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The 15% year-to-date rally in the S&P 500 (.SPX) is pulling once doubtful investors back into the market. Meanwhile, options investors are buying calls - bets on upside in stocks - at levels not seen in years. A record 1.8 million S&P 500 calls traded on Thursday, helping lift the one-month moving average of calls-to-puts to the highest in at least four years, Trade Alert data showed. The S&P 500 has posted a median gain of 18% in the 12 months after clearing the 20% threshold, LPL Financial data showed. One encouraging signal is that a greater number of S&P 500 stocks are heading higher, in addition to the handful of megacap growth names such as Microsoft (MSFT.O) and Nvidia (NVDA.O) that led gains this year.

Persons: you've, Emily Roland, Goldman Sachs, Willie Delwiche, we're, Delwiche, Brent Kochuba, Matt Stucky, Ken Mahoney, Lewis Krauskopf, Saqib Iqbal Ahmed, David Randall, Ira Iosebashvili, Richard Chang Organizations: YORK, National Association of Active Investment, Bank of America, Deutsche Bank, Trade, John Hancock Asset Management, Mount Research, American Association of, Investors, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Company, Fed, Microsoft, Nvidia, Asset Management, Thomson Locations: U.S

☆ Is it too late to join the market rally? Morgan Stanley's Slimmon weighs in and names stocks to buy
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-15 | by ( Weizhen Tan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Andrew Slimmon of Morgan Stanley Investment Management says a "meaningful" correction may not happen right now. "But it's premature and the stock market is right now feeding off … those lower inflation month to month price," Slimmon added. Stock picks Nevertheless, there are pockets of opportunity in the market right now, according to Slimmon. He named three stocks to buy: American equipment rental company United Rentals , financial services company Ameriprise and building materials company CRH . "In my opinion, investors looking to get into the market will view the recent laggards as an opportunity to get more invested," he said of those three stocks.

Persons: it's, Andrew Slimmon, CNBC's, There's, you've, Slimmon, there's, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Nasdaq, Morgan Stanley Investment Management, U.S . Federal, Federal Reserve, Stock, United Rentals Locations: bullish

☆ Goldman Sachs shares 24 stocks to buy and ride higher as they catch up to the market's powerful rally through year-end
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-13 | by ( Mark Reeth | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The S&P 500 has entered bull-market territory thanks to a small handful of tech stocks. Goldman Sachs says that could actually mean good things to come for the rest of the market. Goldman Sachs analysts led by Chief US Equity Strategist David Kostin set out to answer that question. It's no wonder, then, that Goldman Sachs has upped its guidance for where the market will end the year. Below are the 24 stocks that Kostin found which have YTD EPS revisions above the median of 9%.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, David Kostin, Kostin, YTD Organizations: Investors, Big Tech, Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, Chief US, Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research

☆ Investors in biggest climate pressure group don't like to pressure
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Tommy Wilkes | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

Climate Action 100+ (CA100+), set up in 2017, comprises more than 700 investment firms representing $68 trillion in assets. At stake is whether CA100+ members use all the tools at their disposal to pressure climate laggards. FLAGGING CLIMATE LAGGARDSCA100+ posts on its website upcoming shareholder resolutions and board re-election votes but it doesn't recommend voting against directors at climate laggards. Wespath's sustainability director, Jake Barnett, said that challenging board directors over their climate policies was not being used widely enough "as a method of accountability". In at least one area there is compulsion; CA100+ members not responding to a survey asking for their engagement interests within a year could be delisted.

