Major stock indices in the United States ended lower on Jul 17, 2024, pulled down by microchip stocks’ decline. Notably, microchip stocks sank following news reports that the Biden administration might impose severe trade restrictions against China in a bid to contain the availability of semiconductor technology to the latter.  Against this backdrop, stock market players might not feel confident in making investments as trade tensions between these two economic giants sometimes result in global market imbal ...

Inflation has been declining steadily and hopes of a rate cut have brightened over the past month. However, Americans don’t appear confident about the economy as inflation remains quite elevated from the Federal Reserve’s 2% target.Although consumers are hopeful that inflation will ease over the next year, consumer sentiment hit an eight-month low in July. The University of Michigan’s preliminary consumer sentiment index showed that consumer sentiment came in at 66.0 in July compared to June’s final reading ...

Major stock indices in the United States ended on the green last Friday, following a key labor market data release, which came almost in line with market expectations.  Notably, the latest data implied a 206,000 increase in nonfarm payrolls in June in the United States, which might have reignited Fed rate cut hopes among investors as reflected in an upward price movement in the share market.  Against this backdrop, stock market players might be in the mood for some good investments. However, since the share ...

An ill-informed investor can lose cash if he wagers on a stock only on the basis of the numbers flashing on a real-time stock screen. A critical analysis of a company’s financial background is a must for a better investment decision, especially at a time when the stock market is juggling myriad issues.Often, investors evaluate a company’s performance by simply looking at its sales and earnings, which sometimes do not reveal the real picture. To be more precise, they do not tell whether a company’s fundament ...

For new and old investors, taking full advantage of the stock market and investing with confidence are common goals. Zacks Premium provides lots of different ways to do both.The research service features daily updates of the Zacks Rank and Zacks Industry Rank, full access to the Zacks #1 Rank List, Equity Research reports, and Premium stock screens, all of which will help you become a smarter, more confident investor.Zacks Premium also includes the Zacks Style Scores.What are the Zacks Style Scores?The Zack ...

Major stock indices in the United States ended on a mixed note last Friday, as conflicting factors impacted the overall market. While a continued cooling of inflation was a key growth catalyst, skepticism regarding when the Federal Reserve will lower interest rates might have kept some investors on the sidelines.  A prudent investor knows that this is the right time to buy stocks that are safe bets. To this end, we recommend stocks like Virco Manufacturing (VIRC) , Americold Realty Trust (COLD) , Atmos Ener ...

Investors interested in Utilities stocks should always be looking to find the best-performing companies in the group. Atmos Energy (ATO) is a stock that can certainly grab the attention of many investors, but do its recent returns compare favorably to the sector as a whole? Let's take a closer look at the stock's year-to-date performance to find out.Atmos Energy is a member of the Utilities sector. This group includes 106 individual stocks and currently holds a Zacks Sector Rank of #13. The Zacks Sector Ran ...

Expectations of multiple interest rate cuts in 2024 had faded long back and now the Federal Reserve has almost assured that it isn’t going to happen anymore.On Jun 12, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said in the post-FOMC meeting statement that the central bank sees the possibility of only a single rate cut this year, sharply down from three rate cuts hinted earlier this year.This came as the Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged in its June FOMC meeting in its current range of 5.25-5.5%.Alth ...

Given the current scenario, investors should gauge the changing market dynamics and accordingly chalk out a sturdy investment strategy. Well, you can decide to buy or sell a particular stock by looking at its sales and earnings numbers. However, such a strategy does not always warrant superior returns when the market faces a myriad of issues. A critical analysis of the company’s financial background is always required for a better investment decision.Indeed, a company should be sound enough to meet its fina ...

It’s no secret that we all love to get paid. And when you think about it, dividend stock payments are essentially investors’ versions of paydays within the stock market.Dividends provide a passive income stream, limit the impact of drawdowns in other positions, provide more than one way to profit from an investment, and provide the ability to reap maximum returns through dividend reinvestment.There are several parameters investors can follow to aid them in constructing an income-generating portfolio. Let’s ...