'Fast Money' Recap: Rotten AIG
Awash in same-store sales reports and peppered by analyst ratings updates, investors in U.S. stocks nonetheless bought in, sending the market to close higher Thursday. The Dow and the S&P 500 both climbed 0.4%, and the Nasdaq added 0.5%.
On
CNBC's
"Fast Money" TV show, the traders discussed a loss from
AIG
(AIG) - Get Report
that was twice what the Street expected. The company also said it would raise $12 billion in capital and raise its dividend.
Karen Finerman said she did not approve of the company's decision to raise its dividend. Jeff Macke said the theory is that people own the stock because of its great yield. He said that preserving a dividend doesn't make a company look respectable, it makes it look stupid.
The price of crude oil crossed $124 in extended trading today. Pete Najarian said the rise in oil drove the market's rally. He said the financials and
Fannie Mae
(FNM)
struggled, but the oil sector showed strength when oil went up. He said
Schlumberger
(SLB) - Get Report
and
Halliburton
(HAL) - Get Report
are the "biggies" in the sector.
3 Stocks I Saw on TV |
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Guy Adami said
ExxonMobil
(XOM) - Get Report
is more expensive than
ConocoPhillips
(COP) - Get Report
at these levels, and he'd rather own ConocoPhillips.
Macke said he's using the
U.S. Oil Fund
(USO) - Get Report
to play the rally in oil. He said supply issues are what are driving the price higher. Finerman said it's important also to address the demand side, and she wondered at what point demand for oil might change.
Najarian said
Joy Global
(JOYG)
, another name in the energy space, has sold out all its underground equipment for 2009. Adami said copper also looks good here, and he recommended
Freeport-McMoRan
(FCX) - Get Report
. Macke agreed with Adami.
Energy Conversion Devices
(ENER)
exploded higher after reporting a profit. Pete Najarian said that the company's 17 cent per-share profit beat Wall Street estimates of a 6-cent loss.
Investors Shop at Wal-Mart
In retail,
Wal-Mart
(WMT) - Get Report
posted solid numbers today. Finerman said some other names, such as
Children's Place
(PLCE) - Get Report
and
Aeropostale
(ARO)
looked all right.
Macke pointed out that
Saks
(SKS)
was up 9% today. He said the price action in retail stocks was confusing. Adami recommended buying Wal-Mart on new highs.
Najarian observed heavy call activity in
Eastman Kodak
(EK)
. He said he bought calls to piggyback off the action. Adami noted a large short interest in the stock and said investors could see a short-covering rally in the name.
Fast Money, Fast Food
McDonald's
(MCD) - Get Report
announced solid global sales figures today. Macke said the company is performing very well and the stock is priced fairly. Najarian suggested that viewers look at
Burger King
(BKC)
, which he said is doing everything right and is cheaper than McDonald's.
The traders discussed the future price of oil. Macke said he believes it will cost $120 a barrel or more for the next three years. Adami and Finerman said they couldn't predict what would happen. Najarian said production levels have been coming down, so he believes oil will continue to rise. He said the services sector is the best place to play oil.
Joe Terranova joined the discussion of oil. He said the price increases are tied to concerns about supply. He said oil futures are priced very high far out into the future, which means that the price increase in the commodity is not mere speculation. He recommended playing oil by playing the commodity itself, although he also said that
Hess
(HES) - Get Report
is directly tethered to the spot price of oil.
Citi Living
Citigroup
(C) - Get Report
is holding an investor meeting tomorrow to discuss the company's prospects. Finerman said she hopes the company addresses a potential spinoff of the consumer banking segment. Macke said he believes the bank will not announce anything particularly new. He thinks CEO Vikram Pandit is trying to buy time and figure out what's on the company's books.
Finerman said she doesn't expect the company to turn around quickly. Adami said investors should buy the dips in Citi rather than sell rallies.
Bauble Bubble
The crew welcomed Amy Cappellazzo, head of contemporary art at Christie's Auction House, to the show to discuss what the super-rich are buying. She said that the international market has buoyed Christie's sales. She said that eventually she expects a correction in demand for expensive art, but her company hasn't experienced it yet. Adami recommended
Sotheby's
(BID) - Get Report
as a potential trade off this news.
Target
(TGT) - Get Report
has been having trouble lately. Jeff Macke said the company is suffering from an image problem. He said consumers don't think the store's prices are competitive with those of Wal-Mart, and Target has to do something about that. He also advised the company to end the distraction of trying to deal with its credit operations. He said being a retailer is hard enough and Target should focus on that. Finally, the company should get an international strategy, he said.
Najarian said that over the past five years Target has been doing just fine, and he wouldn't recommend fixing anything about the business.
Trader Radar
Hansen Natural
(HANS)
traded on atypically high volume today.
Priceline
(PCLN)
shares were up after hours on earnings. Adami observed a 30% short interest in the stock and said investors can let their positions ride.
The traders discussed parallels between the current economic situation and that of the 1970s. Adami said that during both eras, oil was up, gold was up, there was war in the Middle East, and people were disillusioned with the government. He said that just as the 1970s led to a great decade for the economy -- the 1980s -- the 2000s may do the same in the future. He said McDonald's and
Ford
(F) - Get Report
are two potential plays on this theme.
Najarian said he likes Ford for its forward-looking approach to alternatives to oil.
Fast Messages
One viewer asked why oil refiners can't make more money given a refinery capacity shortage. Finerman said that she thinks there's additional available capacity and the refiners can't raise prices because demand isn't there.
Another viewer asked whether
Goldman Sachs
(GS) - Get Report
shares will go to $250 the coming year. Adami said $250 is wishful thinking, but he believes the stock could go as high as $220.
A third viewer asked whether
Crocs
(CROX) - Get Report
has its business on track. No, said Macke. The company guided higher for the year, and that's why shares are up, but it's having a hard time performing in recent quarters. Stay away, he said.
Final Trade
Macke said he'd sell some Activision. Adami picked
Cisco
(CSCO) - Get Report
. Finerman chose
JPMorgan
(JPM) - Get Report
. Najarian selected Nike.