At a distance this fine oak seems to be of ordinary size. But if I place myself under its branches, the impression changes completely: I see it as big, and even terrifying in its bigness. Eugene Delacroix
Candidly, I am not a good photographer. My daughter often wants me to take pictures of her doing something, and it usually takes me more than a few tries to get an acceptable result. Note, I did not say good picture, and nowadays, with all the advances in technology, a cellphone camera makes it rather simple to get a fine take. Forget point and click, it is now find the square and touch. Still, the profession of photography revolves around finding unique shots, and they are often enhanced by the kind of lense being used with an advanced camera. Lenses give you the ability to see the hair on the chin of a goat in Afghanistan, meaning a focused perspective, or a capture the coastline for tens of miles, definitely a broader view. Life also brings you in touch with people with various perspectives, like on Wall Street, where if a company misses an earnings estimate you would think the world was ending, versus reading about or getting to know a young child who has cancer and yet maintains the best attitude possible. Yes, perspective is clearly all about how one sees things.
In the investment world, this week a Chinese company named Tencent (OTC:TCEHY) joined the top five companies in the world in terms of market value. Facebook (NASDAQ:FB), Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), Tencent, Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL), and Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) are all global companies.
Increasingly, having a world wide customer base has created enterprises with massive scale, so much so that domestic businesses, say something like Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA), look rather tiny in size. As an investor, you only have so much capital, and you are trying to find the most optimal places to put your hard earned money. As such, you can choose to find entities which might already be global, or something domestic that could grow into a global power. Conversely, you can choose to concentrate on a small entity which is local and has the potential to become larger domestically, or maybe has an international operation with potential to expand in a big market like China.
However, the risk with small entities is their circumstances can change quickly, both good and bad. If you take the middle ground, you put bets in both areas, or in some kind of combination, but, remember, you only have so much capital. Like photography, investing depends on ones personal perspective, which is based on a persons background, history, past experiences, and viewpoint on the world. I know, deep man, deep.
In the markets this past week, Lowe’s (NYSE:LOW) posted a strong number in its earnings report, as did security concern Palo Alto Networks (NYSE:PANW), and semiconductor giant Analog Devices (NASDAQ:ADI). Deere & Company (NYSE:DE) showed strength on the industrial side, as did gaming retailer GameStop (NYSE:GME).
HP (NYSE:HPQ) met estimates while Campbell Soup (NYSE:CPB) told us carrot prices hurt their bottom line, gotta blame those carrots. Bitcoin naturally surged past $8k as who cannot have a digital currency, especially before the holidays.
Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG) told us fewer and fewer people were buying diamond rings and jewelry, at least at their stores. In the oil market, Venezuela decided to fire the heads of Citgo after defaulting on just a piece of their $100 billion dollar debt. An oil spill along the Keystone pipeline shut down transportation from the oil sands in Alberta, and oil prices jumped a bit this week. In combination with the love fest between Saudi Arabia and Iran, as well as the improvement in global demand from strengthening economies, all of these factors make energy a focus for many investors.
At the end of the week, Black Friday arrived and Adobe tells us it seems to be improved, both in the number of transactions and in traffic from the stores. With Cyber Monday a few days away, get your dollars and bitcoin out.
In the political world, both Democrats and Republicans are knee deep in fending off accusations of improper behavior with women. Fine upstanding representatives of our society, these pols, aren’t they? Donald keeps his even temper by getting into it with the noted scholar LaVar Ball, who incidentally raised straight A students. Donald also continues to provide running commentary on the behavior of NFL players, all the while tax policy, health care, North Korea, the joy of Venezuela, Russia’s expanding influence in the Middle East, and the tension there between Sunni’s and Shia are issues which need serious attention.
Disclosure: Yale Bock, Y H & C Investments, its clients, and the family of Yale Bock have positions in the securities mentioned in the blog, Investing in securities involves risk and the potential loss of ones principal. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. All investment decisions should be considered with respect to ones risk tolerance, return objectives, liquidity needs, tax considerations, and one's overall financial situation. The fact that Yale Bock has earned the right to use the Chartered Financial Analyst in no way means or guarantees financial returns which exceed those of a market index.