Is Twitter :TWTR A Sell?

Back in early December, I was bullish on Twitter (TWTR) for three reasons when it was $50. It has since rallied more than 40%. But nothing lasts forever and in early trading today the stock was down 5% thanks to word that analysts slapped it with an underperform rating.
So why did it rocket so high so fast and why is it now coming back to Earth?

First, the fundamental story is still an exciting one and Twitter will have an opportunity to create all kinds of value few yet foresee. For instance, with a constantly improving ability to crunch its massive real time data set, Twitter may have an opportunity to monetize search, which would be huge. I can imagine Twitter placing relevant geolocated ads next to its users’ searches for auctioned keywords similar to Google’s approach to traditional search.  (more)

Please share this article

Micron Technology (NASDAQ: MU) Should be a Big Winner in 2014

If you've been in the market this year, you are likely pretty happy with your results. Indeed, the bias this year has been all about the bulls, and until we see the price action reflect otherwise, the big winners are likely to keep on giving in 2014.
For traders like me who love to ride strong momentum stocks during bull markets, I think the best place to put new capital to work is in those big winners trading at or near new highs.
One tech stock that fits this description perfectly is Micron Technology (NASDAQ: MU).
The company is one of the largest makers of computing memory chips in the world, but you don't have to have a very long memory to know that the stock has been a trader's dream of late. Year to date, MU has delivered a gain of nearly 245%, an incredible run for a large-cap tech stock that's been around for some time.
And though shares are more than 50% above their long-term, 200-day moving average, there have been scant episodes this year where traders got scared and sold the stock off because it was perceived as being overbought.

From a fundamental perspective, the shares do not seem overvalued. With a current price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of just under 20, the stock is neither super cheap nor prohibitively expensive.  (more)
Please share this article

Art Cashin Warns About West’s Disappearing Gold Hoard

from King World News
Today 50-year veteran Art Cashin warned King World News about the West’s disappearing gold hoard. Cashin, who is Director of Floor Operations at UBS ($650 billion under management), also discussed what surprises him the most regarding the West’s loss of gold.
Eric King: “Art, I wanted to discuss a Bloomberg story where they talked about gold literally disappearing from the vaults in London. An individual interviewed in that piece said the vaults were full two years ago, and now they are virtually empty. This transfer of gold from the West to the East, does it worry you, Art?”
Cashin: “It is concerning … China has stepped up to be a pretty big buyer of gold. So we will keep an eye on where these transfers go. These people (in the East) are concerned about their own currencies and the ability of their own governments to control things. They look for the safety of gold, something hard that has stood them well (in terms of wealth preservation) over the decades.”
Continue Reading at KingWorldNews.com…

Please share this article

World Braces for Retirement Crisis

A global retirement crisis is bearing down on workers of all ages.

Spawned years before the Great Recession and the 2008 financial meltdown, the crisis was significantly worsened by those twin traumas. It will play out for decades, and its consequences will be far-reaching.

Many people will be forced to work well past the traditional retirement age of 65. Living standards will fall and poverty rates will rise for the elderly in wealthy countries that built safety nets for seniors after World War II. In developing countries, people's rising expectations will be frustrated if governments can't afford retirement systems to replace the tradition of children caring for aging parents.

The problems are emerging as the generation born after World War II moves into retirement.

"The first wave of under-prepared workers is going to try to go into retirement and will find they can't afford to do so," says Norman Dreger, a retirement specialist with the consulting firm Mercer in Frankfurt, Germany. (more)

Please share this article

Chart of the Day - Autodesk (ADSK)

The Chart of the Day is Autodesk (ADSK).  I found the stock by sorting the New High List for frequency in the last month, then skipped over the stocks that did not have positive gains in the last week and month.  I always use the Flipchart feature to review for the best charts.  Since the Trend Spotter signaled another buy on 11/1 the stock gained 18.24%.

The company designs software and digital content for architectural design and land development, manufacturing, utilities, telecommunications, and media and entertainment sectors. Autodesk provides design software, Internet portal services, wireless development platforms, and point-of-location applications that empower customers in numerous countries to drive business and remain competitive. 

Please share this article

US Weekly Economic Calendar

time (et)	report	period	Actual	CONSENSUS forecast	previous
MONDAY, DEC. 30
10 am	Pending home sales	Nov.		--	-0.6%
TUESDAY, DEC. 31
9 am	Case-Shiller home prices	Oct.		--	13.3% y-o-y
9:45 am	Chicago PMI	Dec.		61.0	63.0
10 am	Consumer confidence	Dec.		76.2	70.4
WEDNESDAY, JAN. 1
	New Year's Day None scheduled
THURSDAY, JAN. 2
8:30 am	Weekly jobless claims	12/28		342,000	338,000
9 am	Market PMI	Dec.		--	54.4
10 am	ISM	Dec.		56.6%	57.3%
10 am	Construction spending	Nov.		0.8%	0.8%
FRIDAY, JAN. 3
TBA	Motor vehicle sales	Dec.		16.0 mln	16.3 mln

Please share this article