In this edition, Grab Holdings worth grabbing now; examining medical-device makers' moat; a hard look at software makers' moat; and Vesync, Macy's, and Travelers Companies.

In this edition, Grab Holdings worth grabbing now; examining medical-device makers' moat; a hard look at software makers' moat; and Vesync, Macy's, and Travelers Companies.

Macy's Inc., which changed its name from Federated Department Stores Inc. in 2007, operates department stores under the names Macy's and Bloomingdale's. The company has offices in Cincinnati and New York. The full company operated 718 stores including 502 Macy's stores, 159 Bluemercury makeup stores, and 32 Bloomingdale's department stores at the end of 4Q24. Sales in FY20 totaled $24.6 billion, dropped to $17.3 billion in FY21, and rebounded to $24.46 million in FY22. Sales were $24.44 in FY23 and $23.1 billion in FY24. Approximately 60% of sales come from women's apparel, accessories, shoes, and cosmetics. The men's and children's businesses represent a combined 21% of sales, and home/miscellaneous about 16%. The company has almost 95,000 employees. The company's fiscal year ends on the Saturday closest to January 31. The current year ends on February 1, 2025.

Monday Tee Up: Second Half, Third Quarter, Fourth of July Markets are closed Wednesday afternoon and on Thursday for the Fourth of July, then come back to the broad and always-informative jobs report due on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500, and the Nasdaq all ended last week flat. But the indices saw sold gains to close out the first half of the year, with the Dow higher by 4%, the S&P up 14%, and the Nasdaq popping 18%. On the economic calendar, Wall Street will be watching for that jobs report due on Friday. In May, Nonfarm Payrolls printed at 272,000 and the Unemployment Rate was 4.0%. At Argus, we see payrolls softening to 175,000 and unemployment inching up to 4.1% for June. Argus Chief Economist Chris Graja offered the following thoughts. 'This week's employment report will help to answer our biggest question about the U.S. economy. Is recent softness in consumer spending the start of a meaningful slowdown or is spending just normalizing after a strong run? If payrolls come in near our estimate of 175,000, it will be a sign that the job market remains healthy and consumers should have spending power with back-to-school and the holidays on the horizon.' Elsewhere, on Monday, Construction Spending and ISM Manufacturing are due. On Tuesday, the Job Openings report is out and Fed Chairman Powell gives a speech in Portugal. On Wednesday, the minutes of the last Fed meeting will be released, while the ADP Employment Report and data on the U.S. Trade Deficit hit the tape. Last week, inflation data moved in the right direction (down). Both PCE and Core PCE slowed to 2.6% for June. PCE was 2.7% for May and Core PCE was 2.8%. Mortgage rates dipped further below the 7% mark, hitting 6.86% for the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage. Gas prices are still at $3.43 per gallon for the average price of regular gas. The Atlanta Fed GDPNow indicator is forecasting for 2Q and predicts expansion of 2.2%. The Cleveland Fed CPINow indicator does not have its July forecast out yet. The next Fed rate decision is on July 31, with odds for a rate cut at 10%. In mid-September, odds pop to 60%; on November 7, they are 77%; and for December 18, they are at 94%. Argus believes the Fed will cut interest rates twice this year. We forecast of two rate cuts in 2024 and two in 2025.