[edmc id= 3290]Download here the Weekly Market Brief[/edmc] United States A flurry of US data came out this week. Consumer sentiment came in at 91.3 in November, below an initial reading of 93.1. New home sales rose to 10.7%, taken as positive despite coming in below consensus. Consumer spending increased 0.1% Read more…
[edmc id= 3279]Download here the Weekly Market Brief[/edmc] United States Once again, the discussion around the expected Fed policy decisions in December has dominated the week in the US markets. The minutes of the Fed October meeting, released on Wednesday, hardened expectations of an interest rate hike. They also hinted at Read more…
Can volatility indices provide useful signals on the “underlying” market? We tried to figure it out analysing some relations between the VIX and other indices provided by the Chicago Board Options Exchange. The VIX index, which is derived from prices of a basket of out-of-the-money options on the S&P500, represents Read more…
Historically, correlation among different risky assets has increased during periods of financial crisis: losses in one market spread to others, thus creating “contagion”. The increased correlation phenomenon is confirmed by our previous analysis on the topic (https://bsic.it/new-old-high-correlation/). Furthermore, there is also the so-called “flight to quality”, meaning that investors move Read more…
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc.; Market Cap: $12.18bn (as of 19/11/2015) Marriott International Inc.; Market Cap: $ 18.64bn (as of 19/11/2015) Introduction On November 16, Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ:MAR) and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT) announced that the boards of directors of both companies unanimously Read more…
Liberty Global plc; Market Cap: $35.46bn (as of 20/11/2015) Cable Wireless Communications; Market Cap: £3.3bn ($5.5bn) (as of 20/11/2015) Introduction On November 16, Liberty Global plc agreed to buy Cable & Wireless Communications plc in a transaction worth $5.3bn, thus strengthening its strategic footholds in the emerging markets. The Read more…
AirLiquide; Market Cap: $39.84bn (as of 20/11/15) Airgas; Market Cap: $10.00bn (as of 20/11/15) Introduction On November 17, the French industrial gases specialist Air Liquide announced it had reached an agreement to acquire the U.S. supplier Airgas for a total consideration of $13.4bn, including debt. The deal would create Read more…
The European banking sector has been facing significant changes in the post crisis era. Regulatory headwinds, a myriad of litigation charges and the lack of a credible strategy at many institutions have seen the sector fall out of favor with equity investors. Though, admittedly, these challenges might not have been Read more…
[edmc id= 3236]Download here the Ferrari Pitch[/edmc] After having covered the IPO of Ferrari (https://bsic.it/wanna-flawless-ferrari-52-now-feasible/) in detail a couple of weeks ago, we are now trying to identify RACE’s market positioning in terms of multiples. The structure of the analysis is as follows: firstly, we plot Ferrari’s positioning against major automakers Read more…
[edmc id= 3197]Download here the Weekly Market Brief[/edmc] United States The one just ended has been a pretty volatile week for the US market, with investors continuing to show some concern about the possibility of a rate hike in December in an environment of still uneven economic growth. Deteriorating growth outlooks Read more…
Expedia; Market Cap: $16.6bn (as of 12/11/2015) HomeAway; Market Cap: $3.5bn (as of 12/11/2015) Introduction On November 4, Expedia, after a two-year partnership with HomeAway, announced the acquisition of the latter company for a $3.9bn cash and stocks consideration. With this acquisition Expedia will widen its portfolio of brands while, Read more…
Valeant Pharmaceuticals; Market Cap: $25.73bn (as of 13/11/2015) Introduction Valeant Pharmaceutical, a pharma behemoth renowned for its aggressive acquisition strategy, has been facing some hard times as its stellar performance has deteriorated considerably amid scrutiny over its monopoly pricing for its drugs as well as recent accusations for its Read more…
Caterpillar Inc; Market Cap (as of 13/11/2015): $39.96bn Introduction On October 22, Caterpillar Inc. presented its 3Q group results, which caused further depression of its stock price due to its latest poor financial performances. Unluckily, the firm confirmed the bad market sentiment as the profit per share fell from $1.63, Read more…
[edmc id= 3174]Download here the Weekly Market Brief[/edmc] United States US economy has seen many macroeconomic data being released this week, in particular regarding the labour market, while the FED governor had a speech that has strongly affected the markets on Wednesday. The labour market has been the main actor of Read more…
The VIX, known also as the Wall Street’s fear gauge, is the most common measure for expected volatility in the equity market. It is implicitly derived from the price of currently traded options on the S&P500 and over the years it evolved into an asset class of its own. Short-selling volatility Read more…