Friday, 29 Mar 2024

Coronavirus is a stupid explanation for this week’s Wall Street rally

CSG Systems Q4 Profit Rises; Lifts 2020 Revenues Outlook

CSG Systems International Inc. (CSGS) reported that its net income for the fourth quarter rose to $22.58 million or $0.70 per share from $20.90 million or $0.64 per share in the previous year.

The latest-quarter result was positively impacted by a 7% effective income tax rate for the quarter resulting primarily from an about $4 million net income tax benefit related to Comcast’s exercise of 0.4 million vested common stock warrants in December 2019.

Non-GAAP earnings per share for the fourth quarter of 2019 was $0.98, compared to $0.95 for the fourth quarter of 2018.

Total revenues for the fourth quarter were $254.7 million, a 3% increase from $247.3 million last year.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report earnings of $0.83 per share and revenues of $230.5 million for the quarter. Analysts’ estimates typically exclude special items.

Non-GAAP adjusted revenues for the fourth quarter of 2019 were $236.9 million, a 2% increase when compared to $231.7 million for the fourth quarter of 2018,

For 2020, the company projects earnings per share to be in the range of $2.13 – $2.46, and non-GAAP earnings per share of $2.96 – $3.29.

The company raised its annual revenues outlook to a range of $990 million – $1.03 billion from the prior estimation of $980 million – $1.02 billion. It also increased its annual non-GAAP revenues guidance to a range of $917 million – $950 million from the prior outlook of $907 million – $940 million.

Wall Street currently is looking for fiscal year 2020 earnings of $3.29 per share on annual revenues of $929.37 million.

Royal Gold Q2 Profit Increases

Royal Gold Inc. (RGLD) reported that its net income second quarter ended December 30, 2019 was $41.32 million or $0.63 per share, up from $23.59 million or $0.36 per share in the previous year.

Second quarter revenue was $123.6 million compared to $97.6 million in the prior year quarter, with second quarter stream revenue totaling $89.6 million and royalty revenue totaling $34.0 million. The increase in total revenue for the second quarter resulted primarily from an increase in stream revenue and an increase in average gold and silver prices. The increase was partially offset by lower gold sales at Mount Milligan primarily due to timing of deliveries.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report earnings of $0.68 per share and revenues of $128.51 million. Analysts’ estimates typically exclude special items.

Satisfaction, Sarcasm and Dismay: Celeb Reactions After Trump Was Acquitted in Impeachment Trial

President Donald Trump‘s impeachment inspired many strong reactions, both pro and con, with polls showing a narrow majority of Americans supported it.

Celebrities and other notable figures had a similar range of reactions as Trump was acquitted Wednesday by the Senate in his impeachment trial after being accused of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress in the Ukraine scandal.

Only one Republican, Utah Sen. Mitt Romney — a former Republican presidential nominee — joined with Democrats in voting to convict and remove Trump from office.

The president continued to insist he did nothing wrong, despite the case against him, and quickly shared a sarcastic meme on Twitter that he would be in office for decades to come.

Here’s a look at reactions on social media across the spectrum, from those celebrating Romney’s decision to those (including Trump allies and his kids) relishing in his verdict of not-guilty.

Trump is scheduled to make official remarks about his acquittal at noon on Thursday.

ArcelorMittal swings to loss as sales drop

ArcelorMittal said Thursday that it swung to a loss in the fourth quarter of 2019, due to one-off costs and a challenging market environment.

The Luxembourg-based steel-and-mining company MT, +2.51%MT, +1.54% reported a quarterly net loss of $1.88 billion, compared with profit of $1.19 billion in the year-earlier period. It widened the loss compared with the third quarter when it reported a $539 million loss.

The company said that results were impacted by impairment charges and exceptional items as well as the market environment.

Sales dropped to $15.51 billion from $18.33 billion, partly due to lower average steel selling prices, the company said.

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization was $925 million, down from $1.95 billion the year-earlier period.

Analysts expected fourth-quarter sales of $15.84 billion, while Ebitda was expected to be $865 million, according to FactSet.

The company’s net debt as of the end of the year was $9.35 billion, it said. The company aims to reduce its net debt to $7 billion by the end of this year.

“Although market conditions remain challenging, there are encouraging early signs of improvement particularly in our core markets of U.S., Europe and Brazil,” said the company’s CEO Lakshmi N. Mittal.

“With inventory levels having reached a very low level following a period of de-stocking, we are seeing customers return to the market, supporting an improved pricing environment.”

ArcelorMittal proposed a dividend of $0.30 for 2020.

Coronavirus is a stupid explanation for this week’s Wall Street rally

The stupid explanation I’m seeing for this week’s stupendous stock market rally is that there is suddenly less fear on Wall Street of the coronavirus.

The Dow Jones industrial average’s three-day rocket to the moon this week came after a 603-point drubbing last Friday.

So, what the real reason? It’s the same old story. The Federal Reserve is pumping money like crazy, this time injecting a massive $94.5 billion into the banking system by repurchasing government securities from banks.

Anyone who thinks the virus fears are abating should look at the latest total of ill people in China. Or read about the latest Italian cruise ship that was quarantined because 10 people tested positive for the virus. Or listen to the World Health Organization when it says coronavirus cases are soaring.

The real question is: Why is the Fed being so easy with money?

It could very well be because something is wrong in the banking system — the best bet for this kind of liquidity injection because problems like the coronavirus are always cropping up.

Related Posts