Slope of Hope Blog Posts

Slope initially began as a blog, so this is where most of the website’s content resides. Here we have tens of thousands of posts dating back over a decade. These are listed in reverse chronological order. Click on any category icon below to see posts tagged with that particular subject, or click on a word in the category cloud on the right side of the screen for more specific choices.

GO TO MTG?

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MTG announced a pretty wild earnings surprise today and this beaten up and “left for dead” stock ran out of the gate by 10%.

It’s a name that’s been mentioned by our new Slope friend Jesse and some of the talking heads on CNBC have also touted it of late. What’s all the fuss about? I must say, I have no clue, but it is a leveraged play on the housing recovery. From all time highs above 70 five years ago to a low of 66 cents, you can file this one in the Zombieland files (a la AIG, C, BAC). (more…)

Financial Strength in One Chart

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If you want a breathtaking view of how much financial stocks have strengthened, look no further than the chart of FAS below, which is the triple-bullish ETF. The interesting thing is that one didn’t have to be lucky enough to buy it in depths of the financial crisis for a bargain price; it was actually very depressed in October 2011, only a year and a half ago. It’s up 345% since then. I won’t show its opposite here, symbol FAZ, but it basically looks like a ski slope ever since its inception. (more…)

Trend Change or Bull Flag?

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I find the ETF for financial stocks pretty interesting: long-term, the uptrend is quite clear, but in recent weeks, we’ve definitely been banging out a series of lower highs and lower lows. I guess the question is whether or not this designates a trend change or a continuation pattern. I’m ambivalent enough about it to simply move on to other items; there are plenty of other fish to fry. But I at least wanted to bring this to your attention, since your eyes might be better than mine! (more…)