Ford sales hit hard while Explorer and Ranger make gains

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If you can ignore the humidity and 90-degree temperatures, you can almost convince yourself it's March and not July. Spring training baseball is restarting and professional basketball and hockey playoffs are around the corner. If you hold Penn National Gaming (NASDAQ:PENN) stock, these are all good signs.Source: Casimiro PT / Shutterstock.com The novel coronavirus disrupted professional and youth sports across the country, with stay-at-home orders and social distancing the flavor of the moment as the health care industry tried to stay ahead of Covid-19 breakouts.And even as cases are again flaring up across the country, there are definite headwinds for companies like Penn National Gaming, which can soon count on its sports books to once again open.InvestorPlace – Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading Tips * Major League Baseball is looking at a 60-game season with full playoffs. After players are tested for Covid-19 at their home parks, teams are planning a two- to three-week training camp before starting games in late July. * The NBA is preparing for a restart in Orlando, Florida, with playoff contenders sequestered and playing the end of the regular season before 16 teams advance to the playoffs. * The NHL hasn't yet announced firm plans but it appears teams will be stationed in Canada for the end of the regular season. Players have yet to vote on the proposal.And don't forget about the National Football League, which is expected to start playing in September. Penn just signed a deal with Sportradar that will allow customers to use official NFL play-by-play data for live in-game wagering on its sports betting platforms. * 7 Utilities Stocks to Buy With Reassuring Dividends Sports gambling revenues are expected to reach $155 billion by 2024, growing at a neat 8% clip. So, the resumption of professional sports will be a huge benefit to PENN stock. The Barstool ConnectionIn February, Penn National Gaming bought a 36% equity position in Barstool Sports, the sports and lifestyle blog, for $163 million. As part of the deal, Barstool will promote Penn National Gaming's casinos and products for 40 years. Currently Barstool has a following of 66 million monthly unique viewers.Barstool CEO Erika Nardini says the deal was a natural for Barstool.They're the single-largest casino operator in the country. They have an excellent management team. They had a huge vision about taking the Barstool Sports brand and making that their sportsbook brand, whether it's their app or in their physical sports bars or sportsbooks.There's no doubt that the collaboration between Penn National and Barstool will help PENN stock. Even if you don't live near a Penn National casino, sports bettors know Barstool and its brand. Betting on sports through a Barstool app seems like a no-brainer.Even though the Covid-19 pandemic meant sports took a back seat for much of 2020, the resumption of professional sports puts the Barstool-Penn partnership back on the map. PENN Stock at a GlanceOverall, Penn is having a solid year. The stock is up 22% year to date and challenging all-time highs. Three times in the last 18 months, PENN stock neared $40 per share before encountering resistance.But now that professional sports are restarting and 70% of Penn National Gaming's casinos have opened their doors, PENN stock may be able to smash through resistance once and for all.A public offering in May added $300 million in share capital to its balance sheet and $300 million in debt. And while debt levels can be troubling, it's more interesting that Penn National Gaming saw a 60% increase in revenue growth from 2017 to 2019. The Bottom Line on PENN StockWhile we can't project the same kind of rapid growth during a pandemic, Penn National Gaming is bolstering its growth potential with its Barstool partnership and the return of professional sports.Overall, PENN stock has a "B" grade in my Portfolio Grader, where it carries a buy recommendation.Louis Navellier had an unconventional start, as a grad student who accidentally built a market-beating stock system — with returns rivaling even Warren Buffett. In his latest feat, Louis discovered the "Master Key" to profiting from the biggest tech revolution of this (or any) generation. Louis Navellier may hold some of the aforementioned securities in one or more of his newsletters. More From InvestorPlace * Why Everyone Is Investing in 5G All WRONG * America's 1 Stock Picker Reveals His Next 1,000% Winner * Revolutionary Tech Behind 5G Rollout Is Being Pioneered By This 1 Company * Radical New Battery Could Dismantle Oil Markets The post As Pro Sports Resume, Penn National Gaming Is a Safe Bet appeared first on InvestorPlace.

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Yahoo Finance’s Brian Sozzi and Alexis Christoforous discuss the current state of retail with Forrester Retail Analyst Sucharita Kodali.

