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Kamis, 01 Agustus 2019

Jeff Bezos just sold $1.8 billion worth of Amazon stock. Here's why - CNN

https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/01/tech/jeff-bezos-sells-stock-trnd/index.html

2019-08-01 14:59:00Z
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Burger King takes the Impossible Whopper nationwide August 8th - Engadget

Jeff Bezos Sells $2 Billion of Amazon Stock After 4% Stake Transfer - Yahoo Finance

(Bloomberg) -- MacKenzie Bezos is officially Amazon.com Inc.’s second-largest individual shareholder.

About 19.7 million shares are now registered in 49-year-old MacKenzie’s name, according to regulatory filings detailing stock sales by her ex-husband, Jeff Bezos. The transfer is a rare disclosure for a divorce whose financial terms have otherwise been shielded from the public. A King County, Washington, judge had signed an order formalizing the separation on July 5.

Bezos sold 968,148 shares for about $1.8 billion between July 29 and July 31 as part of his stock-sale plan, the filings show.

MacKenzie’s 4% holding is worth $37 billion, enough to place her 23rd on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, a ranking of the world’s 500 richest people. The value of her stake has fallen by $1 billion since April, when the settlement was first disclosed. Bezos, 55, the founder and chief executive officer of the world’s largest online retailer and web-services company, retains a 12% stake worth $109 billion and remains the world’s wealthiest person.

The value of the transfer makes it the world’s most expensive divorce. While Oracle Corp.’s Larry Ellison has been through multiple breakups, none has affected his ownership in the software maker. Likewise, Google co-founder Sergey Brin’s stake remained unchanged after he and Anne Wojcicki divorced in 2015.

To contact the reporters on this story: Tom Metcalf in London at tmetcalf7@bloomberg.net;Matt Day in Seattle at mday63@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Pierre Paulden at ppaulden@bloomberg.net, Steven Crabill, Steve Dickson

For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com

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2019-08-01 13:54:00Z
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The Impossible Whopper is coming to every Burger King in America next week - CNN

The burger chain has been selling the Impossible Whopper, featuring a meatless patty made by Impossible Foods, in a few markets in the United States since April. It first tested the product in St. Louis before announcing in May that it would offer the Impossible Whopper nationally this year.

Interest in plant-based protein has surged as many people try to reduce their meat intake for health or environmental reasons. US retail sales of plant-based foods have grown 11% in the past year, according to a July report from trade group Plant Based Foods Association and the Good Food Institute, a nonprofit that supports plant-based businesses.

The Impossible Whopper has been performing well, Chris Finazzo, Burger King's president for the Americas, told CNN Business.

"It's driven new guests into the restaurant," he said, noting that most of those customers either haven't been to a Burger King in a long time or haven't visited one at all. "We're really excited to be able to attract that customer."

The Impossible Whopper will be available nationwide on August 8 for a limited time.

For Burger King, the product is mainly a way to reach flexitarian carnivores rather than strict vegans or vegetarians. The Impossible Whopper is supposed to taste just like Burger King's regular Whopper.

A "taste test" promotion encourages customers to try both the original and Impossible Whopper, so they can compare the two products themselves. The deal will be available from August 8 through September 1 through DoorDash and the Burger King app.

Burger King hasn't yet decided whether to make the Impossible Whopper a permanent part of its menu. Instead, the chain is billing it as a limited-time offer, telling customers that the meatless Whopper will be available as long as supplies last. The sandwich is priced at $5.59, about a dollar more than the regular Whopper.

The chain will evaluate the Impossible Whopper's performance for roughly a few months before making a decision, Finazzo said, as it does before adding any new item. But he noted that the brand has been "really encouraged" by the results so far. "We very much believe in the category," he said.

Burger King is now selling $1 tacos nationwide. Here's why

Barclays predicts the alternative meat sector could reach about $140 billion over the next decade, capturing about 10% of the global meat industry.

