But the willingness to continue buying by prominent investors shows continued confidence in where the US economy and financial markets are headed.
Berkshire reported about $3.8 billion in net equity purchases in the second quarter. That’s on top of more than $40 billion of his stock that Berkshire bought in the first quarter.
Why it matters: Given Buffett’s successful track record and consistent long-term focus, his investment patterns are watched closely by traders.
The economic data Mr. Buffett and others on Wall Street are currently scrutinizing are confusing, making their job difficult.
- The economy added more than half a million jobs in July. This pushed the unemployment rate up to his 3.5%, the lowest level since 1969.
- Gasoline prices dipped below $4 a gallon.
- Consumer sentiment has recovered from record lows.
- The US stock market rose for the fourth consecutive week.
“This is not a recession, not even the same world as a recession,” said Mark Zandy, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics.
Should Disney spin off ESPN as sports betting grows?
One of the most dramatic of those pitches is Disney’s spinoff from ESPN.
Loeb acknowledges that the sports network is a compelling component of a wide range of streaming bundles that include Disney+ and Hulu. However, he believes there is a “strong case” for ESPN to stand on its own, given the rapid growth of the sports betting industry.
“ESPN will have more flexibility to pursue business initiatives that may prove more challenging as part of Disney,” Loeb wrote in a letter to the company outlining his proposal.
CEO Bob Chapek said last week that his team is “working hard” on offering sports betting.
“We hope to be able to announce something in the future in terms of partnerships that will give us access to that revenue stream,” he told analysts.
Still, Loeb believes Disney stock would perform better if ESPN split.
Investor Insight: Disney shares rose more than 2% on Monday. But it’s still down nearly 20% this year, making the company one of the worst performers on the Dow.
Former WeWork CEO is once again soliciting investors
If you watched “WeCrashed” on Apple TV+, there were other lessons to be learned. Former CEO’s expulsion of his Adam Neumann was framed as a resurrection as the self-centered and unmonitored founder was subjected to an expired reality check (although he remained afloat with a golden parachute) .
But when is the story so uncluttered?
“The story of Adam and WeWork has been exhaustively documented, analyzed and fictionalized – sometimes with precision,” Andreessen wrote. “Despite all the hard work he put into his articles, it is often understated that he is the only person to lead a global company that fundamentally redesigned the office experience and changed the paradigm in the process. It’s appreciated.”
That said, the operational details are still lacking. With recession fears and market volatility disrupting the startup ecosystem, forcing once-booming companies to dramatically lower their valuations, Neumann is far ahead of his next move. will run in harsh environments.
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Also today: data on US housing starts and building permits for July arrives at 8:30 a.m. ET. Industrial production data continues at 9:15 am ET.
Tomorrow: Economists surveyed by Refinitiv expect to see US retail sales rise just 0.1% month-on-month in July.