The S&P500 index is one of the main and most popular stock barometers of the American market. It can be used to objectively judge what dynamics are developing in the market as a whole, whether the majority of American stocks are declining or vice versa, the market as a whole is growing. This is the main function of the stock index - to demonstrate the overall dynamics of the entire market at once. Moreover, according to the dynamics of the index, which includes almost all sectors of the country's economy, it is possible to judge the overall economic growth and development of the country's economy.The beginning of the calculation of the S&P500 index was laid back in 1957, when the analytical agency Standard and Poor's for the first time began to maintain lists for stocks that formed the basis of the index. From the same period, the official calculation and publication of the index as an exchange barometer of the American market begins.The main ideology of creating the S&P500 index was to make a broad market index that covers all key sectors of the economy and represents them as representatively as possible by the best and largest companies. At that time, the Dow Jones Industrial Average Index was the most popular, but it reflected only the dynamics of the largest companies in the industrial sector, there were separate sectoral indices, but there was no large-scale broad market index for the largest companies in the country.The S&P500 index is the estimated value of a virtual basket of shares of the 500 largest American companies from various sectors of the economy. These are the largest companies by capitalization. The capitalization of all companies included in the S&P500 index, which is essentially the capitalization of the index itself, exceeds $23.16 trillion. This is about 70% of the capitalization of the entire US stock market.However, at the moment, due to the rapid development of financial markets, stock indexes are something more than just market barometers. First of all, this concerns the S&P500 stock index, and in order to understand what the stock index really is now, we will consider with you a few key points about the S&P500 index:Characteristics of the S&P500 indexTypes of the S&P500 indexThe composition of the S&P500 indexStructure of the S&P500 indexCalculation of the S&P500 indexRebalancing the S&P500 indexHow to invest in the S&P500 indexConclusionCharacteristics of the S&P500 indexAs already mentioned, the S&P500 index includes the TOP 500 largest companies by capitalization from various sectors of the economy. But in fact, at the moment the index includes 505 companies and the index is not a static basket of stocks. Its composition and structure are regularly reviewed, companies can be excluded from the index, new ones are added, the weight of a particular company changes. The S&P500 index has quarterly rebalances in March, June, September and December.Read more: How to invest in stocks and what you need to knowThe index is calculated using the weighted average method, and the free-float of companies acts as a weighting factor in the index, that is, the share of their shares in free circulation.The S&P500 index is calculated in several currencies on various exchange platforms. So, in addition to US dollars, the index is also calculated in Australian and Canadian dollars, in Hong Kong dollars, francs, euros, pounds, yen, Singapore dollars, as well as in Brazilian reals and Mexican pesos.Types of the S&P 500 indexThere are also as many as three forms of calculating the S&P500 index. The main index is calculated exclusively based on the price values of the shares included in it, this is an index with the stock ticker SPX, but there are also other calculation options taking into account the capitalization of the dividends of the companies included in the index (ticker SPXT) and the net price and dividend yield of the index, net of taxes (ticker SPTR500N).For clarity of comparison, we can see what kind of profitability all three types of index calculation showed every year since 2008. Total returns is the total return of the index, the price increase plus the company's dividends. Price returns is only the return due to price growth and Net total returns is the total return of the index, both price and dividend, net of taxes.The composition of the S&P500 indexAs already noted, the S&P500 index includes the largest companies by market capitalization, but in the index itself they are still "weighted" by the free-float indicator. Thus, the largest share in the weight of the index is not necessarily occupied by the company No. 1 in terms of market capitalization.At the moment, the company that has the largest weight in the S&P 500 index is Apple (AAPL). The weight of the Epl in the index structure is slightly more than 4%. In general, the first TOP ten companies of the index make up 21.2% of the weight of the entire index.The list of the largest companies, in terms of weight in the index, is as follows:The first places are occupied by Apple (AAPL), Microsoft (MSFT) and Amazon (AMZN), and the world-famous company Johnson and Johnson (JNJ) closes the top ten.Structure of the S&P500 indexRead more: Dow Theory: Six basic principles of Technical analysisIn terms of the composition of the index, the S&P500 index represents all the leading sectors of the US economy:The largest sector in the index is the information technology sector, due to such giants in the index as Google (GOOGL), Apple (AAPL) and Microsoft (MSFT). The second largest sector is the healthcare sector and the third is the financial sector. The lowest weight in the index is occupied by the telecommunications sector, the metallurgy and mining sector, as well as the real estate sector.Calculation of the S&P500 indexBelow we will look at the basic principles of calculating the index. As we have already noted, the S&P500 index differs from many other indices in that the weighting factor for