Impossible President Dennis Woodside said he's "confident" in the Whopper, noting that Burger King has made a "meaningful commitment" to the Impossible Whopper with its marketing efforts and by training its employees to talk about the new product.

The plant-based protein company currently serves its product in about 10,000 restaurants. Burger King has more than 7,000 US restaurants.

In the past, Impossible has struggled to meet demand. A recent deal with a major meat processor will help Impossible increase its capacity.

A number of other restaurant chains, including White Castle, Qdoba and Little Caesars, serve Impossible's product. Other chains, such as Dunkin' and Tim Hortons, sell meat substitutes made by Impossible's main competitor, Beyond Meat.

Beyond's sales have also been soaring. Revenues reached $67.3 million in the second quarter, up from $17.4 million during the same period last year, a 287% spike.

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https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/01/business/impossible-whopper-national/index.html

2019-08-01 13:17:00Z
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Goldman Sachs: One more rate cut and then the Fed is done - CNBC

Jerome Powell, chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, speaks during a news conference following a Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, July 31, 2019.

Andrew Harrer | Bloomberg | Getty Images

After one more interest rate cut the Federal Reserve will be finished cutting rates, according to Goldman Sachs.

The firm estimates an 80% probability of another rate cut this year to wrap up the Fed's easing cycle.

"[Powell's] language we see as consistent with our expectation that easing will end with a second 25bp cut," said Goldman Sachs chief economist Jan Hatzius in a note to clients following Wednesday's FOMC meeting.

On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve appeased the markets by cutting the target range for its overnight lending rate 25 basis points, to 2% to 2.25%. This marked the first rate cut since the start of the financial recession more than a decade ago. The major indices sold-off and bond yields rose after Fed Chairman Jerome Powell's press conference, where he watered down the chances of more rate cuts in the future.

Powell's comments were received as hawkish given that markets priced in a much deeper cutting cycle, said Hatzius. Although Powell did not rule out further rate cuts, his comments that the Fed was making a "midcycle adjustment " and was not in a longer-term rate cutting mode panicked investors.

Hatzius said he sees a 55% chance of 25 basis point cut in September, a 5% chance of a 50 basis point cut, and a 40% chance of no cut.

While Hatzius expects a second cut at the September central bank meeting, he continues "to see little need for it."

"Uncertainty is not actually particularly high and capex expectations are not particularly depressed," said Hatzius.

U.S. stock index futures rose on Thursday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average futures pointing to a gain of more than 60 points at the open. Futures on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 also indicated a positive open.

— with reporting from CNBC's Michael Bloom

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https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/01/goldman-sachs-one-more-rate-cut-and-then-the-fed-is-done.html

2019-08-01 12:33:30Z
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Futures edge higher as focus shifts from Fed to earnings - Reuters

(Reuters) - U.S. stock futures bounced on Thursday, a day after the S&P 500 and Dow saw their worst day since May, as focus shifted from the Federal Reserve’s cautious stance on further interest rate cuts to corporate earnings, which have been robust.

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., July 31, 2019. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

The U.S. central bank reduced borrowing costs by a widely-expected quarter of a percentage point on Wednesday, but Fed Chairman Jerome Powell signaled a series of further cuts was unlikely, leading to a sharp selloff.

Despite that, all three major indexes posted their second straight monthly gains in July, closing the book on a month in which the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq reached fresh record highs.

“It was always going to be a tough job for the Fed to be as dovish as stock markets hoped. The 25 bps cut was a non-event,” said Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG, in a note.

“With the Fed out of the way there is a chance that we can all get back to focusing on earnings and how earnings season continues to paint a broadly positive picture.”

Almost three weeks through earnings, reports so far have been strong. Of the 296 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported second-quarter earnings, 74.7% have beaten Street estimates for profit, according to Refinitiv data.

Shares of Verizon Communications Inc (VZ.N) rose 1.3% in premarket trading after wireless carrier beat second-quarter consensus estimates for additions of net new phone subscribers who pay a monthly bill.

