Market overview:
BANKING
In week 26 several major banks announced increases in their quarterly dividends and significant share repurchase programs. JPMorgan raised its quarterly dividend by 8.7% to $1.15 per share and authorized a new $30 billion share repurchase programme. Similarly, Morgan Stanley increased its dividend by 8.8% to 85 cents per share and approved a $20 billion repurchase plan. Furthermore, Citigroup increased its dividend by 5.7% to 53 cents per share and stated it would continue to assess share repurchases quarterly. Bank of America also raised its dividend by 8%, now at 24 cents per share (as of 19:00, 30.06.2024).
INDEXES
Despite these positive moves, the stock market experienced slight fluctuations: the Dow Jones Industrial Average edged down 0.1%, and the S&P 500 fell by the same margin. Yet, the Nasdaq showed resilience, edging up 0.2% after the weekend and maintaining its upward trend over the past four weeks. The small-cap Russell 2000 surged 1.3%.
STOCKS
Meta Platforms, Amazon.com and Tesla broke out during the week but faced resistance by Friday, finishing the weekend with, respectively, +1.02%, +2.09%, and 6.99% increases. The software sector saw strong performances, with AppLovin (+6.82%), Monday.com (+9.44%) and ServiceNow (+6.02%). The Nasdaq position, 5.9% above its 50-day line, suggests a potential for continued growth.
BONDS
The US Treasury saw almost only increases over the week. The US 1-MO stays at a yield of 5.365% with a 0.03% increase, and the US 2-MO at 5.382% with a 0.012% increase. The highest increase experienced was the US 5-YR at a yield of 4.369% and with a 0.068% increase. In the UK, the 30-YR bond is now 4.672%, corresponding to 0.007% increase. On the contrary, UK 10-YR lost the same percentage amount, left at 4.17% yield. German BUND 10-YR surged by 0.011% with 2.498% yield.
Flow Traders Investment Competition:
With only four more days to go it's getting more and more exciting. The competitions' top 3 still exists of Asteria, Floryn Traders and Heij Fidelity, but which investment group will manage to end up in first place? The winner of the 2023-2024 Flow Traders Investment Competition will be revealed on July 11th after the GAM and End of the Year BBQ!