calculating the index is not just the market capitalization of the company, but the capitalization of the free-float, that is, the share of shares that is in free circulation.The free-float indicator for companies can change quite often, therefore, in order to accurately follow the calculation principles, the index needs periodic rebalancing, which, according to the plan, take place once a quarter.In addition, there are separate criteria by which companies, in principle, get into the index, and if they no longer meet these criteria, they are excluded and new ones come to replace them.Rebalancing the S&P500 indexThe company itself, the index operator S&P Dow Jones Indices in its monthly monitoring report on the index defines the following criteria for entering the S&P500 index:criteria for entering the S&P500 indexAll companies in the index must be registered in the United States.The company's market capitalization should be at least $6.1 billion.The number of issued shares in free circulation of the company must be at least 50%.Companies included in the index must be successful and profitable. In particular, a mandatory criterion is that the company must have a profit from operating activities over the past 4 quarters.The index includes only liquid ordinary shares of the company, for which there are high trading turnover and which have a sufficient market trading history.When a company is included in the index, the industry factor is taken into account. In order for the index to be representative and serve not only as a purely exchange barometer, but also reflect the real economic situation, the industries in the index have approximately the same weight as the structure of the real US economy. And this is also guided by the index committee when including new securities in the index.New companies that meet the criteria for inclusion in the index cannot endlessly replenish it, so many companies that largely cease to meet at least one of the described criteria for inclusion in the index are excluded from it. So for the last more than 75 years of the index's existence, more than 1000 companies have been excluded from it. That is, in fact, during this period, the index made two asset turns, and the average period of a company's stay in the index is about 30 years. However, of course, there are many such companies in the index that have been in it since its formation.Based on these criteria, we understand that the companies that are part of the S&P500 index are among the best companies according to key criteria for investors. This is the scale of the company, its profitability, a high free-float, which in fact means low dependence on manipulation and large shareholders, as well as high liquidity of the company's shares. Thus, we see that the S&P500 index was created with the goals of practical investment application.As a result, the index is not a static basket of stocks, but in fact, due to the selection criteria, the process of managed, but long-term investment is carried out in it. That is, this index is a kind of fund with low management activity. However, this leads to the fact that the index actually demonstrates very high and, most importantly, stable results in terms of profitability for long periods of time. That is why 85% of all actively managed funds and managers of trust management strategies cannot beat the S&P500 index in terms of profitability for a long period of time, over 5 years. And only 15% manage to do it.From all this, we can conclude that the S&P500 index itself is an attractive and interesting investment object. Therefore, in the next part of our article, we will look at how you can invest directly in the S&P500 index.How to invest in the S&P500 indexSince the S&P500 index is a purely settlement basket of securities, in fact, it is impossible to purchase the index itself on the exchange. Knowing the composition and structure of the index, you can duplicate it, but due to the number of securities and weight coefficients, in order to duplicate the S&P500 index, you will need an amount of more than a million dollars. This is certainly not suitable for all investors, and moreover, it will be difficult and very time-consuming work, in a constantly changing market, to form a portfolio of 500 securities and at the same time accurately maintain the share of each paper relative to the entire portfolio.Therefore, a number of special tools have been created for investing in the index. Most of them allow you to deal with the stock index in the same way as with a stock, you can buy and sell it literally in two clicks in the exchange terminal.Below we provide a complete list of all available tools for investing in the S&P500 index, and then we will analyze each class of tools separately in detail.List of available tools for investing in the S&P500 index:ETFs for the S&P 500 indexETN on the S&P 500 indexS&P 500 Futures and OptionsNext, we will consider each class of tools in more detail.Read more: What are futures: types, features, advantages and risksETFs for the S&P 500 indexAn ETF is a traded exchange-traded fund, an ETF is bought on an index, like a regular stock (we wrote more about ETFs in this article). This is the most affordable and most popular way to invest in the index. ETFs on the index can be from different ETF operators and can be of different types. ETFs that pay dividends and clearly repeat the price movements of the index and ETFs that reinvest dividends and essentially repeat the S&P500 index with the ticker SPXT are an index that is calculated taking into account dividends.ETFs for the S&P 500 indexIn any case, the main feature of an ETF is that its task is to track the index values as accurately as possible and this is a way of investing that almost directly brings the investor closer to the same way as completely duplicating the index with a basket of securities. Moreover, there is almost a real duplication of the index, since the ETF