Traders Gear Up For A Big Week of Corporate Earnings

[CLICK HERE JOIN OUR LIVE TRADING & TRAINING SESSIONS]( Hello investor, Traders Gear Up For A Big Week of Corporate Earnings Traders are looking past the Hamas-Israel conflict for now and gearing up for the big week of corporate earnings. The Nasdaq climbed 1.2% yesterday, while the S&P 500 had a 1.06% gain of its own. This week will be a big one for earnings because 11% of the S&P 500 will report results, including Johnson & Johnson, Bank of America, Netflix, and Tesla. So far, it has been a good earnings quarter. Charles Schwab jumped 4.7% on a positive result, while JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo and UnitedHealth also rose after solid results. Despite several difficult variables – such as rising Treasury yields and oil prices, high inflation and the Middle East conflict – a strong earnings season may spark optimism in the short term. - “I really see a relief rally going on,” said Lisa Erickson, senior vice president at U.S. Bank Wealth Management. “Sentiment has just turned relatively more positive.” Lisa Erickson, senior vice president at U.S. Bank Wealth Management (Photo: Bloomberg) Israel’s military continued to urge residents to evacuate northern Gaza over the weekend, signaling a potential ground invasion. Iran has warned that it could spark an escalation in the war. The world is worried about a full-fledged war in the Middle East that would have big consequences for food, oil and other commodities. - “The key macro concerns from the developments in Israel lie with the threat of upward pressure on oil prices, and how its corresponding effect on core inflation could potentially prompt central bank action. ... The indirect impacts via inflation and economic growth can be more persistent,” said Principal Asset Management chief global strategist Seema Shah. Once again, as long as the conflict remains constrained, Wall Street will keep its attention on upcoming earnings results.  Is This The Best Growth/Value Stock On The Market? Today’s Stock Pick: Funko, Inc ([FNKO]() The toy business is notoriously difficult to penetrate because people are as fickle about toys as they are with fashion. One day, fidget spinners were the fad. Two years from now, it seemingly disappeared from the face of Earth. It is very, very, very difficult to invent your own toy category. But if you are lucky enough to break through a toy category, then you have a marvelous business that you can own for decades. Take Lego for example. It owns the niche of toy bricks, and it remains a staple of any child’s toy chest. It is difficult for any competitor to penetrate this niche. Why? Lego has exclusive deals with all popular brands like Disney, Marvel, Star Wars, Harry Potter and so on. We see similar things with American Girl, Barbie, and Hot Wheels. And these toy brands are incredibly powerful because of the exclusive toy category they own. Recently, LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman gave the following advice to aspiring entrepreneurs, in his Masters of Scale interview with Peter Thiel: - “I believe if you want your company to scale, your goal is not to beat the competition. Your goal is to break free of competition entirely.” - “In an ideal world, you do this by going where the competition isn’t. You invent your own game and master it.” Funko has invented its own game within the toy industry. Or, at least, their own very unique aesthetic. They have cute, bobblehead-like designs that look fantastic on many famous characters. Some Funko Pop figurines have become collectibles worth thousands of dollars (Source: WealthyGorilla) Funko has acquired rights and applied their unique aesthetic to just about every popular entertainment category under the sun. Some examples: Disney, Game of Thrones, The Office, NFL, Pokemon, and so on. (Source: Funko) And you might be surprised to learn that 36 is the average age of their collectors. This is a good thing since 30-something year old collectors have larger discretionary income. In the graph below, you will see how well Funko has tapped into this lucrative category. The growth has been extremely steady since 2015 (excluding a steep drop in sales during the pandemic): (Source: Funko) Why were they hit hard during the pandemic? The company depended on physical retail stores, which saw its traffic halted for a while. So, Funko worked to develop its direct-to-consumer distribution. Regardless, they have a presence in nearly every major retailer: Walmart, Target, Amazon, and so on. (Source: Funko) Endless product lines: Funko truly has an unlimited number of products they can monetize on its brand. It expands to clothing, backpacks, accessories, stickers, games, and even NFTs. And it is getting into content production. In other words, its potential growth has plenty of white space ahead of Funko. Right now, Funko’s signature figures make up 77% of its revenue. And Funko’s only adding new products recently. The saturation point is far away for Funko. (Source: Funko) Bottom Line: Funko invented their own game and dominated it. Their signature figurines span almost every single facet of entertainment and pop culture. And they want to take those figurines to two new continents as part of the expansion of its international market. All in all, Funko is one of the best growth/value stocks in the stock market.   [CLICK HERE JOIN OUR LIVE TRADING & TRAINING SESSIONS](     © All Rights Reserved, Trade Alliance  If you no longer want to receive these messages, you may [click here]( to unsubscribe.