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Bitcoin Stocks: The ‘Heads You Win, Tails You Win’ Portfolio (RIOT, ISWH, SQ, HIVE, PYPL, OSTK, MSTR, MARA)

While skepticism on Bitcoin and the cryptocurrency space remains in place – which is healthy for the continuing bull market trend in the space – the group and theme face an interesting potential dynamic that could drive its next leg higher: we have…

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2 years ago

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While skepticism on Bitcoin and the cryptocurrency space remains in place – which is healthy for the continuing bull market trend in the space – the group and theme face an interesting potential dynamic that could drive its next leg higher: we have seen outperformance in both “risk off” and “risk on” periods.

Another way to paint this picture is to point out that Bitcoin has been correlated with growth stocks when growth stocks have been in favor and correlated with bonds and gold when volatility emerges. 

A good example is when Bitcoin moved 30% higher during the stock market crash of spring 2020, when the pandemic first reared its ugly head, and then rallied even more while stocks recovered during the summer and fall that followed.

Now, as we see volatility pick back up in the stock market as the US recovery hits a soft patch – which certainly showed up in Friday’s big miss on the jobs front – Bitcoin is running again.

Crypto is emerging as the ‘Heads You Win, Tails You Win’ portfolio tool, which is why we take a closer look at some of the key players in the space below.

Paypal Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:PYPL) helped to drive the breakout in the crypto space last year when it announced it would start to deal in BTC and allow customers to convert and purchase in the coin.

That step was explosive given Paypal’s growth as a payment platform because it basically widened BTC’s applied utility as a medium of exchange by billions of dollars in economic breadth overnight – even if a merchant doesn’t accept Bitcoin, it may accept Paypal, which means it suddenly accepted Bitcoin in a de facto sense.

Paypal Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:PYPL) recently announced that it has agreed to acquire Paidy, a leading two-sided payments platform and provider of buy now, pay later solutions in Japan, for ¥300 billion or approximately US$2.7 billion, principally in cash. The acquisition will expand PayPal’s capabilities, distribution and relevance in the domestic payments market in Japan, the third largest ecommerce market in the world, complementing the company’s existing cross-border ecommerce business in the country.

“Paidy pioneered buy now, pay later solutions tailored to the Japanese market and quickly grew to become the leading service, developing a sizable two-sided platform of consumers and merchants,” said Peter Kenevan, vice president, head of Japan at PayPal. “Combining Paidy’s brand, capabilities and talented team with PayPal’s expertise, resources and global scale will create a strong foundation to accelerate our momentum in this strategically important market.”

Even in light of this news, PYPL hasn’t really done much of anything over the past week, with shares logging no net movement over that period. 

Paypal Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:PYPL) managed to rope in revenues totaling $6.3B in overall sales during the company’s most recently reported quarterly financial data — a figure that represents a rate of top line growth of 21%, as compared to year-ago data in comparable terms. In addition, the company is battling some balance sheet hurdles, with cash levels struggling to keep up with current liabilities ($12.4B against $41.3B, respectively).

ISW Holdings (OTC US:ISWH) is the “new kid on the blockchain” with huge growth starting to emerge over the past year seemingly out of nowhere. The stock is also clearly the hottest in the space over the past several months as the crowd starts to find it down on the OTC. We would also note that the company has recently made statements hinting toward an uplist onto the Nasdaq given its recent jump in revenues and forward outlook.

Overall, shares have more than tripled in the past month as the company nails down game-changing partnerships including its landmark deal with Bitmain – probably the most important crypto company in the world – as announced in July.

ISW Holdings (OTC US:ISWH) hit another key benchmark recently as it surpassed agreed upon milestones related to the performance of its common stock price, allowing it to receive an additional 150 Bitmain S19 95TH/s miners from Minerset, a Delaware LLC, due to negotiated terms in its asset purchase agreement announced in August.

The company can trigger another milestone with further gains, creating a potential positive feedback loop as its shares move higher, boosting its mining capacity with no additional financial draw on cash reserves.

“This contract was a win for both companies: We didn’t have to part with $3.8 million in cash and Minerset was able to quickly move its inventory,” noted its president, Alonzo Pierce. “With the appreciation of our stock price, both companies have already been amply rewarded for this partnership.”

ISW Holdings (OTC US:ISWH) Pierce also noted in a recent release that the company’s Q3 and Q4 data were on a very encouraging glide path: “We will unquestionably log our best quarter in Company history – by a wide margin – when the books close at the end of the month [of September]. But that will likely be dwarfed by what rolls in over coming quarters. We have made a few final adjustments and updates that are being implemented right now that will take us to full capacity in terms of achievable hashrate in Pennsylvania. That will bring us to a topline run-rate of approximately $1.5 million per month, which may double again beginning midway through the fourth quarter as we begin to ramp up hosting revenues.”