operator management company physically buys shares in the necessary proportions and constantly monitors and balances the portfolio so that it corresponds to the index value as accurately as possible. And the ETF itself is only a tradable part of a global fund of securities with an index structure. In practice, the discrepancy between the values of the index itself and the ETF of the traded ETF for it is only a few points.ETFs for the S&P500 index are traded on various major global platforms in America, Europe and Asia. The largest and most famous platform where ETFs are traded is the NYSE Arca section of the New York Stock Exchange. By the way, the most liquid instrument in the world with the highest trading turnover is currently traded there – this is the SPDR SP 500 ETF Trust (ticker SPY).Read more: What is the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)ETN on the S&P 500 indexETN (Exchange trade notes) – a traded exchange note. This is a very young financial instrument that has not yet received such a wide distribution as an ETF. From an external point of view, if we compare ETFs and ETNs for the S&P500 index, they are almost 100% identical, but by their nature and form of education they are fundamentally different tools.ETN is a note, which means that it is a debt instrument, similar in nature to bonds. ETN is issued by banks and, in essence, it is a debt obligation of the bank to repay at the end of the note's circulation period an amount equal to or equivalent to the value of the S&P500 index.From the point of view of investors in the index in the case of ETN, the main thing is to understand the main features of investing in this tool:ETNs will 100% accurately repeat the dynamics of the S&P500 index, since it is not based on real assets that require rebalancing and adjustments – this is the bank's debt obligation, which is calculated exactly with the value of the S&P500 index;The difference in risks. If an ETF operator leaves the market, then this practically does not carry a significant risk for investors, since any ETF is based on a real basket of securities, which will then be sold and paid out to participants in proportions. Investing in an ETN is taking on the risk of the financial condition of the bank, which may default on an ETN exactly the same as on a bond. At the same time, as a reward, the bank is paid a significantly higher commission for managing the fund than in the case of ETFs.ETNs have their own maturity and are redeemed in the same way as a bond.ETNs are gaining significant popularity in the investment community and are also traded on leading exchange platforms. The main platform where ETNs are traded on the S&P500 index is the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE).S&P 500 Futures and OptionsThese tools also provide an opportunity to access the purchase of the S&P500, but these tools are still used more by speculative players than by investors due to their nature and calculation properties. We can also say that such instruments carry increased risks of investing in the S&P500 in the form of the emerging leverage effect and require special skills from the investor to correctly and safely invest in the index.S&P 500 Futures and OptionsFutures and options on the S&P500 index are traded on special exchanges - the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME - Chicago Mercantile Exchange) and the Chicago Options Exchange (CBOE - Chicago Board Options Exchange).Read more: Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME): history, structure, advantages and featuresConclusionIf it did not seem simple and attractive to invest in indices in general and in particular in the S&P500 index, it is still worth considering that, firstly, this is primarily a very long-term investment, and secondly, despite the rather strict selection criteria, the turnover of assets in indices is always quite low, it is low in particular in the S&P500 index, which means in practice for an investor investing essentially in a wide market, with all the disadvantages, as well as entire industries and individual companies. Along with the best and most top companies, investors are simply forced to invest in less attractive companies in addition. In this regard, at most market phases, it is a point, selective investment in a portfolio of carefully selected securities that is more effective than a continuous purchase of the entire market.We are supporters, in most cases, of a point-based approach to investing, when it is necessary to form a diversified, but as selective as possible portfolio of ...
Electronics and software maker Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) said it will produce the recently unveiled iPhone 14 in India as the tech giant moves some of its production from China.The company unveiled the flagship iPhone 14 at an event in early September, focusing on security updates. "The new iPhone 14 lineup introduces revolutionary new technologies and important security features. We are excited to begin production of the iPhone 14 in India," Apple said in a statement.JPMorgan analysts expect Apple to move about 5 percent of iPhone 14 production from late 2022 to India, which is the world's second-largest smartphone market after China. Apple could produce one in four iPhones in India by 2025, experts say.Apple shares were down 1.51% to $150.43 a share in trading on Sept. 23, and added 0.13% ($150.62) in the postmarket. More about Apple tradingIf you are interested in Apple analytics, we recommend you to visit the analytics page, where you can find the latest analytics on stocks from top traders from all over the world. These analytics will be useful both for beginners and professional traders. The Forex signals service makes it much easier for beginners to make their first steps in trading on the financial markets. The latest Apple forecasts and signals contain support and resistance levels, as well as stop-loss ...
