Categories: Smart Money Masters HotlinesStock Market News

Market Melt-up Continues as Consumer Confidence Soars

U.S. and global stock markets closed yet another mixed week.

The S&P 500 eked out a 0.23% gain, while the Dow Jones pulled back 0.28%. Both the Nasdaq and the MSCI Emerging Markets Index posted better weeks, closing the week up 2.81% and 0.85%, respectively.

Prem Watsa’s bet on BlackBerry (BB) jumped another 4.52% — the same percentage it rose last week. This position is now up 22.23%.

Carl Icahn’s PayPal Holdings (PYPL) rose another 3.35%. The stock is now up over 77.84% since my initial recommendation.

Tom Gayner’s Markel (MKL) rounded out the top three performers in your Smart Money Masters portfolio with a 1.95% gain.

Seven of your positions sport double-digit-percentage gains. Kraft Heinz (KHC), Liberty Broadband (LBRDK), The St. Joe Company (JOE) and Navigator Holdings (NVGS) are all trading below their 50-day moving averages and are currently HOLDs.

Portfolio Update

According to the Consumer Conference Board, U.S. consumer confidence just jumped to its highest level since late 2000. Recall that was the height of the dotcom boom.

At the same time, the savings rate dropped to one of its lowest levels on record. That occurs only during periods of high confidence. It also is usually a function of calm and rising markets.

And high consumer confidence is not just in the United States. The European Commission reports that economic confidence is at nearly the highest level ever.

Also, as I wrote in yesterday’s edition of The Global Guru, we are entering the strongest six months in U.S. and global stock markets. The outperformance of U.S. and global stock markets on the period through November and April is almost universal.

All this bodes well for the global stock markets over the medium term.

Enjoy the ride!

Sincerely,

Nicholas A. Vardy

Nicholas Vardy

Nicholas Vardy has a unique background that has proven his knack for making money in different markets around the world. He was the Editor of The Global Guru, a free weekly e-newsletter, and also edited the trading services Momentum Trader Alert, which focused on making short-term profits in the hottest markets in the world, and The Alpha Algorithm, which was designed specifically to deliver big, fast triple-digit winners, month after month. He was also the editor of Smart Money Masters, a monthly service focused on longer term investments recommended by the brightest minds in the business. Mr. Vardy has been a regular commentator on CNN International and the Fox Business Network. He has also published articles in The New Republic, The World and I, and The Baker & McKenzie Legal Review. The Global Guru/Nicholas Vardy has been cited in The Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, Fox Business News, CBS MarketWatch, Yahoo! Finance, and MSN Money Central. Mr. Vardy graduated from Stanford with a B.A. — with honors and distinction — in both Economics and History, and he also earned an M.A in Modern European Intellectual History. After winning a Fulbright Scholarship, he earned a J.D. degree at Harvard Law School where he was an editor of the Harvard International Law Journal. When not uncovering investment opportunities for his subscribers and investors, Mr. Vardy is a keep-fit enthusiast and an avid student of classical music.