways yesterday: weekly mortgage applications were down, but purchase applications were up; while August durable goods orders were flat versus negative estimates, but the July number was revised down substantially.  

            And this little tidbit from Yellen’s congressional testimony (short):

            Overseas, it was rumored that German financial officials are working on a plan to aid Deutschebank if it has difficulty raising capital to pay the $14 billion US fine.  And nothing says ‘having difficulty’ like multiple assurances that there is none, i.e. the bank’s CEO denied that the bank needs a bailout, Draghi claimed that his low interest rate policy was not responsible for Deutschebank’s pickle and Christine Lagarde promised that there was no need for government intervention to save the bank.  Well, I, for one, certainly feel better.

                ***overnight, EU economic sentiment improved but German unemployment rose.

            Of course, the big news of the day was the tentative OPEC decision to cut production.  To be clear, ‘tentative’ is the operative word, since a formal agreement won’t be complete until December.  However, it seems clear that increasingly dire economic problems in Saudi Arabia has prompted them to make concessions despite their intense dislike for the Iranians.  Nonetheless, the hard part of effecting this agreement still lies ahead, because there has been no allocation as yet as who has to absorb the cut and by how much.  The good news for the bulls is that whether or not an agreement is actually reached, the immediate favorable response in prices helps all oil producers.  The bad news for the bulls is that (1) even if an agreement is reached, OPEC members have a long history of cheating on the quotas and (2) there is a lot of non-OPEC producers in the world that will more than likely jack up production to fill the gap.


            Bottom line: the economic data improved yesterday, though as I noted, this has been a week where the positive news has been that things weren’t as negative as expected.  I am not saying that this is not a plus; but being less negative is different from more positive.

In addition, rumors of financial help for Deutschebank were turned upside down by disclaimers from all corners that no aid was needed.  History tells us that when the political class tells the unwashed masses that there is no problem, it is time to grab onto your shorts and head for cover. But my conclusion hasn’t changed: ‘there are too many variables bearing on this problem to make any dire predictions.  However, the bank’s financial position is weak enough that having some protection against a big negative event makes sense---especially given the current very generous stock valuations.’

            This situation was made all the worse as Germany’s second largest bank scraped its dividend and fired 20% of its workforce.

            The OPEC news is a potential major plus for the economy, though as I cautioned the OPEC is full of liars, cheats and thieves, so it probably makes sense to put a governor on the jigginess until the proposes cuts actually show up in the numbers. 

That said, investor psychology is still quite positive, making almost any news good news.  As long as that is the case, equity prices are going higher.  I continue to believe that the Market is giving investors a great opportunity to shift their asset allocation to a more conservative stance (like more cash).

            The latest from Lance Roberts (medium):

            Historic returns in stocks, bonds and bills (short):

            For the bulls (short):

    
       Investing for Survival
   
            Be careful what you wish for.

    News on Stocks in Our Portfolios
 
Paychex (NASDAQ:PAYX): FQ1 EPS of $0.60 beats by $0.03.
Revenue of $785.5M (+8.6% Y/Y) beats by $2.7M.






EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG) declares $0.1675/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous.

PepsiCo (NYSE:PEP): FQ3 EPS of $1.40 beats by $0.08.
Revenue of $16.03B (-1.8% Y/Y) beats by $200M


Economics

   This Week’s Data

            The final reading for second quarter GDP growth came in at +1.4% versus estimates of +1.3%; corporate profits fell 1.7% versus forecasts of -2.2%.

            The August US trade deficit was $58.4 billion versus expectations of $62.3 billion.

            Weekly jobless claims rose 3,000 versus projections of +8,000.

   Other

            A short history of Fed forecasts:

Politics

  Domestic

  International War Against Radical Islam

            Dutch MP speaks out against radical islam (medium):


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Wednesday, September 28, 2016

The Morning Call--Coming attractions: OPEC, Yellen and Draghi

The Morning Call

9/28/16

The Market
         
    Technical

The indices (DJIA 18228, S&P 2159) recovered nicely yesterday after a couple of rough days.  Volume fell but breadth improved.  The VIX dropped 10%, retreating from its 100 day moving average and ending in short term downtrend---which is supportive of stocks.  Nonetheless, it remains in a very short term uptrend. 