At 7:20 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis 1YMcv1 were up 46 points, or 0.17%. S&P 500 e-minis EScv1 were up 3.5 points, or 0.12% and Nasdaq 100 e-minis NQcv1 were up 15.25 points, or 0.19%.

Qualcomm Inc (QCOM.O) plunged 6.8% after the chipmaker’s quarterly revenue and profit forecast fell short of Wall Street targets, hurt by Huawei Technologies Co Ltd’s [HWT.UL] strong gains in the Chinese smartphone market.

Fitbit Inc (FIT.N) tumbled 17.4% after the wearable device maker cut its 2019 revenue forecast blaming disappointing sales of its newly launched cheapest smartwatch Versa Lite.

On the macro front, the Institute for Supply Management’s index of national factory activity, due at 10 a.m. EDT, will likely show a reading of 52.0 in July from 51.7 in June.

This will follow IHS Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Indexes final reading for the month July, due 9:45 a.m. EDT.

Factory activity contracted across Asia and Europe in July, fuelling worries a prolonged U.S.-China trade war and an economic slowdown could tilt the world toward recession, which central banks would have to fight with depleted ammunition.

Reporting by Shreyashi Sanyal in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-stocks/futures-edge-higher-as-focus-shifts-from-fed-to-earnings-idUSKCN1UR4JA

2019-08-01 12:18:00Z
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Powell is 'confusing' the markets about Fed intentions, but a new cut is expected - CNBC

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell holds a news conference following the Federal Reserve's two-day Federal Open Market Committee Meeting in Washington, July 31, 2019.

Sarah Silbiger | Reuters

Chairman Jerome Powell's comments after the Fed's expected rate cut are seen as confusing, and market pros say monetary policy has become muddled.

The bottom line is the Fed is still expected to cut interest rates again, but possibly not as much as markets had been geared up for.

The Fed sliced a quarter point off the fed funds target rate range Wednesday, citing "global developments" and "muted inflation." The 2 p.m. ET statement was viewed as neutral by the market with no set promise of further interest rate cuts. The market had been braced for a very dovish message, expecting the Fed to leave the door wide open and leaning more explicitly toward further interest rate cuts, so it was already somewhat disappointed.

But once Powell spoke about a half hour later, the markets convulsed, with bond yields spiking and stocks selling off into the close. His comments that the Fed was making a "midcycle adjustment " and was not in a longer-term rate cutting mode ricocheted through the markets, where some investors had been positioned for at least two more cuts this year alone. Powell did not rule out further rate cuts.

"We find Powell confusing. I think this is an ongoing struggle with this Fed and communications. The point is you now have to look at a September cut as more of a 50/50 probability," said John Briggs, head of strategy at NatWest Markets.

'Muddled message'

Stocks plunged, with the Dow down 333 points in its worst day since May. Treasury yields were on a roller coaster with the 2-year yield, which most reflects Fed policy, spiking as high as 1.96%, off an early low of 1.79% prior to the Fed statement.

"It was a very confusing and muddled message, and I don't think that Powell delivered clear direction for what the near-term path of additional Fed easing will be, and I think that's why the market reacted negatively," said Mark Cabana, head of U.S. short rate strategy at Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

The Fed had set itself up with the difficult task of explaining a so-called insurance cut. That's a rate cut intended to head off economic weakness before it hits. The Fed's problem, in part, is that it was making the cut, just as some economic data has been improving. So while acknowledging the improvement , it also was forced to emphasize that it's real worries are sluggish inflation, potential trade war impacts and the weaker global economy.

Two Fed presidents, Boston Fed President Eric Rosengren and Kansas City Fed President Esther George, objected on the basis that a cut was not warranted, and that also confused markets about future policy.

