ETF/No Load Fund Tracker Newsletter For February 13, 2015

Ulli ETF Tracker Contact

ETF/No Load Fund Tracker StatSheet

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THE LINK TO OUR CURRENT ETF/MUTUAL FUND STATSHEET IS:

https://theetfbully.com/2015/02/weekly-statsheet-for-the-etfno-load-fund-tracker-newsletter-updated-through-02122015/

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Market Commentary

Friday, February 13, 2015

S&P 500 NOTCHES RECORD HIGH TO CLOSE WEEK

Fri pic

[Chart courtesy of MarketWatch.com]

1. Moving the Markets

The bulls charged forward to close out the second week of trading in February. The S&P 500 closed at a new all-time high of 2,096.99 and the Dow above 18,000 again. This was the first record close of 2015 for the S&P, after 53 record closes last year. Needless to say, investors were smiling at the end of trading today.

What boosted markets higher on the week? International concerns eased, removing some of the anxiety that has been in the market for the past few weeks. Greece’s recent conflict with EU leaders over terms from the bailout funds received several years ago seemed to simmer down. And a cease-fire in Ukraine also lifted additional international concerns. Fourth-quarter earnings season is coming to end, which also removes some uncertainty, as companies were once again able to exceed Wall Street expectations and post nice earnings growth.

Markets are closed for Presidents Day on Monday, but it is a fairly busy week for economic data. Manufacturing activity will be in focus with the release of industrial production, and the Philly and New Year Federal regional surveys. Leading indicators will also give a fresh look into the direction of the economy over the next several months. However, the headlines of the week will likely be the producer price index and the FOMC meeting minutes that are released on Wednesday. The Fed has been able to remain patient while inflation has been muted, keeping interest rates near zero, so both of the releases will be closely watched for additional details as to when the Fed may increase rates.

6 our 10 ETFs in the Spotlight closed up with 5 of them making new highs; 9 of them are showing gains YTD as you can see in table 2.

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Weekly StatSheet For The ETF/No Load Fund Tracker Newsletter – Updated Through 02/12/2015

Ulli ETF StatSheet Contact

ETF/Mutual Fund Data updated through Thursday, February 12, 2015

TOC 121514

If you are not familiar with some of the terminology used, please see the Glossary of Terms.

 

1. DOMESTIC EQUITY MUTUAL FUNDS/ETFs: BUY — since 10/22/2014

TTI

Our main directional indicator, the Domestic Trend Tracking Index (TTI), broke through its long-term trend line generating a “Sell” for this arena effective 10/14/2014, which was followed by a violent break back above the line on 10/22/14 generating a new “Buy.” It was a classic whipsaw signal, and you can read more on my blog as to the events as they were unfolding.

As of today, our TTI (green line in above chart) is positioned above its long term trend line (red) by +3.55% keeping us in the market with our established positions.

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Markets Get Boost From Russia-Ukraine Cease-Fire

Ulli Market Commentary Contact

Thur pic

[Chart courtesy of MarketWatch.com]

1. Moving the Markets

Stocks continued to climb as investors were encouraged by Russia and Ukraine announcing a cease-fire. The S&P 500 moved within two points of a record closing high and the Nasdaq is at its highest level since March 2000.

Advances today were mostly led by technology stocks in the Nasdaq. However, Cisco (CSCO) was a big gainer that pushed the Dow higher after it announced earnings that exceeded analysts’ expectations.

We did hear some disappointing economic news today. The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits jumped last week and jobless claims rose 25,000 to a seasonally adjusted 304,000. In addition, we also heard that retail sales fell 0.8% in January despite lower gas prices.

Do you shop at Costco? Do you use an American Express? Well, shares of American Express (AXP) took a dive today after the company revealed that it is ending its long-standing co-branding relationship with the wholesaler. Amex cards have been the only form of credit accepted at the store, but all that will come to an end on March 31, 2016.

With today’s straight up move, it comes as no surprise that all of our 10 ETFs in the Spotlight joined the party and closed on the plus side. Leading the group was IOO with a +1.36% gain on hopes that the Greek issue can be resolved and that the Ukraine Cease Fire holds. Four ETFs made new highs for the year.