The Dow ended [a] back above its 100 day moving average, now support and negated Monday’s break, [b] above its 200 day moving average, now support, [c] within a short term uptrend {18069-19803}, [c] in an intermediate term uptrend {11420-24247} and [d] in a long term uptrend {5541-19431}.

The S&P finished [a] above its rising 100 day moving average, now support, [b] above its 200 day moving average, now support, [c] within a short term uptrend {2126-2362}, [d] in an intermediate uptrend {1946-2548} and [e] in a long term uptrend {862-2400}. 

The long Treasury was up again on volume, ending above its 100 day moving average and well within very short term, intermediate term and long term uptrends.  This extends a very upbeat two week run in prices---suggesting that the odds of a December rate hike are shrinking. 

GLD fell, finishing back below its 100 day moving average and within a short term trading range.  It has now made a fourth lower high---not a plus for our GDX holding.

Bottom line: the DJIA undid Monday’s technical damage, leaving both of the Averages above key momentum indicators and within uptrends across all timeframes.  Support exists at their 100 day moving averages and the lower boundaries of their short term uptrends, resistance at their recent highs (18668/2194).

    Fundamental

       Headlines

            Yesterday’s US economic data was generally upbeat: month to date retail chain store sales and the July Case Shiller home price index were flat; the September Richmond Fed manufacturing index was down but not as much as anticipated; while September consumer confidence and the Markit Services Flash PMI were better than forecast.

Overseas, the World Trade Organization lowered its 2016 estimate for global growth as well as its forecast for 2016 and 2017 global trade; August Chinese industrial profits rose much more than projected.

After four weeks of very poor data, getting some positive news is a relief.  At least we have reason to believe that the economy is not sinking like a stone.  Let’s see how the rest of the week goes before getting too jiggy.

            ***overnight, it was rumored that German financial authorities are preparing a rescue plan for Deutschebank if it is unable to raise the capital to pay the $14 billion US fine; Greek law makers approved another austerity measure that will assure the next bailout funding; and US lawmakers failed to pass a stop gap funding measure to keep the government running.  Today will be a potentially big news day as OPEC wraps up its meeting, Yellen testifies before the House Financial Services Committee and Draghi addresses the German parliament.

            Bottom line: the economic data improved yesterday, though one day in the last four weeks isn’t exactly a reason to jump for joy.  In addition, Deutschbank’s solvency issues remains very much in question, rumors notwithstanding.  As I noted yesterday, there are too many variables bearing on this problem to make any dire predictions.  However, the bank’s financial position is weak enough that having some protection against a big negative event makes sense---especially given the current very generous stock valuations.  With 50-55% cash position, our Portfolios already have that.  However, if you don’t, this Market is giving you a great opportunity to take some money off the table in stocks that have been good performers and/or let your losers go.

More on Deutschebank (medium):

            The latest from John Hussman (medium):

            My thought for the day: people in general tend to overestimate their ability to control their emotions.  As it applies to investors, many consider themselves contrarians who want to buy when the bottom is falling out.  Yet when the Market is nosediving, they panic like everyone else.  I developed our Price Disciplines to help overcome this tendency---when our Model has set a Buy Price when conditions are normal, it helps to reassure me that I am Buying real value when the sky is falling.  The opposite is also true---forcing me to take profits when everything is seemingly coming up roses.

       Investing for Survival

            Bull markets are the hardest part.   


    News on Stocks in Our Portfolios
 
MasterCard (NYSE:MA) declares $0.19/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous.

Nike (NYSE:NKE): FQ1 EPS of $0.73 beats by $0.17.
Revenue of $9.06B (+7.7% Y/Y) beats by $190M

General Mills (NYSE:GIS) declares $0.48/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous.

Economics

   This Week’s Data

            Month to date retail chain store sales were flat with the prior week.

            The July Case Shiller home price index was flat versus expectations of being up 0.1%.

            The September Markit Services Flash PMI came in at 51.9 versus the August reading of 50.9.

            September consumer confidence was reported at 104.1 versus estimates of 98.8.

            The September Richmond Fed manufacturing index came in at -8 versus the prior reading of -11.


                        Weekly mortgage applications fell 0.7% while purchase applications were up 1.0%.

