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Restaurant chain Hooters of America filed for bankruptcy protection in Texas on Monday, seeking to address its $376 million debt by selling all of its company-owned restaurants to a franchise group backed by the company’s founders.

Hooters, like other casual dining restaurants, has struggled in recent years due to inflation, the high costs of labor and food and declining spending by cash-strapped American consumers. The company currently directly owns and operates 151 locations, with another 154 restaurants operated by franchisees, primarily in the United States.

The privately-owned company, which shares a private equity owner with recently-bankrupt TGI Fridays, intends to sell all corporate-owned locations to a buyer group comprised of two existing Hooters franchisees, who operate 30 high-performing Hooters locations in the U.S., mainly in Florida and Illinois.

Hooters did not disclose the purchase price of the transaction, which must be approved by a U.S. bankruptcy judge before it becomes final.

Founded in 1983, Hooters became famous for its chicken wings and its servers’ uniform of orange shorts and low-cut tank tops.

The buyer group is backed by some of Hooters’ original founders, and it pledged to take Hooters “back to its roots.”

“With over 30 years of hands-on experience across the Hooters ecosystem, we have a profound understanding of our customers and what it takes to not only meet, but consistently exceed their expectations,” said Neil Kiefer, a member of the buyer group and the current CEO of the original Hooters’ location in Clearwater, Florida.

Hooters said it expects to complete the deal and emerge from bankruptcy in three to four months. The company has lined up about $35 million in financing from its existing lender group to complete the bankruptcy transaction.

Casual dining restaurants have been hammered by rising costs in 2024, with well-known chains like TGI Fridays, Red Lobster, Bucca di Beppo, and Rubio’s Coastal Grill all filing for bankruptcy last year.

Restaurant prices have risen about 30% in the last 5 years, outpacing consumer prices overall, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

Meta’s head of artificial intelligence research announced Tuesday that she will be leaving the company. 

Joelle Pineau, the company’s vice president of AI research, announced her departure in a LinkedIn post, saying her last day at the social media company will be May 30. 

Her departure comes at a challenging time for Meta. CEO Mark Zuckerberg has made AI a top priority, investing billions of dollars in an effort to become the market leader ahead of rivals like OpenAI and Google.

Zuckerberg has said that it is his goal for Meta to build an AI assistant with more than 1 billion users and artificial general intelligence, which is a term used to describe computers that can think and take actions comparable to humans.

“As the world undergoes significant change, as the race for AI accelerates, and as Meta prepares for its next chapter, it is time to create space for others to pursue the work,” Pineau wrote. “I will be cheering from the sidelines, knowing that you have all the ingredients needed to build the best AI systems in the world, and to responsibly bring them into the lives of billions of people.”

Pineau was one of Meta’s top AI researchers and led the company’s fundamental AI research unit, or FAIR, since 2023. There, she oversaw the company’s cutting-edge computer science-related studies, some of which are eventually incorporated into the company’s core apps. 

She joined the company in 2017 to lead Meta’s Montreal AI research lab. Pineau is also a computer science professor at McGill University, where she is a co-director of its reasoning and learning lab.

Some of the projects Pineau helped oversee include Meta’s open-source Llama family of AI models and other technologies like the PyTorch software for AI developers.

Pineau’s departure announcement comes a few weeks ahead of Meta’s LlamaCon AI conference on April 29. There, the company is expected to detail its latest version of Llama. Meta Chief Product Officer Chris Cox, to whom Pineau reported to, said in March that Llama 4 will help power AI agents, the latest craze in generative AI. The company is also expected to announce a standalone app for its Meta AI chatbot, CNBC reported in February. 

“We thank Joelle for her leadership of FAIR,” a Meta spokesperson said in a statement. “She’s been an important voice for Open Source and helped push breakthroughs to advance our products and the science behind them.” 

Pineau did not reveal her next role but said she “will be taking some time to observe and to reflect, before jumping into a new adventure.”

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

Financials take the lead.

No changes in the composition of the top 5 this week, and only one change of position within the top 5.

Financials (XLF) leapfrogged to the number one position, sending Communication Services (XLC) to the #3 position. Energy (XLE) remains #2 while Utilities (XLU) and Healthcare (XLV) remain in positions #4 and #5.

Let’s examine the details and see what the Relative Rotation Graphs tell us about the current market dynamics.

Sector Lineup

  1. (3) Financials – (XLF)*
  2. (2) Energy – (XLE)
  3. (1) Communication Services – (XLC)*
  4. (4) Utilities – (XLU)
  5. (5) Healthcare – (XLV)
  6. (6) Industrials – (XLI)
  7. (7) Consumer Staples – (XLP)
  8. (8) Real-Estate – (XLRE)
  9. (9) Consumer Discretionary – (XLY)
  10. (10) Materials – (XLB)
  11. (11) Technology – (XLK)

Weekly RRG: A Tale of Three Leaders

The weekly Relative Rotation Graph now shows three sectors firmly planted inside the leading quadrant.

XLF has rotated back into leadership after a brief sojourn, while Communication Services (XLC) maintains its strong position. Energy (XLE) is the latest entrant, crossing over into leading with a positive RRG heading—a trajectory that bodes well for continued outperformance.

