U.S. stocks rose on Thursday, rebounding from Wednesday's sell-off following a slightly better-than-expected PPI reading. This week's initial jobless claims were 211,000, down from last week's revised 222,000 and below the four-week moving average. Ongoing unemployment ticked up 28,000 from the prior week's revised level to 1,817,000, and is above the four-week moving average. The Nasdaq (up 1.7%) closed at a record high. The S&P 500 closed up 0.7% while the Dow closed just below the flatline.

This weekend, in Vegas, it's the Chiefs versus the 49ers. Usher is the halftime show; Tom Brady appears in a commercial; and Taylor Swift fans add a whole new demographic to the fan base. But aside from all that, there is big money at stake. For our list this week, we present possible ways to invest in the Super Bowl.

Monday Tee Up: Strong Finish for 2023?

Regarding insider sentiment, our premise for the past two weeks has been that insiders have parked themselves on the sidelines and are awaiting a meaningful catalyst before they make any decisions about buying or selling shares. And indeed, the data from Vickers Stock Research this week continues to reflect corporate executives, directors, and beneficial owners who are simply not engaged at the moment -- and the weekly barometers from Vickers could not be more neutral.

In this edition, Markel is no mini-Berkshire; Cigna eyes bigger slice of PBM pie; Gap's struggles; and Guidewire Software, WestRock, and Asbury Automotive Group.

Stocks were mixed on Wednesday morning as investors awaited the minutes of the latest FOMC meeting, which should provide additional insight into the Fed's thinking about a potential rate hike later this month. Factory order data was weaker than expected. The Commerce Department said that orders rose 0.3% in May. The result matched the 0.3% increase in April but missed the Reuters consensus forecast of 0.8% growth. The Dow fell 0.3%, the S&P fell 0.1%, and the Nasdaq rose 0.1%. Crude oil rose more than 2% to $71.50 per barrel, while gold fell slightly to $1928 per ounce.

Stocks were mixed on Wednesday morning as investors awaited the minutes of the latest FOMC meeting, which should provide additional insight into the Fed's thinking about a potential rate hike later this month. Factory order data was weaker than expected. The Commerce Department said that orders rose 0.3% in May. The result matched the 0.3% increase in April but missed the Reuters consensus forecast of 0.8% growth. The Dow fell 0.3%, the S&P fell 0.1%, and the Nasdaq rose 0.1%. Crude oil rose more than 2% to $71.50 per barrel, while gold fell slightly to $1928 per ounce.

In this edition, Crane cleared for takeoff; openings in apparel; CDMOs vital to health of healthcare industry; and Valero Energy, Pinterest, and Mirvac Group.

Stocks rose again on Thursday morning, extending Wednesday's rally. New GDP data was largely in line with expectations. The Commerce Department, in its third estimate, said that the U.S. economy expanded at a 2.6% annualized rate in 4Q, down slightly from its prior estimate of 2.7% and the consensus of 2.7%. First-time unemployment benefit claims rose by 7,000 to 198,000 for the week ended March 25, slightly above the consensus forecast of 196,000. The Dow rose 0.2%, the S&P 0.6%, and the Nasdaq 0.9%. Crude oil rose to $73 per barrel, while gold rose slightly to $1988 per ounce.

Stocks fell sharply on Thursday even after paring losses in late trading. The selloff was driven in part by an upward revision in third-quarter GDP, which raised prospects for continued aggressive Fed rate hikes. Investors also weighed a weak earnings report and disappointing guidance from Micron Technology, and weekly employment data. The Labor Department said that first-time claims for state unemployment benefits rose by 2,000 to 216,000 for the week ended December 17, below the Reuters consensus of 222,000. The Dow fell 1.05%, the S&P 1.45%, and the Nasdaq 2.18%. Crude oil traded near $78 per barrel, while gold fell to $1801 per ounce.

October is known as 'the bear killer,' and the first trading day of the month sure felt that way (although massive rallies are common during bear markets, as seen since March). There have been 11 post-WWII bears that ended in October: 1946, 1957, 1960, 1962, 1966, 1974, 1987, 1990, 1998, 2002, and 2011 (19.4% on closing basis, over 20% on an intraday basis). We do not count 2001 (as do others) because it was not the end of that bear market based on the September low.

In this edition, Chip Shortages chip away at Auto Sales, Construction-Related Stocks See Risks and Opportunities, Innovent Biologics Remains a Top Pick, and Gap, Workday, and Elastic

The trading week ended June 17 was (yet again) ugly for stocks, and as a result the S&P 500 has been down in 10 of the past 11 weeks (aka since the last week in March). The current move lower is much steeper than the decline from January to March 14. A steep decline leads to a high level of panic. But the faster prices fall, the sooner stocks can find an intermediate-term bottom. Both breadth and sentiment have been much worse during the current move lower than they were during the move off the highs earlier in the year.

