Edition #163
Investing Unlocks: How to Capitalize on the Hot Topics From The Last 7 Days

We analyze recent trends and opportunities, offering strategic insights that help you manage risks and identify growth opportunities for your portfolio.

🔴 Tech Stocks Drag Markets Into the Red

Last week, technology and semiconductor stocks drove the S&P 500 down nearly 2% and the Nasdaq 4.6% lower, snapping a strong run. A global chip rout, sparked by a Bank of America note warning of up to three rate hikes before year-end, rattled AI-linked names and spread from Asian markets to Wall Street. The Dow held up better, defensive sectors and health care outperformed, hinting at a rotation underway. The week closed cautiously after Iran targeted ships in the Strait of Hormuz and reports surfaced that OpenAI may delay its IPO, adding uncertainty around AI infrastructure spending.

This week, chip stocks have begun to claw back losses, but the bigger tests are still ahead. Fed Chair Warsh is speaking today at the ECB forum, his first public appearance since a hawkish debut that left markets pricing a two-thirds chance of at least one rate hike before December. Thursday’s June jobs report, released a day early ahead of the Fourth of July holiday, then takes over as the main event, with markets expecting around 110,000 to 118,000 new positions, a slowdown from May’s 172,000. A strong number or hawkish Warsh tone could extend pressure on growth stocks, while a softer outcome may offer relief, and thin holiday trading could amplify any moves.

PRESENTED BY CANCAMBRIA ENERGY CORP

CanCambria Energy Corp. (TSXV: CCEC) (OTCQB: CCEYF) (FSE: 4JH) is building a scalable tight gas development platform in Central Europe. Years of underinvestment, declining domestic production, reduced reliance on Russian imports, and persistent energy security concerns have pushed pricing well above North American benchmarks. CanCambria’s goal is to apply proven unconventional techniques and scale in this higher-priced natural gas market.

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Hot Topics

• Anthropic’s Mythos 5 AI model cleared by U.S. for wider use

• Ripple CEO Says Saylor Hurt Crypto Market

• Anthropic accuses Chinese rival Alibaba of Stealing

• Alibaba sues US government over defence blacklist

• SK Hynix Seeks $29 Billion IPO

• Cboe enters prediction markets race

• OpenAI unveils custom chip it designed with Broadcom

• Copper soars but smelters can’t bank on it to survive

CEO Video Interview

CanCambria Energy (TSXV: CCEC) (OTCQB: CCEYF) (FSE: 4JH) has assembled one of the largest contiguous gas land positions in Hungary, with a flagship tight gas project targeting first production in 2027. In this interview, CEO Paul Clarke walks through the investment case from subsurface to shareholder value.

Watch Now at Europe’s Gas Gap and the Hungary Play

Power Demand Outpaces Supply

BlackRock believes rising electricity demand and recurring supply shocks will increase the value of infrastructure that can deliver reliable power quickly, making energy security a long-term investment theme rather than a temporary response to geopolitical events.

The chart compares the deployment times of different power generation technologies, highlighting a growing mismatch between rapidly rising electricity demand and the time required to build new supply. Utility-scale solar and natural gas plants can come online within a few years, while offshore wind, carbon capture, and nuclear projects often take significantly longer, with commercial fusion remaining highly uncertain.

The key takeaway is that speed is becoming a competitive advantage as AI data centers, electrification, and cooling drive structural growth in electricity demand. If demand continues to outpace new capacity, companies exposed to grid infrastructure, natural gas generation, utility-scale solar, energy storage, electrical equipment, and power transmission could be well positioned to benefit.

Where Analysts See Upside

Every sector of the S&P 500 is expected to rise in price over the next 12 months, according to industry analysts’ target prices compiled by FactSet. The biggest expected gains are in media/telecom companies (+32%), retailers and consumer brands (+27%), and tech (+27%). The smallest expected gains are in industrial companies (+10%) and property/real estate (+11%).

Industry analysts remain largely optimistic; however, the S&P 500 is currently trading above its long-term average valuation, suggesting much of the optimism may already be priced in.

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Investing Data Story

As Europe’s reliance on imported LNG deepens and domestic output falls, the conditions favouring investment in local gas supply are becoming difficult to ignore.

