Search

IAC/Interactive Corp. (IACI) is up 40% since it was recommended as a top pick in January.

The title of this piece is “The Gold Star and the Falling Knife.” So I guess I’d better pay that off. The Gold Star is a reference to the energetic rebound in the price of gold that’s been lifting mining stocks for the past couple of weeks. This is mostly a defensive move by investors who are looking some something that will hold value in a chaotic market environment. And after a nearly four-year pullback in gold prices, even those who aren’t fans of precious metals (like me) are getting a little gold gleam in their eyes.

LEAPS investing can be an effective portfolio strategy for investing in high-growth stocks by trading one type of risk for another.

We all search for the “NEXT BIG THING”. There are many ways to get long exposure to the next big winner using options.

China could be a problem.

After spending most of the summer and September making a series of new highs, stocks suddenly tumbled on Friday. The S&P 500 fell 2.71% and the Nasdaq fell 3.56% in one day. It was tariff news that caused the carnage.

One of the trends that’s making headlines this earnings season is the success of companies that are adopting cloud-based technologies. While reading The Wall Street Journal on Monday, I noticed that Oracle (ORCL) CEO Mark Hurd spoke at the Oracle OpenWorld conference in San Francisco. Among his headline-worthy comments was the statement that Oracle now has virtually 100% of its portfolio rewritten, rebuilt and modernized for the cloud. That’s a big endorsement from a company with a $162 billion market cap. And Oracle isn’t exactly an outlier.

Markets struggled for direction this week as data coming in is mixed and growth and inflation battle for a “goldilocks” middle ground. The controversy over DiDi’s recent IPO has Chinese-listed U.S. stocks in the crosshairs of both China’s regulators and American legislators. Looking ahead, these summer doldrums may just be a precursor to the market continuing its bull run and a bit of a pullback totally in line with the sharp upward swing we have experienced since March 2020. Today we have a pink sheet blue chip clean tech idea of the highest quality.

It was another interesting week for the market as the Nasdaq rallied 3.3%, while the S&P 500 added 1% and the Dow fell 0.6%. That is quite the performance difference between the Nasdaq and Dow!

With three strong weeks of action behind us, all market trends are now positive—plus we’ve come through the often-tricky September-October period with minimal losses—so I once again recommend that you be heavily invested in a diversified group of stocks that meet your investing needs.

Today’s recommendation is a consumer name you know well, a medical juggernaut that’s cheap and pays a good dividend.



As for selling, I’m doing none today. The portfolio is full, with most stocks going the right direction.



Details inside.

Earnings season can cause individual stocks to rally or plummet, depending on results, here’s how to handle it with your stocks.

Several portfolio stocks recently reported earnings and move to Strong Buy.

Today’s note includes earnings updates on 11 companies and the podcast. On Thursday, we moved shares of Oaktree Specialty Lending Corporation (OCSL) from Buy to Sell.

Explorer stocks had a mixed week due to weaker market and some profit taking as SQM reported another strong quarter with earnings up 857% year-over-year. Positive second-quarter corporate earnings reports and the flattening of still-high inflation seemed to settle investor nerves and despite this week’s pullback, the S&P is up 17% from its June lows. This week we go to a big resource play on a strategic growth trend that is powered by Dr. Copper.

A little known Benjamin Graham strategy for investing success is buying bonds -- and holding them -- in your investment portfolio.

I often get asked, “How do you choose which call to sell when executing a Buy-Write?” Another question I often get is about volatility. Here are answers, using ABT.

Investor sentiment remains elevated, which is a red flag from a contrarian standpoint. Fortunately, selective insider buying is highlighting some meaningful opportunities in the market.

Our recent ratings change from Buy to Sell for an energy company, earnings updates and other comments on our recommended companies, and some thoughts on the amazingly complex macro environment.

Varonis (VRNS) Moves to Sell. MSFT, FTAI, AAPL, SN up next.