With all the bad news that has been dumped upon the economy for some reason the stock market is going up. Why?
The SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) has just set up new guidelines for core earnings. No more proforma computations. You know what proforma means - the company CEO or Treasurer waves his magic wand and says this is what I expect to appear as soon as I let the genii out of the bottle. And pigs can fly. These imaginary numbers may give his company a Price/Earnings ration of 20 which is pretty good by today's standards.
Now those mean guys in Washington have said you must reevaluate your earnings but this time figure in your stock options, pension costs and any restructuring charges. Holy Cow, that makes the P/E ratio 37. And that ain't no bargain when you are buying stock. The 100 year average has run about a 14 P/E. If the company has not been paying any dividends then this is a stock that must be suspect for any long term holding.
Because of these new guidelines the entire S&P Index P/E has gone from a 33 to 49. That is much better than it was in January 2002 when it reached 69. This number makes the entire market overvalued and still leaves me with the question of how can the market advance using these high P/Es?
There are a couple of answers and neither may be the right one.
The market has become severely oversold. The bear people have been riding it down until the news media finally recognized we have a long-term bear market. There have become too many traders who think there is no bottom and are willing to sell anything and everything. Enter the trading bargain hunters. It will now be the bears turn to be punished.
It takes money to put the market up. Where is that coming from? Our white knight, Sir Greenspan, has come in with his bags of money this past week. Look past our borders and you will see stock exchanges in every major country in the world that look sicker than ours. Foreign investors want a new home for their money and it seems the U.S. market looks darn good. As that money has started buying you may begin to see pension plan and mutual fund managers coming into the market.
The talking heads on TV and radio will give many other reasons that can be fueling the market advance and they may also be correct. Our market may be overvalued as we see it, but to others it looks like a bargain. Money is always looking for the greatest return and with wire transfers billions of dollars can and does move in a matter of hours. Oversold to the foreign market traders means underbought. It seems they have put on their buying clothes and want a piece of the action as our market is headed up - at least for a while.
(c) 2005
Al Thomas' best selling book, "If It Doesn't Go Up, Don't Buy It!" has helped thousands of people make money and keep their profits with his simple 2-step method. Read the first chapter to receive his market letter for 3 months at www.mutualfundmagic.com to discover why he's the man that Wall Street does not want you to know.
detailed home cleaning Lake Forest ..How many times have you said to yourself, "I'd like... Read More
Are hedge funds a suitable investment for you? Hedge funds... Read More
You probably know the story of Sherlock Holmes and the... Read More
People are always asking me when should I sell my... Read More
Do you have a financial planner? Does one of your... Read More
Ever have one of those sample boxes of candy? Each... Read More
If you have a pension plan at work you will... Read More
It has fallen upon the consumer to make our economy... Read More
Its dinnertime and the phone rings. It's Joe Noname with... Read More
Three little pigs went to the market to stock up... Read More
It seems that every day I turn on the TV... Read More
When is a dividend not a dividend?The latest thing "conservative"... Read More
Recently I was invited to appear on a live CNNfn... Read More
How do you make money without picking tops and bottoms?I... Read More
As an investor you will want to check out any... Read More
Maximizing a stock market investmentThere are several factors an investor... Read More
Using Swing Trading Strategies and Technical Analysis when Trading Stocks... Read More
Cat or dog? Maybe Zebra. Shucks, I don't know, but... Read More
Fundamental analysis.Fundamentals analysis says the best way to predict the... Read More
Wall Street has been preaching for years and years to... Read More
Index Fund Trading can be one of the most profitable...or... Read More
The stock market can present you with a lot of... Read More
Unfortunately, most of you who are reading my column are... Read More
There can't be many traders who haven't at least considered... Read More
There are so many kinds of work that needs to... Read More
trusted cleaning company Des Plaines ..Trading is a fascinating activity.There are so many layers to... Read More
Unfortunately, most of you who are reading my column are... Read More
How many people went to a cash position this week?... Read More
From the book 'The Stockopoly Plan' by the author Charles... Read More
After finding the price of a particular stock, usually the... Read More
When most analysts, financial planners, fund specialists and investors try... Read More
You remember (they show it on TV every year) the... Read More
Starbucks earnings are up again and so is their stock... Read More
Stock investment advice is easy to find. Do you get... Read More
The bulls and bears of the stock market are both... Read More
Let's say you are interested in this one company. You... Read More
To become a successful trader you must have some kind... Read More
Are you one of those many people who dread reading... Read More
Did you know you can make money (and a lot... Read More
Investing in long-term financial vehicles give you the most gains... Read More
Question: How does it get better when it gets worse?Last... Read More
I made my very first investment in the stock market... Read More
Never lose money in the stock market again. Yeah, I... Read More
I use the P/E ratio as a secondary indicator for... Read More
Both the stock market and oil prices rallied recently, which... Read More
Mutual funds were created with the idea that one person... Read More
Everyone who invests in the stock market wants to be... Read More
AS BUILDERS BEGIN WORK ON THE FREEDOM TOWER in New... Read More
Stock trading remains a very competitive field and the stock... Read More
Today we are inundated with tons of information about the... Read More
Stocks & Mutual Fund |