Economic Advisory April 23, 2018 Amanda Bayer

Portfolio Performance

Major Headlines US stocks end week on a down note, especially in tech Wells Fargo fined $1bn Big banks loved the tax cut Eyes on Facebook NK agrees to halt nuclear testing UST at 2.9 ish… 3% signals end of bull market U.S. markets: Stocks ended the week on a down note, especially tech. Apple dropped 4.1% after an analyst said iPhone sales would come in lower than expected. The stock is now negative for the year Wells Fargo is whipping out its phone to Venmo the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) about $500 million each. What happened this time? The bank is settling federal claims against its auto and mortgage lending businesses. For years, it sold unnecessary insurance policies to customers in addition to charging extra fees. In 2016, it was fined $185 million for opening 3.5 million new accounts without customers' permission. Seeing a trend here?  In 2017, regulators downgraded its CAMELS score—a bank's risk score card that determines how much it pays in insurance premiums and how closely it's regulated. Big banks loved the tax cut: The six big Wall Street banks saved $3.6 billion thanks to the tax cut, per the AP. JPMorgan paid an 18.3% tax rate and Goldman paid 17.2%. All eyes on Facebook: On Wednesday, we'll find out how its finances weathered the Cambridge Analytica scandal. Facebook's stock is down 10% since the news

Portfolio Highlights Alphabet earnings out today Dominos out 4/26 – last quarter was disappointing CVX: Trump tweets oil prices are “artificially high” on Friday (fell 1.5%) FSLR receives upgrade and a price target increase from BAML ( up 6.74%) First Solar, Inc. shares closed up 6.74% on about 4 million shares traded yesterday. The stock hit a new high of $78.95 during intra-day trading after investors learned the stock was upgraded by Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Analyst Julien Dumoulin-Smith of the firm upgraded the stock from "neutral" to "buy" and increased his price target from $75 to $83. According to Dumoulin-Smith, demand for solar energy in China will climb this year and that it will be "holding up the global panel pricing environment yet again." It was back in February that First Solar had reported its fourth quarter results that beat on the bottom line but failed to hit revenue expectations. The company will report its first quarter report ending March 31st on April 26th, after the market closes.

Upcoming Events Wednesday, Apr. 25; 7:00 p.m in Axinn 229 – Bank of America Merrill Lynch Info Session  Thursday, April 26; 6:30 p.m. in Hillcrest 103 – KeyBanc Capital Markets Monday, April 30; 6:30 p.m. in Hillcrest 103 – Audax Private Equity  Thursday, May 3; 7:00 p.m. in Axinn 229 – Women on the Buy- Side (stay tuned for more details)