Persons: laggards, Xander Urbach, CA100, Francois Humbert, bodes, Eli Kasargod, Staub, Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, Jake Barnett, MN's Urbach, Shell, Wael Sawan, Vincent Kaufmann, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Greg Roumeliotis, Susan Fenton Organizations: Reuters, MN, Generali Investments, Exxon Mobil Corp, Chevron, Valero Energy, Warren, Investments, The United Methodist Church, Shell, Ethos Foundation, Thomson Locations: Paris, Swiss

☆ Goldman says buying these catch-up candidates is the best way to play its brighter market outlook
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Yun Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Goldman Sachs lifted its year-end target on the S & P 500 and sees market laggards playing catch up with this year's leaders. The Wall Street firm boosted its 2023 forecast for the S & P 500 to 4,500, which represents about 5% upside from current levels and is a 12.5% increase from Goldman's previous target of 4,000. Signs of such a shift have recently emerged as cyclical stocks have outperformed their defensive counterparts lately, but plenty of cyclicals have missed out, Goldman said. To find opportunities among the laggards, Goldman screened the Russell 3000 Index, looking for cyclical stocks with market caps greater than $2 billion. It found a list of names with valuations below the S & P 500 and improving fundamentals, demonstrated by improved 2024 earnings revisions.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Goldman, David Kostin Organizations: Fed, Equity Investment, CNO Financial, Everest Re, RenaissanceRe Holdings Locations: Cleveland

☆ Wall Street Week Ahead: Investors rethink recession plays, boosting U.S. stock market laggards
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-09 | by ( David Randall | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"There's reason to believe that the pessimism we saw at the start of the year is giving way to a stronger-than-expected market." Murray has increased his allocation to small-cap stocks, which tend to be among the most direct beneficiaries of economic growth. Other rebounding segments in June include the S&P 500 energy sector, which has gained 6% this month and S&P 500 industrials, up 5.7%. Ten of the 11 S&P 500 sectors are firmer for the month to date, compared to only six for the year. Stronger-than-expected jobs growth and robust consumer spending have been among the data points that have bolstered investors' economic outlook.

Persons: Tim Murray, T Rowe Price's, Murray, Russell, Dow, Howard Silverblatt, Goldman Sachs, Saira Malik, Max Wasserman, David Randall, Saqib Iqbal Ahmed, Lewis Krauskopf, Ira Iosebashvili, Richard Chang Organizations: YORK, Energy, Reuters, Apple Inc, Microsoft Corp, Inc, Amazon.com Inc, Nvidia Corp, Tesla Inc, Dow Jones, Capital Economics, Miramar Capital, Starbucks Corp, Target Corp, Thomson Locations: U.S

☆ Here's exactly where 6 top investment firms recommend putting your money right now as US stocks start to break out
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( James Faris | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

It has a market-weight rating on six sectors: consumer discretionary, energy, industrials, information technology, materials, and real estate. Goldman SachsGoldman's favorite sectors haven't changed since late April: it's still overweight consumer staples, energy, healthcare, and communication services. Morgan StanleyMorgan Stanley's top sectors are consumer staples, healthcare, and utilities, which reflects its defensive outlook about stocks. The firm is neutral about communication services, energy, financials, industrials, materials, real estate, and tech (excluding cyclicals). It has a neutral "perform" rating on almost all other sectors, including communication services, consumer staples, energy, financials, healthcare, materials, and real estate.

Persons: — Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Oppenheimer, Truist —, BofA, Savita Subramanian, Goldman Sachs, it's, Morgan Stanley Morgan Stanley's Organizations: Investors, Bank of America, BMO Capital Markets, Tech Locations: Charlotte

☆ Wall Street pros see the S&P 500 rallying further — and reveal how best to play it
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-07 | by ( Weizhen Tan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The S & P 500 is going from strength to strength this year, closing at a one-year high last Friday and up over 10% year-to-date. While many analysts have cautioned that the rally could be a narrow-based one, with gains driven by just a few major tech stocks, some Wall Street pros are expecting the S & P 500 to rally further. Evercore ISI's Julian Emanuel told CNBC's "Squawk Box Asia" on Tuesday that he has raised his S & P 500 price target from 4,150 to 4,450 . Emanuel said that the AI buzz driving stocks has turned into a so-called "momentum market" like the Internet-related rally of the late 1990s to 2000. "The Momentum broadened last week into the larger S & P 500 and importantly the Small Cap Russell 2000; this broadening is very positive and looks set to continue," he wrote in notes sent to CNBC.