Utilities (XLU) and Health Care (XLV)—our fourth and fifth-ranked sectors—currently reside in the improving quadrant. However, their strong RRG headings suggest they’ll likely leap into leading territory in the coming weeks. It’s worth noting that Health Care is flexing its muscles with the highest RS momentum value among all 11 sectors.

On the flip side, we’re seeing only two sectors with negative RRG headings—the same culprits as last week. Technology (XLK) is pushing further into the lagging quadrant, while Consumer Discretionary (XLY) is rapidly approaching a crossover from weakening to lagging. This persistent weakness in these typically high-flying sectors is something to keep an eye on as it coincides with general market weakness.

Daily RRG: Short-Term Shifts

Zooming in on the daily RRG, we get a more nuanced picture of short-term rotations. Financials are holding steady in the leading quadrant with a neutral heading—there has been little movement over the past week.

Energy, which boasts the highest RS ratio, is losing some momentum. However, given its elevated RS ratio, this is likely just a temporary setback.

Utilities and Health Care are showing some interesting moves on the daily chart. XLU is currently in the weakening quadrant with a negative heading, but XLV is starting to curl back up—a positive sign that aligns with its weekly chart momentum.

XLC’s daily tail is painting an intriguing picture. It’s barely inside the lagging quadrant, but its positive heading pointing towards leading suggests it may soon start supporting the positive direction we see on the weekly chart.

In the bottom half of the rankings, we see some weekly weakness confirmations. Technology is rolling over in the improving quadrant, while sectors like industrials and materials are rotating from leading to weakening, all of which aligns with their lower positions in the portfolio ranking.

Financials (XLF)

XLF has bounced off support around 47, but the price chart still looks precarious.

The relative strength picture, however, is much more encouraging. We’re seeing a clear uptrend in the raw RS line, which is pulling both RRG lines higher. Keep an eye on that 47 level as key price support.

Energy (XLE)

Energy is currently trading in a range between roughly 84-85 and 98.

The real action is in the relative strength- we’re seeing a breakout from a falling channel, which is now pulling both RRG lines above 100.

This is what’s driving XLE’s move into the leading quadrant.

Communication Services (XLC)

XLC is holding above support around 94, but only just.

A break below 93-94 could trigger more downside.

Relative strength still looks good, but the raw RS line is at the top of its rising trend channel. The high RS ratio reading gives some wiggle room, but it’s a situation to monitor closely.

Utilities (XLU)

Utilities remain stuck in a trading range, which is keeping its raw RS line range-bound as well.

It’s strong enough to keep the RRG lines rising, but we’ll need to see a relative strength breakout to push XLU into the leading quadrant.

Health Care (XLV)

Health Care is bumping up against resistance near 150 and remains range-bound.

A potential head-and-shoulders pattern is forming, but support is still a ways off around 135.

Relative strength is pushing against resistance, and with both RRG lines rising, XLV looks poised to cross into the leading quadrant soon.

Portfolio Performance Update

After last week’s hiccup, the RRG portfolio has not only erased its underperformance but actually flipped to outperformance.

As of last week, the portfolio stands at -4.86% YTD, compared to the S&P 500’s -4.96%. That’s a reversal from a 1.4% underperformance to a 10 basis point outperformance — not too shabby for a week’s work.

The market is sending plenty of mixed signals, but the sector rotation story is becoming clearer. Financials are stepping up, Energy is making moves, and the traditionally defensive sectors are showing strength. Meanwhile, Tech and Consumer Discretionary continue to lag—a trend that could have significant implications if it persists.

These rotations can shift quickly, so stay nimble and keep your eyes on the charts. The market never sleeps, and neither should your analysis.

#StayAlert –Julius


It was an ugly close to another roller-coaster trading week as the stock market struggled with several moving parts. Wednesday’s Evening Doji Star in the S&P 500 ($SPX) showed its power. The trading week didn’t end on a pretty note. 

The S&P 500, Nasdaq Composite ($COMPQ), and Dow Jones Industrial Average ($INDU) all closed lower and are trading below their 200-day simple moving average (SMA). And the selloff is across the board. It’s not concentrated in the heavily weighted stocks. 

The headwinds: Auto tariffs, declining consumer confidence, and hotter-than-expected PCE data. These have raised investor fear once again. The Cboe Volatility Index ($VIX) spiked higher on Friday, closing at 21.65.

From a sector perspective, Utilities was the only S&P sector that closed in the green on Friday, which reiterates defensive investor sentiment. This could continue for as long as investors worry about inflation and weakening U.S. economic growth. In addition to defensive sectors, other areas of the market show some bullish strength. 

What Are Investors Eyeing? 

Bond prices are rising. The daily chart of the iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) is trading above its 50- and 100-day SMA. A break above the 200-day SMA would set a positive tone for bond prices although if past price action is of any value, TLT didn’t have much success the last couple of times it crossed above the 200-day. It could be different this time.

FIGURE 1. BOND PRICES SHOW SIGNS OF LIFE. Bond prices are now starting to rise. Will we see an RSI above 70 when TLT crosses above its 200-day simple moving average? Chart source: StockCharts.com. For educational purposes.