            August durable goods orders were flat versus forecasts of -1.9%, though the July number was revised down substantially; ex transportation, they were down 0.4% versus consensus of -0.5%.

   Other

            Estimated US corporate sales growth is anemic (short):

            More bankruptcies coming in the oil and gas industry (medium):

Politics

  Domestic

Do stocks predict elections (short)?

  International War Against Radical Islam

            Jihadists target Spain (medium):

Visit Investing for Survival’s website (http://investingforsurvival.com/home) to learn more about our Investment Strategy, Prices Disciplines and Subscriber Service.




Tuesday, September 27, 2016

The Morning Call--Deutschebank=Lehman?

The Morning Call

9/27/16

The Market
         
    Technical

The indices (DJIA 18094, S&P 2146) had a rough day.  Volume was up but is still low; breadth weakened.  The VIX rose 18%, closing in a short term downtrend and right on its 100 day moving average. 

Eighth down Friday, down Monday of 2016 (short):

The Dow ended [a] below its 100 day moving average, now support; if it remains there through the close on Wednesday, it will revert to resistance, [b] above its 200 day moving average, now support, [c] within a short term uptrend {18069-19803}, [c] in an intermediate term uptrend {11420-24247} and [d] in a long term uptrend {5541-19431}.

The S&P finished [a] above its rising 100 day moving average, now support, [b] above its 200 day moving average, now support, [c] within a short term uptrend {2124-2360}, [d] in an intermediate uptrend {1946-2548} and [e] in a long term uptrend {862-2400}. 

The long Treasury was up on volume, ending above its 100 day moving average and well within very short term, intermediate term and long term uptrends. 

GLD fell slightly, finishing above its 100 day moving average and within a short term trading range.  However, it also closed above the lower boundary of its former short term uptrend.  If it can pull away from this trend line, I will likely reinstate the uptrend.

Bottom line: the DJIA chart experienced its first test since mid-June---closing below its 100 day moving average and very near the lower boundary of its short term uptrend.  There is nothing ominous in this pin action---yet.  The break below the 100 day moving average won’t be confirmed until Wednesday and the short term uptrend is yet to be challenged.  At this moment, this is just something that needs to be watched.
           
    Fundamental

       Headlines

            Two US economic stats were released yesterday: the good news is that they both beat expectations, the bad news is that they were still awful---new home sales fell less than anticipated, the Dallas Fed manufacturing index was not as bad as the prior month.

            Overseas, there was one positive datapoint---German business confidence is near a high; but there was also one ominous announcement.  German PM Merkel stated that Deutschebank would not receive any state aid in its battle to stay solvent and that could be a big problem, just not for Deutschebank but for the EU banking system.

            Merkel’s dilemma (medium):

            Update on Deutschebank (short):

            In addition, the Japanese government bond yield curve is not following the BOJ’s intended script. (medium):

            ***overnight, the World Trade Organization lowered its 2016 estimate for global growth from 2.8% to 1.7%; August Chinese industrial profits rose 19.5% year over year (if you believe it).

            Closer to home, the Fed is revamping its bank stress test criteria; and that is apt to make life a bit more difficult for the banks. (medium):

            Bottom line: the Averages got banged around pretty hard yesterday as fears of a banking crisis surfaced again, driven by Merkel’s promise to not rescue Deutschebank.  Much has been written about the potential problems lurking not just in the German or EU but the global financial system---and I have covered this pretty extensively.  Of course, we are not going to know how bad the situation is until some trigger mechanism is activated because there are so many variables---we are not sure about the veracity of bank accounting, we have no idea of the true counterparty risks in the huge derivative portfolios of each bank and we only know what the political class is saying not what they will do.  There may be no banking crisis or it may be just a hiccup; but we do know there are problems of the same nature that led to the 2008 calamity.  My only thought is to have some protection in case of a bad outcome---like cash.

            Why negative rates aren’t working (medium):

            Stephen Roach on Fed policy (medium):

            David Stockman on valuations (medium and today’s must read):

My thought for the day: too often investors will opt for a small but immediate payoff over of a larger payoff down the road. Some discounting is rational, but investors consistently take it to the extreme. People who have decades ahead of them to invest trade in and out of the market to avoid small, short-term losses, almost always at the expense of long-term returns.  I avoid this by setting Price Disciplines, buying only when a stock reaches its historic relative and absolute lows, then holding until it achieves historic relative and absolute highs---as long as the underlying fundamentals of the company remain sound.

