Stay Home, Order Take-Out, And Fondle Your Gold
By: John Rubino
GoldSeek.com
Thursday, 21 July 2016
For an example of how far we’ve fallen from the old days of free-range First World entitlement, consider the fact that investment analysts are now judging companies by how well they cater to the needs of the terrified:
Papa John’s upgraded on belief civil unrest is encouraging more pizza delivery
(MarketWatch) – Papa John’s International Inc. was upgraded to overweight from sector weight at KeyBanc Capital Markets with analysts expressing the surprising view that diners, concerned about political and civil unrest, are choosing to stay home for pizza delivery rather than head out for a meal.
“After speaking with several large operators and industry contacts, we believe the recent decline in casual dining restaurant segment fundamentals—traffic down 3% to 5% the past several weeks—may be the result of consumers eating more at home amid the current political/social backdrop, which we believe could last through the November election,” KeyBanc analysts wrote in a note published Tuesday.
Diners’ shift to a preference for convenience will benefit pizza delivery businesses like Papa John’s, according to KeyBanc.
Papa John’s shares, which jumped 3.8% Wednesday, are up 23.0% over the past three months. The S&P 500 is up 2.9% for the last three months.
This kind of mirco-fear is, not surprisingly, reflected in macro trends like defense stocks, which are now analyst favorites:
The Rest…HERE
