‘Buy’ When There’s Blood… on the Pyramids?; Wal-Mart Misses Q2 Analysts’ Estimates; Housing Recovery? What Housing Recovery?

‘Buy’ When There’s Blood… on the Pyramids? (Bloomberg)

Baron Rothschild’s contrarian axiom, “The time to buy is when there’s blood in the streets,” was spoken after the Battle of Waterloo, as panic enabled him to clean up financially. While there literally was blood in the streets, his quote has come to mean you’ll find your greatest investment opportunities when the market looks bleakest. Well, it can’t get much “bleaker” or bloodier in Egypt, especially after more than 100 people were killed by the country’s military in a crackdown against demonstrators. So, is it time to invest yet? Before tapping into your inner Rothschild, you’d better see how the escalating conflict ultimately pans out… lest that bloodletting damage your portfolio if you move too quickly.

Wal-Mart Misses Q2 Analysts’ Estimates (AP)

Wal-Mart reduced its annual guidance figures today after second quarter results failed to reach analysts’ estimates. The Arkansas-based retailer’s profit rose in Q2 to $4.07 billion (by 1.3 percent), or $1.24 per share, compared to the previous year’s $4.02 billion, or $1.18 per share. Net sales hit $116.2 billion. Analysts had expected $118.09 billion in net sales and $1.25 cents per share. In another important measure of performance, stores open for at least one year saw their revenue fall .3 percent. What does this performance say about an economic recovery in America, and worldwide, when the globe’s largest retailer can’t make its mark? And how do you play that with your investments? Beware.

Housing Recovery? What Housing Recovery? (CNNMoney)

For the last couple of months now, real estate and home building investors have been riding high… Or so it would seem. Data emerged yesterday that showed three states actually are backtracking, seeing foreclosure rates explode. Those states are surprising to say the least — Maryland, Oregon and New Jersey — as all three remained relatively stable as the housing bubble popped. In fact, Maryland’s foreclosure rate spiked by 275 percent — making it the second-worst state in the nation for foreclosures, after default-ridden Florida. Oregon’s foreclosures rose by 137 percent and New Jersey’s by 89 percent. Now might be a better time to tap your inner Rothschild and invest, as there’s certainly blood in the “yards” in those three states.