Electronics and software maker Apple plans to use an updated version of Taiwan chipmaker TSMC's latest chip technology in its iPhone and Macbook next year, Nikkei Asia reported.The A17 mobile processor, which is currently under development, will be mass-produced using TSMC's N3E chip manufacturing technology. It is expected to be available in the second half of 2023. The A17 is planned to be used in a premium version of the iPhone line, which is scheduled for release next year.Shares of Apple on NASDAQ were down 5.87% to $153.84 per share in trading on September 13 and were up 0.73% to $154.96 in premarket trading on September ...
Electronics and software maker Apple unveiled new iPhones, AirPods and Apple Watches, including the Apple Watch Series 8.The latter were demonstrated by Apple Chief Operating Officer Jeff Williams. Among the new features are temperature measurement and updated menstrual cycle tracking. The new device will be priced from $399 for the version with GPS, and sales will begin Sept. 16. The Apple Watch Ultra in a titanium case for extreme sports enthusiasts was also unveiled.Wireless headphones AirPods Pro 2 with the latest chip H2 were presented by the head of the company Tim Cook. The headphones will provide better sound quality as well as even better noise cancellation. AirPods are available for pre-order now, and will be available for purchase starting September 23 for $249.The iPhone 14 lineup includes the 6.1-inch iPhone and the 6.7-inch iPhone Plus. Both models feature Dolby vision, HDR, 1,200-nits brightness screens and come in five colors, including a new shade of blue. The new smartphones have a powerful battery. The iPhone 14 and iPhone Plus models feature the A15 Bionic chip and a new image processing system to capture better photos and videos. Apple has developed a new feature that allows you to call emergency services via satellite. It will be free for two years and will appear in the U.S. and Canada in November. The new iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Plus cost $799 and $899, respectively, and will be available for pre-order starting Sept. 9, and will go on sale Sept. 16 and Oct. 7.The iPhone 14 Pro lineup features two models with a new camera, high peak brightness (up to 2,000 nits) and Always-On Display. The iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max are powered by the A16 Bionic processor. Their prices start at $999 and $1099.Apple shares rose 0.93% to $155.96 a share in trading on Sept. 7, and added 0.05% in the post-market, ending trading at ...
India will test a parallel testing strategy to speed up security approvals for new electronic devices, which could accelerate plans to release devices by companies such as Samsung and Apple, Reuters reported.The move comes as India tries to address business bottlenecks and Prime Minister Narendra Modi is optimistic about the electronics manufacturing industry, which his government plans to grow to $300 billion by 2026.The plan for simultaneous testing of various device components could cut product testing and certification time by five to eight weeks.Reportedly, the first device to undergo faster testing could be headphones, and the government will decide on other products ...
The CEO of drone developer Aurora Innovation Inc, Chris Urmson, sees several options for dealing with tough market conditions, including a possible sale to Apple or Microsoft, Bloomberg News reported.Many electric car and drone startups, which easily raised money during the stock market recovery, are now struggling to get their projects off the ground.In 2020, it was revealed that Apple was moving forward with its unmanned car technology and was aiming for 2024 to launch a passenger car that could include its own revolutionary battery technology. Microsoft, on the other hand, has invested in San Francisco-based unmanned car maker Cruise, which is valued at $30 billion and General Motors Co (NYSE: GM) is a majority shareholder.Urmson has also proposed other measures, including cutting costs, privatizing the company and spinning off or selling assets. Earlier, Aurora said it would delay delivery of its scalable autonomous trucks by a year, until the first half of 2024, citing supply constraints.Shares of Aurora rose 15.17% to $2.43 a share in NASDAQ trading on Sept. 2, and added another 2.47% ($2.49) on the ...
Australia's regulator has sent letters to Meta Platforms, Apple and Microsoft demanding they share their strategies for eradicating child abuse material on their platforms or face fines.The Electronic Security Commissioner, a body created to protect Internet users, said it is relying on laws that went into effect in January to force the tech giants to disclose the steps they are taking to detect and remove abusive material within 28 days. If they fail to do so, each company faces a fine of A$555,000 ($383,000) per day.The threat underscores Australia's tough approach to regulating big tech companies since 2021, which so far has included laws requiring them to pay the media to show their content and laws requiring them to turn over data from anonymous accounts that publish defamatory ...