     
    News on Stocks in Our Portfolios
 
Hormel Foods (NYSE:HRL) declares $0.145/share quarterly dividend, in line with previous.

FactSet Research Systems (NYSE:FDS): FQ4 EPS of $1.69 misses by $0.01.
Revenue of $287.3M (+9.7% Y/Y) misses by $3.13M.


Economics

   This Week’s Data

            August new home sales fell 7.5% versus expectations for an 8.5% decline.

            The September Dallas Fed manufacturing index was reported at -3.2 versus a -6.2 reading in August.

   Other

            Thoughts on the estate tax (medium):

Politics

  Domestic

Quote of the day (short):

  International War Against Radical Islam

            Russia responds to Power’s accusations (short and a must read):

Visit Investing for Survival’s website (http://investingforsurvival.com/home) to learn more about our Investment Strategy, Prices Disciplines and Subscriber Service.




Monday, September 26, 2016

Monday Morning Chartology

The Morning Call

9/26/16

The Market
         
    Technical

            Price momentum remains to the upside.  The S&P is in uptrends across all timeframes and is well above its 100 day moving average.  Resistance currently exists at its last all-time high (2193).  If it successfully challenges that level, it is a long way to the next barrier---the upper boundary of its long term uptrend (2400).



            If TLT hadn’t voided a very short term uptrend, you would scarcely think that there would be a problem.  It is in uptrends across the short, intermediate and long terms; in addition, it unsuccessfully challenged its 100 day moving average and a key Fibonacci level.  For the moment, the direction for rates is down.



            GLD is above its 100 day moving average, after testing it early last week.  After voiding a short term uptrend, it bounced back above the lower boundary of that former trend and is now tracking it as it rises.  If GLD can break away from the gravity of that trend line, I will likely reinstate the short term uptrend.



            Clearly the VIX has been on a roller coaster ride the last two weeks.  Last week was the down phase.  Ending in a short term downtrend and below its 100 day moving average, suggests that the outlook for stocks is upbeat.  But note that it stopped right on then bounced off of the lower boundary of a very short term uptrend.  We will likely know soon whether this marked a fourth higher low (bad for stocks) or was just a dead cat bounce on its way to lower levels (good for stocks).



    Fundamental

            ***overnight, German business confidence rose to its highest level since May 2014; Merkel ruled out any state aid for Deutschebank.

            The Chinese banking problem is not going away (medium):

            Problem solving like a central banker (medium):       

       Investing for Survival

            Enemies of investment success.   


    News on Stocks in Our Portfolios
 
Economics

   This Week’s Data

   Other

Politics

  Domestic

  International War Against Radical Islam


Visit Investing for Survival’s website (http://investingforsurvival.com/home) to learn more about our Investment Strategy, Prices Disciplines and Subscriber Service.




Saturday, September 24, 2016

The Closing Bell

The Closing Bell

9/24/16

Statistical Summary

   Current Economic Forecast
           
            2015 estimates

Real Growth in Gross Domestic Product (revised)      -1.0-+2.0%
                        Inflation (revised)                                                          1.0-2.0%
                        Corporate Profits (revised)                                            -7-+5%

2016 estimates

Real Growth in Gross Domestic Product                     -1.25-+0.5%
                        Inflation (revised)                                                          0.5-1.5%
                        Corporate Profits (revised)                                            -15-0%

   Current Market Forecast
           
            Dow Jones Industrial Average

                                    Current Trend (revised):  
                                    Short Term Uptrend                                 18033-19767
Intermediate Term Uptrend                     11420-24247
Long Term Uptrend                                  5541-19431
                                               
                        2015    Year End Fair Value                                   12200-12400

                        2016     Year End Fair Value                                   12600-12800

            Standard & Poor’s 500

                                    Current Trend (revised):
                                    Short Term Uptrend                                     2122-2358
                                    Intermediate Term Uptrend                         1946-2548
                                    Long Term Uptrend                                     862-2400
                                               
                        2015   Year End Fair Value                                      1515-1535
                       
2016 Year End Fair Value                                      1560-1580          

Percentage Cash in Our Portfolios

Dividend Growth Portfolio                          55%
            High Yield Portfolio                                     54%
            Aggressive Growth Portfolio                        55%

Economics/Politics
           
The economy provides no upward bias to equity valuations.   It was a  slow week for data, but what we got was negative:  above estimates: the September housing index and weekly jobless claims; below estimates: weekly mortgage and purchase applications, August housing starts and building permits, August existing home sales, month to date retail chain store sales, September consumer sentiment, the August Chicago national activity index, August CPI and the August leading economic indicators; in line with estimates: none.

