My $0.02 On The Bounce

Stocks are bouncing higher this morning, so I thought I'd provide a quick, "my $0.02 take" on the action so far. From my seat, stocks appear to be rebounding based on the following... Word that China is going to lift the lock-down in Wuhan for healthy citizens on 4/…

Looking Ahead To Better Days

It is my sincere hope that everyone remains healthy, is being diligent with their social distancing, and is surviving the new virtual work world reality. Since my kids are now all adults and I've had a home office since 2001, my days haven't changed much - well, except for the daily marke…

The King is Dead. Long Live the King!

Well it's official, we've got a full-fledged crisis on our hands in the financial markets. Historic events now occur on a daily basis. Things I have never seen before in my 33-year career as a portfolio manager are now happening with regularity. Safety plays are no longer safe. The tech-l…

When "Good Action" Isn't And The Newest Problem

Things were not looking good on Friday afternoon. At 3:00 pm eastern, the major stock market indices were at the lows of the day and falling fast. The yield on the 10-year, which is viewed by many as a proxy for the economic outlook, had plunged again, this time closing the day at 0.706% …

The Panic Playbook: A Blueprint For Market Crises

For investors of all shapes and sizes, the question of the day appears to be, now what? After the 14% thrashing of the Dow Jones Industrial Average in just seven sessions, one can't be blamed for feeling a little shell shocked. In short, these types of market panics can leave one disorien…

Time For a Reality Check?

Greetings from PGA West in La Quinta, CA where it is sunny and warm. However, getting here took some doing and I had kind of a rough travel schedule last week... First I flew from Denver to NYC for meetings Monday through Wednesday. Then after a brief stop/nap in Denver very late Wednesda…

Positives Outweighing Negatives (For Now)

What a difference a week can make, eh? One minute traders are freaking out (as in the 603 point dive registered by the DJIA on Friday, January 31st) over the potential impact of the Coronavirus on the global economy. And the next week, the major stock market indices are hitting new highs.…

This Is The Dip

The excuse du jour for the current pullback/correction/sloppy period is clearly the Coronavirus. But in reality, it could have been anything. As I've been saying, stocks had become overbought and investors over believed in the bullish, theme. You know, the idea that we were revisiting 201…

Stocks Catching Cold Or Something Worse?

You knew it was coming. No, not the Coronavirus. Rather an excuse du jour to create some selling. After an impressive joyride to the upside, which saw the S&P 500 surge +15.3% from the close of October 2, 2019 and the high seen on January 17, 2020, the stock market had become overboug…

What Do The Cycles Say About 2020?

Good Tuesday morning and welcome back. Last week, I took a just-for-fun stab at modeling expectations for what calendar year 2020 might look like in the U.S. stock market. And since stocks seem to only go up these days, the question of the day isn't whether or not the S&P 500 will adv…