HIVE Blockchain Technologies Ltd (NASDAQ:HIVE) recently moved up onto the Nasdaq as an emerging leader in the crypto mining space, so it represents an interesting barometer for investor enthusiasm for stocks in the space, generically.

According to its own materials, the company engages in building a bridge from the blockchain sector to traditional capital markets. It also involves the production of mined cryptocurrency assets such as Ethereum. Its projects include Iceland-based Cryptocurrency Mining.

HIVE Blockchain Technologies Ltd (NASDAQ:HIVE) recently announced its results for the full year ended March 31, including news that its income from digital currency mining was $66.7 million this fiscal year, a 174% increase from the prior year. In addition, the company saw record net income of $42.5 million, up significantly from a loss of $1.9 million a year earlier, and $2.9 million lower than the previous quarter. Gross mining margin expanded to $50.1 million, from $8.5 million last year, and is $17.1 million higher than that experienced in the prior quarter of $10.6 million. Net income per share grew to $0.12 from a loss of $0.01 during the prior year and is $0.01 lower than the previous quarter of December 31, 2020.

“Fiscal 2021 was an incredible year for HIVE. Despite the effects of COVID-19 we have achieved record results and continued to increase our Ethereum and Bitcoin mining capacity,” said Frank Holmes, Interim Executive Chairman of HIVE.

And the stock has been acting well over recent days, up something like 5% in that time. 

HIVE Blockchain Technologies Ltd (NASDAQ:HIVE) managed to rope in revenues totaling $45.7M in overall sales during the company’s most recently reported quarterly financial data — a figure that represents a rate of top line growth of 401.5%, as compared to year-ago data in comparable terms. In addition, the company has a strong balance sheet, with cash levels exceeding current liabilities ($145.8M against $11.9M).

Other interesting names in the Crypto Stocks space include Riot Blockchain Inc (NASDAQ:RIOT), Square Inc (NYSE:SQ), Overstock.com Inc (NASDAQ:OSTK), MicroStrategy Incorporated (NASDAQ:MSTR), and Marathon Digital Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:MARA).

Please make sure to read and completely understand our disclaimer at https://www.wallstreetpr.com/disclaimer. We may be compensated for posting this content on our website by EDM Media LLC. For questions, comments or suggestions please contact ir@edm.media.

The post Bitcoin Stocks: The ‘Heads You Win, Tails You Win’ Portfolio (RIOT, ISWH, SQ, HIVE, PYPL, OSTK, MSTR, MARA) appeared first on Wall Street PR.

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Homes listed for sale in early June sell for $7,700 more

New Zillow research suggests the spring home shopping season may see a second wave this summer if mortgage rates fall
The post Homes listed for sale in…

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March 11, 2024

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  • A Zillow analysis of 2023 home sales finds homes listed in the first two weeks of June sold for 2.3% more. 
  • The best time to list a home for sale is a month later than it was in 2019, likely driven by mortgage rates.
  • The best time to list can be as early as the second half of February in San Francisco, and as late as the first half of July in New York and Philadelphia. 

Spring home sellers looking to maximize their sale price may want to wait it out and list their home for sale in the first half of June. A new Zillow® analysis of 2023 sales found that homes listed in the first two weeks of June sold for 2.3% more, a $7,700 boost on a typical U.S. home.  

The best time to list consistently had been early May in the years leading up to the pandemic. The shift to June suggests mortgage rates are strongly influencing demand on top of the usual seasonality that brings buyers to the market in the spring. This home-shopping season is poised to follow a similar pattern as that in 2023, with the potential for a second wave if the Federal Reserve lowers interest rates midyear or later. 

The 2.3% sale price premium registered last June followed the first spring in more than 15 years with mortgage rates over 6% on a 30-year fixed-rate loan. The high rates put home buyers on the back foot, and as rates continued upward through May, they were still reassessing and less likely to bid boldly. In June, however, rates pulled back a little from 6.79% to 6.67%, which likely presented an opportunity for determined buyers heading into summer. More buyers understood their market position and could afford to transact, boosting competition and sale prices.

The old logic was that sellers could earn a premium by listing in late spring, when search activity hit its peak. Now, with persistently low inventory, mortgage rate fluctuations make their own seasonality. First-time home buyers who are on the edge of qualifying for a home loan may dip in and out of the market, depending on what’s happening with rates. It is almost certain the Federal Reserve will push back any interest-rate cuts to mid-2024 at the earliest. If mortgage rates follow, that could bring another surge of buyers later this year.

Mortgage rates have been impacting affordability and sale prices since they began rising rapidly two years ago. In 2022, sellers nationwide saw the highest sale premium when they listed their home in late March, right before rates barreled past 5% and continued climbing. 