The relative strength index (RSI) in the lower panel is above 50. The last couple of times TLT crossed above its 200-day SMA, RSI failed to cross above 70, indicating a lack of momentum. However, if TLT crosses above its 200-day SMA and coincides with an RSI cross above 70, that could be an alert for a gain in momentum. 

Bonds were starting to trend higher after hitting their January lows but that uptrend consolidated from early March. There needs to be an upside follow-through for an uptrend to resume in bonds. There’s still time for it to play out but keep your eyes on this chart for the next few weeks.

Gold and silver prices have also been on a tear. Gold hit an all-time high on Friday while silver pulled back on Friday after Thursday’s price spike. Overall, the uptrend is still intact in both metals.

If you’re a regular reader of our ChartWatchers Newsletter, you’ll recognize the chart below which looks at the performance of various asset classes.  

FIGURE 2. PERFCHART OF DIFFERENT MARKETS. Gold and silver have outperformed most other asset groups. Chart source: StockCharts.com. For educational purposes.

Note how gold and silver prices are outperforming equities.  

Last but not least, let’s analyze the performance of the automobile sector, the most impacted industry group this week. Automobile stocks continue to slide. The daily chart of the Dow Jones US Automobiles Index ($DJUSAU) below displays a clear picture of the state of the industry. 

FIGURE 3. THE AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY. Things aren’t looking great for the automobile industry. After attempting to cross above the 200-day SMA, the Dow Jones Automobiles Index fell and is trending lower. Chart source: StockCharts.com. For educational purposes.

After a healthy run in the second half of 2024, the industry has been in a steep decline, with any attempts of a rally being short-lived. On March 25, $DJUSAU crossed above its 200-day SMA but failed to hold above it. There’ll be more tariff news between now and April 2. So be prepared for more volatility in the automobile industry.  

The Bottom Line

Q1 has been pretty dismal, mainly due to tariff policies. There’s more to come. With “Liberation Day” approaching, expect more volatility in the stock market. There’s also the March jobs report on Friday. Equity futures are trading lower ahead of Monday’s open. 

We’ll end with a chart that every investor should be monitoring closely as we get through the next few months—a three-year weekly chart of the S&P 500. Feel free to save this to your ChartLists.

FIGURE 4. WEEKLY CHART OF THE S&P 500 INDEX. The index attempted to move beyond its July and August highs but didn’t succeed. With more tariff news on the horizon, will the S&P 500 succeed or will it move toward its March highs? Chart source: StockCharts.com. For educational purposes.


Disclaimer: This blog is for educational purposes only and should not be construed as financial advice. The ideas and strategies should never be used without first assessing your own personal and financial situation, or without consulting a financial professional.

Thank You!

I’ve been writing at StockCharts.com for nearly 20 years now and many of you have supported my company, EarningsBeats.com, and I certainly want to show my appreciation for all of your loyalty. I believe we’re at a major crossroads in the stock market as the S&P 500 tests the recent price low from earlier in March. I called for a 2025 correction at our MarketVision 2025 event on January 4, 2025, to start the year and now it’s a reality. We decided at that time to add quarterly updates to our MarketVision series and our first update (Q1 update) is being held today at 5:30pm ET. I would like to invite everyone to join EarningsBeats.com and join me later today. We will record the event for those who cannot attend live.

Even if you decide not to join as an EB.com member, I do want to provide you my latest Weekly Market Report that we send out to our members at the start of every week, in addition to our Daily Market Report, which is published Tuesdays through Fridays.

I hope you enjoy!

MarketVision 2025 Q1 Update

Join us for our MarketVision 2025 Q1 update at 5:30pm ET today. This is an exclusive event for our annual members. If you’re already an annual member, room instructions will be sent to you in a separate email.

Not yet an annual member? Save $200 on membership TODAY ONLY. This offer will expire at the start of today’s event, so CLICK HERE for more information and details!

If you recall, on Saturday, January 4, 2025, I provided my annual forecast, which included my belief that we’d see a 10% on the S&P 500. That 10% correction is now in the rear view mirror, but what will happen from here? A lot has changed and we must remain objective as to where we might go. I’ll provide you my latest thoughts on this during today’s event.

I hope to see you at 5:30pm ET!

ChartLists Updated

The following ChartLists were updated over the weekend:

  • Strong Earnings (SECL)
  • Strong Future Earnings (SFECL)
  • Raised Guidance (RGCL)

These ChartLists are available to download into your StockCharts Extra or Pro account, if you have a StockCharts membership. Otherwise, we can send you an Excel file with the stocks included in these ChartLists in order to download them into other platforms. If you have any questions, please reach out to us at “support@earningsbeats.com”.

Weekly Market Recap

Major Indices

Sectors

Top 10 Industries Last Week

Bottom 10 Industries Last Week

Top 10 Stocks – S&P 500/NASDAQ 100

Bottom 10 Stocks – S&P 500/NASDAQ 100

Big Picture

The monthly PPO and monthly RSI are both moving lower now, but remember, we have not ever seen a secular bear market that did not coincide with a negative monthly PPO and a monthly RSI below 40. I believe we’ll see this market weakness end LONG BEFORE we see either of those technical developments on the above chart.

