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S&P 500 Biotech Giant Vertex Leads 5 Stocks Showing Strength

Your stocks to watch for the week ahead are Cheniere Energy (LNG), S&P 500 biotech giant Vertex Pharmaceuticals (VRTX), Cardinal Health (CAH), Steel Dynamics (STLD) and Genuine Parts (GPC).

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While the market remains in correction, with analysts and investors wary of an economic downturn, these five stocks are worth adding to watchlists. S&P 500 medical giants Vertex and Cardinal Health have been holding up, as health-care related plays tend to do well in down markets.

Steel Dynamics and Genuine Parts are both coming off strong earnings as both the steel and auto parts industries report optimistic outlooks. Meanwhile, Cheniere Energy saw sales boom in the second quarter as demand in Europe for natural gas continues to grow.

Major indexes have been making rally attempts with the Dow Jones and S&P 500 testing weekly support on Friday. With market uncertainty, investors should be ready for follow-through day breakouts and keep an eye on these stocks.

Cheniere Energy, Cardinal Health and VRTX stock are all on IBD Leaderboard.

Cheniere Energy Stock
LNG shares rose 1.1% to 175.79 during Friday’s market trading. On the week, the stock advanced 3.1%, not from highs, bouncing from its 21-day and 10-week lines earlier in the week.

Cheniere Energy has been consolidating since mid-September, but needs another week to forge a proper base, with a potential 182.72 buy point formed on Aug. 10.

Houston-based Cheniere Energy was IBD Stock Of The Day on Thursday, as the largest U.S. producer of liquefied natural gas eyes strong demand in Europe.

Even though natural gas prices are plunging in the U.S. and Europe, investors still see strong LNG demand for Cheniere and others.

The U.K. government confirmed last week that it is in talks for an LNG purchase agreement with a number of companies, including Cheniere.

In the first half of 2021, less than 40% of Cheniere’s cargoes of LNG landed in Europe. That jumped to more than 70% through this year’s second quarter, even as the company ramped up new export capacity. The urgency of Europe’s natural gas shortage only intensified last month. That is when an explosion disabled the Nord Stream 1 pipeline from Russia that had once supplied 40% of the European Union’s natural gas.

In Q2, sales increased 165% to $8 billion and LNG earned $2.90 per share, up from a net loss of $1.30 per share in Q2 2021. The company will report Q3 earnings Nov. 3, with investors seeing booming profits for the next few quarters.

Cheniere Energy has a Composite Rating of 84. It has a 98 Relative Strength Rating, an exclusive IBD Stock Checkup gauge for share price movement with a 1 to 99 score. The rating shows how a stock’s performance over the last 52 weeks holds up against all the other stocks in IBD’s database. The EPS rating is 41.

Vertex Stock
VRTX stock jumped 3.4% to 300 on Friday, rebounding from a test of its 50-day moving average. Shares climbed 2.2% for the week. Vertex stock has formed a tight flat base with an official buy point of 306.05, according to MarketSmith analysis.

The stock has remained consistent over recent weeks, while the relative strength line has trended higher. The RS line tracks a stock’s performance vs. the S&P 500 index.

Vertex Q3 earnings are on due Oct. 27. Analysts see EPS edging up 1% to $3.61 per share with sales increasing 16% to $2.2 billion, according to FactSet.

The Boston-based global biotech company dominates the cystic fibrosis treatment market. Vertex also has other products in late-stage clinical development that target sickle cell disease, Type 1 diabetes and certain genetically caused kidney diseases. That includes a gene-editing partnership with Crispr Therapeutics (CRSP).

In early August, Vertex reported better-than-expected second-quarter results and raised full-year sales targets.

S&P 500 stock Vertex ranks second in the Medical-Biomed/Biotech industry group. VRTX has a 99 Composite Rating. Its Relative Strength Rating is 94 and its EPS Rating is 99.

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Cardinal Health Stock
CAH stock advanced 3.2% to 73.03 Friday, clearing a 71.22 buy point from a shallow cup-with-handle base and hitting a record high. But volume was light on the breakout. CAH stock leapt 7.3% for the week.

Cardinal Health stock’s relative strength line has also been trending up for months.

The cup-with-handle base is part of a base-on-base pattern, forming just above a cup base cleared on Aug. 11.

Cardinal Health, based in Dublin, Ohio, offers a wide assortment of health care services and medical supplies to hospitals, labs, pharmacies and long-term care facilities. The company reports that it serves around 90% of hospitals and 60,000 pharmacies in the U.S.

S&P 500 stock Cardinal Health will report Q1 2023 earnings on Nov. 4. Analysts forecast earnings falling 26% to 96 cents per share. Sales are expected to increase 10% to $48.3 billion, according to FactSet.

Cardinal Health stock ranks first in the Medical-Wholesale Drug/Supplies industry group, ahead of McKesson (MCK), which is also showing positive action. CAH stock has a 94 Composite Rating out of 99. It has a 97 Relative Strength Rating and an EPS rating of 73.

Steel Dynamics Stock
STLD shares shot up 8.5% to 92.92 on Friday and soared 19% on the week, coming off a Steel Dynamics earnings beat Wednesday night.