The US Department of Justice is at an early stage of preparing a possible antitrust lawsuit against the electronics manufacturer and Apple Inc, Politico reports, citing a source. The publication notes that the Ministry of Justice has not yet made a decision on whether to sue Apple, but the antitrust division of the ministry hopes to file a lawsuit by the end of 2022.Earlier it was reported that the Ministry of Justice launched an antitrust investigation against Apple in 2019.Apple shares on NASDAQ lost 3.77% ($163.62) at the auction on August 26, and at the premarket on August 29 they are currently declining by 1.28%, to $161.53 per ...
A former engineer of an electronics and software manufacturer Apple has pleaded guilty to stealing trade secrets. Two former employees of the issuer are accused of transmitting data about an unmanned vehicle being developed.The US Federal Prosecutor's Office said that Xiaolan Zhang uploaded a printed circuit board plan for an Apple drone to a third-party media after he announced his intention to work at a Chinese startup for the production of unmanned vehicles and booked a last-minute flight to China. He was arrested at the San Jose airport after passing a checkpoint.Xpeng, the Chinese electric car manufacturer that Zhang joined after leaving Apple in 2018, said that the company has no disputes with Apple on this issue and that it is not involved in Zhang's case in any form.Zhang initially pleaded not guilty to the charges, but according to court documents, a plea agreement was reached.Jizhong Chen, another former Apple engineer accused of stealing trade secrets, has pleaded not guilty. The court hearing is scheduled for August 29.Apple shares on NASDAQ at the auction on August 22 fell by 2.3% to $167.57 per paper, and on the premarket on August 23 at the moment they are growing by 0.23% to ...
Apple shares are trading 11% higher than the marks of the beginning of 2021. A recent report contained weaker-than-expected data due to problems on the production side: a shortage of chips and the suspension of factories associated with the pandemic. For some reason, investors hoped to the last that Apple could somehow easily cope with the difficulties that had arisen. In fact, the final results were $1.6 billion worse than the consensus forecast. This is a historic moment: since 2018, the company has never reported worse than expected.iPhone sales grew by 47% YoY and accounted for 47% of the company's total revenue. As you can see, the sale of smartphones still accounts for a significant share of business. "Services" also play an important role: revenue in this area increased by 26% YoY and its share in the overall results exceeds the total revenue from the sale of iPads and Macs. Problems with supply chains do not affect this segment in any way, so it will continue to have a positive impact not only on revenue, but also on gross margin.The December quarter is the most important for Apple, so the future fate of the stock will depend on its results. It is expected that the manufacturer will report a gross margin of 41.5-42.5%, which will not only be 200 basis points higher than in the same period last year, but will also be the highest figure in the last few years. This year, management has adopted a $86 billion share repurchase program, while there is still $66 billion in cash on the balance sheet for further operations. In other words, even with the values of the P/S coefficient in 25x, AAPL still retain their ...
Zepp shares are trading 35% below the marks of the beginning of 2021. The shares of Chinese companies look undervalued compared to American ones, as a result of which the purchase of promising tools from China makes sense. Mainly Zepp are known for the production of consumer devices like Mi Band - budget "smart" watches that track fitness activity. They are also sold through Amazon, where they cost from $46.The main "chip” Zepp is accessibility, not quality at all. Mass-market orientation brings excellent income. In addition to watches, the company produces headphones and "smart" treadmills, which also stand out for their low price compared to analogues like Peloton.According to the results of the second quarter, revenue increased by 61% yoy, to 1.84 billion yuan (about $280 million), while the volume of shipments of devices increased by 29% yoy, to 11.5 million. Such a solid increase in income was achieved largely due to the relatively weak last year's results related to the production cycle. The Mi Band of the fifth version was launched in the third quarter of last year, while the bulk of deliveries fell just in the second quarter. In the third quarter, management expects revenue of 1.6-1.8 billion yuan, which is 2 billion yuan less than last year. However, if we combine the figures for the first half of the year and the forecast values for the third quarter, we will get the values of 4.7 billion. These figures are higher than last year's 4.4 billion yuan. New Zepp devices, such as the compact Airrun treadmill, will accelerate revenue growth in the coming ...