Tracked: Europe’s LNG Imports Are Causing A Supply Shift

Earnings Performance

TD Synnex Corp (NYSE: SNX)

TD Synnex Corp (NYSE: SNX) had a standout quarter. Revenue hit $19.6 billion, up 31% from a year ago and well ahead of the company's own forecast. Profit margins held firm, and earnings per share of $4.85 (on an adjusted basis) were up 62% year on year.

The growth was broad, both its traditional IT distribution business and its Hyve unit (which builds custom hardware for large tech companies) put up strong numbers. Demand for AI infrastructure was a key driver.

The company returned $151 million to shareholders through buybacks and dividends, and lifted its quarterly dividend by 9%.

Looking ahead to Q3, TD SYNNEX is guiding for revenue of $18.2-$19B. That’s slightly below this quarter’s record, which is typical seasonal softness, but still represents solid growth on last year.

Other Earnings Updates

• Micron (Nasdaq: MU): Posts Record $41.5B Revenue in Fiscal Q3

• Worthington Steel (NYSE: WS): Reports Q4 Loss on Impairment Charge

• H.B. Fuller (NYSE: FUL): Posts Record Q2 Operating Cash Flow

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

Investor Guide: Inside the Blockchain Stack

Blockchain infrastructure is one of the most active areas of digital asset investing right now. Our guide breaks down exactly where fees accrue across the stack. Read it here.

World’s Oil Buffer Running Dry

With the prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the global oil market was burning through its buffer stock at a pace not seen since before the Iraq war. The next update is due July 7, and it will be interesting to see how projections fare with the Strait nominally open under the June 17 deal but operating at a fraction of normal capacity. A fresh exchange of strikes between the US and Iran over the weekend, followed by both sides pausing and talks resuming in Doha, suggests any assumption of a sustained reopening looks increasingly fragile.

Edition #162
Investing Unlocks: How to Capitalize on the Hot Topics From The Last 7 Days

We analyze recent trends and opportunities, offering strategic insights that help you manage risks and identify growth opportunities for your portfolio.

🌪️ Iran Deal and Fed Shock Keep Markets Guessing

Last week, U.S. stocks had a volatile but positive four-day run, with markets closed for the Juneteenth holiday. A surprise U.S.-Iran peace deal reopened the Strait of Hormuz, sent oil prices sharply lower, and lit a fire under equities early in the week, with the Dow hitting a record high and the Nasdaq surging more than 3% in a single session. The mood cooled midweek when the Federal Reserve, in new Chair Kevin Warsh's debut, held rates steady at 3.5%-3.75% but signaled a hawkish tilt, with nine of 18 policymakers projecting at least one rate hike by year-end, sending bond yields higher and trimming gains.

This week, May PCE prices, the Fed's preferred inflation gauge, headline a busy Thursday alongside first-quarter GDP, durable goods, and personal spending data. A hot PCE print could reinforce the case for higher rates and pressure growth-sensitive parts of the market. Micron reports mid-week as a live read on AI-driven chip demand, and a strong result there could keep technology sector momentum intact. With geopolitical risk fading, rates are now the bigger variable to watch.

PRESENTED BY HAMAK STRATEGY LTD

Hamak Strategy (LSE: HAMA) (OTCQB: HASTF) is a junior exploration company building exposure to gold assets in established West African mining regions.

Get all the details in our in-depth investor guide.

Download the Exclusive Investor Report.

Hot Topics

• Getty Images Up 200% in Early Trading After OpenAI Deal

• Microsoft and Chevron Sign 20-Year Power Deal For Texas Data Center

• China’s Gold Imports Surge to Most in More Than Two Years

• Bank of England Transforms Stablecoin Regulation with New Framework

• Robots will replace 700,000 delivery workers ‘sooner or later’

• Trading platform Robinhood to cut 10% of workforce in restructuring

• SpaceX to acquire the AI coding startup Cursor for $60 billion

• Humble Robotics Launches Driverless Electric Truck

US Data Center Buildout

Cleanview tracks US data centers and power projects from the first permit to completion. Planned facilities now stretch across Texas, the Southeast, the Mid-Atlantic, the Midwest, and parts of the Mountain West, showing that hyperscale demand is expanding well beyond the industry's traditional hubs. The sheer number of planned projects relative to operating facilities suggests the AI infrastructure buildout remains in its early innings rather than nearing saturation.

