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Winnebago benefits from two big tailwinds

By Tommy Flemm 1 year ago

Recreational vehicle company Winnebago Industries (WGO) “is in good shape for the recession” as it benefits from two key tailwinds amid the coronavirus pandemic, says one analyst.

For starters, people are avoiding planes these days, but they still want to travel and be outdoors.

RV demand is “booming in the U.S. due to COVID-19’s impact on air travel, leading many Americans to use an RV vacation as a substitute,” Morningstar analyst David Whiston wrote in a note to investors.

Additionally, campers are skewing on the younger side. “Millennial and Gen X campers are 81% of new U.S. campers, so Winnebago has plenty of runway with younger consumers if it executes right,” wrote Whiston.

“We think Winnebago’s brand equity gives it a good shot at capitalizing on these trends,” he added.

Winnebego and its main competitors, Thor (THO) and Forest River, currently hold 80% of the North American motor home market.

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Rent is getting cheaper in big cities

By Tommy Flemm 1 year ago

Rent prices tend to balloon in spring and summer months — but as the summer of 2020 begins, rent prices are staying flat across the country.

As landlords faced fears of mass nonpayment in April due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, they opted not to raise rent during a time when rents are traditionally higher. Nationally, one- and two-bedroom apartments were 0.5% less expensive than last year in June, following about 0% growth in May and minimal price gains in April, according to Zumper, a California-based rental listing website. 

“Late spring and summer months are the busy season for apartment hunting, so usually some of the fastest rent growth is this time of year. But compared to last year… rent growth is certainly lower than what we’ve seen at this time of year,” said Chris Salviati, a housing economist at Apartment List, a San Francisco-based rental platform.

Rent dropped

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3 key themes from Apple’s big event

By Tommy Flemm 1 year ago

This year’s edition of Apple’s WWDC, in which the hotly anticipated rumors are revealed, was muted by the coronavirus crisis, which made it impossible to have its customarily boisterous live audience to cheer.

Rumors of new devices and models did not materialize into announcements, but three overarching themes emerged amid a smattering of software announcements.

The first theme: A unified and flexible Apple experience.

Apple (AAPL) CEO Tim Cook left the job of emcee largely to his software chief Craig Federighi, who revealed updates of iOS, macOS, WatchOS, and AirPod OS. Many of these seemed incremental, but design-wise Apple said it considered the new macOS Big Sur the most revolutionary update since Mac OS X emerged in 2001 – 19 years ago.

While Apple didn’t blow anyone away, the updates across all operating systems highlighted flexibility, customization, and a flow of ideas between the devices. For example, phones took design

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Big money may soon be chasing the ‘Robinhood’ investor: Morning Brief

By Tommy Flemm 1 year ago

Monday, June 15, 2020

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Institutional investors are underexposed to the stock market

One of the most fascinating stories in finance right now is the explosion of retail investors riding the stock market’s current three-month long rally higher.

“The global pandemic brought retail investors back into the equity market after being largely absent for a decade,” Deutsche Bank strategist Binky Chadha wrote last week.

“They were important buyers of the correction in equities.”

The phenomenon has caught the attention of more Wall Street experts, who are split on whether or not this ‘Robinhood’ class of investors is fueling the rally. However, they do seem to agree on one thing: as the retail class has been cleaning up, the big institutional money has largely been missing out.

“Institutional investor positioning in equities by contrast

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The digital divide is a ‘big challenge’ amid coronavirus: Michael Dell

By Tommy Flemm 1 year ago

When the novel coronavirus forced the vast majority of Americans into their homes, it shifted work, schooling, and social gatherings online. But many people lacked the resources to make the transition online with them.

In a newly released interview, taped on Tuesday, Dell Technologies CEO Michael Dell said the divide in access to digital tools poses a “big challenge” as the pandemic has made online activity a central part of everyday life.

“There is a kind of digital inequality that we have to all think about in the sense that, there are populations that don’t have access to the digital opportunities and the tools and the capabilities,” says Dell, whose philanthropic endeavors focus on children and education.

“It’s going be a lot harder,” he adds. “It’s a big challenge.”

The average student could start next school year having lost about a third of the advancement she would have made in

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