In our update for the first week of the March 2020 Stock Challenge, we wrote that this month’s challenge would be an “interesting” one, given that nations would begin to be tested by the prolonged outbreak of coronavirus.
Well, saying this month’s challenge has been interesting so far would be putting it lightly: only 11 out of 205 Stock Challengers are in the green, and the TVIX is now up 481.40% for the month! First place member ‘Joe Knows’ (242.54% return) and second place member ‘Scoby’ (241.23% return) both selected the TVIX to blow past their competition; in fact, the spread could hardly be wider, considering third place member ‘Robert Smith’ has a return of 20.72%!
Volatility is shaping up to be this year’s best-performing asset class. Last month, we wrote about how the TVIX — an exchange-traded note (ETN) for the VIX Index — helped member ‘Wreak Havoc’ earn second place as well as the Honorable Mention of the Month in the February 2020 Stock Challenge. We expect ETN’s like the TVIX will continue to play a prominent role in Stock Challenge as market volatility remains.
Greenlane Renewables Breaks Out While Direxion Daily Junior Gold Miners Index Bull 3X Shares Breaks Down
Greenlane Renewables
Greenlane Renewables, a leading global provider of biogas upgrading systems, had the biggest stock breakout of the day, jumping 100% from C$0.05 to C$0.10. Greenlane Renewable’s last announcement was a corporate update on sales at the beginning of March.
“As at December 31, 2019, Greenlane’s sales pipeline (known sales opportunities) was in excess of $680 million as compared to $450 million as at December 31, 2018, an increase of over 50%. Greenlane’s sales pipeline is defined as qualified prospective projects that could convert into orders within approximately 24 months. Not all of these potential projects will proceed or proceed within the expected timeframe, and not all of the projects that do proceed will be awarded to Greenlane.”
Direxion Daily Junior Gold Miners Index Bull 3X Shares
Direxion’s Daily Junior Gold Miners Index Bull 3X Shares, a leveraged ETF, had the biggest stock breakdown of the day, falling 19.81% from C$4.14 to C$3.32. Direxion announced today that it was reducing the exposure of 10 of its leveraged ETFs from 300% to 200% while closing down 8 of its other leveraged ETFs.
“Recent and near unprecedented volatility across global markets, driven by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and oil price war, has dramatically increased the explicit and implicit cost of trading in the energy and commodities markets. While volatility will subside at some point, the ability to cost-effectively and efficiently access these markets may remain challenged for some time.”
It’s All Coming Down to Vaxart and Vivo Cannabis
As it stands now, it looks like first place will be decided by whichever stock loses less: Vaxart (Joe Know’s second pick) or Vivo Cannabis (Scoby13’s second pick). While it’s impossible to predict who will come out on top (and on that note, how the markets will behave next week), one thing’s for certain: volatility is here to stay.