The map is ultimately a story about electricity demand. Every planned data center represents future load that must be supplied, often years before the grid is ready. As AI infrastructure scales, the key question is shifting from who is building data centers to who can deliver the power. Utilities, independent power producers, transmission developers, and energy storage companies that can solve the power bottleneck may capture as much value as the data center operators themselves.

What matters for investors is that power availability is increasingly becoming the limiting factor for AI growth. That makes grid infrastructure, generation capacity, and interconnection pipelines some of the most important assets in the AI economy.

Earnings Expectations Are Accelerating

FactSet data shows Q2 earnings estimates are rising rather than falling, a rare sign of strengthening fundamentals. The most telling chart shows expected S&P 500 earnings growth increasing to 22.0% from 18.7% since March. That’s unusual because analysts typically lower estimates as a quarter progresses.

Energy and Technology are driving the improvement. Energy earnings growth expectations jumped to 121.8% from 48.3%, while Technology increased to 59.6% from 48.7%. Meanwhile, Health Care swung from expected growth to a 9% decline, highlighting how uneven the earnings recovery remains.

The investor takeaway is that earnings momentum remains strong, but leadership is concentrated. The market’s earnings story is increasingly tied to AI-driven technology profits and higher energy prices, making those sectors critical to sustaining broader earnings growth.

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Investing Data Story

As Europe’s reliance on imported LNG deepens and domestic output falls, the conditions favouring investment in local gas supply are becoming difficult to ignore.

Tracked: Europe’s LNG Imports Are Causing A Supply Shift

Earnings Performance

John Wiley & Sons Inc (NYSE: WLY)

John Wiley & Sons, Inc. (NYSE: WLY) posted record margins on AI and research growth. The company’s most interesting growth story is emerging outside its traditional publishing business. AI revenue increased from $23 million in fiscal 2024 to $49 million in fiscal 2026, while recurring AI revenue grew from roughly $1 million to $8 million over the past year. Management expects that recurring component to grow another 2-3x in fiscal 2027, suggesting AI is evolving from experimental licensing deals into a more durable revenue stream.

Fiscal 2026 adjusted revenue was $1.68 billion, adjusted EBITDA rose 10% to $440 million, adjusted EPS increased 15% to $4.19, and free cash flow jumped 55% to $195 million. AI revenue grew 23% to $49 million, supported by expanding partnerships across the AI ecosystem.

Other Earnings Updates

• Smith & Wesson (NASDAQ: SWBI): Reports 26.7% Q4 Sales Rise

• Safe Bulkers (NYSE: SB): Posts Q1 Net Income of $22.2M, Triples YoY

• CarMax (NYSE: KMX): Reports Q1 Revenue Rise, EPS Dip

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

Investor Guide: Inside the Blockchain Stack

Blockchain infrastructure is one of the most active areas of digital asset investing right now. Our guide breaks down exactly where fees accrue across the stack. Read it here.

Edition #161
Investing Unlocks: How to Capitalize on the Hot Topics From The Last 7 Days

We analyze recent trends and opportunities, offering strategic insights that help you manage risks and identify growth opportunities for your portfolio.

🚀 Iran Deal and SpaceX Send Markets Flying

Last week, US stocks whipsawed on geopolitical headlines before finishing higher. Escalating US-Iran tensions and a three-year-high inflation reading of 4.2% dragged the S&P 500 down more than 2% mid-week, before peace-deal optimism and SpaceX’s blockbuster market debut powered a broad recovery with tech leading the way.

This week, the Federal Reserve wraps up its two-day policy meeting, and Chair Kevin Warsh holds a press conference, giving investors their clearest signal yet on where rates are headed. The Fed is widely expected to hold steady, but any hint of future hikes could rattle a market still digesting 4.2% inflation and freshly lower oil prices. Retail sales and housing data also land this week, offering a read on consumer health, and markets close Thursday for Juneteenth, making it a compressed but consequential four-day stretch.

