Market news & insights

AutoZone Inc. (AZO) reported its fourth quarter financial results for the period ending August 27, 2022 on Monday. The largest US retailer of aftermarket automotive parts reported revenue of $5.348 billion (up by 8.9% from the same period last year) vs. $5.164 billion expected. The company reported earnings per share of $40.51 for the quarter vs. $38.51 earnings per share expected. ''Our results are a testament to our AutoZoners’ ongoing commitment to delivering exceptional customer service every day.

Our retail business performed well this quarter ending with positive same store sales on top of last year’s strong performance. And, our commercial business growth continued to be exceptionally strong at 22%. The investments we have made in both inventory availability and technology are enhancing our competitive positioning.

We are optimistic about our growth prospects heading into our new fiscal year,'' Bill Rhodes, Chairman, President and CEO of AutoZone commented on the results. During the quarter, AutoZone opened 118 new stores and closed one in the United States. As of August 27, 2022, the company had 6,943 stores within the United States (6,168), Mexico (703) and Brazil (72).

AutoZone Inc. (AZO) chart Shares of AutoZone were down by around 2% on Monday, trading at $2100.66 a share. Stock performance 1 month: -6.28% 3 months: +8.69% Year-to-date: +3.30% 1 year: +36.62% AutoZone price targets UBS: $2260 Wells Fargo: $2450 Raymond James: $2350 Goldman Sachs: $2296 Morgan Stanley: $2420 Citigroup: $2250 JP Morgan: $2200 AutoZone is the 364 th largest company in the world with a market cap of $42.20 billion. You can trade AutoZone Inc. (AZO) and many other stocks from the NYSE, NASDAQ, HKEX and the ASX with GO Markets as a Share CFD.

Sources: AutoZone Inc., TradingView, MetaTrader 5, Benzinga, CompaniesMarketCap

The NZDJPY like most currencies against the JPY has been in a strong uptrend for over 2 years. With the Central Bank of Japan remaining dovish in its monetary policy the currency has taken a beating against most other currencies and as other Central Banks have acted against rising inflation. The NZD has been able to take advantage of the JPY weakness and consolidate into a large symmetrical triangle.

The price recently broke out of the triangle to the upside before failing to push through the next resistance point at 87.350 JPY and falling back down. This was in part due to the hot inflation figures that came from the USA. With CPI and core CPI figures being higher than expected the risk on currencies like the AUD and the NZD both dropped as the market looked to move their money into safer assets.

The drop was seen most clearly against the USD in which the NZD fell to 26-month lows. New Zealand also just announced their q/q GDP figures showing very strong result with a 1.7% increase for the quarter, which was 0.7% higher than what was expected, and 1.8% higher than the prior period. The price of the NZDJPY initially spiked up on the announcement although since then it has been a tight consolidation.

Technicals As discussed above, the price failed to break above the 87.35 resistance point and subsequently sold back down. However, it has not yet breached the triangle to the downside and may just be a fake out. The RSI also mirrors the breakout with the tight consolidation of the RSI before a spike to the upside.

With the price attempting to reach decade highs a fake out/ retracement is not particularly unexpected. As shown in the chart, it is possible, the price action will retest the resistance point before breaking higher. The next resistance point after if the breakout does occur will be 90.00 JPY.

However, this area is a relatively heavy supply zones as seen on the weekly chart. The weekly chart also indicates a long term upward trending channel, which provides more support for a continuation of the upward move. Shifts in the Bank of Japan’s monetary policy may negatively impact this trade.

At this stage they have been unwilling to change their dovish stance, however if they were to increase interest rates, a shift may occur and likely very quickly, therefore some caution is needed.

The CHF has moved almost parabolically against the JPY and is almost touching 150, which would mark a 40 year first. With the Bank of Japan indicating its need to maintain current interest rate levels which are already among the lowest in the western world, the currency has been severely weakened. Statement that has come from some of its members indicate that there is no intention to adjust their Dovish policy even while the JPY continued to be smashed from pillar to post.

The CHF on the other hand been one of the stronger currencies outside of the USD as the countries, especially in recent months. With relatively low inflation and high volatility in the region the CHF has stood up well against most other currencies and been a source of stability. Therefore, the pair represents a trading opportunity by taking advantage of extremes of both a strong and weak currency.

The chart shows the pair has moved almost parabolically on the weekly timeframe. The price is currently at multi decade highs, with the 149.75 price the highest it has been since 1980. Whilst the 150 level is not a specific resistance point, it poses as a psychological level that may prove difficult to break out of.

On the daily chart, the recent break above 140 required 3 months of consolidation before it broke above the level. Since then, the breakout has largely been without any retracement or pullback. Therefore, it would not be unexpected for the price to pullback, especially as it gets closer to the 150 level.

The RSI is also supporting a pullback as it is in highly overbought territory at 80. If it does retrace then it may bounce off the recent support level at 142/143, and then rise target of 158 may become possible. If the Bank of Japan does decide to change its tune in regard to its dovish policy, then this trade does have the potential to go the other way with the JPY increasing in value very quickly, although at this stage there is nothing to indicate that this will occur.