Persons: Evercore ISI's Julian Emanuel, CNBC's, Emanuel, Russell, Brian Stutland, Stutland, we're, Paul Meeks, we'll, Evercore, laggards, Meeks Organizations: CNBC, Equity Armor Investments, Independent Solutions Wealth Management, Copa Holdings, Nvidia, Devices, Google, Marvell Technology

☆ World's biggest investment fund says firms mismanaging climate risk could face exclusion from next year
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesNorway's $1.4 trillion sovereign wealth fund says it is prepared to start dropping companies for mismanaging climate risk starting next year, adding to the decarbonization pressure that activist shareholders are already piling on firms. It comes shortly after the world's the biggest investment fund said it would vote for shareholder proposals at Chevron and Exxon Mobil's respective annual meetings on Wednesday. Norway's oil fund had refused to back similar shareholder proposals tabled in recent weeks at European oil majors, such as BP and TotalEnergies. Palpable frustrationNorway's oil fund has invested in more than 9,000 companies in 70 countries around the world and acknowledges that "companies care how we vote at AGMs." Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Persons: Carine Smith Ihenacho, Carine Smith, Ihenacho Organizations: Bloomberg, Getty, Chevron, Exxon Mobil's, Norges Bank Investment Management, CNBC, Protesters, Salle Locations: U.S, Paris

Avis Budget has been "left behind, without cause," opening up a buying opportunity for investors, according to Deutsche Bank. Analyst Chris Woronka upgraded shares to buy from hold. He also raised his price target to $263 from $239, implying 61% upside potential from Tuesday's close. CAR YTD mountain CAR year to date "It is no secret that CAR's earnings have benefited from gains on the resale of its vehicles for some eight quarters now, or that the company's pricing metric ('RPD') remains some 36% ahead of comparable 2019 levels on a TTM basis. "Buy the laggard," Woronka added.

Persons: Chris Woronka, Woronka, Avis, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Avis Budget, Deutsche Bank

☆ Environmental platform urges more than 1,600 high-emitting firms to disclose data
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The companies targeted in the 2023 campaign include repeat non-disclosers such as Exxon Mobil(XOM.N), Glencore (GLEN.L) and Caterpillar (CAT.N), CDP said in a statement. Since it launched in 2017, CDP has expanded the universe of companies it targets for data disclosure. That has meant the number of non-disclosing companies targeted this year is higher than in its 2022 campaign. Despite the progress, disclosure remains a problem in high-emitting sectors and getting laggards to submit data will prove tricky, she acknowledged. Overall, about 50% of companies across sectors disclose environmental data, Elsdon told Reuters.

Persons: Glencore, Claire Elsdon, Elsdon, laggards, Tommy Reggiori Wilkes, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Exxon Mobil, Caterpillar, European Union, Reuters, Sumitomo Life Insurance, General Investment Management, Thomson Locations: United Kingdom, Canada

May 28 (Reuters) - Global investors are gaming out how a tentative deal to raise the United States debt ceiling could ripple through markets, as lawmakers strive to pass the agreement through Congress before a June 5 deadline. U.S. five-year credit default swaps narrowed, meaning that the cost of insuring against exposure to a U.S. debt default fell. “The debt ceiling agreement is only the first step in saving the government from the brink of illiquidity.”The deal suspends the debt ceiling until January 2025 in exchange for caps on spending and cuts in government programs. U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Friday set a deadline for raising the federal debt limit, saying the government would default if Congress does not increase the debt ceiling by June 5. Optimism that a debt ceiling deal was near and hefty gains in AI-related stocks helped the S&P 500 (.SPX) close at its highest level since August 2022 on Friday.

“The debt ceiling agreement is only the first step in saving the government from the brink of illiquidity.”The deal suspends the debt ceiling until January 2025 in exchange for caps on spending and cuts in government programs. U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Friday set a deadline for raising the federal debt limit, saying the government would default if Congress does not increase the debt ceiling by June 5. Optimism that a debt ceiling deal was near and hefty gains in AI-related stocks helped the S&P 500 (.SPX) close at its highest level since August 2022 on Friday. S&P Global Ratings stripped the United States of its coveted top rating over a debt ceiling showdown in 2011, a few days after a last-minute agreement the agency at the time said did not stabilize "medium-term debt dynamics." S&P Global Ratings, Fitch and Moody's did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.