Zillow’s research finds the best time to list can vary widely by metropolitan area. In 2023, it was as early as the second half of February in San Francisco, and as late as the first half of July in New York. Thirty of the top 35 largest metro areas saw for-sale listings command the highest sale prices between May and early July last year. 

Zillow also found a wide range in the sale price premiums associated with homes listed during those peak periods. At the hottest time of the year in San Jose, homes sold for 5.5% more, a $88,000 boost on a typical home. Meanwhile, homes in San Antonio sold for 1.9% more during that same time period.  

 

Metropolitan Area Best Time to List Price Premium Dollar Boost
United States First half of June 2.3% $7,700
New York, NY First half of July 2.4% $15,500
Los Angeles, CA First half of May 4.1% $39,300
Chicago, IL First half of June 2.8% $8,800
Dallas, TX First half of June 2.5% $9,200
Houston, TX Second half of April 2.0% $6,200
Washington, DC Second half of June 2.2% $12,700
Philadelphia, PA First half of July 2.4% $8,200
Miami, FL First half of June 2.3% $12,900
Atlanta, GA Second half of June 2.3% $8,700
Boston, MA Second half of May 3.5% $23,600
Phoenix, AZ First half of June 3.2% $14,700
San Francisco, CA Second half of February 4.2% $50,300
Riverside, CA First half of May 2.7% $15,600
Detroit, MI First half of July 3.3% $7,900
Seattle, WA First half of June 4.3% $31,500
Minneapolis, MN Second half of May 3.7% $13,400
San Diego, CA Second half of April 3.1% $29,600
Tampa, FL Second half of June 2.1% $8,000
Denver, CO Second half of May 2.9% $16,900
Baltimore, MD First half of July 2.2% $8,200
St. Louis, MO First half of June 2.9% $7,000
Orlando, FL First half of June 2.2% $8,700
Charlotte, NC Second half of May 3.0% $11,000
San Antonio, TX First half of June 1.9% $5,400
Portland, OR Second half of April 2.6% $14,300
Sacramento, CA First half of June 3.2% $17,900
Pittsburgh, PA Second half of June 2.3% $4,700
Cincinnati, OH Second half of April 2.7% $7,500
Austin, TX Second half of May 2.8% $12,600
Las Vegas, NV First half of June 3.4% $14,600
Kansas City, MO Second half of May 2.5% $7,300
Columbus, OH Second half of June 3.3% $10,400
Indianapolis, IN First half of July 3.0% $8,100
Cleveland, OH First half of July  3.4% $7,400
San Jose, CA First half of June 5.5% $88,400

 

The post Homes listed for sale in early June sell for $7,700 more appeared first on Zillow Research.

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Survey Shows Declining Concerns Among Americans About COVID-19

Survey Shows Declining Concerns Among Americans About COVID-19

A new survey reveals that only 20% of Americans view covid-19 as "a major threat"…

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March 11, 2024

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Survey Shows Declining Concerns Among Americans About COVID-19

A new survey reveals that only 20% of Americans view covid-19 as "a major threat" to the health of the US population - a sharp decline from a high of 67% in July 2020.

(SARMDY/Shutterstock)

What's more, the Pew Research Center survey conducted from Feb. 7 to Feb. 11 showed that just 10% of Americans are concerned that they will  catch the disease and require hospitalization.

"This data represents a low ebb of public concern about the virus that reached its height in the summer and fall of 2020, when as many as two-thirds of Americans viewed COVID-19 as a major threat to public health," reads the report, which was published March 7.

According to the survey, half of the participants understand the significance of researchers and healthcare providers in understanding and treating long COVID - however 27% of participants consider this issue less important, while 22% of Americans are unaware of long COVID.

What's more, while Democrats were far more worried than Republicans in the past, that gap has narrowed significantly.

"In the pandemic’s first year, Democrats were routinely about 40 points more likely than Republicans to view the coronavirus as a major threat to the health of the U.S. population. This gap has waned as overall levels of concern have fallen," reads the report.

More via the Epoch Times;

The survey found that three in ten Democrats under 50 have received an updated COVID-19 vaccine, compared with 66 percent of Democrats ages 65 and older.

Moreover, 66 percent of Democrats ages 65 and older have received the updated COVID-19 vaccine, while only 24 percent of Republicans ages 65 and older have done so.

“This 42-point partisan gap is much wider now than at other points since the start of the outbreak. For instance, in August 2021, 93 percent of older Democrats and 78 percent of older Republicans said they had received all the shots needed to be fully vaccinated (a 15-point gap),” it noted.