In addition, the primary indicators were awful: August housing starts and building permits (-), August existing home sales (-) and August leading economic indicators.     The score is now: in the last 53 weeks, fifteen were positive, thirty-five negative and three neutral.  In addition, both the Atlanta and New York Fed’s released their latest update on GDP growth---and they are lower.   Sounds awfully supportive of our forecast.

Overseas, there was virtually no stats---only two datapoints: Chinese loan demand fell to all-time lows and the Markit EU Composite PMI was below estimates.

Of course, the Bank of Japan and the Fed were center stage this week.  Both basically did nothing though there were some telling nuances in their messages: the BOJ attempting to reverse some of the ill effects of its QEInfinity policy; the Fed telling us everything is awesome, but providing multiple examples of why it is not.  I would think that this would begin to raise doubts among investors that these guys have a clue.  But not so.  All seem overjoyed just to have another couple of months of easy money.

In summary, this week’s US economic stats were really poor, while the international data was nonexistent.  The Fed continued its strategy of talking a lot, doing nothing, masking it with double talk and praying for a miracle to extract it from the hole in which it has dug itself.  The yellow warning light for change is flashing much slower.  

Our forecast:

a recession or a zero economic growth rate, caused by too much government spending, too much government debt to service, too much government regulation, a financial system with conflicting profit incentives and a business community hesitant to hire and invest because the aforementioned, the weakening in the global economic outlook, along with the historic inability of the Fed to properly time the reversal of a vastly over expansive monetary policy.
                                               
                        This discussion of the high level of private debt builds on Rogoff and Reinhart’s thesis that high government debt levels inhibit economic growth.  It suggests that global economic growth will be impaired in the foreseeable future.

       The negatives:

(1)   a vulnerable global banking system.  This week featured Wells Fargo as the latest bankster which attempted to defraud the public:

The Brookings Institute asks and answers the question: are US banks really any safer today than before Dodd Frank?

In addition, German and Italian banks remained in the headlines:

Can Deutschebank avoid a state bailout?

German politicians are now starting to worry (medium):

Update on Italy’s banking crisis (medium):

The unintended consequences of higher bank capital requirements.  This is interesting (medium):

The UN fears a third leg of the financial crisis (medium):

(2)   fiscal/regulatory policy.  What fiscal policy?


(3)   the potential negative impact of central bank money printing:  The key point here is that [a] the Fed has inflated bank reserves far beyond any comparable level in history and [b] while this hasn’t been an economic problem to date, {i} it still has to withdraw all those reserves from the system without creating any disruptions---a task that I regularly point out it has proven inept at in the past and {ii} it has created or is creating asset bubbles in the stock market as well as in the auto, student and mortgage loan markets.  

As noted above, the BOJ and FOMC met this week, did nothing but altered the tone of their messages.  I pounded them hard enough in Thursday’s Morning Call that I don’t need to add anything else to make my position clear.  But I will include my bottom line:

‘the BOJ and FOMC did roughly what I had expected; although judging by the pin action, others were clearly worried about a more hawkish tilt in policy.  QEForever remains the underlying investment theme; as such, the assumption has to be that stocks are going higher. 

That said, there is some cognitive dissonance starting to creep into this story.  (1) the BOJ all but admitted that its QE, NIRP and ZIRP haven’t produced the results that were anticipated, (2) the Fed’s ‘the economy is doing great’ narrative is not quite as solid as it has been because the Fed itself is producing forecasts that suggest that the economy is not doing so great, (3) even Fed supporters like CNBC’s Steve Leisman, are asking, ‘if the economy is so great, why aren’t you raising rates?’ and (4) the number of policy dissenters on the FOMC is growing.   