Sustainability Ratios

Here’s the latest look at our key intraday ratios as we follow where the money is traveling on an INTRADAY basis (ignoring gaps):

QQQ:SPY

Relative weakness in the QQQ:SPY, including and excluding gaps, has turned back down in a big way. That’s not what you want to see from a bullish perspective. We must remain on guard for potential short-term downside action, especially if key closing price support at 5521 fails on the S&P 500.

IWM:QQQ

Small caps (IWM) seem to be performing better than the aggressive, Mag 7 led NASDAQ 100, but that’s not saying a lot when you look at the IWM’s absolute performance in the bottom panel. Perhaps we’ll still get the small-cap run that we’ve been looking for over the past year, but it’ll likely need to be accompanied by a much more dovish Fed and with the short-term fed funds rate falling.

XLY:XLP

I mentioned last week that this chart was the biggest positive of the prior week. I suppose I now need to say it’s the biggest negative of last week because it did an abrupt about-face. It appears that the options expiration and oversold bounce we enjoyed for over a week have ended. We haven’t broken back to new relative lows, which would obviously be bearish, but we did back a lot of ground that we had previously made up. The XLY:XLP ratio is one of the most important in the stock market, as far as I’m concerned. Watching it turn back down is not a great feeling, and a new upcoming relative low would only make it worse.

Sentiment

5-day SMA ($CPCE)

Sentiment indicators are contrarian indicators. When they show extreme bullishness, we need to be a bit cautious and when they show extreme pessimism, it could be time to become much more aggressive. Major market bottoms are carved out when pessimism is at its absolute highest level.

When an elevated Cboe Volatility Index ($VIX) sends a signal that we could see pain ahead, which is exactly the message sent recently as the VIX approached 30, I usually turn my attention to a rising 5-day SMA of the equity-only put-call ratio ($CPCE) to help identify market bottoms. Once the stock market turns emotionally and begins to show fear and panic, key price support levels tend to fail, and a high reading in the VIX, combined with a huge reversal on the S&P 500 (think capitulation), usually are typical ingredients to establish a key bottom.

We’re finally starting to see some higher daily CPCE readings, which suggests that options traders are growing much more nervous, and that’s a good thing if we’re going to try to carve out a meaningful market bottom. The last four days have seen readings of 0.65, 0.71, 0.72, and 0.68. That’s not quite high enough to grow more convinced of an impending bottom in stocks, but it’s light years better than what we’ve seen during any other recent market selloffs.

253-day SMA ($CPCE)

We’re coming off an extended run higher in the benchmark S&P 500, where we topped on February 19. The long-term picture with sentiment is much different than it was 1.5 to 2 years ago. Back then, everyone was bearish, leading to an important market bottom and a subsequent rally to new all-time highs. We could use more bearishness in options to set us up for another rally to all-time highs. Based on this chart, we’re not there yet.

Volatility ($VIX)

Here’s the current view of the VIX:

There was one key development in the VIX. From studying the VIX long-term, whenever a top has been reached, and significant selling ensues, the VIX typically spikes into the 20s or 30s before we see some sort of a rebound, like the one we saw recently. When these bounces have been part of bear market counter rallies, the VIX has never dropped below the 16-17 support range. So for those looking for this current correction to morph into a bear market, the hope is absolutely alive and kicking. My interpretation is that bear markets require a certain level of uncertainty and fear. The VIX remaining above that 16-17 level is our proof that the market environment for further selling still exists. In the above chart, the VIX fell to 17 and then quickly reversed and today hit a high of 24.80.

Based on this one signal alone, I cannot rule out further selling ahead and a possible cyclical bear market, as opposed to the much more palatable correction.

Long-Term Trade Setup

Since beginning this Weekly Market Report in September 2023, I’ve discussed the long-term trade candidates below that I really like. Generally, these stocks have excellent long-term track records, and many pay nice dividends that mostly grow every year. Only in specific cases (exceptions) would I consider a long-term entry into a stock that has a poor or limited long-term track record and/or pays no dividends. Below is a quick recap of how I viewed their long-term technical conditions as of one week ago:

  • JPM – nice bounce off the recent 50-week SMA test
  • BA – up more than 20% in less than 2 weeks; 190-192 likely to prove a difficult level to pierce
  • FFIV – 20-week EMA test successful thus far
  • MA – another with a 20-week SMA test holding
  • GS – 10% bounce off its recent 50-week SMA test
  • FDX – lengthy four-month decline finally tested, and held, price support near 220
  • AAPL – weakness has not cleared best price support on the chart at 200 or just below
  • CHRW – testing significant 95 level, where both price and 50-day SMA support reside
  • JBHT – has fallen slightly beneath MAJOR support around 150
  • STX – 85 support continues to hold
  • HSY – did it just print a reverse right shoulder bottom on its weekly chart?
  • DIS – trendless as weekly moving averages are not providing support or resistance
  • MSCI – 3-year uptrend remains in play, though it’s been in a rough 6-7 week stretch
  • SBUX – first critical price test at all-time high near 116 failed miserably; support resides at 85
  • KRE – looking to establish short-term bottom at 55, with 2-year uptrend intact
  • ED – showing strength in March for 9th time in 10 years, moving to new all-time high
  • AJG – continues one of most consistent and dependable uptrends, trading just below all-time high
  • NSC – testing 230 price support as transportation woes continue
  • RHI – has broken recent price support in upper-50s; searching for new bottom with 4.4% dividend yield
  • ADM – struggled again at 20-week EMA, 45 represents a significant test of long-term uptrend
  • BG – approaching 4-year price support at 65 after failed test of declining 20-week EMA
  • CVS – bottom now seems light years away as CVS trades nearly 1-year high
  • IPG – how long can it hold onto multi-year price support at 26?
  • HRL – still bound between price support at 27.50 and 20-week EMA resistance at 30.15
  • DE – still trending above its rising 20-week EMA

