“Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain! The Great Oz has spoken!”
– The Wizard of Oz
We all know the scene. When the Tin Man, Scarecrow, Cowardly Lion, and Dorothy finally made their way to the Wizard of Oz, they all feared an all-powerful, omnipotent figure, granting wishes and issuing justice from a gilded throne. Come to find out, it was just a humbug working some controls behind the curtain.
This moment in that great story is reminiscent of the commentary from market prognosticators these days on the oft-misunderstood macroeconomic phenomenon of inflation. Hyperinflation, disinflation, deflation, stagflation, and any other play on pricing instability for goods and services has become the topic du jour over the past several weeks.
By Thomas A. Martin, CFA, Senior Portfolio Manager – GLOBALT Investments.
There’s the so-called “Big Rotation” out of bonds and into stocks. These days, it all starts with the virus, vaccine success and re-opening, the increasingly large snap-back rebound in GDP, and trying to handicap inflation and what the Central banks will do about it. Massive stimulus, pent-up demand and savings, supply chain kinks, low labor force participation it all seems pretty reasonable. Rates are on the rise because market participants think rates are on the rise.
Actually though, talk of the big rotation started well before COVID, and it all started with interest rates being lower than almost anybody could imagine at the time. That was when the 10-year U.S. treasury yield broached the 1.5% level in 2012, nearly ten years ago. 2013 was the first “taper tantrum,” and folks were certain that we’d kissed the bottom on rates for the 30-year cycle. An imminent rise in rates and a rotation int
Tesla just posted record quarterly profits, with one measure of earnings passing the $1 billion mark for the first time.
But in order to justify its sky-high stock price, the automaker will need to overcome a growing list of challenges.
What s happening: A global chip shortage is snarling production, while the business environment in China, a crucial market, remains fraught. Competitors are gaining ground and Tesla faces a safety investigation tied to a fatal crash in Texas.
Shares are down 2% in premarket trading.
Some Wall Street analysts still see a solid case for Tesla s stock, which is trading at more than 1,100 times its earnings, according to data from Refinitiv.
Apple may soon have company in the $2 trillion market cap club
Apple is the only American company to reach a $2 trillion market value. But it could soon have a lot more company in that elite club.
Microsoft is worth just under $2 trillion. Amazon has a market capitalization of $1.7 trillion, and Google owner Alphabet is worth about $1.5 trillion.
Tech stocks have come roaring back in recent weeks, helping to push these Nasdaq stalwarts and others to near record highs.
In fact, tech’s Magnificent Seven the five FAANG stocks of Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix and Alphabet, plus Microsoft and Tesla are now collectively worth about $9.3 trillion. That’s a quarter of the S&P 500’s total market value of $37.5 trillion.
Apple is the only company worth $2 trillion. That’s probably about to change
Apple is the only American company to reach a $2 trillion market value. But it could soon have a lot more company in that elite club.
Microsoft is worth just under $2 trillion. Amazon has a market capitalization of $1.7 trillion, and Google owner Alphabet is worth about $1.5 trillion.
Tech stocks have come roaring back in recent weeks, helping to push these Nasdaq stalwarts and others to near record highs.
In fact, tech’s Magnificent Seven the five FAANG stocks of Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix and Alphabet, plus Microsoft and Tesla are now collectively worth about $9.3 trillion. That’s a quarter of the S&P 500’s total market value of $37.5 trillion.