Being stopped out of Alcoa yesterday, at break even, was a reminder, yet again, that buy and hold is a failed strategy. AA’s 7% dividend was an illusion, never to be realized. Not if you have moving stops 7% under the last sale. But why wait for a dividend if the underlying share price falls more than the divi?
How can YUM Brands forecast increased sales and earnings? Easy. In my unscientific canvassing the only full restaurant parking lots belong to KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut. And during our 2200 mile Thanksgiving road trip YUM’s Long John Silver fish houses seemed busy. Three dollar lunches and six dollar dinners still sell.
Several of my old friends at UBS were dismissed over the last two weeks. These folks had decades of service to this bank. While today’s November job numbers will be sad the December numbers will shock. AT&T and DuPont as well as UBS are firing high wage earners. Unemployment is headed to double digits and many of these jobless earned large sums and had a high propensity to spend.
Google has decided not to take a $4.7 million grant from the state of North Carolina to build a data center in that state. States cannot even give money away to attract jobs.
Watch for a false rally should be get better than expected jobs number this morning. Just another shorting opportunity.