Keep in mind that our Weekly Market Reports favor those who are more interested in the long-term market picture. Therefore, the list of stocks above are stocks that we believe are safer (but nothing is ever 100% safe) to own with the long-term in mind. Nearly everything else we do at EarningsBeats.com favors short-term momentum trading, so I wanted to explain what we’re doing with this list and why it’s different.

Also, please keep in mind that I’m not a Registered Investment Advisor (and neither is EarningsBeats.com nor any of its employees) and am only providing (mostly) what I believe to be solid dividend-paying stocks for the long term. Companies periodically go through adjustments, new competition, restructuring, management changes, etc. that can have detrimental long-term impacts. Neither the stock price nor the dividend is ever guaranteed. I simply point out interesting stock candidates for longer-term investors. Do your due diligence and please consult with your financial advisor before making any purchases or sales of securities.

Looking Ahead

Upcoming Earnings

Very few companies will report quarterly results until mid-April. The following list of companies is NOT a list of all companies scheduled to report quarterly earnings, however, just key reports, so please be sure to check for earnings dates of any companies that you own. Any company in BOLD represents a stock in one of our portfolios and the amount in parenthesis represents the market capitalization of each company listed:

  • Monday: None
  • Tuesday: None
  • Wednesday: None
  • Thursday: None
  • Friday: None

Key Economic Reports

  • Monday: March Chicago PMI
  • Tuesday: March PMI manufacturing, March ISM manufacturing, February construction spending, Feb JOLTS
  • Wednesday: March ADP employment report, February factory orders
  • Thursday: Initial jobless claims, March ISM services
  • Friday: March nonfarm payrolls, unemployment rate, average hourly earnings

Historical Data

I’m a true stock market historian. I am absolutely PASSIONATE about studying stock market history to provide us more clues about likely stock market direction and potential sectors/industries/stocks to trade. While I don’t use history as a primary indicator, I’m always very aware of it as a secondary indicator. I love it when history lines up with my technical signals, providing me with much more confidence to make particular trades.

Below you’ll find the next two weeks of historical data and tendencies across the three key indices that I follow most closely:

S&P 500 (since 1950)

  • Mar 31: -7.16%
  • Apr 1: +67.49%
  • Apr 2: +17.08%
  • Apr 3: -0.40%
  • Apr 4: -17.99%
  • Apr 5: +68.25%
  • Apr 6: +45.38%
  • Apr 7: -48.59%
  • Apr 8: +62.64%
  • Apr 9: +60.32%
  • Apr 10: +47.37%
  • Apr 11: -29.33%
  • Apr 12: +63.88%
  • Apr 13: -21.35%

NASDAQ (since 1971)

  • Mar 31: +39.81%
  • Apr 1: +83.56%
  • Apr 2: +18.47%
  • Apr 3: -86.48%
  • Apr 4: -70.46%
  • Apr 5: +112.55%
  • Apr 6: +26.71%
  • Apr 7: -38.23%
  • Apr 8: +44.64%
  • Apr 9: +60.64%
  • Apr 10: +47.74%
  • Apr 11: -51.08%
  • Apr 12: +33.04%
  • Apr 13: -0.08%

Russell 2000 (since 1987)

  • Mar 31: +78.83%
  • Apr 1: +27.91%
  • Apr 2: +18.08%
  • Apr 3: -113.26%
  • Apr 4: -75.19%
  • Apr 5: +101.16
  • Apr 6: +51.29%
  • Apr 7: -90.50%
  • Apr 8: +59.63%
  • Apr 9: +137.22%
  • Apr 10: +5.20%
  • Apr 11: -80.66%
  • Apr 12: +45.00%
  • Apr 13: -37.09%

The S&P 500 data dates back to 1950, while the NASDAQ and Russell 2000 information date back to 1971 and 1987, respectively.

Final Thoughts

As I mentioned last week, I’m sticking with my belief that the S&P 500 ultimate low in 2025 will mark a correction (less than 20% drop) rather than a bear market (more than 20% drop). But a bear market cannot be ruled out. Honestly, I think sentiment ($CPCE) must turn much more bearish. This morning, we had another gap down and early selling and this is beginning to take a toll on options traders as they’re now starting to grow more bearish. As an example, check out this morning’s equity-only put call ratio at Cboe.com:

These Cboe.com readings are very high and show a definite shift in sentiment among options traders. Intense selling pressure and lots of equity puts being traded, relative to equity calls, help to mark bottoms.

