Economic releases covering construction spending, factory orders, and initial jobless claims will be sandwiched around the 4th of July holiday before the June jobs report lands on the laps of investors on July 7. Economists forecast 213K jobs were added during the month and for the unemployment rate to dip to 3.6% from 3.7%. Average hourly earnings are forecast to be 0.3% month-over-month and 4.2% year-over-year.
Major banks will also be watched closely next week after the group passed the Federal Reserve’s stress tests that simulated a severe recession. Analysts expect dividends to be increased by most large banks, but share repurchases are expected to be relatively subdued in the near term until the direction of the economy becomes more clear. Bank of New York Mellon (BK), JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Bank of America (BAC), Wells Fargo (WFC), Goldman Sachs (GS), Morgan Stanley (MS), Truist Financial (TFC), Citigroup (C), and State Street (STT) are some of the banks in the spotlight for capital allocation developments. Seeking Alpha analyst Logan Kane thinks that while large banks are likely to weather the storm, dozens of smaller banks may fail over the next 12-18 months due to risky real estate loans and falling deposits. A light week of calendar events means that Apple’s (AAPL) dalliance with a $3T market cap and Tesla’s (TSLA) Q2 deliveries report could attract outsized attention.
Earnings spotlight: Thursday, July 6 – Levi Strauss (NYSE:LEVI), Kura Sushi (NASDAQ:KRUS), and Simulations Plus (SLP).
Earnings spotlight: Friday, July 7 – AZZ (AZZ) and Urban One (UONE).
Volatility watch: Short interest on ImmunityBio (NASDAQ:IBRX) is at 19.15% and Kura Sushi (KRUS) is at 22.67% of total float. Options trading volume is elevated on Vroom (VRM) and FibroGen (FGEN) once again. Virgin Galactic (SPCE) continues to see huge price swings as longs and shorts battle it out.
Quant ratings: Stocks with recent quant rating changes include Roivant Sciences (ROIV) to Strong Buy from Hold, Olin Corporation (OLN) to Buy from Hold, and Beyond Air (XAIR) to Strong Sell from Hold. See the stocks with the very highest rated Seeking Alpha Quant Ratings.
Dividend watch: Companies forecast to boost their payouts include John B. Sanfilippo (JBSS) to $1.00 annually from $0.75, PNC Financial (PNC) to $1.60 quarterly from $1.50, and Bank OZK (OZK) to $0.36 quarterly from $0.35. See Seeking Alpha’s list of Quick Dividend Stock Picks.
Corporate events: The holiday-shortened week has a nearly empty agenda of corporate events or conferences in the U.S. Across the Atlantic Ocean, Coty (NYSE:COTY) will hold a Paris Investor Conference on July 6. The company said the event will provide a comprehensive overview of Coty, its strategic pillars, and value proposition to the European investment community. Recent reports suggested Coty (COTY) is considering exploring a dual listing on the Paris Stock Exchange. In the healthcare sector, the highly-anticipated FDA action decision on the full approval of Eisai and Biogen’s Alzheimer’s disease drug Leqembi will be watched. An advisory panel of the FDA voted unanimously in June to recommend full approval of Leqembi. See a detailed list of key events for next week in Seeking Alpha’s Catalyst Watch.
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