Warren Buffett got rid of all airline shares. How else has the Oracle of Omaha investment portfolio changed? We look at which stocks are now included in the top ten of the portfolio and whether they were hit by the coronavirusThe news that Warren Buffett has sold all his shares in the airline business has stirred up Wall Street. The COVID-19 pandemic does not give a chance for an early recovery of this sector, the investor said. And, remaining true to his rule of buying only strong companies, he went into the cache.But it's not just airlines that have been affected by the coronavirus outbreak. The fall did not bypass other stocks included in the investment portfolio of the Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate, which Buffett controls. At the beginning of the year, the value of the portfolio was estimated at $256 billion, and now it is about $194.5 billion.1. AppleThe market value of the largest asset in Buffett's portfolio — the technology giant Apple — is almost $76.2 billion (at market closing prices on May 7). The Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate owns a 5.7% stake in the iPhone manufacturer.As of December 31, 2019, Apple's stake in the portfolio was estimated at almost $71.9 billion. Now it is worth about $76.2 billion. It turns out that Apple's securities have already managed to recover from the coronavirus collapse — the value of the Apple package in the portfolio increased by $4.3 billion.According to the consensus forecast of the Refinitiv service, Apple shares have almost exhausted their growth potential. Nevertheless, the majority of experts recommend buying securities — 29 out of 39 respondents. And only three advise to get rid of them.2. Bank of AmericaBank of America is the largest financial asset of Buffett's company. Berkshire Hathaway owns a 10.9% stake in the bank. The value of this stake is currently about $21.6 billion, while at the beginning of the year the asset was worth almost $32.6 billion.Bank of America securities grew well throughout the past year — from January 2019 to mid-February 2020, they rose by almost 43%. But as a result of the market collapse due to the pandemic, the bank's shares lost 49%. In mid-March, they were given no more than $18 apiece for them.Industry analysts predict the growth of Bank of America shares. According to Refinitiv, the potential is more than 15%. Of the 26 analysts surveyed, 15 recommend buying bank shares, and the remaining 11 recommend continuing to hold previously purchased securities.3. Coca-ColaWarren Buffett has owned shares of the oldest American manufacturer of soft drinks Coca-Cola for more than 30 years, since 1988. Over the years, the investor has accumulated securities worth $17.84 billion. Berkshire Hathaway currently owns 9.3% of the cola manufacturer.Does owning this business justify itself? At the beginning of the year, the value of the Coca-Cola stake was $21.4 billion, today it is about $17.84 billion, that is, the asset has depreciated by almost $3.6 billion in four months. Now the securities are almost close to the level of January 2019, but they are still 19% cheaper than at the beginning of 2020.Shares of Buffett's favorite - Coca-Cola - may rise in price by 12.7% during the year, to $52, according to analysts surveyed by the Refinitiv service. Of the 22 respondents, 16 recommended buying securities, and six more recommended keeping them in a portfolio.4. American ExpressAnother financial asset in the Berkshire Hathaway portfolio is American Express. The company is known worldwide for its credit cards and traveler's checks. Buffett's company owns 18.8% of the capital of American Express.Over the past four months, the American Express package in the Berkshire Hathaway investment portfolio has depreciated by $5.72 billion. As a result of the "coronavirus" fall, which began at the end of February, securities collapsed by 51% in a month. The shares recovered most of these losses — from the end of March to May 7, their value increased by 30%.Wall Street analysts continue to believe in American Express. Industry experts predict the growth of securities during the year by 13.4%, to $100.52. Half of the respondents (14 out of 28) recommend buying shares, 13 experts adhere to the hold recommendation, and only one analyst advises selling securities.5. Kraft HeinzAmong the ten largest assets in the Berkshire Hathaway portfolio is a stake in Kraft Heinz. Warren Buffett owns 26.7% of the ketchup manufacturer. The value of the asset for four months decreased by $1.07 billion.A year ago, Warren Buffett admitted that he had greatly overpaid for Kraft Heinz. Since then, the shares of the food holding company have become even cheaper — they have fallen by 33% over the past 16 months. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the fall in securities has intensified, but since the market began to recover from a strong collapse in mid-March, the shares have managed to reduce losses in price. As a result, the decrease in securities since the beginning of this year amounted to 10.3%.According to the consensus forecast of Refinitiv, the securities of the American food holding may rise by 4.5% during the year, to $30.79 per piece.6. Wells FargoThe third largest financial asset of Berkshire Hathaway is Wells Fargo Bank. Berkshire Hathaway's share in the bank's capital is 8.5%. This is 4.48% of the value of the entire investment portfolio.In the four months of 2020, the value of Wells Fargo in Buffett's portfolio has halved — from $17.38 billion to $8.72 billion. Securities fell by 53.1% against the background of the coronavirus pandemic.According to Refinitiv surveys, Wells Fargo's quotes may rise by 25.7% to $32.07 in the next 12 months. 