Here are a few things to consider in the week ahead:

  • The Rebound. It ended rather quickly last week. I mentioned it’s a rebound until it isn’t. We moved right up to 5782 price resistance on the S&P 500 and the bears took over.
  • The Roll Over. We’re now in rollover mode, but the S&P 500 quickly lost 300 points from 5782 to today’s early low of 5488, which tested key short-term price support from March 13, where we printed a low close of 5521. Can the bulls hold onto support?
  • Nonfarm payrolls. This report will be out on Friday morning and current expectations are for March jobs (131,000) to fall below the February number of 151,000. Also, unemployment is expected to move up slightly from 4.1% to 4.2%. Should any of these numbers come in weaker than expected, the Fed could be in a box and Wall Street could sense it by selling off hard.
  • Sentiment. As I’ve said before, once the VIX moves beyond 20, not many good things happen to stocks. Selling can escalate very quickly as market makers go “on vacation.” Many times, we don’t find a bottom until retail options traders begin buying puts hand over fist. That could be underway right now.
  • Rotation. Rotation led us to where we are now, we need to continue to monitor where the money is going.
  • Seasonality. There is one real positive here. We’re about to move from the “2nd half of Q1”, which historically has produced annualized returns of +5.05% (4 percentage points BELOW the average annual S&P 500 return of +9%), to the “1st half of Q2”, which historically has produced annualized returns of 13.08% (4 percentage points ABOVE the average annual S&P 500 return of +9%). This half-quarter trails only the 1st and 2nd halves of Q4 in terms of half-quarter performance.
  • Manipulation. Yep, it’s starting again, just like it did during 2022’s cyclical bear market, which ultimately marked a critical S&P 500 bottom. We’ve done a ton of research on intraday trading behavior on our key indices, and many market-moving stocks like the Mag 7. Our Excel spreadsheet has been made available to all ANNUAL members, where you can see the manipulation for yourself.

Happy trading!

Tom

You may not know it, but all of the Magnificent Seven stocks are in bear markets. Given they are such an integral part of the major indexes, we have to believe that the market will follow suit and continue lower in its own bear market. The SP500 is in correction territory already.

Given the decline in the market it was especially interesting to see what the condition of the market is right now. Carl gave us his overview of market conditions with a review of the DP Signal Tables and key market indicators.

In the question period of the show, Carl and Erin gave their opinions on NVDA and Bonds in particular.

Erin caught us up on Sector Rotation where we are seeing clear patterns of market rotation from aggressive sectors to defensive sectors. She took a deep dive into key sectors to include Energy and Utilities.

Erin finished up the program taking viewer symbol requests to look for long candidates and determine key support and resistance levels.

01:02 Market Overview

13:45 Magnificent Seven

20:28 Questions

31:00 Sector Rotation & Under the Hood Sector Charts

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Amazon on Monday released a new AI model that can take actions in a web browser on a user’s behalf, a move that puts it in more direct competition with OpenAI, Anthropic and other companies that have developed the so-called “agents.”

The new model, called Nova Act, is designed to help developers build agents, or AI software that can complete multi-step tasks for users without supervision. Amazon showed Nova Act searching for “apartments by biking distance to the train station” as one example of a task it can complete.

A growing number of companies are building AI agents as they look beyond text and image generators.

Anthropic, the Amazon-backed AI startup founded by ex-OpenAI research executives, released its Computer Use tool in October. The startup said the tool can interpret what’s on a computer screen, select buttons, enter text, navigate websites and execute tasks through any software and real-time internet browsing.

In January, OpenAI released a similar feature called Operator that will automate tasks such as planning vacations, filling out forms, making restaurant reservations and ordering groceries. The Microsoft-backed startup described Operator as “an agent that can go to the web to perform tasks for you.”

OpenAI followed up that release in February with another tool called Deep Research, which allows an AI agent to compile complex research reports and analyze questions and topics of the user’s choice. 

Google launched a similar tool of the same name last December, which acts as a “research assistant, exploring complex topics and compiling reports on your behalf.”

Nova Act is initially launching in research preview for developers, Amazon said. The company is also launching a website that lets users experiment with its Nova AI models.

The release is part of a broader strategy within Amazon to invest heavily in generative AI software. Amazon has introduced a flurry of AI products, including its own set of Nova models, Trainium chips, shopping and health assistants, as well as a marketplace for third-party models called Bedrock. It’s also overhauling Alexa, the digital assistant it launched more than a decade ago, with AI capabilities.

Earlier this month, Amazon’s cloud unit said it’s forming a group dedicated to developing agentic AI that’s being led by longtime Amazon Web Services executive Swami Sivasubramanian. It’s also created an internal team focused on building artificial general intelligence, or AGI, which broadly refers to AI that is as smart or smarter than humans. The team reports directly to Amazon CEO Andy Jassy.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

Hollywood’s blockbuster slate is heating up, and AMC Entertainment is increasing the number of its premium screens to meet demand.

The world’s largest cinema chain is adding 40 Dolby Cinema theaters to its U.S.-based AMC locations through the end of 2027. It marks a 25% increase in the number of the branded premium screens, bringing the company’s total number to more than 200.

“Premium moviegoing is defining the modern box office,” said Kevin Yeaman, president and CEO of Dolby Laboratories. “In expanding our longstanding partnership with AMC, we look forward to providing even more audiences with access to the most immersive film experiences that you can only get at Dolby Cinema.”

