The Media Is the Message; Allergan Gets Jiggy: Doug Kass' Views
Here are Doug Kass' top thoughts on some of the biggest stories of the week.
The Media Is the Message
"The medium is the message" is a phrase coined by Marshall McLuhan meaning that the form of a medium embeds itself in any message it would transmit or convey, creating a symbiotic relationship by which the medium influences how the message is perceived.
In the stock market, today, the media is the message, as Comcast (CMCSA) - Get Report now breaks in with disappointing subscriber numbers (the shares are -6%). This follows the aforementioned Disney (DIS) - Get Report warning.
Meanwhile the Wall Street Journal has just reported that the new Apple (AAPL) - Get Report iPhone is being plagued by production glitches -- Apple's shares are falling in concert with the news. (It is interesting to note that the media's talking heads are dismissive of this news. While they might be correct, many of the same commentators have been enthralled with Disney over the last two years and many of them work for Comcast.)
As I have stated repeatedly, today I am growing more bearish (and given the momentum loss in key sectors and stocks I wouldn't be surprised if my pal RevShark, who likes to see the weak action before he acts, might chime in soon (at least I hope so!)
Position: Short DIS AAPL small .
Originally published Sept. 7 at 12:59 p.m. ET
More of What's Trending on TheStreet:
- Working Mothers Shouldn't Feel a Twinge of Guilt
- Carly Fiorina on Not Running for Senate, Cryptocurrency and the Opioid Epidemic
- Target Just Declared War on Amazon's Whole Foods Business and Walmart
- Why 19 States And D.C. Have Costly Hurricane Deductibles That Drain Victims Dry
Allergan (AGN) - Get Report has mounted a nice move higher, after yesterday's gain.
Allergan Gets Jiggy
On no news the shares are +$4.05/share to over $227.50.
As posted, I have been steadily adding back to AGN over the last few days.
As I did a week ago (and given my overall negative market view), I plan to maintain a small to medium sized core investment long in this name, with the thought of selling the recent buys back where I did a week or so ago (at $230-$231).
Tactically, if I was more constructive on the markets, like some others, I wouldn't be selling AGN -- but I am not.
Meanwhile the profits in AGN, my most favored large cap long for 2017 are adding up -- with my dip buys and rally sales throughout this year.
Position: Long AGN.
Originally published Sept. 7 at 12:00 p.m. ET
Doug Kass shares his views every day on RealMoneyPro. Click here for a real-time look at his insights and musings. This week he blogged on:
- How Goldman weakness could be another negative tell
- How Kass is adding longs and shorts
Click here for information on RealMoney, where you can see all the blogs, including Doug Kass'--and reader comments--in real time.
Stick with TheStreet for updated storm coverage as Hurricane Irma moves the market:
- Hurricane Irma: What Kind of Insurance Should You Have?
- Hurricane Irma Will Make Orange Juice Unaffordable and Destroy Your Grocery Bill
- How to Protect Your Car During a Hurricane
- Hurricane Irma and The Waffle House Index: Why It Has Amazing Predictive Powers
- Hurricane Irma: How Floridians Are Using Tech, Apps to Prepare for the Big Storm
- Hurricane Irma Highlights the Dangers and Costs of Infrastructure Damage
- Why 19 States And D.C. Have Costly Hurricane Deductibles That Drain Victims Dry
Action Alerts PLUS, which Cramer manages as a charitable trust, is long CMCSA, AAPL and AGN.