Whether this is a temporary phenomenon or a sign of things to come is anyone’s guess.  I will say that I have maintained that this drunken Market binge will likely come to an end when either some major exogenous event reveals that the central bankers are naked or the cumulative evidence of central bankers’ hubris, poor judgement and lack of courage becomes obvious to all but themselves.  The above examples could be the first sign of the latter---emphasis on ‘could be’.’

Here is a better assessment from a much smarter guy than me (today’s must read):

(4)   geopolitical risks: after an ineffective cease fire, Syria is heating up again.

Why Syria matters (medium):

(5)   economic difficulties in Europe and around the globe.  As noted above, there were only two international economic stats---Chinese loan demand and the EU Markit Composite Flash PMI---both of which were negative.

This on Chinese bad debt:
 
This on the ECB’s QE failure:

This is hardly a reason to pound a bearish drum; but it is a continuation of what has been an abysmal trend. And when coupled with the banking problems in Italy and Germany, it hardly provides a hopeful sign of support from the global economy.

Bottom line:  the US economy has gotten weaker in the last four weeks, calling into question any thought that it could be stabilizing.  Moreover, there is little aid coming from the global economy.  Meanwhile, our Fed remains inconsistent, further increasing the loss of central bank credibility; though to date, investors don’t seem to care.

A deteriorating global economy and a counterproductive central bank monetary policy are the biggest economic risks to our forecast. 


This week’s data:

(1)                                  housing: weekly mortgage and purchase applications were down; August housing starts and building permits were very disappointing as were August existing home sales; the September housing market index was very upbeat,

(2)                                  consumer: month to date retail chain store sales growth was down from the prior week; weekly jobless claims fell more than anticipated, the preliminary September consumer sentiment was below expectations,

(3)                                  industry: the August Chicago national activity index was down versus estimates that it would be up,


(4)                                  macroeconomic: August leading economic indicators were below forecast; August CPI came in higher than forecast.

The Market-Disciplined Investing
         
  Technical

On Friday, the indices (DJIA 18261, S&P 2164) sold off, ending a volatile week mostly driven by the central banks.   Volume rose but was still quite low; breadth weakened after a strong week.  The VIX was up modestly also having experienced a very unstable week; still in the end, its pin action was a plus for stocks. 

The Dow ended [a] above rising 100 day moving average, now support, [b] above its 200 day moving average, now support, [c] within a short term uptrend {18033-19767}, [c] in an intermediate term uptrend {11420-24247} and [d] in a long term uptrend {5541-19431}.

The S&P finished [a] above its rising 100 day moving average, now support, [b] above its 200 day moving average, now support, [c] within a short term uptrend {2122-2358}, [d] in an intermediate uptrend {1946-2548} and [e] in a long term uptrend {862-2400}. 

The long Treasury declined after an upbeat week, ending above its 100 day moving average and well within very short term, intermediate term and long term uptrends. 

GLD also had a good week, finishing above its 100 day moving average and within a short term trading range.  While it successfully challenged a short term uptrend, it recovered back above the lower boundary of that uptrend two days after the break.  Since then, it has been rising along with that lower boundary.  If it can pull away from this trend line, I will likely reinstate the uptrend.

Bottom line: the charts of the Averages remain solidly to the upside, trading above their key moving averages and within uptrends across all timeframes.  This week their advance was driven by the continuing hope for accommodative central bank monetary policy.  That investment theme will likely be in place for another couple of months, so the assumption has to be that prices are headed higher.

Fundamental-A Dividend Growth Investment Strategy

The DJIA (18261) finished this week about 44.7% above Fair Value (12616) while the S&P (2164) closed 38.8% overvalued (1559).  Incorporated in that ‘Fair Value’ judgment is some sort of half assed attempt at getting fiscal policy under control, a botched Fed transition from easy to tight money, a historically low long term secular growth rate of the economy and a ‘muddle through’ scenario in Europe, Japan and China.

This week’s US economic data continued a four week string of really poor numbers, diminishing the prospect that rate of decline in growth could be any slowing.  

The good news is that the dataflow from overseas, which has been awful for as long as I can remember, was at a trickle.  The bad news is that there were signs of mounting problems in the Chinese, German and Italian banking systems.  ‘Muddle through’ continues to be our scenario for the global economy; but that is increasingly looks like a bad assumption. 