PRESENTED BY THE CRYPTO COMPANY

The Crypto Company (OTC: CRCW) is focused on operating businesses across crypto, blockchain infrastructure, and emerging technologies such as AI, with a goal of growing revenues and improving profitability across its portfolio.

Download the Exclusive Investor Report.

Hot Topics

• Fox to Buy Roku in $22B Deal

• Anthropic’s AI Models Face U.S. Government Export Controls

• Iran war adds to AI boom as demand for gas turbines rises

• China’s BYD aims to be world’s biggest car firm within five years

• El Niño Points to 10 Sectors Worth Watching

• SpaceX set to extend rally after record IPO

• Flutter’s London Exit Marks Another Blow for UK Equities

• Adobe CFO Departs Amid CEO Search

• Founders Fund launches game show starring Sam Altman, Palmer Luckey

Investing Data Story

These 9 North American small- to mid-caps stand out for converting revenue into cash, earning strong returns on capital, and carrying low debt.

9 Small-Mid Caps Quietly Compounding Cash

Retail Bullishness Broadens

The Schwab Trading Activity Index (STAX) measures actual client trading behaviour across generations, and May’s reading suggests the post-April selloff anxiety has largely faded.

The latest data shows a sharp rise in younger investor sentiment. Millennials’ score climbed 11.2% to 54.1, nearly matching Baby Boomers and the Silent Generation, while Gen Z rose 11.4%.

Gen X remained the strongest buyer with a score of 61.6, continuing to add to semiconductor names such as Nvidia, Micron, and Intel during pullbacks.

Diversified ETFs featured prominently in the most-bought names, and smaller accounts outpaced larger ones on the bullishness scale, suggesting conviction remains selective rather than broad. May’s reading also sat well below February and March highs, so the recovery looks real but not euphoric. Watch whether single-stock risk appetite returns in June as the cleaner signal of how deep this rebound runs.

Rethinking Emerging Markets

The chart shows the growth of a $100 investment since 2010. US equities climbed to roughly $720 by the end of 2025, while emerging markets reached $186. The result is a record concentration in US equities, with the US now accounting for about 65% of the MSCI All Country World Index.

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Investing Data Story

As Europe’s reliance on imported LNG deepens and domestic output falls, the conditions favouring investment in local gas supply are becoming difficult to ignore.

Tracked: Europe’s LNG Imports Are Causing A Supply Shift

Earnings Performance

Adobe Inc (NASDAQ: ADBE)

Adobe Inc (NASDAQ: ADBE) delivered a record fiscal Q2, reporting revenue of $6.62 billion, up 13% year over year, while raising its full-year guidance. Non-GAAP EPS reached $5.96, operating cash flow totaled $2.17 billion, and total ARR grew to $27.1 billion, reflecting continued momentum across the company’s AI and subscription businesses.

Despite the strong quarter, shares fell as investors focused on Adobe’s decision to expand freemium offerings and delay planned Creative Cloud price increases, a strategy management said could pressure near-term ARR growth. The selloff was compounded by leadership transitions, including CFO Dan Durn’s upcoming departure and the company’s ongoing CEO succession process.

Other Earnings Updates

• Oracle (NYSE: ORCL): Posts Record Q4 Revenue as Cloud Infrastructure Surges

• Lovesac (NASDAQ: LOVE): Names New CFO, Posts Q1 Net Sales of $138.2M

• Chewy (NYSE: CHWY): Posts Record Quarterly Profitability

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

Investor Guide: Inside the Blockchain Stack

Blockchain infrastructure is one of the most active areas of digital asset investing right now. Our guide breaks down exactly where fees accrue across the stack. Read it here.

Ethanol Finds a New Growth Market at Sea

Major shippers, including A.P. Moller Maersk and Vale, are adopting ethanol as a marine fuel because it is abundant, available today, and cost-competitive with other low-carbon alternatives.

For investors, shipping creates a potentially significant new source of demand for ethanol beyond gasoline blending. As commercial use expands, higher fuel consumption from the marine sector could support ethanol demand, pricing, and production growth, particularly in key producers such as the United States and Brazil.