This pick list highlights constituents of the Morningstar US Mid Cap Index that we believe offer investors the best risk-adjusted return prospects. The market capitalization range for U.S. mid-caps typically falls between $1 billion and $8 billion and represents 20% of the total capitalization of the U.S. equity market.

Stocks were mixed on Wednesday morning as investors weighed another round of 1Q earnings reports and new housing market data. Netflix shares plunged more than 35% after the company posted a decline in net subscribers in 1Q and projected further losses in the second quarter, while Procter & Gamble rose more than 2% following better-than-expected fiscal 3Q results and an increase in its full-year sales guidance. On the housing front, the National Association of Realtors said that U.S. existing home sales fell 2.7% to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 5.77 million units in March, below the Reuters consensus forecast of 5.80 million. The Dow rose 1.0%, the S&P rose 0.5%, and the Nasdaq fell 0.3%. Crude oil rose 1% to $103.50 per barrel, while gold fell $4 to $1956 per ounce.

This pick list highlights constituents of the Morningstar US Mid Cap Index that we believe offer investors the best risk-adjusted return prospects. The market capitalization range for U.S. mid-caps typically falls between $1 billion and $8 billion and represents 20% of the total capitalization of the U.S. equity market.

This edition features Gap's continued makeover, how packaged food firms can protect themselves from margin pressure, FedEx keeping on trucking, and Pendal Group, Starbucks, and Reckitt Benckiser.

This pick list highlights constituents of the Morningstar US Mid Cap Index that we believe offer investors the best risk-adjusted return prospects. The market capitalization range for U.S. mid-caps typically falls between $1 billion and $8 billion and represents 20% of the total capitalization of the U.S. equity market.

This pick list highlights constituents of the Morningstar US Mid Cap Index that we believe offer investors the best risk-adjusted return prospects. The market capitalization range for U.S. mid-caps typically falls between $1 billion and $8 billion and represents 20% of the total capitalization of the U.S. equity market.

Stocks gave up strong early gains on Thursday, ending in the red after initially rallying on much better-than-expected economic data. The Commerce Department said that the U.S. economy expanded at a 6.9% rate in 4Q, up strongly from the prior quarter and well above the consensus forecast. On the employment front, first-time jobless claims fell to 260,000, down from the prior week and slightly below consensus. Continuing claims rose to 1.675 million, up from the prior week and above the consensus of 1.655 million. The Dow fell 0.02%, the S&P 0.54%, and the Nasdaq 1.40%. Crude oil rose slightly to $87 per barrel, while gold fell $34 to $1795 per ounce.

This pick list highlights constituents of the Morningstar US Mid Cap Index that we believe offer investors the best risk-adjusted return prospects. The market capitalization range for U.S. mid-caps typically falls between $1 billion and $8 billion and represents 20% of the total capitalization of the U.S. equity market.

This pick list highlights constituents of the Morningstar US Mid Cap Index that we believe offer investors the best risk-adjusted return prospects. The market capitalization range for U.S. mid-caps typically falls between $1 billion and $8 billion and represents 20% of the total capitalization of the U.S. equity market.

This edition features sportswear in the pandemic; SPACs and investment banks; seatmaker Adient; and notes from Merck and new coverage GDS Holdings and Paychex.

Market Review:

Stocks were largely flat at midday on Friday, with gains in the Financial and Technology sectors and losses in Healthcare and Real Estate. The University of Michigan said that its consumer sentiment index for the first half of June rose to 86.4, up from a final reading of 82.9 in May and above the Reuters consensus forecast of 84.0. The Dow fell 0.2%, the S&P fell 0.1%, and the Nasdaq was flat. Crude oil traded near $71 per barrel, while gold fell $15 to $1882 per ounce.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

In this space last week, we said, 'we remain on the lookout for signs that insiders have started to nibble at lower stock prices.' While we are not ready to declare 'mission accomplished' by any means, there has been some improvement this week. The benchmark NYSE/ASE One-Week Sell/Buy Ratio from Vickers Stock Research is 4.98 this week. That is an improvement from 6.93 last week and 7.12 the week before that. Vickers' Total One-Week Sell/Buy Ratio, which includes insider transactions on the Nasdaq, is at 5.97 this week, compared to 6.48 last week and 8.20 the week before that. Indeed, there has been some progress, though neutral sentiment is all the way down at 2.50.

Stocks pared early losses on Wednesday morning as investors weighed new employment data and prospects for a $908 billion emergency relief package proposed by a bipartisan group in Congress. Payroll provider ADP said that U.S. private employers added 307,000 jobs in November, down from 404,000 in October and well below the Reuters consensus forecast of 410,000. Salesforce shares fell 7% after the company announced that it would purchase business communications company Slack in a $28 billion deal. Salesforce also posted better-than-expected 3Q results, but offered disappointing earnings guidance for the fourth quarter. The Dow and the S&P were flat, and the Nasdaq fell 0.2%. Crude oil traded near $45 per barrel, while gold rose $11 to $1830 per ounce.