For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – April 8, 2013 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include Culp, Inc. (CFI), Apollo Management, LLC (APO ), Packaging Corp. of America (PKG), Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) and Sandisk Inc. (SNDK).
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Here are highlights from Friday’s Analyst Blog:
April Market Strategy Summary
Here are April themes…
Consequences of our much earlier Money Printing exercises, mind you.
(A) With a rise in Q1 U.S. jobs numbers and upward 2013 jobs revisions, the stock market hit multi-year highs. In a positive feedback loop, the personal and home sides of Consumer Discretionary are highest ranked: Apparel, Media and Home Furnishing-Appliance ranked at the top of the pack.
Basics in Consumer Staples are now at Market Perform: Beverages, Autos-Tires-Trucks and Tobacco. Food and Non-Food Retail is here too.
Consumer industries that showed us very weak Zacks Ranks had business model issues: Food, Publishing and Consumer Electronics-Retail.
See Culp, Inc. (CFI). Culp ranks as one of the two largest producers of mattress fabrics known as mattress ticking in North America, as measured by total sales, and one of the three largest marketers of upholstery fabrics for furniture in North America, again measured by sales. It is a Zacks Rank #1 and a Zacks Outperform stock.
(B) High Zacks Ranked industries from building U.S. momentum in the Finance sector focused on home finance and the stock market. Real Estate, Finance, Thrifts & Mortgage Finance and Investment Banking & Brokering industries showed up even stronger in April.
See Apollo Management, LLC (APO ). The company operates in three business segments: private equity, capital markets and real estate. It is a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and a Zacks Outperform stock.
(C) Marked improvement in the domestic outlook pushed up parts of the Materials sector. Strength was apparent in high Zacks Industry Ranks for Containers & Glass and Paper.
See Packaging Corp. of America (PKG). The company is one of the largest producers of containerboard in the U.S. and also one of the largest manufacturers of corrugated packaging products. It is a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and a Zacks Outperform stock.
(D) In addition, there is strength inside the Industrials sector on a stronger domestic outlook. Electrical Machinery, Construction-Building Services, Transportation and Industrial Products-Services remain attractive.
Business Products, Pollution Control and Airlines (one victim of higher oil prices) struggle.
See Canadian Pacific Railway (CP). The company operates a transcontinental railway in Canada and the U.S. The company owns approximately 10,700 miles of track. An additional 4,700 miles of track are owned jointly, leased, or operated under trackage rights. It is a Zacks Rank #2 this week, a #1 last week (Strong Buy), and a Zacks Outperform stock.
(E) IT looks stronger, but with different drivers. Semiconductors became the most attractive industry here, with growth in Asia-Pacific. Telco Hardware, Computer Office and Computer Software & Services ranked as market weight industries. Misc.Tech and Electronics fell back to become slight underweight Zacks Ranked Industries.
See Sandisk Inc. (SNDK). Sandisk is the major flash memory chip provider, which is one of the strongest growing areas in semiconductors worldwide. It is a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and a Zacks Outperform stock.
(F) Stronger gasoline at the pump prices played out within the Energy Sector. We saw Oil-Misc. with its Refiners do best in the Zacks Ranks. There was a Zacks Rank rise in Drilling and E&P. Integrated Oil companies and Pipelines further downstream remain market underweights.
Alternative Energy and Coal remain the victims of low natural gas prices.