2026 Asset Returns at a Glance

Edition #160
Investing Unlocks: How to Capitalize on the Hot Topics From The Last 7 Days

We analyze recent trends and opportunities, offering strategic insights that help you manage risks and identify growth opportunities for your portfolio.

🚨 Hot Jobs Data Ends a Nine-Week Win Streak

U.S. stocks snapped a nine-week rally last week after a blowout May jobs report upended rate expectations. The economy added 172,000 positions, nearly double forecasts, while unemployment held at 4.3%. The strong data pushed the 10-year Treasury yield above 4.5% and the 30-year above 5%, raising fears the Fed will hold rates higher for longer. The Nasdaq shed roughly 4.7%, with tech and semiconductors leading the selloff, while defensive sectors held up as investors rotated to safety.

This week, May CPI takes centre stage, with core inflation expected at around 2.9% annually, a reading that could cement a Fed hold later this month. Producer prices and earnings from Oracle and Adobe will add colour on inflation and AI spending. The anticipated Nasdaq debut of SpaceX, potentially the largest IPO in history at a ~$1.78 trillion valuation, looms over markets and could pull capital from other sectors and stoke volatility.

PRESENTED BY CANCAMBRIA ENERGY CORP

CanCambria Energy Corp. (TSXV: CCEC) (OTCQB: CCEYF) (FSE: 4JH) is building a scalable tight gas development platform in Central Europe. Years of underinvestment, declining domestic production, reduced reliance on Russian imports, and persistent energy security concerns have pushed pricing well above North American benchmarks. CanCambria’s goal is to apply proven unconventional techniques and scale in this higher-priced natural gas market.

Download the Exclusive Investor Report.

Hot Topics

• AI Is Turning Natural Gas Into a Growth Fuel

• Tate & Lyle Accepts Bid From Ingredion in Loss for London

• OpenAI’s Ambitious Transformation of ChatGPT into a Superapp

• Google inked a $920M compute agreement with SpaceX

• UK AI start-up PhysicsX hits $2.4bn valuation following Temasek-led deal

• Nvidia snaps up Kumo AI in latest acquisition

• Planet Labs Stock Growth Story Builds

• Biopharma M&A Points to a Durable Deal Cycle

Investing Data Story

These 9 North American small- to mid-caps stand out for converting revenue into cash, earning strong returns on capital, and carrying low debt.

9 Small-Mid Caps Quietly Compounding Cash

El Niño’s Market Pressure Points

The World Meteorological Organization puts the probability of an El Niño event between June and August 2026 at 80%, with NOAA estimating a 96% chance it persists into early 2027. The lead time is long enough to act.

The mechanism is well understood. Warmer Pacific sea-surface temperatures dry out Southeast Asia, threatening palm oil and rice output from the world’s dominant producers. Brazil, which generates roughly 60% of its electricity from hydropower, faces reservoir depletion and expensive fossil fuel backup. Asian rice farmers already cutting planting due to elevated costs tied to Hormuz disruption, face compounding pressure.

Not all the angles are bearish. Fertilizer producers benefit as farmers under yield pressure maximize crop nutrition spend. Water infrastructure attracts defensive flows during drought cycles. Reinsurers face near-term correlated losses across drought, flood, and wildfire perils -- but premium repricing typically follows 12 to 18 months later.

The caveat: forecasts model the direction of risk, not its magnitude. A moderate event looks meaningfully different from a strong one.

Watch agricultural commodity futures as the leading signal. Equity repricing in exposed sectors typically lags by weeks to months.

Ten sectors with direct exposure, and what the risk looks like in each, are mapped out in full here → El Niño Points to 10 Sectors Worth Watching

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Investing Data Story

As Europe’s reliance on imported LNG deepens and domestic output falls, the conditions favouring investment in local gas supply are becoming difficult to ignore.

Tracked: Europe’s LNG Imports Are Causing A Supply Shift

Index Rules and the IPO Queue

With SpaceX’s IPO imminent, Nasdaq has changed its rules to allow exceptionally large IPOs to join the Nasdaq 100 much sooner after listing. That means SpaceX could enter the QQQ ETF within weeks of listing, creating significant index-driven demand.