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High-flying Nikola Corp. (NASDAQ: NKLA) came back to earth Thursday as early investors in the electric truck startup sold discounted shares at a handsome profit.With lockup provisions lifted, investors in a private investment in public equity (PIPE) with VectoIQ were allowed to sell most of the 53.3 million shares purchased for $10 each before the special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) became Nikola in a reverse merger on June 2.Nikola shares closed down 13.22% at $57.69 Thursday as PIPE investors realized gains exceeding $50 a share based on Thursday's opening price of $64.27. Shares have traded in the mid-$60 range recently, temporarily buoyed Monday by the taking of preorders for the company's Badger battery-electric pickup with a fuel cell range extender.A tweet from Executive Chairman Trevor Milton on Thursday that $5,000 deposit Badger preorders were sold out briefly raised the stock price, but it didn't last.Nikola traded within cents of $100 a share on its third day of trading June 8. Milton, who owns about 35% of Nikola shares, declined to comment for this story.Nikola retains the $525 million raised from the PIPE but gets nothing from the share sale. It could realize $274 million from the issuance of 23 million new shares that can be purchased with 890,000 warrants beginning  Friday, according to a June 15 S-1 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The new shares would dilute the roughly 354 million original Nikola shares while consistent selling of the PIPE-issued shares could create an imbalance of buyers and sellers.Analysts diverge Two firms covering Nikola diverge in their target price for the stock. J.P. Morgan's Paul Coster set a neutral price of $45 on June 22. Cowen, which advised VectoIQ in the reverse merger with Nikola and managed VectoIQ's initial public offering two years ago, initiated coverage with an outperform rating of $79 on June 17.Both buy into Nikola's long-term prospects for developing zero-emissions trucks that run on fuel cells along with creating a network of hydrogen fueling stations."Nikola's market opportunity is immense," Coster said, adding that Nikola shares are "fully valued.""While the PIPE and warrant share lockup may pressure shares in the near term post the S-1 becoming effective, we are positive on the longer term story," Cowen analyst Jeffrey Osborne said in an investor note Thursday.Short selling sparring Nikola won't start building trucks or making money until 2021. Short sellers borrowing shares and hoping to profit if the stock price goes down control about 3% of company stock. Milton spars with short sellers on Twitter, much as Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) CEO Elon Musk did for years. Tesla became the world's most valuable transportation company in the world on Wednesday, eclipsing Japan's Toyota Motor Corp. (NYSE: TM)Nikola laid out nearly 20 pages of risks in owning its stock. For example, its 14,000 orders for fuel cell Class 8 trucks are nonbinding until lease agreements are signed.One of those customers, Anheuser-Busch InBev (NYSE: BUD), has ordered up to 800 trucks. Building hydrogen fueling stations along Anheuser-Busch routes is a top priority, second only to successfully launching battery-electric Nikola Tre trucks in Europe next year, Milton told FreightWaves in a May 28 interview.Click for more FreightWaves articles by Alan Adler.Related stories:Fuel cell startup Nikola nears public trading debutWill Nikola's breakout chart path for other high-tech startups?Shell stuffing: How Nikola became VectoIQ's public preferencePhoto: NikolaSee more from Benzinga * Square Roots, V's, W's And L's In Freight Recovery (With Video) * FreightWaves Wins 4 Gold And 9 Total Azbees For Editorial Excellence * Nikola Begins Badger Electric Pickup Marketing Push(C) 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

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If you are looking for the best ideas for your portfolio you may want to consider some of Ensemble Capital's top stock picks. Ensemble Capital, an investment management firm, is bullish on Starbucks Corp (NASDAQ:SBUX) stock. In its Q4 2019 investor letter – you can download a copy here – the firm discussed its investment […]

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Stanphyl Capital letter to investors for the month ended June 30, 2020, discussing their short thesis for Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) and other positions in several small-cap stocks. For June 2020 the fund was down 3.9% net of all fees and expenses. By way of comparison, the S&P 500 was up 2.0% while the Russell 2000 was up […]

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No pain, no gain goes the well-worn axiom. A stock market themed inverse can read: no gain, shareholder pain. You can currently apply the latter to Intercept Pharmaceuticals (ICPT). The small-cap biotech was hoping to gain the FDA’s nod of approval for its liver disease therapy, but there was only pain to endure, as the NDA was rejected. As a result, shares were sent tumbling by 40% on Monday June 29. So, what happened exactly? ICPT received a CRL from the FDA regarding its obeticholic acid (OCA) treatment in advanced-stage non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), due to a lack of evidence showing that the benefits of the treatment outweigh the potential risks. The FDA recommended that data from the ongoing Phase 3 REGENERATE study be further analyzed. NASH is a fatty liver disease, closely related to obesity, for which there are currently no specific drugs available. Due to the rising obesity rates, the market for NASH medications is expected to grow considerably over the next few years, with some estimates putting its worth at $35 billion. Intercept’s application was based on data from the treatment of over 1,700 NASH patients across 35 clinical trials. Management expects to schedule a meeting with the FDA in 2H20 to discuss how to move forward. Needham analyst Alan Carr expects the NDA to be resubmitted before the end of the year, and anticipates “the drug will be approved in the U.S. by mid-2021.” The analyst believes the rejection might have more to do with the current macro climate than with the data itself. Carr said, “We acknowledge the FDA clearly has some level of concern w/ OCA, however, we believe COVID-19 has played a role in disrupting and preventing completion of the review process. We await the outcome of the meeting with the FDA and assume resubmission by YE20. We still believe OCA will be approved in NASH, but have reduced our target due to launch delay.” That price target is slashed from $150 to $100, although the figure still implies hefty upside potential of 115%. Carr made no change to the rating, which remains a Buy. (To watch Carr’s track record, click here) Looking at the consensus breakdown, based on 6 Buys and 15 Holds, ICPT has a Moderate Buy consensus rating. With an average price target of $66.10, the analysts forecast possible upside of 42% over the next 12 months. (See Intercept price targets and analyst ratings on TipRanks)

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We at Insider Monkey have gone over 821 13F filings that hedge funds and prominent investors are required to file by the SEC The 13F filings show the funds' and investors' portfolio positions as of March 31st, near the height of the coronavirus market crash. We are almost done with the second quarter. Investors decided […]

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