The medical devices industry, which was once acclaimed for its high-paying jobs and research and development opportunities, has been subject to the much controversial 2.3% medical device excise tax. The MedTech fraternity is leaving no stone unturned to permanently do away with the dreadful tax — but has not been able to. Interestingly, the year 2017 has been quite an eventful one, courtesy of a series of socio-political occurrences that favored the space. The year witnessed the much talked-about election wherein Donald Trump took over the nation’s charge as President. Not only were the new administration’s health schemes thoroughly cri...
The good news is: All of the major averages closed at all time highs last Monday. The Negatives 52 week new highs have not been confirming all time new index highs. The first chart covers the past 6 months showing the S&P 500 (SPX) in red and a 10% trend (19 day EMA) of NYSE new highs (NY NH) in green. Dashed vertical lines have been drawn on the 1st trading day of each month. The new high for the SPX was unconfirmed by NY NH. The next chart is similar to the one above except it shows the Nasdaq composite (OTC) in blue and OTC NH, in green, has been calculated using Nasdaq data. OTC NH also failed to confirm the new index high. The Pos...
Dollar/yen advanced just a bit within well-known ranges but never went too far. The approval of the tax bill was priced in while rising US treasuries sent the pair higher. The data proved mixed. The holiday week consists of a few US publications as well as a speech by BOJ Governor Kuroda. USD/JPY fundamental movers Tax cuts, mixed data and rising bond yields The massive tax cuts were approved by both chambers of Congress and were signed into law by President Donald Trump. The smooth sailing was already priced in after the Senate made the big move in the previous week. We saw some “sell the fact” reaction. US data was mixed: GDP growth...
Despite the name of this government agency, Canada’s Competition Bureau lacks an appreciation of the nature of competition. Moreover, the Bureau’s actions can be seen as an insult to Canadians, as it fails to acknowledge the ability of discriminating consumers to recognize uncompetitive offerings. As the Bureau pretends to be the consumers’ guardian angel, it wastes taxpayers’ dollars on counterproductive activities. The Hudson’s Bay Company (HBC) operates numerous department stores in Canada. They say they have spent more than US$425,000 and invested more than 6,500 person-hours to produce 37,000 documents in response to the Co...
from CoreLogic — this post authored by Sam Khater We recently took a look at how low available inventory is contributing to rising home prices. As you can see from the following NAR chart, for sale inventory is at its lowest level since 2005 at approximately 4-months’ supply compared to a “normal” market of 6-months’ supply. We found that unsold inventory is even lower than traditional metrics might suggest. Because the bulk of entry-level supply, especially first-time homebuyers, is so constrained, it’s effectively keeping potential buyers out of the market. The below chart illustrates the low price tier pressure. The...
The US stock market has enjoyed significant gains in 2017. Investors are now worried about high valuation metrics and wonder how long the bull market will continue. What is our US stock market forecast for 2018? The US economy and the US stock market have had a good run in 2017. The unemployment rate has declined to 4.1% from 4.7% at the start of the year. The US gross domestic product has risen at an annual rate of over 3% in both the second and third quarters, the first such back-to-back gains since 2014. For the first time in a decade, corporate earnings have benefited from synchronized global economic expansion. Interest rates remain low ...
Ethereum price prediction could certainly be very tricky, after the incredible escalation in the value of Bitcoin. At heart, Ethereum mining is rather similar to Bitcoin, and the value of this cryptocurrency has already increased quite considerably, even if it has yet to reach the sort of levels that Bitcoin has touched. Proof of work Both Ethereum and Bitcoin use proof of work as a central feature, meaning that some making an Ethereum price prediction have already suggested that the cryptocurrency will reach Bitcoin-like value in the coming years. While it is a little too early to concur with this summation, there is no doubt that Ethereu...
Written by John Slater Recently GF Data® reported that middle-market valuation multiples eclipsed previous highs in Q3 with an average TEV/Adjusted EBITDA multiple of 7.5x on $10-250mm deals. GF Data’s proprietary transaction data from over 200 lower middle market PE firms saw continued strength in all deal sizes, but Q3 was the first quarter to show averages in the lower $10-25mm space topping at a 6.3x average valuation. We’ve never before seen such market valuations for lower middle market companies. And many owners are electing to take advantage of the opportunity to sell at record valuations. FOCUS will end the year with a record...
With MiFID II approaching this January, market liquidity is a concern, a report from Morgan Stanley notes. So how does liquidity impact factor investing? Brian Hayes and his quantitative research team at the investment bank broke down how liquidity factors impacted stock price performance, discovering some regional and factor category differentials that provides a roadmap to enhanced entry and exit points. But it also revealed that under certain circumstances liquidity does not play a part in rising or falling factor performance. Factor investing: Liquidity does not impact the US to the same degree as it does other global regions Consider...
Background PT Indah Kiat Pulp & Paper Tbk is the largest manufacturer of paper pulp, paper and other paper-related products by sales in Indonesia, and one of the largest in the world. It also produces industrial paper products, such as packaging paper and specialty paper. It is owned by the holding company, APP, which is controlled by the Sinar Mas group. Business Description INKP is the biggest producer of paper pulp, paper, and paper-based products in Indonesia, with total annual production, mainly out of Indonesia and China, reaching over 19 million tonnes per annum. Products are marketed in more than 120 countries across six continent...