Market Insight

Markets rarely move at random. InvestorPlace’s leading analysts break down macro trends, sector dynamics, and recurring market patterns to help investors understand what is changing, what matters most, and where opportunities may emerge.

ERTS, ATVI, MSFT Find Small Victories in July Video Game Sales

By Anthony John Agnello, Consumer and Technology Writer
After enduring two months of sluggish video game sales and releasing a number of titles from video game stocks such as Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI) and Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: ERTS) that failed to gain any significant traction, the video game industry has been on the outs. But a few video game stocks finally had a decent month this summer, according the July video game sales numbers.

Apple Inc. (AAPL) News – iPad Competitor Reveals Supercharged OS X Friendly Tablet

By Anthony John Agnello, Consumer and Technology Writer
Apple sent out an early version of their next Mac OS X update while preping a relaunch of their community pages in the form of a new social network. Meanwhile, Axon Logic launches an expensive but versatile new iPad competitor.

Activision (ATVI) Struggling Amid Tired Sequels

By Anthony John Agnello, Consumer and Technology Writer
It has not been a good August for Activision Blizzard (NASDAQ: ATVI). First, Activision earnings came out including lower revenue and poor guidance. Then a July video game sales report showed trouble again, with industry-wide sales down 1% on the month.

KFC Franchisees Cry Fowl Over Yum! Corporate Meddling

By InvestorPlace Staff
When KFC president Roger Eaton decided to ignore the Colonel’s tried and true bone-in fried chicken and instead focus on healthier fare, he managed to ruffle the feathers of many of his faithful franchise owners across the country. Now parent company Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) is being sued by angry KFC franchise owners over the Yum corporate plan – most notably, over the push for grilled over fried chicken.

LOW, HD Point to DIY Comeback

By Paul Ausick
Earnings and sales from clothing and department stores have been merely okay, and management is reluctant to look ahead with much positive feeling about the consumer spending. This morning's earnings report from Lowe's Companies, Inc. (NYSE:LOW) follows that pattern.

Hulu Could Hold Fall 2010 IPO to Raise $2B

By Jeff Reeves
Hulu appears to be thinking of a fall 2010 IPO with a stock offering to raise $2 billion, according to reports. But industry experts speculate that the Hulu IPO plans aren’t to beef up programming or boost bandwidth. Rather, the move is to push for one of two things –the implementation of a subscription service that charges internet audience, or a push to put more ads in content to boost profits.

Retail Sales Rise 0.4% in July (DDS, JCP, WMT, HD)

By Paul Ausick
The US Department of Commerce reported that July retail sales rose just 0.4%, mostly as a result of increased auto and gasoline sales.

Why Investors Shouldn’t Buy Today

By Sam Collins, InvestorPlace Chief Technical Analyst
The bear is on the prowl and the near-term trend is down, so investors don't want to chase an oversold bounce.

Beer Prices May Soon Be Harder to Swallow

By Jon Ogg
Beer prices have gone up regardless of inflation or deflation in the broader economy, and it looks like they're about to go up even more.

Sony Ericsson Team With Google to Take on Apple With Playstation Phone

By Anthony John Agnello, Consumer and Technology Writer
Consumers, investors, and analysts have been asking since 2007 why SCEA and Sony-Ericsson haven't produced a Playstation branded smartphone to compete with Apple (NASDAQ: APPL).

Stocks Selloff Looks Overdone

By Anthony Mirhaydari, InvestorPlace Market Strategist
Stocks plunged on Wednesday as investors decided to dump shares of companies most closely related to cyclical economic growth. The funny thing is, they ramped up the very same shares a week ago because they were so excited about the prospects for improved growth. It's like deja vu all over again, but backwards and with a full twist.

GM Faces Earnings and CEO Change Into IPO

By Paul Ausick
General Motors Co. has suddenly found itself front and center in the news today. The company, or the government agency, posted its second consecutive quarter of positive earnings this morning for the first time since 2004. Second-quarter profit totaled $1.3 billion, or EPS of $2.55. Revenue totaled $33.2 billion. In the second quarter of 2009, GM lost almost $13 billion on its way to a bankruptcy filing. One could say that things are definitely looking up.

Meltdown is Possible, According to Technical Indicators

By ETFguide
With the death cross still intact, the S&P dropped below its 200-day moving average, which is bad news .

Macy’s Earnings Raised the Bar for Nordstrom (M, JWN)

By Jon Ogg
Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE: M) is seeing a gain after its earnings report this morning. The news was a bit of a surprise after poor retail sales figures started coming in from large retail operations, despite what should have been easily comparable sales. More importantly, Macy's has raised its fiscal year profit targets.

Gold Miner Earnings Don’t Shine (IAG, ABX, GG, AUY, GLD, GDX, KGC)

By Paul Ausick
In the past year, gold prices have risen from about $950 per ounce to around $1,200 per ounce, a boost of 26%. That increase has kept gold miners' stocks moving too. But not all the moves have been positive.

Chrysler Headed for the Scrapheap

By Louis Navellier, Editor, Growth Investor
This former top automaker's days are numbered. Here's why.

Asset Manager KKR & Co. Pulls Stock Offering

By Paul Ausick
Citing an unfriendly market for stock offerings, KKR & Co. (NYSE: KKR) has pulled its planned $500 million secondary offering just one month after moving its listing from Euronext to the New York Stock Exchange. Other than a statement referring to "unfavorable market conditions" in its registration documents filed with the SEC, KKR has made no other comment about the withdrawn offering.

Wal-Mart Ranks as Most Generous Company

By InvestorPlace Staff
In its yearly report, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reported the most generous companies of 2009, and the previous three headline the list.

Price Targets for 9 Major Airlines

By InvestorPlace Staff
Overall, airline stock is rising modestly, with notable declines year-to-date from AMR Corp. and AirTran.
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