Tag: leveraged etfs

Tesla (TSLA) - How Should You Play It?

Posted on by Matt Thalman

Shares of Tesla (TSLA) are once again giving traders big daily moves. After the stock hit a 52-week low of $101, it bounced back above $210, and now it appears to be heading lower again.

The catalyst for the move lower was primarily the company's most recent earnings report, which, despite sales, revenue, and earnings all coming in strong, margins took a hit.

Tesla has dropped prices on its vehicles five times over the last year, so margins taking a hit should not have been as much of a surprise as it was to the market.

However, Tesla still has a strong market position and is still producing industry-leading margins. The issue is that those margins are shrinking, and at some point, Tesla may see its margins fall more in line with the rest of the auto industry.

We have seen these types are situations play out in other sectors as companies grow and mature. The best example I can think of is Whole Foods.

When Whole Foods was a young, fresh company, it commanded upwards of 5% margins on its products. But, as the company grew and the rest of the grocery industry noticed what Whole Foods could do with selling premium products and commanding higher margins, other grocery store chains began to offer similar products.

This competition for the customer naturally puts pressure on Whole Foods' margins, thus forcing them to lower prices and lose their high margins.

I believe the same story is now playing out with Tesla. At this time, it is clear that the world is moving away from combustion engine vehicles, although slower than some would like. And as consumers move towards more electric vehicles, more companies are offering alternatives to just buying a Tesla. Continue reading "Tesla (TSLA) - How Should You Play It?" →

Worst Performing ETFs in 2022

Posted on by Matt Thalman

Like the best-performing Exchange Traded Funds of 2022, the worst-performing ETFs of the year were all leveraged.

It is no surprise that leveraged ETFs would be the best and worst-performing ETFs each year. But, interestingly, three of the top first worst performing ETFs were leveraged funds that are bullish big technology stocks, and the other two were ETFs that are short oil & gas companies.

2022 was a year we saw many divergences occur compared to the past almost ten years.

The technology-heavy index, the NASDAQ, was the worst-performing major index, while the slow and sleepy Dow Jones Industrial Average, while still down, was the best performer. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 8.8% as the S&P 500 dropped 19.4%, and the NASDAQ sank 33.1%.

Let's look at which ETFs finished in the top five worst performers of 2022.

The worst performing Exchange Traded Fund of 2022 was the ProShares UltraShort Bloomberg Natural Gas ETF (KOLD) which ended the year down 88.62%. KOLD provides two times short exposure to an index that tracks natural gas by holding second-month futures contracts.

In 2022 the price of natural gas went through the roof as Russia invaded Ukraine. That invasion led to almost all of Europe imposing a ban on Russian oil and gas, which led to price increases for any other country that also banned the importation of Russian oil and gas.

While KOLD was the worst-performing ETF, the ProShares UltraShort Oil & Gas ETF (DUG) was the fourth worst ETF of 2022 after dropping 72.99%. DUG offers investors two times short exposure to a market-cap-weighted index of large US oil and gas companies.

Since Russia is one of the largest oil and gas producers in the world, the bans on buying their products sent the price of both oil and gas higher in 2022. Thus oil and gas companies based in the United States benefited, and DUG rose substantially.

But, most experts claim the Russian-Ukranie conflict was not the only reason we saw oil and gas prices climb. Some of the increase was likely due to increased demand as most of the world came out of Covid-19 restrictions, and more people felt comfortable traveling. Continue reading "Worst Performing ETFs in 2022" →

Did You Own Any Of The Worst ETFs of 2017

Posted on by Matt Thalman

Matt Thalman - INO.com Contributor - ETFs


2017 was a good year for investors as the S&P 500 increased 19.42%, but unfortunately, not all investors saw their investments grow in value during the year. Investors who had purchased some different Exchange Traded Funds saw their investments nearly disappear during what will be referred to as an “up” year for investors and the stock market.

What is not surprising though is that seven of the nine most prominent ETF losers of 2017 had something to do with investing in the Volatility Index. The worst performer was the ProShares Ultra VIX Short-Term Futures ETF (UVXY), falling 93.96%. This fund provides 2X exposure to short-term, first and second month, VIX futures. The UVXY is a fund essentially will offer investors a way to make money if the VIX itself increases. Furthermore, because this fund is leveraged 2X, if the VIX increases by 10%, UVXY investors will make 20%. But, due to the fund's exposure, it has high carrying costs, meaning investors who hold the fund for more than one day will lose money due to those roll costs.

Therefore, the UVXY needs both the market to be volatile regularly for investors to make any money, even over a small period of time. In 2018 its unlikely UVXY will lose as much as it did in 2017 because the end of 2016 was highly volatile following the election of President Trump. Continue reading "Did You Own Any Of The Worst ETFs of 2017" →

Another Big Cyber-Security Hack, When Should You Buy The HACK ETF

Posted on by Matt Thalman

Matt Thalman - INO.com Contributor - ETFs


The world of Exchange Traded Funds is massive and growing every day. Whether it’s a simple index fund to a specialty fund that focuses on a very niche industry, you can most likely find an ETF that is right for you. I often tout the S&P 500 index funds for their low cost and how easy they are for a non-financial savvy investor to get into the market and start investing.

But, for those who have a solid understanding of the markets, the risks, and enjoy finding new investments, I love highlighting the niche ETF's I find. One of my favorite specialty ETF's is the PureFunds ISE Cyber Security ETF (HACK). HACK tracks an equal-weighted index of companies that are actively involved in the cyber security industry.

With the recent global hack that locked users out of their computers and demanded a ransom be paid, the HACK ETF received little attention, while the companies it owns received a lot. That attack once again highlighted the importance of cyber-security and how cyber-attacks are here to stay and will only likely become more prevalent with time. Continue reading "Another Big Cyber-Security Hack, When Should You Buy The HACK ETF" →

Quadruple Leveraged ETF Approved and I Am Terrified

Posted on by Matt Thalman

Matt Thalman - INO.com Contributor - ETFs


At the beginning of May 2017 the wise, an all knowing Securities & Exchange Commission approved a new leveraged Exchange Traded Fund. While SEC approvals for new funds don’t often make headlines, the reason this was did because of the amount of leverage the new ETF offers and what it means for the future of investing.

On May 2, 2017, the SEC approved the ForceShares Daily 4x US Markets Futures Long Fund which will have the ticker "UP" and the ForceShares Daily 4x US Markets Futures Short Fund which will have the ticker "DOWN."

Yes, you did read that correctly, these are 4X funds which will deliver 400% the daily performance of the S&P 500. Previously investors had access to 3X funds, which offered 300% the daily moves of the indexes they track, but with this move, 400% may now seem to be the benchmark. Continue reading "Quadruple Leveraged ETF Approved and I Am Terrified" →