17 analysts recommend holding shares in portfolios. Only three analysts advise buying Wells Fargo securities, and seven give a recommendation for sale.7. Moody'sMoody's asset is one of the oldest in Buffett's investment portfolio. The holding first invested in it in 2001. Now the package of the international rating agency has more than 24.6 million shares. Berkshire Hathaway's share in Moody's capital exceeds 13%.The rating agency's share price doubled from January 2019 to February 2020 — from $140 to $287 per share. But then the "coronavirus" collapse deprived the paper of 42% of its value. But even with this in mind, the company's shares have grown by 4.3% since the beginning of the year. And their value in Buffett's portfolio increased from $5.85 billion to $6.11 billion.The securities exceeded all Wall Street expectations and are now trading 3.8% above the annual target set by the Refinitiv consensus. At the same time, none of the analysts surveyed gives a recommendation to sell. And the recommendations buy and hold are equally in the consensus.8. JP Morgan ChaseThe fourth financial asset in the portfolio is one of the largest American investment banks, JP Morgan. As of December 31, 2019, Berkshire Hathaway had more than 60 million shares of JP Morgan worth $8.3 billion in its portfolio. But this package has significantly devalued since the beginning of the year — by May 7, its value fell by $2.82 billion, to $5.48 billion.Since January 2019, JP Morgan shares have been growing until February 19, 2020. But on the general wave of the falling market, the securities fell by 44%. Now the bank's shares are recovering, but their price is still 34.6% lower compared to the beginning of the year.Refinitiv's consensus forecast is optimistic: JP Morgan shares are expected to grow by 13.6%, to $105.42. But only 12 out of 26 analysts recommend buying securities, 13 advise keeping them in portfolios, and one recommends selling them.9. U.S.BancorpIn the top ten of Warren Buffett's portfolio, there is a stake in U.S. Bancorp, the fifth largest US bank by assets. Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate owns 9.9% of the financial holding company. Since the beginning of the year, when the asset was estimated at $7.85 billion, its value has fallen by $2.72 billion.U.S. Bancorp shares rose by almost 30% in 2019, but since the beginning of 2020 they have lost all this growth, falling by 42.3% against the background of the general market collapse.Analysts positively assess the holding's securities — the Refinitiv consensus forecast indicates a potential of 19.5% - up to $41.33 for the next year. If the papers have already been purchased, then they should be kept in a briefcase. Recommendations for the purchase of U.S. Bancorp shares were given by seven experts, for the sale — by four.10. Bank of New York MellonA block of shares of Bank of New York Mellon (1.5% of the value of the entire portfolio) displaced shares of another American bank — Goldman Sachs (1.21% of the portfolio value) from the top ten assets of the Berkshire Hathaway portfolio.Buffett's company owns 10% of the capital of Bank of New York Mellon. Since the beginning of the year, the package has depreciated by $1.36 billion. The bank's shares have started to decline in price since the beginning of the year, losing about 30% of their value.Wall Street analysts give a positive outlook on Bank of New York Mellon securities. During the year, the shares can rise by more than 20%, up to $43, according to experts surveyed by Refinitiv. Seven of them recommend buying bank shares, nine — holding already purchased securities, and one — selling.SummaryBerkshire Hathaway's investment portfolio has depreciated by 24%, or $61.5 billion, since the beginning of the year. If on December 31, 2019, its cost was $256 billion, then on May 7-a little more than $194.5 billion.An analysis of the dynamics of the top 10 stocks in the portfolio shows that all securities, with the exception of Kraft Heinz shares, grew during 2019. Their growth was interrupted by an outbreak of coronavirus, which caused a global market collapse from mid-February to mid-March this year. Only two stocks from the top 10 - Apple and Moody's — managed to recover losses after the so-called "coronavirus" fall and show positive dynamics since the beginning of the year.Read more: How to invest in stocks and what you need to knowThere was only one change in the top 10 assets of Buffett's portfolio — Goldman Sachs lost the tenth position to Bank of New York Mellon.Compared to the beginning of the year, Berkshire Hathaway's portfolio has four fewer shares. In April, Warren Buffett sold all shares in American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and Southwest Airlines. However, none of the airlines was included in the top ten assets of the portfolio, so the sale of the air transportation business did not affect the total value of the largest assets of the ...