What concerns me about all this is that, (1) most Street forecasts for the moment are more optimistic regarding the economy and corporate earnings than either the numbers imply or our own outlook suggests but (2) even if all those forecasts prove correct, our Valuation Model clearly indicates that stocks are overvalued on even the positive economic scenario and (3) that raises questions of what happens to valuations when reality sets in.

Of course, the main headlines this week were once again central bank related; and as usual, they were incomprehensible as ever.  The Bank of Japan left rates unchanged while it continued to talk up QE.  However, it took a big step towards admitting that its policies haven’t worked when it stated that it would begin targeting the government bond yield curve---a concession to Japanese financial institutions that are getting hammered by current policy.

Our own Fed also left rates unchanged but this time omitted its usual ‘on the one hand, on the other hand’ narrative to justify doing nothing---it just did nothing.  In addition, it said that everything was awesome, then proceeded to lower its forecast for GDP growth, suggesting everything isn’t awesome.

That said, the Markets were positively ecstatic over these non-moves.  As hard as that is for me to understand, the fact remains that investor psychology is a slave to an accommodative Fed irrespective of how poorly the US economy is performing---this week’s data, the Fed policy statement and the Market performance being a perfect example. 

When ultimately the irrational linkage ends of a weak economy = easy Fed = rising stock market breaks is anyone’s guess.  Clearly, I have been wrong on the timing; but sooner or later, the math of that equation will cease to make any sense to enough investors that it will change.  Either that or the historical framework for investment decision making completely changes.  You can decide if that is a good or bad thing.  I suggest the latter.

As you know, I believe that sooner or later, the price will be paid for flagrant mispricing and misallocation of assets.

Net, net, my two biggest concerns for the Markets are (1) declining profit and valuation estimates resulting from the economic effects of a slowing global economy and (2) the unwinding of the gross mispricing and misallocation of assets caused by the Fed’s wildly unsuccessful, experimental QE policy.

Bottom line: the assumptions in our Economic Model are unchanged.  If they are anywhere near correct, they will almost assuredly result in changes in Street models that will have to take their consensus Fair Value down for equities.  Near term that could be influenced by Brexit.

The assumptions in our Valuation Model have not changed either; though at this moment, there appears to be more events (greater than expected decline in Chinese economic activity; turmoil in the emerging markets and commodities; miscalculations by one or more central banks that would upset markets; an EU banking crisis [which may be occurring now]; a potential escalation of violence in the Middle East and around the world) that could lower those assumptions than raise them.  That said, our Model’s current calculated Fair Values under the best assumptions are so far below current valuations that a simple process of mean reversion is all that is necessary to bring Market prices down significantly.

                Use the current price strength to sell a portion of your winners and all of your losers.


DJIA             S&P

Current 2016 Year End Fair Value*              12700             1570
Fair Value as of 9/30/16                                  12616            1559
Close this week                                               18261            2164

Over Valuation vs. 9/30 Close
              5% overvalued                                13246                1636
            10% overvalued                                13877               1714 
            15% overvalued                                14504               1792
            20% overvalued                                15139                1870   
            25% overvalued                                  15770              1948
            30% overvalued                                  16400              2026
            35% overvalued                                  17031              2104
            40% overvalued                                  17662              2182
            45% overvalued                                  18293              2260
            50% overvalued                                  18924              2338

Under Valuation vs. 9/30 Close
            5% undervalued                             11985                    1481
10%undervalued                            11354                   1403   
15%undervalued                            10723                   1325



* Just a reminder that the Year End Fair Value number is based on the long term secular growth of the earning power of productive capacity of the US economy not the near term   cyclical influences.  The model is now accounting for somewhat below average secular growth for the next 3 to 5 years. 

The Portfolios and Buy Lists are up to date.


Steve Cook received his education in investments from Harvard, where he earned an MBA, New York University, where he did post graduate work in economics and financial analysis and the CFA Institute, where he earned the Chartered Financial Analysts designation in 1973.  His 47 years of investment experience includes institutional portfolio management at Scudder. Stevens and Clark and Bear Stearns, managing a risk arbitrage hedge fund and an investment banking boutique specializing in funding second stage private companies.  Through his involvement with Strategic Stock Investments, Steve hopes that his experience can help other investors build their wealth while avoiding tough lessons that he learned the 74hard way.