Quote of the Week
"The secret of getting ahead is getting started." - Mark Twain
4 Things To Know About Inflation
Inflation is here, but to what extent? What exactly is inflation? Is it "transitory"? How do we combat it? These are some questions that are being asked more frequently, so Austin wrote about the topic in a recent blog post, and we will have more to come on this topic in the future. Check it out below!
Traffic Ticks Up At Yellowstone
During a summer when hundreds of thousands of people traveled to National Parks, Yellowstone National Park set an August record when it hosted 921,844 recreation visits, according to park officials. The record comes on the heels of a milestone in July, when it received the most recreational visits (over 1 million) of any month in Yellowstone history, according to The New York Times. Grand Teton National Park, Glacier National Park, Zion National Park, and Arches National Park have also experienced record crowds. Yellowstone has hosted more than 3.5 million visits this year, a 40% increase from the same period last year. One thing I found as I was exploring this topic: Last year, three visitors were sentenced to two years' probation and banned from Yellowstone after they tried to cook a chicken in one of the thermal hot springs. That's one boiled chicken I would pass on!
Intuit To Purchase Mailchimp
On Monday, Intuit, the company that owns TurboTax and Credit Karma, announced it will be purchasing the email marketing company, Mailchimp, for $12 billion in cash and stock, according to CNBC. Intuit, which will be making it's largest acquisition to date, said it will use the acquisition to accelerate growth with small business clients. The purchase price of $12 billion will be the largest ever for a company that received no outside funding.
Retail Sales Rose 0.7% In August
While retail sales were positive in August, it's notable because analysts were expecting a decline of around 0.7%. Retail sales are now up 15.1% versus a year ago. According to First Trust, 10 of 13 major categories were positive in August, with internet and general merchandise stores leading the way due to back-to-school shopping. The weakest category was automobiles, as supply chain issues continue to impact the industry. Sales are now up 17.7% versus February 2020, which was pre-COVID.
Any opinions are those of Barry McCall, Steve Alverson, and Austin Coley and not necessarily those of RJFS or Raymond James. The information contained in this report does not purport to be a complete description of the securities, markets, or developments referred to in this material. There is no assurance any of the trends mentioned will continue or forecasts will occur. The information has been obtained from sources considered to be reliable, but Raymond James does not guarantee that the foregoing material is accurate or complete. Any information is not a complete summary or statement of all available data necessary for making an investment decision and does not constitute a recommendation. Investing involves risk and you may incur a profit or loss regardless of strategy selected. This is not a recommendation to purchase or sell the stocks of the companies pictured/mentioned.
Links are being provided for information purposes only. Raymond James is not affiliated with and does not endorse, authorize or sponsor any of the listed websites or their respective sponsors. Raymond James is not responsible for the content of any website or the collection or use of information regarding any website's users and/or members.