AOC Objects to MTG's War Bet

JC Parets
March 8, 2022

We don’t typically track small transactions by members of Congress, those in the $1,000-to-$15,000 range.

But a recent move by Rep. Marjorie Taylor-Greene, a Republican from Georgia, is worth noting.

Taylor-Greene disclosed yesterday the purchase of $1,000 to $15,000 of Lockheed-Martin $LMT, the biggest defense contractor in the U.S., on February 22, 2022.

On February 23, Taylor-Greene tweeted, “War and rumors of war is incredibly profitable and convenient.”

Taylor-Greene’s recent transaction drew the attention of another Congressional lightning rod, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Democrat from New York. 

Ocasio-Cortez noted Taylor-Greene’s disclosure and tweeted, “In related news, we’ve heard that we’re soon getting a hearing date on banning members of Congress from trading individual stock while in office.”

Apart from political and personal rivalries, the exchange highlights the fact that trading individual stocks is a brewing controversy on Capitol Hill.

We’ll be tracking the rumored hearing and whatever potential legislation comes of it.

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Meanwhile, the casual footwear manufacturer Skechers $SKX stands out more than anything on today’s list. Yesterday, a Form-4 filed by the company’s president revealed a large purchase of nearly $4 million.

On top of this, options market participants placed a short-term bullish bet on the stock, as over 2,500 weekly call options were transacted at the offer.

These votes of confidence come at an important time, as the stock has really collapsed recently, falling roughly 30% since last week.

Here’s The Hot List, with data through March 7, 2022:

Speaking of buying weakness, Richard Schmitzer, the president and CEO of insurance company James River Group Holdings $JRVR, just purchased stock as the price of JRVR plunged to new all-time lows.

Apparently, this is the theme today.

SoFi Technologies $SOFI also made our list, as CEO Anthony Noto bought stock with the price tumbling to new all-time lows.

And it’s not just employees and officers. Even some Members of Congress are buying the latest selloff.

Rep. Jim Langevin, a Democrat from Rhode Island, filed a purchase for $50,000 to $100,000 of Block $SQ, formerly known as Square. We like this stock for a mean-reversion trade, but only if buyers dig in at current prices and defend those 2018 highs.

And Rep. Kathy Manning, a Democrat from North Carolina, disclosed a $15,000 to $50,000 buy of ServiceNow $NOW. 

Last but not least, Mario Gabelli’s Gamco Investors revealed a large ownership stake in the mid-cap natural gas stock National Fuel Gas Company $NFG in a 13D filing. 

After resolving higher from a massive base recently, NFG is currently trading at its highest level in over seven years. We agree with Mario on this one, as there’s a lot to like about the technical setup.

Stay tuned. We'll be back Wednesday with more insider action.

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And as always, feel free to reach out with any questions. We love hearing from you!

Allstar Charts Team.

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