The Monday Morning Kickoff - Re-Thinking Growth Prospects And Favoring Dividend Stocks

We had another bout of pain in the market last week with all the major indices well into the red. While the market seems to have moved off oil prices for the moment, it remained concerned with the combination of slowing economic data that came out last week (ISM Services and the Employment Report, both for January) and weaker than expected outlooks this earning season from a growing number of companies. If you're a regular reader of Monday Morning Kickoff, neither of these issues are a surprise to you; however to others, is has led to a re-think of growth expectations and valuations. Notable disappointments last week included LinkedIn (NYSE: LNKD), GoPro (Nasdaq: GPRO), Tableau Software (NYSE: DATA), Buffalo Wild Wings (Nasdaq: BWLD), Chipotle (NYSE: CMG) and others. What this tells us is that even after all the volatility we've experienced thus far in 2016, there are still land mines in the field to be avoided.
With the Tematica Select List we are more than content to hang onto our cash, as well as our higher dividend yielding positions mixed in with some dividend dynamo companies for now, with an eye to adding quality companies at better prices. Later this week we'll publish our a special edition of Tematica Investing, which will feature words right from the horses' mouth - key comments from earnings calls that underscore our thematic way of investing and offer solid proof points for several of our investing themes. But first, let's reflect on last week . .... Read more