Retail Sector Fears Have Been Overblown, For Now

The past few months have seen retail stocks underperform on concern that consumers have been slowing their spending. The latest retail sales data indicates that consumers are fine overall. If anything, they’re just cutting back on spending unless they can get a big bargain. Investors looking at the retail space should focus either on companies that can offer big, regular sales, or on big box stores that cater to consistent demand. Home improvement chain Home Depot (HD) is in the latter category. Consumers ...
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Insider Activity Report: Keycorp (KEY)

Devina Rankin, a director at Keycorp (KEY), recently bought 10,000 shares. The buy is an initial stake for the director. The total cost for the stake came to $114,900. This marks the first insider buy since the company’s institutional bank head bought 75,000 shares in May. He paid $733,500 to do so. Company insiders have mostly been buyers since March, following the drop in bank stocks. And they were largely sellers last year at higher prices. Overall, insiders at the bank Read More
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Unusual Options Activity: Sea Limited (SE)

Singapore-based e-commerce and digital finance platform Sea Limited (SE) dropped nearly 30 percent on Tuesday. One trader expects shares to decline further in the next month. That’s based on the September $35 puts. With 28 days until expiration, 15,097 contracts traded compared to a prior open interest of 376, for a 40-fold rise in volume on the trade. The buyer of the puts paid $0.60 to make the bearish bet. Sea Limited recently traded near $40, so shares would need to ...
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The Market Just Proved This Company Is Substantially Undervalued

Value investors can have a tough time when it comes to investing. They can recognize that a company is trading at a discount to its value. But short of taking it private, it’s hard to get that value unlocked. It takes time and patience. Recently, a proposed merger agreement led to a rejection by the company that was set to be taken private at a premium to where its shares traded. Typically, a rejection would mean shares would trend lower. In this ...
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Insider Activity Report: Heartland Express (HTLD)

Michael Gerdin, CEO at Heartland Express (HTLD), recently bought 5,841 shares. The buy increased his position by less than 1 percent, and came to a total cost of $89,367. Gerdin was also an active buyer back in May, and six other buys in the past 12 months. This marks the first insider activity since May, when a major owner bought 1,792 shares. There have been no insider sales at the company over the past year. Overall, company insiders own 44 percent ...
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Unusual Options Activity: Vornado Realty Trust (VNO)

Office and retail-oriented real estate investment trust Vornado Realty Trust (VNO) has lost about one quarter of its value over the past year. One trader sees shares trending even lower in the coming months. That’s based on the October $15 puts. With 65 days until expiration, 4,003 contracts traded compared to a prior open interest of 145, for a 28-fold rise in volume on the trade. The buyer of the puts paid $0.25 to make the bearish bet. Shares recently went for ...
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Invest in the Sector Capable of Best Beating Inflation

The market may not like the fact that inflation’s decline this year has started to stall out. While inflation does look likely to start showing signs of staying in the 3-4 percent range, some investments fare better than others in an inflationary environment. The best investment for this scenario is for a company that offers a service and can raise prices far higher than inflation. It’s also best if they don’t have anything to physically manufacture and produce. The winner here is ...
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Insider Activity Report: Marriott Vacations Worldwide (VAC)

John Geller, President and CEO at Marriott Vacations Worldwide (VAC) recently bought 5,000 shares. The buy increased his holdings by 5 percent, and came to a total cost of $564,200. He was joined by the company CFO, who bought 1,800 shares at a cost just under $205,000, and who increased his stake by 16 percent. These mark the only insider buys over the past two years. Company insiders have been periodic sellers of shares otherwise. Overall, company insiders own about 7.9 ...
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