☆ Market divergence can resolve itself with laggards coming up, says Cerity Partners' Jim Lebenthal
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-26 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailMarket divergence can resolve itself with laggards coming up, says Cerity Partners' Jim LebenthalRob Sechan, Jenny Harrington, and Jim Lebenthal join 'Halftime Report' to discuss semiconductor momentum, varying portfolio management styles, and market laggards making comebacks.

Persons: laggards, Cerity, Jim Lebenthal Rob Sechan, Jenny Harrington, Jim Lebenthal

☆ Greek elections: Ruling conservatives take lead but fail to secure majority
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( Elinda Labropoulou | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

If he fails to form a coalition, a caretaker government will be sworn in and a second vote will take place in late June or early July. “Neither of the two main parties are new to the scene. The turmoil, which one political party referred to as “Greek Watergate,” forced a number of high-profile departures. The most likely scenario is that a caretaker government will be sworn in and a second vote will take place, most likely, in early July. They are expected to rally behind the main parties in a second election where they will want to see a strong government emerge.

☆ Will history repeat? Here are Club stocks that were great buys during 2011 debt-ceiling market swoon
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | In Kevinstankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Concern about a potential U.S. government default has only mounted in recent days, contributing to back-to-back weekly losses in the S & P 500. By Feb. 7, 2012, the S & P 500 closed above its late-July peak. A similar rationale seems to explain why TJX Companies (TJX) had the third-best relative performance, falling only 5.9% during the 2011 debt-ceiling jitters. TJX had a great rest of the year, too, gaining 22% from the S & P 500 index's 2011 August bottom to year-end. What's more, 12 Club stocks finished 2011 higher than their July 22 close, the S & P 500's late-July peak that year.

☆ Watch CNBC’s full interview with JPMorgan’s Gabriela Santos and Trivariate’s Adam Parker
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailWatch CNBC’s full interview with JPMorgan’s Gabriela Santos and Trivariate’s Adam ParkerJPMorgan’s Gabriela Santos and Trivariate’s Adam Parker, join 'Closing Bell' to discuss staying negative on the markets and when they believe sentiment will change on sector laggards.

☆ The S&P 500 is holding up, but the leadership is getting smaller
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Bob Pisani | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Simply put: the big indexes are doing OK, but the average stock is not. Big-cap tech is back but not a lot else If you just owned the top seven stocks in the S & P 500 , you'd think this was a rip-roaring quarter for passive investors in the S & P 500. Market cap vs. equal weight S & P 500 in Q2 S & P 500 up 0.6% Equal-weight S & P 500 down 1.1% There is a particularly large divergence in technology this quarter: Market cap vs. equal weight Technology S & P 500 in Q2 S & P 500 Technology: up 0.2% Equal-weight: down 6.1% What this tells us is that the average stock, and particularly the average technology stock, is underperforming the market. In the S & P 500, this peaked at a little over 70% in early February. The simple way to interpret this is that less than half of the stocks in the S & P 500 are in an uptrend.

☆ Olive Garden owner Darden Restaurants buys Ruth's Chris Steak House for $715 million
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Amelia Lucas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Darden Restaurants said Wednesday it is buying Ruth's Hospitality Group , the parent company of Ruth's Chris Steak House, for $715 million. Ruth's CEO Cheryl Henry will stay on as president of Ruth's Chris and report to Cardenas. Ruth's Chris was founded in 1965 after Ruth Fertel bought Chris Steak House in New Orleans. The terms of the sale kept her from reusing the name at other locations, so she chose to name new locations Ruth's Chris Steak House. As of Tuesday's close, Darden's stock had risen nearly 10% this year, giving it a market value of $18.4 billion.

