Did you notice the rising prices at the grocery store last year? At least... did you think you noticed them?

Walmart Braces for Pain... And the Power Gauge Agrees By Vic Lederman, editorial director, Chaikin Analytics Did you notice the rising prices at the grocery store last year? At least... did you think you noticed them? Many U.S. consumers thought prices soared in 2023. But the reality was a lot different... You see, last year, egg prices plummeted roughly 56% from January through November. Lettuce prices fell around 21% from December 2022 through this past November. And strawberry prices were down about 23% in a similar span. Despite that misconception, grocery prices are still up over the past couple years. You didn't completely imagine a higher bill. After all, we dealt with a severe bout of inflation. That's creating a big disconnect in Americans' minds... You see, a lot of regular folks believe consumer-staples companies are making a killing amid surging grocery-store prices. But many of these businesses actually struggled in 2023. In fact, as I'll show you today, consumer staples was one of the worst-performing sectors of the year. And even worse for investors, it still holds a poor rating in the Power Gauge... Recommended Links: TODAY: 2024 Emergency Market Briefing Today at 10 a.m. Eastern time, the Stansberry Research senior analyst who's racked up over a dozen 1,000%+ winning recommendations since 2020 is sharing the STRONGEST buy recommendation of his career so far. It's 100% free to attend this online emergency briefing. Click here to save your spot. ** A Special Invitation For You ** A fellow reader at our corporate affiliate Stansberry Research wanted us to rush this urgent message to you. There's a big update to his unique story of how he retired early at 52 thanks to ONE single idea that anyone can use. He sees 18%-plus annual returns with legal protections. And he never has to worry about a market crash again. He explains everything from his living room here. Folks, we just finished an incredible year in the market... The S&P 500 Index gained 24% in 2023. That's a great return for the broad market in a single year. Tech stocks did even better. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index was up 43% last year. Both these indexes are hovering around new all-time highs. We're officially in a bull market. And yet, the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLP) fell 3% in 2023. That's a staggering loss compared with the broad market and tech stocks. It's clear that many grocery stores, big-box stores, and their suppliers are suffering. By that, I'm talking about many of the top holdings in this exchange-traded fund ("ETF")... The chart below shows XLP's poor performance over the past year. The ETF plunged throughout the summer and fall of 2023. And it hasn't recovered yet. Take a look... Plus, as you'll notice, the Power Gauge saw it happening... You can see in the bottom panel of the above chart that XLP was "neutral" or "bearish" for most of 2023. And as the ETF's value dropped, the Power Gauge stayed mostly "bearish." So the Power Gauge made the right call on XLP last year. Now, the question is... What's next? Well, XLP holds an unenviable spot in the Power Gauge today. It's currently the worst-rated sector in our system based on its Power Bar rating. Take a look... Only one holding in XLP earns a "bullish" or better grade in the Power Gauge right now. A staggering 14 stocks in the ETF are "bearish" or worse. And another 22 stocks are "neutral." When we add everything up, XLP receives a "neutral-" rating from the Power Gauge. Heading into 2024, consumers are still feeling the squeeze when they shop at places like Walmart. And as it turns out, Walmart is feeling the squeeze as well... In fact, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon warned Wall Street analysts and investors about these concerns back in November. During the company's conference call that month, he said...   In the U.S., we may be managing through a period of deflation in the months to come. So despite still-higher prices in stores, McMillon believes the era of soaring prices is over. That leaves consumers in a rough spot. Things might get a little cheaper. But they won't fall below pre-pandemic levels. It's tough on investors, too. Wall Street rewards growth. But at least for now, we're not seeing that with consumer-staples companies. Today, the Power Gauge agrees with McMillon's take... The Power Bar ratio for XLP helps us see that. So does the system's "neutral-" rating – which signals negative expectations for the ETF. For now, I'll be keeping an eye on this sector. But I don't expect a sharp turnaround soon. Good investing, Vic Lederman Market View Major Indexes and Notable Sectors     # Hld:     Bullish     Neutral     Bearish Dow 30 +0.060% 12 17 1 S&P 500 -0.560% 148 311 38 Nasdaq -1.690% 37 55 6 Small Caps -0.580% 757 912 251 Bonds -0.580% Health Care +1.760% 18 41 4 — According to the Chaikin Power Bar, Small Cap stocks and Large Cap stocks remain Bullish. Major indexes are mixed. *  *  *  * Sector Tracker Sector movement over the last 5 days Health Care +2.56% Utilities +1.98% Staples +1.85% Real Estate +1.02% Financial +0.75% Materials -0.71% Communication -0.88% Industrials -0.96% Energy -1.05% Discretionary -1.71% Information Technology -2.78% *  *  *  * Industry Focus Telecom Services 6 25 8 Over the past 6 months, the Telecom subsector (XTL) has underperformed the S&P 500 by -4.31%. Its Power Bar ratio, which measures future potential, is Weak, with more Bearish than Bullish stocks. It is currently ranked #18 of 21 subsectors and has moved down 2 slots over the past week. Indicative Stocks IRDM Iridium Communicatio GOGO Gogo Inc. EXTR Extreme Networks, In *  *  *  * Top Movers Gainers MRNA +13.12% VTRS +5.17% LVS +4.31% INCY +4.24% MRK +3.87% Losers NCLH -8.58% RCL -7.22% CCL -6.74% AMD -5.99% UBER -5.18% *  *  *  * Earnings Report Reporting Today Rating Before Open After Close No earnings reporting today. Earnings Surprises No significant Earnings Surprises in the Russell 3000. *  *  *  * You have received this e-mail as part of your subscription to PowerFeed. If you no longer want to receive e-mails from PowerFeed, click here. You're receiving this e-mail at indra21poetra@gmail.com. For questions about your account or to speak with customer service, call +1 (877) 697-6783 (U.S.), 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Eastern time or e-mail info@chaikinanalytics.com. Please note: The law prohibits us from giving personalized investment advice. © 2024 Chaikin Analytics, LLC. All rights reserved. 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