Companies registered in the United States have always been larger than their European counterparts, but over the past year the gap has widened. The total market capitalization of the 10 leading European companies at the end of March 2021 was just over 2.3 trillion US dollars, according to the PwC rating of the Top 100 global companies of 2021. This is slightly more than Apple's market capitalization of $2.05 trillion.Meanwhile, the 10 largest US companies were worth a whopping $10.2 trillion, which is 4.4 times more than the 10 largest European companies. The gap widened compared to the previous year, when the 10 largest US companies were 3.5 times more valuable than the 10 largest European companies (USD 6.3 trillion versus USD 1.8 trillion). Moreover, the most expensive European company this year would not even get into the top ten in the United States.The gap widened mainly due to the fact that the US market, led by technology stocks, outperformed European markets for the year ending in March 2021. The five largest US companies by capitalization are technology companies. The value of the 10 largest US companies during the analyzed period increased by 69% compared to the growth of only 38% of the 10 largest European companies.This year, four companies fell out of the top 10 European companies: SAP, Royal Dutch Shell, Unilever and Medtronic. They were replaced by the Dutch semiconductor company ASML Holding; Prosus, the international Internet assets division of the South African Naspers group; Accenture, an Irish business services provider; and the German car manufacturer Volkswagen. Volkswagen and ASML also became the fastest-growing European companies that entered the Global Top 100 last year.The French luxury concern Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy (LVMH) has risen to the top of the European rating, overtaking the slow-growing Swiss companies Nestle, Roche and ...
Investing in CFDs on shares of well-known companies of the worldCFD is an abbreviation of Contract For Difference. CFD is a financial instrument that allows you to speculate on the difference in the prices of the main asset, which are shares or any other instruments.When trading CFDs, the security or precious metal itself is not purchased. That is, the trader does not receive a part of the company or a physical unit of the precious metal for management. On the one hand, this is a minus. However, a pleasant surprise of CFD trading may be that the trader does not have additional obligations in connection with the ownership of the stock.The opportunities for both buying and selling also apply to CFDs. For example, to make money on the fall in the price of the main asset, a CFD contract is sold.What stocks have become available for trading?Recall that the work is carried out not by the securities themselves, but by contracts for the difference in their prices.Margin leverage and other conditions for trading with CFDsTrading contracts for difference is marginal in nature. This means that a trader can trade CFDs with volumes several times higher than his margin collateral.Read more: What is a Leverage in ForexCommissions and spreads are also characteristic of CFDs. The spread is a natural market phenomenon, namely the distance between the nearest prices of buyers and sellers. Every trader who has ever traded currency instruments or already existing ones on the CFD platform is well familiar with spreads.The transfer of an open position to the next day also entails the write-off or accrual of swaps. The swap table can be found on this page.Time of trading CFDs on sharesSince real shares are traded on physical exchanges, their trading time is limited by the working time of the exchange. This means that, for example, when trading CFDs on Google shares, you need to focus on the working hours of the NASDAQ exchange.Shares of other IT companies - Apple, Microsoft - are also listed on NASDAQ. But IBM is already trading on the New York Stock Exchange - NYSE, which is open from 9.30 to 16.00 local time. NASDAQ also operates during these hours.It is important to remember that exchanges are closed and opened every working day. This means that there is a high probability of gaps - 5 times a week. To prepare in advance for possible price gaps, it is worth following the release of economic news.Read more: What is the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)Dynamics of stock pricesA new tool in a trader's portfolio is always a good thing, because stocks, for example, show a different price dynamics than currency pairs. The new price dynamics makes it possible to apply other trading strategies.Read more: How to invest in stocks and what you need to knowAs for the time horizons of trading, CFD speculation can be performed on both weekly and minute timeframes, and everything in between. CFD per share is the same instrument, in terms of trading opportunities, as a currency pair. Therefore, both short-term trading and long-term being "in the stock" are possible.The stock market differs from the foreign exchange market by a smaller volume, but a large variety of instruments, as well as by centralization. An important feature of the stock market is that companies whose shares are traded on stock exchanges are grouped into sectors, for example: banking, IT, automotive, oil production, etc. This division into sectors directly determines the trading strategies applied to stocks. For example, some popular strategies involve multidirectional trading in shares of one sector to insure against risks across the sector, or multidirectional trading in different sectors to insure against risks across the market as a whole.Read more: The main components of a Trading StrategyStock chart analysisFor the first time, technical analysis was widely used in stock markets. Then, with the advent of the Forex market, he continued his development on currencies that were more popular among traders for technical reasons.Trading algorithms and Stock marketsFor advanced traders who have a deep understanding of manual trading on other instruments, the appearance of CFDs means new niches for their robot trading algorithms.Read more: Trading robots on the stock ...