The announcement comes just days after AMC revealed a partnership with CJ 4DPLEX to add 65 Screen X auditoriums and 40 4DX theaters to its theaters around the globe.

Premium large format screens, often referred to as PLFs, are elevated viewing experiences that come with a higher ticket price. The physical screens are often bigger than traditional movie screens or have auditoriums that feature higher-quality sound systems or seating options.

Dolby Cinemas are specially designed auditoriums with plush, reclining seats and a combination of Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos, which deliver crisp visuals and immersive sound. Screen X theaters feature a 270-degree panoramic screen that extends the movie image onto the side walls using multi-projection technology, and 4DX is a premium experience that features gyroscopic seats and practical effects like fog, water and wind that play in time with the movie.

The films that benefit the most from PLF ticket sales have been Hollywood’s biggest blockbusters, as audiences want to see explosive action movies and dazzling spectacles in the most state-of-the-art locations. It’s why films like Universal’s “Oppenheimer,” Disney’s “Avatar: The Way of Water” and Warner Bros.′ “Dune” and “Dune: Part Two” captured a significant portion of the PLF box office during their runs.

The 2025 and 2026 box offices are packed with blockbuster features from major franchises like Avatar, Star Wars, Jurassic Park, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, DC comics and Mission Impossible.

“The expansion of this partnership is a powerful demonstration of AMC’s ongoing commitment to deliver this premium experience — sought out by filmmakers, studio partners, and our guests — to even more of our theaters and AMC moviegoers around the United States,” Adam Aron, AMC’s CEO, said in a statement Monday about the Dolby expansion.

As of 2024, there were more than 950 theaters in North America that had PLF screens, a 33.7% jump from just five years ago, according to data from Comscore. These screens accounted for 9.1% of the domestic box office, around $600 million in 2024.

Premium ticket prices average just under $17 apiece, according to movie data firm EntTelligence, an 8% increase since 2021, when the company first started reporting these figures.

PLF receipts still represent a small portion of the overall box office, with most audiences seeing films on traditional digital screens. However, the PLF box office has grown 33% in just five years.

Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

The key resistance level I’ve been watching on the S&P 500 hasn’t wavered. It’s 5782. The bulls had a real chance this past week to clear this important hurdle and they failed. Badly. If this was a heavyweight fight, the ref would have called it after the first round. It simply wasn’t close. Resistance failed, rotation turned bearish, volatility again expanded, and the bears are celebrating another short-term victory.

Check out this S&P 500 chart:

I’ve written about this to EarningsBeats.com members. I posted this exact chart in my StockCharts.com article a few days ago. I’ve discussed it on my YouTube shows. 5782 is THE key short-term price resistance and you can see above that the S&P 500 literally did an “about face” as soon as it touched this resistance. Sellers were lined up. Now that we’ve failed at 5782, it only makes this resistance level that much more important on any future rallies.

The serious technical damage occurred over the past 3 days as consumer discretionary stocks have been absolutely TROUNCED, while consumer staples hangs near its recent highs. If you recall, it was this HUGE disparity in consumer stocks on February 21st that triggered the massive selling episode. Now here we are again with consumer staples stocks (XLP) outperforming discretionary (XLY) by a mile. Check out this chart:

Doesn’t the action in consumer stocks the past 3 days exactly mirror the action we saw in the 2nd half of February and into the first week of March? Folks, this isn’t good.

This is just the tip of the iceberg.

Bear Market Ahead?

The S&P 500, from its recent all-time high to its subsequent low, fell 10.4%, which marks correction territory. The rally we saw off the March 13th low was likely due to oversold conditions, along with March options expiration. On Tuesday, March 18th, we discussed with our EB.com members that odds favored a short-term rally, based on max pain and we laid out key resistance from 5670 to 5782, with the 20-day EMA falling in the middle of this price range. Once we failed at 5782, it was very important to gauge the nature of any new selloff. That’s what I’ve been evaluating this week and it’s not pretty. As you can see in the chart above, money has once again started rotating into the XLP and out of the XLY. This is one of the most important intermarket relationships and it’s screaming BEARISH ACTION AHEAD!

It’s only one signal, however. I announced a few days ago that we’d be hosting a FREE webinar on Saturday morning, March 29th, at 10:00am ET. I plan to discuss several signals that are pointing to exactly what we saw on Friday – more selling. To get a better handle on current market conditions and where we’re heading, I’d encourage you to join me Saturday morning by REGISTERING HERE. If you can’t make the live webinar, we’ll still send out the recorded video to all who register, so ACT NOW!

And here’s a little secret. Shhhhhhh! Market makers are playing some serious games manipulating some of the biggest stocks. I’ll talk a bit about how we can take advantage of that Saturday morning. Hope to see you there!

Happy trading!

Tom

Seven thousand head of cattle used to roam Ziwa ranch, a 27-square-mile (70-square-kilometer) expanse of grassland in central Uganda. Today, the cattle have gone and grazing in their place are rhinos – the only ones in the country living in their natural habitat.

Not long ago, Uganda used to be home to both the black and northern white species of rhinoceros. But by the early 1980s, due to poaching, trafficking and political turmoil under the dictatorship of Idi Amin, native populations – once thought to number around 700 – were wiped out.