Shares blasted above an 88.72 consolidation buy point Friday after clearing a trendline Thursday. STLD stock is 17% above its 50-day line, definitely extended from that key average.

Steel Dynamics’ latest consolidation could be seen as part of a larger base going back six months.

Steel Dynamics topped Q3 earnings views with EPS rising 10% to $5.46 while revenue grew 11% to $5.65 billion. The steel producer’s outlook is optimistic despite weaker flat rolled steel pricing. STLD reports its order activity and backlogs remain solid.

The Fort Wayne, Indiana-based company is among the largest producers of carbon steel products in the U.S. It engages in metal recycling operations along with steel fabrication and produces myriad steel products.

How Millett Grew Steel Dynamics From A Three Employee Business

STLD stock ranks first in the Steel-Producers industry group. STLD stock has a 96 Composite Rating out of 99. It has a 90 Relative Strength Rating, an exclusive IBD Stock Checkup gauge for share-price movement that tops at 99. The rating shows how a stock’s performance over the last 52 weeks holds up against all the other stocks in IBD’s database. The EPS rating is 98.

Genuine Parts Stock
GPC stock gained 2.8% to 162.35 Friday after the company topped earnings views with its Q3 results on Thursday. For the week GPC advanced 5.1% as the stock held its 50-day line and is in a flat base.

GPC has an official 165.09 flat-base buy point after a three-week rally, according to MarketSmith analysis.

The relative strength line for Genuine Parts stock has rallied sharply to highs over the past several months.

On Thursday, the Atlanta-based auto parts company raised its full-year guidance on growth across its automotive and industrial sales.

Genuine Parts earnings per share advanced 19% to $2.23 and revenue grew 18% to $5.675 billion in Q3. GPC’s full-year guidance is now calling for EPS of $8.05-$8.15, up from $7.80-$7.95. The company now forecasts revenue growth of 15%-16%, up from the earlier 12%-14%.

During the Covid pandemic, supply chain constraints caused a major upheaval in the auto industry, sending prices for new and used cars to record levels. This has made consumers more likely to hang on to their existing vehicles for longer, driving mileage higher and boosting demand for auto replacement parts.

Fellow auto stocks O’Reilly Auto Parts (ORLY) and AutoZone (AZO) have also rallied near buy points amid the struggling market. O’Reilly reports on Oct. 26.

IBD ranks Genuine Parts first in the Retail/Wholesale-Auto Parts industry group. GPC stock has a 96 Composite Rating. Its Relative Strength Rating is 94 and it has an EPS Rating of 89.

Do You Know How to Read Nutrition Labels?

I spoke to a group of parents and children on how to read nutrition labels this weekend and decided it will be good to blog about this for a larger audience. From my experience, even among the educated, ‘Nutrition Literacy’ is far from where it should be and learning to read nutrition labels can be a good starting point.Most of us walk into a grocery store and add items to our basket, blissfully unaware of what nutrition it actually delivers. In fact, many of us hardly ever stop to read the label and even if we do get around to looking at it, we may not be sure what the numbers imply. So here are some pointers which will help you decide if the product falls in the “healthy or not so healthy category” and how often you or your child should consume it.”No Label Don’t Buy ” -check for nutrition label on the food pack you buy. Today, all food manufacturers in the country have to declare the following on a label -nutritional facts per 100 g or 100 ml or per serving of the product:energy value in kcal,
total carbohydrate and sugar,
the amount of protein,
fat in gram (g) or ml, and
vitamins and minerals for which a health claim is made”Match Nutrition information to the quantity you eat”- next check if the nutrition information is given per 100 g or per serving.Net weight grams = grams declared on the nutrition label – the package is a one serve pack, say net weight is 30g and the nutrition label gives information for a serving size, then the numbers you see on the label is the nutrition you get from the pack.Net weight (g or ml) > grams/ml declared on the nutrition label – a good example for this is the fruit drinks/juices segment – nutrition facts are often shown per 100 ml even when a typical serve size is 200 ml. So if you are not alert to this fact, you might assume that your child is consuming only half the calories /sugar!Net weight (g) < grams on nutrition label- The single serve snack packs which we buy frequently for children weigh approximately 30 g while nutrition information is given for 100 g, so we need to do some simple division here else you might be left wondering how a small packet can deliver so many calories!”Stay away from large snack packs” – they weigh more than 100 g, but present nutrition information for 100 g. Unfortunately, current labeling norms do not mandate serving size, and even if they did when was the last time you were able to convince your child to close the packet after eating 15 chips? So, it is wiser to stick to the single serve /smaller packs!”Deciphering the calories further”: What is declared on the pack is the total calories you get from the product. To arrive at the number of calories from fat multiply the amount of fat, given in grams by 9, for carbohydrates and proteins, multiply by 4.”Sugar watch”: The number declared against carbohydrates indicates ‘total carbohydrates’ which includes complex carbohydrates (like what is found in cereals), simple sugars as found in fruit, milk and cane sugar and fibre. Check if the product contains added sugar. Some responsible fruit beverage companies do differentiate between the added sugar and the sugar coming from the fruit but many do not. So, if you are not able to figure out, take a look at the ingredient list on the pack – if the ingredient list includes ‘sugar’ in addition to water and juice concentrate, you can be certain that sugar has been added to make the product.”Fat Facts”: There are good fats and bad fats. But in our country, companies are not required to provide a break-up of the fat in foods unless they make health claims like ‘low fat,’ ‘low cholesterol’. As a result, one can never be sure of the type of fat used in the packaged food. One way to find out is to look at the ingredient list for words like ‘partially hydrogenated fat’ ‘shortening,’ as these products have a higher proportion of bad fats (trans fat). In the absence of any of the above information it might be best to avoid products which are high in fat content.Trust you find these pointers useful. Next time when you go to the grocery store, do look for the nutrition label and ingredient list on pack. If you are not happy with the information given, or after doing the math realise this should not be in your basket, put it right back on the shelf and do yourself and your kids a favour!

