Wall Street Greek: TODAY’S MARKET

When things get dirty, they tend to continue on to downright messy and finally nasty. Stocks were in the midst of questioning dollar strength and the Fed’s plans given the nascent inflation uptick seen in the Core CPI data earlier this week. Enter geopolitics today, and stocks are selling off some more, with the SPDR S&P 500 (NYSE: SPY) dropping through the 100-day moving average today. In recent times, the demarcation line has served as a buy signal, but given the immediate issue is just warming up in Yemen (watch Iran), we may even approach the 200-day moving average line; and that’s without the issue of inflation gaining more attention. Take note that this geopolitical distraction could remove the inflation question from view, and what comes next could serve as a rally cry. The day’s economic data was positive, and I see consumer spending increasing near-term. Tomorrow brings a final revision to Q4 GDP, though, which was quite depressing most recently. Consumer sentiment will also be reported, and I think that will add some new fire to stocks. I believe day-traders should be buyers here. Long-term investors should be moving away from the broad market securities, as a stock-picker’s market will pervade as we move forward. Our Wall Street blog.

Our founder earned clients a 23% average annual return over five years as a stock analyst on Wall Street. "The Greek" has written for institutional newsletters, Businessweek, Real Money, Seeking Alpha and others, while also appearing across TV and radio. While writing for Wall Street Greek, Mr. Kaminis presciently warned of the financial crisis.

Today’s Market

Sector Security	03-26-15 AM
Vanguard S&P 500 (NYSE: VOO)	-0.4%
iShares Dow Jones (NYSE: IYY)	-0.5%
Fidelity NASDAQ ETF (Nasdaq: ONEQ)	-1.0%
ProShares Ultra Gold (NYSE: UGL)	+1.7%
ProShares Ultra Real Estate (NYSE: URE)	-1.0%
ProShares Ultra Oil (NYSE: UCO)	+5.7%
WisdomTree US$ Bullish (NYSE: USDU)	+0.2%
iShares 20+ Yr. Treasury (NYSE: TLT)	-0.8%

Gold and oil prices are higher today as Saudi Arabian forces are bombing Houthis rebels in Yemen, after the Houthis initiated a coup. Egyptian warships are heading toward Yemen, and most neighboring nations are supporting the government, while Iran supports the Houthis. What seemed like it would be a defensive military position by the Saudis developed into an offensive push, and that has raised the stakes against global stability. The resolve of Houthis’ allies is questionable, as is that of other nations supporting the government, but the Saudis already have their hands dirty. Gold is not getting the type of lift it might get if a global power were involved, though it is higher, but oil is up significantly more due to the involvement of Saudi Arabia and the threat of Iran.

Stocks were already in decline on nascent inflation concern, in my opinion, due to the Core CPI increase reported this week. Stocks are off some more this morning because of this global instability. The dollar is higher, though, as it continues to represent a flight to safety destination. Gold is up more, though, given the dollar’s already extended state.

Economic Reports

ECONOMIC REPORT SCHEDULE
Economic Data Point	Prior	Expect	Actual
THURSDAY
Weekly Jobless Claims	291K	293K	282K
PMI Services Flash	57.0	57.0	58.6
Kansas City Fed Mgf. Index	1	0
Bloomberg Consumer Comfort	44.2		45.5
EIA Natural Gas Report	-45 bcf		12 bcf
Lockhart Speaks
Bullard Speaks

The economic report schedule produced a positive tone Thursday morning. Weekly Jobless Claims dropped against the prior week’s result to 282K. It’s an enthusing level of new filings for unemployment insurance, and less than economists expected. This is not necessarily a data point economists spend much time forecasting though given its regular reporting.

Bloomberg’s Consumer Comfort, a weekly measure of the consumer mood, improved rather significantly. I attribute the weather friends. Already this past weekend I saw them, those families and couples that had been hunkered down all winter. They ventured out, underdressed and hopelessly consumption commercialized. They were out shopping, dining and exploring the city’s venues which require a ticket purchase. In other words, hope springs eternal and American consumers are coming to life as we approach the Easter spend.

Markit Economics’ PMI Services measure improved to 58.6 from 57.0, showing further signs of economic green sprouts this spring. Some of this is seasonal in a different way, with the hiring of lawyers and tax preparers accelerating around this time of year. But some of this is a reflection of our stronger labor situation and economy.

EPS Reports

I never got to that report I wanted to give you, and I apologize, as Five Below (Nasdaq: FIVE) is higher this morning by 11% as I expected. I’ll still be producing research on the company for you, as long-term stakes still need direction.

A wide variety of companies are reporting today, including ConAgra (NYSE: CAG), GameStop (NYSE: GME), Cosi (Nasdaq: COSI) Lululemon (Nasdaq: LULU), Scholastic (Nasdaq: SCHL), Commercial Metals (NYSE: CMC) and Winnebago (NYSE: WGO).

EPS REPORTS
Company	Ticker
THURSDAY
Accenture	NYSE: CAN
Adaptive Medias	Nasdaq: ADTM
Brainstorm Cell Therapeutics	Nasdaq: BCLI
Calithera Biosciences	Nasdaq: CALA
Cara Therapeutics	Nasdaq: CARA
Commercial Metals	NYSE: CMC
ConAgra Foods	NYSE: CAG
Cosi	Nasdaq: COSI
DGSE Companies	Nasdaq: DGSE
FibroGen	Nasdaq: FGEN
Fred’s	Nasdaq: FRED
GameStop	NYSE: GME
Gevo	Nasdaq: GEVO
Global Sources	Nasdaq: GSOL
Interphase	Nasdaq: INPH
Leatt	Nasdaq: LEAT
Lululemon Athletica	Nasdaq: LULU
Marathon Patent	Nasdaq: MARA
Minerva Neurosciences	Nasdaq: NERV
Newtek Business Services	Nasdaq: NEWT
Nova LifeStyle	Nasdaq: NVFY
NovaBay Pharmaceuticals	NYSE: NBY
NTN Buzztime	NYSE: NTN
NV5 Holdings	Nasdaq: NVEE
Oxford Industries	NYSE: OXM
Restoration Hardware	NYSE: RH
Scholastic	Nasdaq: SCHL
Signet Jewelers	NYSE: SIG
STR Holdings	Nasdaq: STRI
voxeljet	NYSE: VJET
Winnebago Industries	NYSE: WGO
World Point Terminals	NYSE: WPT

Please see our disclosures at the Wall Street Greek website and author bio pages found there. This article and website in no way offers or represents financial or investment advice. Information is provided for entertainment purposes only.