Nine signs that now’s the time to buy stocks?
January 30, 2010
The stock market has gotten pummeled of late, and it doesn’t really make sense. A handful of giant companies are finally turning in positive earnings reports, and investors are just shrugging the shoulders. Perhaps, it’s Obama’s plan to penalize the banks? Or it’s the health care bill? Or the fact that five banks have failed this year?
Investors feel shaky. Nonetheless, there are glimmers of hope out there. A lot of them that shining though yesterday:
1) Amazon holiday profit beats, sees strong 1st qtr. From Reuters, we learned Amazon.com, Inc.’s (NASDAQ:AMZN) Q4 revenue was up 42 percent. That beat estimates, and the company sees an even rosier Q1 in 2010.
2) Samsung Jumps Back to Profit in 4th Quarter. South Korea-based Samsung Electronics Co. earned $2.6 billion in Q4 2009. That’s an improvement of nearly $20 billion over the year before.
3) New Windows helps Microsoft see profit jump 60%. “The software giant’s revenue climbs 14% in the fiscal second-quarter, boosted by demand for its Windows 7 operating system,” the LA Times reports on Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) .
4) In a big turnaround, Ford posts a profit of $2.7 billion. Ford Motor Co. (NYSE:F) posted a $2.7 billion profit for the year. That’s 86 cents per share versus a loss of $6.50 per share in 2008!
Here are some more:
Kia 4Q Net Soars; Targets 3% Global Market Share In 2010
Nokia Profit Rises on Smartphone Sales and Cost-Cutting; Nokia Corp. (NYSE:NOK)
Its First Profit in 5 Quarters Pushes Kodak Stock Up 25%; Eastman Kodak Company (NYSE:EK) shares shot up 24.6 percent on the news!
P.&G. and Colgate Post Higher Sales in Quarter; The Procter & Gamble Company (NYSE:PG) and Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL)
SanDisk posts 4Q profit on memory card sales; SanDisk Corporation (NASDAQ:SNDK)
What’s it all mean?
Samsung’s sales seem most promising. The company reported that most of their strength came from the sale of flatscreen TVs, cellphones and computer chips. In case we’re wont to forget in America, flatscreen TVs and computers are big-ticket, luxury items (even if they’re “marked down”). Once consumers start shelling out more cash for goodies at home, companies will start hiring, unemployment will fall, the GDP will rise and America just might feel like America again. That’s the theory anyway. And it just might be true – at least until inflation hits.