More than a decade later, an initiative to bring back the majestic animals was born, with newly formed charity Rhino Fund Uganda approaching Captain Joseph Charles Roy, former pilot and owner of Ziwa cattle ranch, which they had targeted as prime rhino habitat, with the idea that he should move the herds of cattle out, and rhino in.

Roy – a lover of animals and an aspiring conservationist, according to his daughter – agreed, and in 2005 and 2006, six southern white rhinos were relocated to the ranch; four coming overland from Kenya and two flown over from Disney Animal Kingdom Florida on Roy’s own cargo airline. Numbers of northern white rhinos were so low (today, there are only two left in the world, both females) that the native subspecies could not be reintroduced.

No one fully expected what happened next. The team knew the ranch was an ideal habitat for the species – a mix of swamps, savannah and woodland – but they didn’t envisage the scale of success. Today, there are 48 rhinos at Ziwa, with five born in the last three months. In contrast, a pair of rhinos moved to Uganda’s Wildlife Conservation Education Center, formerly known as Entebbe Zoo, at the same time as the Ziwa rhinos were introduced, and have had no offspring whatsoever.

However, if the birthrate continues, the rhinos will soon outgrow the ranch – begging the question: where will they go, and will they be safe?

Rhino refuge

Wendy Roy, daughter of Captain Roy, has since taken over some of Ziwa’s management in collaboration with the Ugandan Wildlife Authority (UWA). The ranch has lodges for tourists and offers walking safaris to see rhinos, shoebills, leopards, antelopes, warthogs and other wildlife, with the funds generated going back into rhino conservation.

Brought up between the UK and Uganda, she is the first to admit that she was not born a conservationist, but now, as she gets more involved, she is starting to see the magic in it.

“Sometimes in the evenings, when I see the rhinos coming towards HQ, I think, ‘Wow, this looks like the Garden of Eden,’” she says. “It’s incredible: not just rhinos but zebras, antelopes, waterbucks. It’s surreal, it’s peaceful and, of course, you have to respect your environment and be equally as peaceful as the animals.”

Roy believes this serene environment is one of the secrets to Ziwa’s success: “It is just conducive for breeding: they’re not stressed.” Also key are the rangers who provide 24/7 protection. Each rhino family is monitored day in and day out by at least two wardens, while other rangers patrol Ziwa’s perimeter fences. This deters poachers seeking rhino horns for the illegal wildlife trade, and it allows wardens to monitor rhino behavior, gathering detailed data that can be used to inform rhino conservation globally.

Sharif Nsubaga has worked as a ranger at Ziwa for more than 10 years. “Every hour, we record the rhino activities and their behaviors, like feeding, urinating, defecating, resting, eating,” he says, adding that as a result, he has formed a close bond with the rhinos. “I know how each individual behaves: I know that this one is more aggressive, this one is unpredictable.”

His favorite, he confides, is Bella, one of the original rhinos brought over from Kenya who has birthed around seven calves and is now a grandmother. “She is one of the calmest rhinos in the sanctuary,” he says.

Right to roam

It has always been Ziwa’s central mission to breed enough rhinos so that they can be translocated to other areas of the country, such as national parks where rhinos once roamed. But the reality of replicating this stable environment has been a challenge.

Many of the national parks are unfenced and suffer from high levels of poaching from communities living nearby, as well as the encroachment of human settlements and resulting human-wildlife conflict.

The UWA has been preparing Ajai Wildlife Reserve, which was once a stronghold of the white rhino and lies 136 miles (220 kilometers) northwest of Ziwa, for reintroduction since 2021. But there have been several hold-ups, due to a lack of funding, challenges relocating people living within the park boundaries, and a shortage of rangers, says John Makombo, UWA’s conservation director.

Next month, community members who have agreed to compensation will be relocated to new homes outside of the reserve, he says, and in May, UWA will start constructing an electrified enclosure where the rhinos will be kept. He adds that they are already restoring the vegetation to make it a suitable habitat, and have started recruiting rangers, including people from the local community, who will be trained from June onwards.

Those at Ziwa are cautiously optimistic; they have been given dates before that have come and gone. This time however, there is more urgency. Roy estimates that Ziwa has the capacity for around 70 or 80 rhinos, but she adds that they are expecting a new intake of eight individuals from another African country soon, bringing its population to around 60. This new intake is much needed, she says, to diversify the gene pool and maintain a healthy population.

Symbol of stability

Moving rhinos from Ziwa to Uganda’s national parks is an exciting step, says Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka, a veterinarian who has revolutionized gorilla conservation in Uganda and is founder and CEO of the nonprofit Conservation Through Public Health, but she warns that it needs to be met with solid investment.

However, if the move is successful, the benefits could be significant. Makombo says that if rhinos start reproducing in Ajai, they will look to reintroduce them in Kidepo, Murchison Falls and other national parks across the country. This will not only help to enhance biodiversity, he says, but boost Uganda’s wildlife tourism.

There is also a symbolic importance, says Kalema-Zikusoka. “During the Idi Amin days, the elephants were almost poached to extinction; the rhino, sadly, was actually poached to extinction … By bringing back the rhino, it shows that Uganda is stable again and can look after rhinos in their natural setting, which will be amazing.”

This post appeared first on cnn.com