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Stocks Flat Line Wednesday; Tesla Posts Big Losses

Ulli Market Commentary Contact

Wed pic

[Chart courtesy of MarketWatch.com]

1. Moving the Markets

In the international realm, investors appeared to take a sideline approach as eurozone finance ministers gathered in Brussels to discuss debt-strapped Greece. The fate of cash-strapped Greece, which has become front-page news as its new anti-austerity government looks to get bailout concessions from its eurozone creditors, could become clearer as an emergency meeting of finance ministers was addressing Greece’s appeal for more generous bailout conditions.

In auto news, after markets closed today, Tesla Motors (TSLA) said that it lost $107.6 million in Q4 2014. This did not bode well with investors, given the fact that for all of 2014, the maker of electric luxury cars reported a loss of $294 million, vs. a loss of $74 million for all of 2013. Commenting on the matter, Musk said Tesla plans to boost annual production from a projected 50,000 cars this year to 500,000 by 2020, saying that strong markets in the U.S. and China will support such enormous growth.

And in tech news, Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) showed more signs of a rebound in its latest quarter, as demand for new hardware outweighed a headwind from currency exchange rates. The big manufacturer of networking equipment said revenues increased 7% in the second fiscal period, an improvement over the 1.3% growth reported for the first period. Net income apparently rose 68%, despite costs associated with recent job cuts.

Our 10 ETFs in the Spotlight provided a mixed picture with 5 of them gaining and 5 of them slipping; however, one of them made a new high for the year.

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Stocks Snap Losing Streak; Apple Now Worth $700 Billion

Ulli Market Commentary Contact

Tue pic

[Chart courtesy of MarketWatch.com]

1. Moving the Markets

Stocks broke out of a two-day losing streak today as the S&P 500, Dow and Nasdaq all gained. The Dow got a boost today from a strong earnings report posted by Coca-Cola (KO). Coke topped earnings-per-share expectations by 2 cents on better-than-expected revenue of $10.87 billion. Shares of the stock jumped up close to 3%.

Of course, one of the biggest news stories was Apple (AAPL). Shares of the beloved tech company gained 1.9% to a price point of $122.02, which pushed the company’s net worth close to $710.7 billion. Once again, newspapers are raving about the fact that Apple is now the world’s first $700 billion company. Microsoft (MSFT) was the first company to close with a $600 billion valuation back in 2000. Apple has made a run at $700 billion before, but wasn’t ever able to close there until today.

It wasn’t all beautiful news for every sector today. Energy stocks fell as the price of benchmark U.S. crude dropped $2.84 to close at $50.02 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The drop came after the International Energy Agency said that the rebound in prices of late will be “comparatively limited in scope.” Apparently, analysts at Citigroup agreed, saying that rising inventory costs could push the price of oil as low as $20 a barrel.

In an abrupt reversal from yesterday, all our 10 ETFs in the Spotlight joined the rally and closed higher with healthcare (XLV) leading the pack. One new high was made, and 9 of them are now on the plus side for the year.

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The World Drags Down Domestic Markets

Ulli Market Commentary Contact

Mon pic

[Chart courtesy of MarketWatch.com]

1. Moving the Markets

Concerns about the world economy dragged U.S. stocks lower on Monday with worries mounting over Greece’s standoff with its creditors. Greece’s defiant new government is waging a high-stakes poker game with its European lenders it seems. These games could go on forever though, as we all know.

According to Barclays, risk assets, including stocks in Europe and the U.S., are being weighed down following Greece’s insistence “not to seek an extension of its current bailout program.” The Greek drama is heating up as investors confront the prospect of a Greek default or an exit from the Eurozone. Still, global investors are hopeful a deal will be struck and the worst-case outcome avoided.

In oil news, retailers are preparing to report results from their most important quarter of the year, Q4. Retailers’ Q4 results are riding on high expectations that cheaper gas led consumers to splurge during the important holiday shopping season. Consumers already benefited last year from steady growth in jobs and low inflation, so let’s see how this year turns out.

On the positive side, in the toy world, Hasbro (HAS) jumped $3.92, or 7%, to $59.66 after the toy company turned in stronger quarterly results. Sales of toys geared toward boys surged, led by Transformers, Nerf and Marvel-brand action heroes. Hasbro also raised its dividend and expanded plans to buy back its own shares.

All our 10 ETFs in the Spotlight headed south as an initial rebound failed pushing the indexes lower. YTD, 5 of them are currently showing gains.

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