The Kroger Company (KR) released its latest financial results for Q2 on Friday. The American grocery supermarket chain reported revenue of $34.638 billion for the quarter vs. $34.461 billion estimate. Earnings per share also beat analyst estimates at $0.90 per share vs. $0.82 per share expected. "Kroger delivered strong second quarter results propelled by our Leading with Fresh and Accelerating with Digital strategy.

We are incredibly thankful for our dedicated associates who continue to deliver a full, fresh and friendly customer experience," CEO of Kroger, Rodney McMullen said in a press release. "Our consistent performance underscores the resiliency and flexibility of our business model, which enables Kroger to thrive in many different operating environments. We are applying technology and innovation to improve freshness, grow Our Brands, and create a seamless shopping experience so our customers can get what they want, when and how they want it, with zero compromise on quality, selection and affordability." We will continue to focus on providing affordable, fresh food to our customers, investing in wages and the associate experience, and creating zero hunger, zero waste communities because when we do those things well, we deliver attractive and sustainable shareholder returns," McMullen added. The Kroger Company (KR) chart The stock price of Kroger rose by around 5% on Friday, trading at $51.07 a share.

Here is how the stock has performed in the past year: 1 month +8.20% 3 months -0.02% Year-to-date +12.86% 1 year +19.71% Kroger price targets Credit Suisse $55 Oppenheimer $51 Guggenheim $57 Morgan Stanley $41 Deutsche Bank $53 BNP Paribas $60 The Kroger Company is the 450 th largest company in the world with a market cap of $36.27 billion. You can trade The Kroger Company (KR) and many other stocks from the NYSE, NASDAQ, HKEX and the ASX with GO Markets as a Share CFD. Sources: The Kroger Company, TradingView, MetaTrader 5, MarketBeat, CompaniesMarketCap

The United States used 30.28 trillion cubic feet of natural gas in 2021, making them the world’s largest consumer of natural gas. Natural gas consumption in the United States has two seasonal peaks, largely reflecting weather-related fluctuations in energy demand. One of the biggest consumptions of gas is industrial, residential and commercial cooling and heating systems (eia, 2022).

As the world’s largest user of natural gas transitions out of summer, will this change indicate a decrease of their natural gas consumption? Could the decrease in demand for cooling be reflected on the technical charts? On a daily timeframe, natural gas has been on a steady upward trend since the end of June, in tandem with the beginning of summer in the US (seen on the chart below).

A trendline from the beginning of that trend until now can be drawn, and we can see recently that line has been broken by a daily candlestick, closing below the trendline which can indicate a change in trend for natural gas. After the strong break below of the trendline followed by multiple bearish daily candlesticks, we can consequently expect further downside movement for natural gas, after breaking through a strong support at $8.4, in all probability with natural gas currently sitting at $7.895 we could see natural gas come down to the next support level around $7.57.

NIO Q2 results have arrived NIO Inc. (NIO) reported its unaudited second quarter financial results on Wednesday. The Chinese electric vehicle maker reported revenue of $1.538 billion for the quarter, beating analyst estimate of $1.458 billion. Loss per share reported at -$0.20 per share vs. -$0.16 loss per share expected.

William Bin Li, founder, chairman and CEO of the EV company commented on NIO’s performance in Q2: ''We delivered 25,059 vehicles in the second quarter of 2022, representing a growth of 14.4% year-over-year despite the COVID-19 related challenges. With the teams’ concerted efforts, our deliveries started to recover and achieved 10,052 and 10,677 units in July and August, respectively." "The second half of 2022 is a critical period for NIO to scale up the production and delivery of multiple new products. The ES7, our first mid-large five-seater smart electric SUV based on NIO Technology 2.0 (NT2.0), has become a new favorite of the market with its superior performance, comfort and digital experience.

We witnessed a robust order inflow for the ES7 and started its deliveries at scale in August. We also look forward to starting the mass production and delivery of the ET5 in late September. With the compelling product portfolio and well-established brand awareness, NIO will attract a broader user base and embrace robust growth in the coming quarters," Li concluded.

NIO has delivered a total of 238,626 vehicles as of August 31, 2022. The company expects deliveries of between 31,000 to 33,000 in Q3 and revenue of between $1.913 billion and $2.030 billion. NIO Inc. (NIO) chart The stock was up by around 3% at the market open in the US on Wednesday, trading at $17.88 a share.

Here is how the stock has performed in the past year: 1 month -14.66% 3 months -16.05% Year-to-date -45.99% 1 year -55.14% NIO price targets B of A Securities $26 UBS $32 Mizuho $60 Morgan Stanley $34 Barclays $34 Deutsche Bank $70 Goldman Sachs $56 NIO Inc. is the 15 th largest automaker in the world with a market cap of $28.62 billion. You can trade NIO Inc. (NIO) and many other stocks from the NYSE, NASDAQ, HKEX and the ASX with GO Markets as a Share CFD. Sources: NIO Inc., TradingView, MarketWatch, Benzinga, CompaniesMarketCap