With the carnage that took place in equity markets last week, we expected to see a pronounced reaction from corporate insiders. But the weekly insider-transaction data from Vickers Stock Research shows no major response. Possible explanations for that include the imminent start of earnings season (and the associated trading restrictions that are now in place for many insiders) and the fact that the really bad days last week were at the very end of the week, leaving less time for insider trades to take place and be included in Vickers' data for the week. But even on the two worst days (Thursday and Friday), there was no rush to sell by insiders -- though no rush to buy either. Also in play is the possibility that insiders, like many investors, took to the slide-lines as the drop was so sudden and so steep that a 'no choice but to wait it out' posture was all that made sense. A quick look at Vickers' major one-week sell/buy ratios shows slightly improving sentiment on the NYSE and slightly worsening sentiment on the Nasdaq. But end of day, the broader eight-week ratios continue to improve for the NYSE, the Nasdaq, and for Vickers' Total Eight-Week Sell/Buy Ratio (all exchanges). That eight-week barometer is now at 3.48 on a scale where the neutral range runs from 2.00 to 6.00 and the bullish range kicks in under 2.00. The current reading compares favorably to 3.74 last week and a recent high of 6.02 in late February. On a sector basis, insider buying exceeded selling in Energy last week, with shares valued at $2.4 million bought versus $19,521 sold. Buying was also notable in Consumer Discretionary, as shares valued at $11 million were bought, trailing the level of selling activity by a factor of just 1.3-times, as well as in Financial, as shares valued at $2.1 were bought versus $3.0 million sold. On the flip side, selling was the greatest in Information Technology over the last week, with shares valued at $19 million sold versus $8 million bought; in Healthcare, with $15 million sold versus $5 million bought; and in Industrials, with $6.4 million sold versus $1.3 million bought. This week, analysts at Vickers highlighted insider transactions of interest at Petco Health and Wellness Co. Inc. (NGS: WOOF) and Signet Jewelers Ltd. (NYSE: SIG).

Linde is the largest industrial gas supplier in the world, with operations in over 100 countries. The firm's main products are atmospheric gases (including oxygen, nitrogen, and argon) and process gases (including hydrogen, carbon dioxide, and helium), as well as equipment used in industrial gas production. Linde serves a wide variety of end markets, including chemicals, manufacturing, healthcare, and steelmaking. Linde generated approximately $33 billion in revenue in 2024.

The iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond (TLT) reversed to the downside on Thursday and has yet to exceed its March 3 closing high of $92.57. We thought the ETF was in a minor five-wave advance, with the next resistance just below $94. That is the location of the prior high on December 6 and is an important 61.8% retracement of the decline from mid-September 2024 until early January 2025. However, a failure from here would look more like a three-wave ABC advance, and suggests the possibility of a pullback. Key support for TLT is in the $90 region. The COT data is all over the place: bullish for the two-, and five-year Treasury, slightly bullish for the 10-year, and bearish for the 30-year. Seasonality has turned bearish this month and stays that way until the end of April. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) is trading at $68.25/barrel and is again attempting to bounce from the bottom of its multi-year trading range in the $64 to $66 region. In addition, WTI looks like it finally might break its downtrend and see some decent upside. That said, breaking below the $64 to $66 range could cause a very sharp move lower as there are probably sell stops right under this key support. On the upside, the bearish trendline off the peak since mid-January is just above $68, the declining 200-day average is at $71.50, and chart resistance sits in the mid- to high-$70s. The COT data has really caught our eye and has turned bullish. The last few times this occurred, WTI rallied $10 to $20/barrel. Seasonality is bullish and stays that way until September. (Mark Arbeter, CMT)

Since its founding in 1940, Air Products has become one of the leading industrial gas suppliers globally, with operations in 50 countries and 19,000 employees. The company is the largest supplier of hydrogen and helium in the world. It has a unique portfolio serving customers in a number of industries, including chemicals, energy, healthcare, metals, and electronics. Air Products generated $12.1 billion in revenue in fiscal 2024.