Why Chevron, JPMorgan, and Three Other Stocks Are in Spotlight Today

Crude futures are in the green today and trading near $48 per barrel after yesterday’s bullish API numbers.

Among the stocks traders are talking about today are Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX), AVG Technologies NV (NYSE:AVG), JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM), Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST), and Greenbrier Companies Inc (NYSE:GBX). Let’s find out why each stock is in the spotlight and see what the funds in our database think about the companies in question.

At Insider Monkey, we track around 770 hedge funds and institutional investors. Through extensive backtests, we have determined that imitating some of the stocks that these investors are collectively bullish on, can help retail investors generate double digits of alpha per year. The key is to focus on the small-cap picks of these funds, which are usually less followed by the broader market and allow for larger price inefficiencies (see the details here).

Chevron’s Nigerian Operations Attacked Again

Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX)‘s Nigerian unit can’t catch a break as apparently a Nigerian militant group blew up three of the company’s manifolds on Wednesday. Nigerian militants are attacking Chevron and other Western companies’ assets in the region because they want more sovereignty and a greater share of the crude wealth. The supply disruptions have been ongoing in the region for almost half a year and don’t seem like they will stop anytime soon. Of the funds we track, 46 funds owned $1.71 billion worth of Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX)’s stock, which accounted for 1.00% of the float on March 31, versus 44 funds and $1.48 billion, respectively, on December 31.

AVG Technologies To Be Acquired by Avast

AVG Technologies NV (NYSE:AVG)’s stock has surged by over 31% so far today after the software company agreed to be acquired by Avast Software for $25 in cash per share, for a total consideration of around $1.3 billion. The deal has been approved by the boards of both companies and is expected to close between September and October 15. Shares of the company were down by 6% year-to-date before the news. A total of 21 funds tracked by us were long AVG Technologies NV (NYSE:AVG) at the end of March, up by six funds from the previous quarter.

On the next page, we examine why JPMorgan Chase & Co, Costco Wholesale Corporation, and Greenbrier Companies are trending.
JPMorgan Could Potentially Move Thousands of Workers Due to Brexit

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) is in the spotlight after CEO Jamie Dimon told Italian newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore that the company could be forced to relocate thousands of its workers out of Britain due to the country’s decision to leave the EU. Once Britain officially leaves the EU, it might lose the right to sell financial services to the single market, making it difficult for JP Morgan to serve its clients from that location. The relocation of thousands of highly paid bankers out of JP Morgan’s total 16,000 British workforce would be a blow to the British economy. The number of funds from our database with holdings in JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE:JPM) fell by three quarter-over-quarter to 97 at the end of March.

Costco Turns in Strong Comps

Although the dollar might be strong, Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) is doing well. The bulk retailer’s net sales rose by 3% year-over-year in June to $11.33 billion. Same store sales were flat on a real basis and were up by 3% year-over-year on a fuel and foreign exchange adjusted basis. A total of 43 investors tracked by us had a bullish position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) at the end of March, up by one from the previous quarter.

Greenbrier Reports Earnings

Greenbrier Companies Inc (NYSE:GBX) is on watch after reporting earnings yesterday. Although the company’s fiscal third quarter EPS of $1.12 and revenue of $612.87 million beat analysts estimates by $0.03 and $13.34 million, respectively, Greenbrier’s full-year EPS guidance is a little softer than previously indicated. The company expects diluted EPS of $5.70 to $5.90 for the year, versus the previous $5.70-$6.1 range. Demand for rail cars has slowed due to the decline in crude and coal prices. At the end of March, 18 funds from our database were long Greenbrier Companies Inc (NYSE:GBX).

Disclosure: none