☆ Morning Bid: Amazon cools, Intel warms, Japan hesitates
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/2] A smartphone with a displayed Intel logo is placed on a computer motherboard in this illustration taken March 6, 2023. But the dramatic re-acceleration of Big Tech stocks this week - where the NYFANG+TM (.NYFANG) index of the top 10 Big Tech stocks is now up 37% so far this year - is competing with multiple macro narratives that are increasingly hard to read. With the Fed meeting in view, the release of March PCE price inflation data later on Friday tops the diary. Wall St stock futures fell back 0.4% after a wild ride in Amazon.com shares overnight. With much of Europe and Asia closed on Monday for the May Day bank holiday, Asia bourses advanced in Wall St's slipstream but Europe retreated sharply on some jarring corporate updates.

☆ China’s State-Owned Firms, Long Market Laggards, Are Suddenly Stars
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Jacky Wong | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

China Mobile and other Chinese telecom stocks are benefiting from plans to boost the country’s digital economy. Photo: Cfoto/DDP/Zuma PressBetting on the government has been a winning trade in Chinese markets this year. State-owned enterprises, or SOEs, have been the standout performers among Chinese stocks in 2023. The Hang Seng China State-Holding Enterprises Index rose 8.3% this year, compared with a 1.5% decline for the broader Hang Seng China Enterprises Index.

☆ Retail traders are dumping tech stocks, but loading up on this one big bank
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Retail traders may be selling tech stocks en masse, but they're spying opportunity in one major financial institution — Bank of America. Beneath the hood, however, retail traders are increasingly pivoting away from big tech names in favor of financials – suggesting a rotation between the biggest gainers and laggards in markets this year. Given this, here are 10 of the biggest stocks retail traders bought into this past week: Retail traders snapped up Bank of America shares, resulting in $82 million in net inflows, according to JPMorgan. American Airlines Group saw a big surge in retail trader interest, which saw a net $68 million in inflows. On the other hand, retail traders dumped some notable tech names such as Apple , with saw net selling of $190 million this past week.

☆ Small caps will be large this year, says Jefferies. Here are 10 buy ideas
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Small-cap stocks could beat their large-cap counterparts in 2023, according to Jefferies. Equity strategist Steven DeSanctis said small-cap stocks have cheap relative valuations while volume has slid, high-yield spreads have tightened and cyclicals have been sold off. Expectations are low with poor sentiment for small caps, DeSanctis said. Taken together with the attractive valuations, improving merger and acquisition landscape and better macroenvironment, he said he believes small caps will outperform in 2023. Given this varied landscape, DeSanctis screened for smaller-cap stocks that have lagged year to date but do well in Jefferies' modeling.

☆ Strong individual performers can buoy whole sectors, Jim Cramer says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Stocks that investors might expect to be shorted in the buildup to a recession are doing very well, buoying their whole sectors, CNBC's Jim Cramer said Thursday. There are certain kinds of industries that have historically been targeted by short sellers in the run-up to recession, Cramer said, including railroads, semiconductors, homebuilders and automakers. Steel firm Nucor would be an "obvious short" headed into a recession, Cramer said, but the company reported strong growth and "blew away the estimates." Homebuilders are likely short candidates ahead of a recession, but that doesn't seem to be happening here, Cramer said. But as Cramer has noted before, strong performing companies with effective management can weather most storms.

☆ Column: Europe's stunted hydro & nuclear output may hobble recovery drive
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Gavin Maguire | Thomson Reuters | Gavin Maguire Is The Global Energy Transition Columnist. He Was Previously Asia Commodities | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

PHASED OUT & DRIED UPNuclear and hydro power accounted for an average of 40% of total electricity generation in Europe from 2000 to 2020, Ember data shows. But that proportion of electricity generation dropped to less than 35% in 2022 as a combination of drought in key hydro areas alongside planned shutdowns of outdated nuclear capacity dealt a double-whammy to hydro and nuclear generation assets. Record low snowfall and precipitation over the past winter looks set to drive hydro generation potential even lower in 2023. France, Europe's top nuclear power producer, is also struggling with sharply lower nuclear power generation. If conditions stay dry and nuclear output remains curtailed, Europe's electricity producers will struggle to increase overall electricity generation without resorting to increased use of fossil fuels.

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