http://parentedge.in/blog/

Home Schooling a Future Millionaire

The public school system in America is a dinosaur and the Ice Age is not far off. With all of the advances we’ve made in technology and as a society in the last 50 years, it’s ludicrous to see our children being educated in the standardized system used 50 years ago. The influx of parents who are home schooling and the home schooling resources available now versus 10 years ago attest to the fact that parents are fed up.Not only do the majority of public schools not work, but our children are getting less and less education. American children are getting further and further behind their Japanese and German counterparts; and in a time where the economy is global, how do our children remain competitive in the job market of tomorrow?Besides the threat of violence at school, the lack of education going on there, the generally sliding test scores and the lack of alternatives; the economical drain on property tax payers to support this lumbering, antiquated system is phenomenal. Simply put, if all of us had the option of doing something else, most of us would. Private schools, magnet schools or home schooling alternatives are a reality.For some of us though, there is currently no feasible alternative. Many of us simply cannot afford to shell out college-sized tuition starting in grade school. For many more who work outside the home, the time required to start home schooling is a commitment that we’re not sure we can incorporate into our already packed schedules.What is your child really learning at school currently that will translate into success and financial freedom and entrepreneurial skills later on in life? If we all sat down and looked through the graded papers our children bring home and asked, “How does this turn into dollars and cents later on?” the answer would be, “Most of it doesn’t.”So what can you do right now, on the budget and with the time you have to improve the quality of your child’s education?Expand where you’re at.What is your child learning about money right now? Normally we learn early in grade school how to recognize money (what’s a nickel, what’s a dollar), we see math used in story problems where the concept is actually addition or subtraction; and that’s our money education unless we receive additional education in college. For a subject that is so near and dear to our hearts, money is not prominent in most of our educations.This is where a lack of education spells a future lack of funds. You want your child to become a millionaire later in life; or even just be financially independent, you will be responsible for showing them how to think and what to do with money. Setting aside one hour a week to discuss finances with your child would give them so much more of a head start than they have right now. Make it interesting, make it personal, teach them what you wish someone would have taken the time to teach you. Are you paying bills this week? Have your child sit down and watch what you’re doing. Explain the method of accounting you use and what you’re paying for and how much. Are you setting up a budget for the family? Give your child the opportunity to give input on the budget as well as see how it works.If finances are a problem in your family, your child needs to understand money now more than ever. If you’re facing creditors, bankruptcy or foreclosure, why keep your child in the dark regarding the circumstances? If you’re investing for the future or for their college, why not explain what your goals are? Can you explain your own financial goals or why you’ve chosen a specific investment? Can you explain simple stock market terms, what is a certificate of deposit, what is a treasury bond? If not, maybe this is the first step in learning more about your finances – teaching your child. Don’t be embarrassed to start at the beginning; just start.What is your child learning about business right now? For most people’s children, their business education is confined to: trying to explain what their parents do for work, going to work with them one day a year and then getting their first job at 16. They will learn more about business if they go to college with a business major, but what practical, real-world experience are they receiving? Can you realistically expect someone with that limited amount of business knowledge to start and run their own business? How did you learn about business if you own your own?You had to jump in and do it.Whether you own your own business or not, all of us can agree that an education in business is a great way to cover core concepts and grasp a general idea of a topic, but experience in business is priceless. Your child starting a paper route or a babysitting business will teach them on a personal level what coming to work with you once a year would never do.Expand where you’re at. The entrepreneurial spirit that you are growing is an education that your child will never forget. Rather than sit back and watch our children waste precious learning time in front of the television, as a family commit to one hour a week getting an education on money. Go to the library, get on the Internet, find material that excites and inspires you and your child will become excited and inspired about money.Home schooling is a term that really means, “The buck stops here.” If we choose a better quality of education for our children, we have to supplement at home. If we choose a successful mindset for our children, we have to show by example. If we want more for our children regarding money and business potential for our children than we have had, we have to provide them with more right out of the gate.Right now there are more resources available for at-home education than ever before. We have more information at our fingertips than any generation before us. What is our excuse if we don’t use it?
Ultimately, what will give your child a leg up in a global economy and an ever-changing job market will be the confidence you instilled in them and an education than can be calculated into dollars and cents.

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