"The market was looking for more cuts and the markets now are very uncertain. I don't think that's helpful for what the Fed wants to achieve. I think the Fed wants to extend the expansion," Cabana said, adding that the Fed statement was much more clear than Powell. He now expects other Fed officials to attempt to clarify the Fed position.

For now, Cabana said he will stay focused on the Fed's statement, which clearly said the Fed is concerned about the implications of global developments and muted inflationary pressure. "Neither of those things are going to change any time soon," he said, noting Powell did not even mention the risks around Brexit, the U.K.'s exit from the European Union, by the end of October.

September meeting

J.P. Morgan chief U.S. economist Michael Feroli said the Fed may keep its focus on trade and global issues, but its next decisions may actually be made based more on U.S. economic data. The Fed had also added a level of confusion into markets when it pivoted recently, from its normal "data dependence" on the U.S. economy to concerns of more global issues.

"Today's Fed events may have given risk markets a little indigestion, but they also bought the Fed a little more flexibility going into the next FOMC meeting," he wrote. "We still look for one more easing in September, and continue to believe that, unlike today's meeting, the call on September depends on all of the data. While today's move was motivated by global growth, trade policy and inflation developments, we expect September's decision will also depend on domestic growth developments."

The Fed statement also said the Fed was looking to sustain the economic expansion, which it has stated before. Powell repeated that in his opening remarks but he was also positive on the outlook when he said trade tensions had been boiling over but were now "simmering."

"He delivered no consistent message. He talked from both sides of his mouth, and the market didn't know what to make of it," said Cabana.

How many cuts?

Cabana said the futures market had been pricing in 70 basis points of easing for the year, including the 25 basis point cut Wednesday. The market expectations had fallen to 37 basis points of cuts for this year, as of Wednesday afternoon, or the equivalent of about one and a half more cuts, rather than closer to two.

"It's confusing," said Wells Fargo director, rates strategy Michael Schumacher. "The market was pretty bulled up and priced in quite a bit of rate cutting over the next year and a half, and now that has to come out."

Schumacher said investors were focused on the length of the easing cycle, and Powell's response was confusing because he clearly made it a shorter-term event.

"He mentioned it a couple times. It's not like he said it once and goofed and came back to it. So it became hawkish," said Schumacher. The Fed did not release any new projections at the July meeting, since it releases those forecasts quarterly, so the market was set up to glean any new information from the Fed chief.

"It was pretty evident when you think about this particular meeting was going to be about Powell," said Schumacher.

Briggs said he still expects the Fed to cut rates.

"If the economy stays the same and prices go down and anything on his list continues to be a risk, I think they will cut, too," said Briggs. "I tend to think the global outlook is not that great. Germany is going to be a mess for a while. China has issues. The British economy is heading into Brexit and sterling is falling."

Peter Boockvar, chief investment officer with Bleakley Advisory Group, said Powell also confused the market when he spoke about the Fed helping financial conditions, when it shifted from a rate-hiking policy at the end of last year, to a pause and now to a rate cut.

"He was totally confusing. They're winging it. And nothing was more clear. You can see the circularity of the problem they're in," he said. "They're talking about easier financial conditions in the first half of the year that was able to sustain the recovery.".

So by not promising more easing, the Fed could now create shaky market conditions and could find itself taking an easier stance to appease markets, creating a negative feedback loop.

"He's in quicksand," said Boockvar. "This is the problem the Fed has put themselves into. They are chasing the tail of the market and the market is the master and the Fed is now the servant."

It wasn't just markets that were disappointed with the Fed. President Donald Trump, who had called for a large rate cut, tweeted that the Fed's rate cut was disappointing and "Powell let us down."

"It means the pressure is probably not going to subside from Trump, and we're still going to be in a position where we have a lot of political interference," said Cabana.

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https://www.cnbc.com/2019/08/01/powell-confused-markets-on-interest-rates-but-fed-probably-cuts-again.html

2019-08-01 11:31:08Z
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Kamis, 01 Agustus 2019

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'Muddled message'

September meeting

How many cuts?