COVID-19 No Longer an Emergency

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently issued its updated recommendations for the virus, which no longer require people to stay home for five days after testing positive for COVID-19.

The updated guidance recommends that people who contracted a respiratory virus stay home, and they can resume normal activities when their symptoms improve overall and their fever subsides for 24 hours without medication.

“We still must use the commonsense solutions we know work to protect ourselves and others from serious illness from respiratory viruses, this includes vaccination, treatment, and staying home when we get sick,” CDC director Dr. Mandy Cohen said in a statement.

The CDC said that while the virus remains a threat, it is now less likely to cause severe illness because of widespread immunity and improved tools to prevent and treat the disease.

“Importantly, states and countries that have already adjusted recommended isolation times have not seen increased hospitalizations or deaths related to COVID-19,” it stated.

The federal government suspended its free at-home COVID-19 test program on March 8, according to a website set up by the government, following a decrease in COVID-19-related hospitalizations.

According to the CDC, hospitalization rates for COVID-19 and influenza diseases remain “elevated” but are decreasing in some parts of the United States.

Tyler Durden Sun, 03/10/2024 - 22:45

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Rand Paul Teases Senate GOP Leader Run – Musk Says “I Would Support”

Rand Paul Teases Senate GOP Leader Run – Musk Says "I Would Support"

Republican Kentucky Senator Rand Paul on Friday hinted that he may jump…

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12 hours ago

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March 10, 2024

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Rand Paul Teases Senate GOP Leader Run - Musk Says "I Would Support"

Republican Kentucky Senator Rand Paul on Friday hinted that he may jump into the race to become the next Senate GOP leader, and Elon Musk was quick to support the idea. Republicans must find a successor for periodically malfunctioning Mitch McConnell, who recently announced he'll step down in November, though intending to keep his Senate seat until his term ends in January 2027, when he'd be within weeks of turning 86. 

So far, the announced field consists of two quintessential establishment types: John Cornyn of Texas and John Thune of South Dakota. While John Barrasso's name had been thrown around as one of "The Three Johns" considered top contenders, the Wyoming senator on Tuesday said he'll instead seek the number two slot as party whip. 

Paul used X to tease his potential bid for the position which -- if the GOP takes back the upper chamber in November -- could graduate from Minority Leader to Majority Leader. He started by telling his 5.1 million followers he'd had lots of people asking him about his interest in running...

...then followed up with a poll in which he predictably annihilated Cornyn and Thune, taking a 96% share as of Friday night, with the other two below 2% each. 

Elon Musk was quick to back the idea of Paul as GOP leader, while daring Cornyn and Thune to follow Paul's lead by throwing their names out for consideration by the Twitter-verse X-verse. 

Paul has been a stalwart opponent of security-state mass surveillance, foreign interventionism -- to include shoveling billions of dollars into the proxy war in Ukraine -- and out-of-control spending in general. He demonstrated the latter passion on the Senate floor this week as he ridiculed the latest kick-the-can spending package:   

In February, Paul used Senate rules to force his colleagues into a grueling Super Bowl weekend of votes, as he worked to derail a $95 billion foreign aid bill. "I think we should stay here as long as it takes,” said Paul. “If it takes a week or a month, I’ll force them to stay here to discuss why they think the border of Ukraine is more important than the US border.”

Don't expect a Majority Leader Paul to ditch the filibuster -- he's been a hardy user of the legislative delay tactic. In 2013, he spoke for 13 hours to fight the nomination of John Brennan as CIA director. In 2015, he orated for 10-and-a-half-hours to oppose extension of the Patriot Act. 

Rand Paul amid his 10 1/2 hour filibuster in 2015

Among the general public, Paul is probably best known as Capitol Hill's chief tormentor of Dr. Anthony Fauci, who was director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease during the Covid-19 pandemic. Paul says the evidence indicates the virus emerged from China's Wuhan Institute of Virology. He's accused Fauci and other members of the US government public health apparatus of evading questions about their funding of the Chinese lab's "gain of function" research, which takes natural viruses and morphs them into something more dangerous. Paul has pointedly said that Fauci committed perjury in congressional hearings and that he belongs in jail "without question."   

Musk is neither the only nor the first noteworthy figure to back Paul for party leader. Just hours after McConnell announced his upcoming step-down from leadership, independent 2024 presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr voiced his support: 

In a testament to the extent to which the establishment recoils at the libertarian-minded Paul, mainstream media outlets -- which have been quick to report on other developments in the majority leader race -- pretended not to notice that Paul had signaled his interest in the job. More than 24 hours after Paul's test-the-waters tweet-fest began, not a single major outlet had brought it to the attention of their audience. 

That may be his strongest endorsement yet. 

Tyler Durden Sun, 03/10/2024 - 20:25

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