S&P Dow Jones Indices has taken the opposite approach. The S&P 500 still requires at least a year of public trading and sustained profitability. SpaceX’s S-1 shows a $4.9 billion net loss in 2025 and a further $4.3 billion loss in Q1 2026, largely reflecting the consolidation of xAI following the February 2026 acquisition. While SpaceX’s core business was reportedly profitable in 2024, the combined company is unlikely to meet S&P’s requirements anytime soon.

The contrast highlights two competing philosophies. Nasdaq prioritizes market relevance and rapid inclusion. S&P prioritizes profitability and operating history.

That distinction matters because index membership increasingly drives capital flows. Investors often view passive funds as neutral, but index providers make active decisions about which companies qualify and when. In SpaceX’s case, Nasdaq investors may gain exposure within weeks, while S&P 500 investors could wait years.

Watch how QQQ absorbs SpaceX. It will provide a real-world test of whether rapid index inclusion enhances market efficiency or amplifies volatility.

Earnings Performance

Broadcom (NASDAQ: AVGO)

Broadcom (NASDAQ: AVGO) posted record AI revenue in Q2, but shares fell as investors focused on the lack of an increase in full-year AI guidance and management’s revised AI systems strategy.

The more interesting story may be Broadcom’s long-term track record of value creation. Revenue has grown from $1.4 billion in 2005 to $63.9 billion in FY2025, not because of a single product cycle, but through a disciplined acquisition strategy that paired market-leading infrastructure assets with aggressive operational improvements. Acquisitions transformed the company from a semiconductor supplier into a diversified infrastructure technology platform.

The chart highlights why Broadcom’s competitive advantage extends beyond AI. Its ability to acquire critical technology franchises, expand margins, and convert earnings into cash flow has been the primary driver of shareholder value for two decades. VMware is now the next major test of that playbook. If management can execute as successfully as it has with prior acquisitions, the deal could become a meaningful driver of earnings and cash flow growth for years to come.

Other Earnings Updates

• G-III Apparel (NASDAQ: GIII): Posts Q1 Earnings Beat, Lifts Guidance

• Lululemon (NASDAQ: LULU): Cuts Full-Year Outlook as Profit Falls

• Planet Labs (NYSE: PL): Posts Record Q1 Revenue of $94M

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

Investor Guide: Inside the Blockchain Stack

Blockchain infrastructure is one of the most active areas of digital asset investing right now. Our guide breaks down exactly where fees accrue across the stack. Read it here.

Edition #159
Investing Unlocks: How to Capitalize on the Hot Topics From The Last 7 Days

We analyze recent trends and opportunities, offering strategic insights that help you manage risks and identify growth opportunities for your portfolio.

🚀 Tech Powers Stocks to Nine Straight Wins

Last week, US equity markets extended their remarkable run to nine consecutive weekly gains, with the S&P 500 closing May up 5% and the Nasdaq jumping more than 8% for the month. Technology was the clear engine, powered by blowout earnings from the hardware sector and growing confidence around AI demand, while a potential US-Iran ceasefire extension helped energy prices pull back.

This week, the calendar is packed. Broadcom reports earnings midweek, and with AI chip revenue forecast to have nearly tripled year over year, the results will either confirm or complicate the AI growth story driving this rally. The May jobs report arrives Friday, the single biggest test for the Fed’s next move, with investors hoping for a number strong enough to signal resilience but soft enough to keep rate-cut hopes alive. Add in the looming SpaceX roadshow, with the expected-record $1.75 trillion IPO set to price next week, and markets face a week where once again a lot can shift fast.

PRESENTED BY HAMAK STRATEGY LTD

Hamak Strategy (LSE: HAMA) (OTCQB: HASTF) is a junior exploration company building exposure to gold assets in established West African mining regions.

Get all the details in our in-depth investor guide.

Download the Exclusive Investor Report.

Hot Topics

• Nvidia Unveils New AI PC Chip

• Berkshire Hathaway Makes Major Homebuilding Acquisition

• Where Investors May Profit Beyond SpaceX

• SoftBank plans $87B Investment in 5GW French AI Data Center

• A Rare Earths Civil War

• Americans Would Rather Live Near Nuclear Plants Than Data Centers

• Carbon TerraVault Begins CO₂ Storage in California

Investing Data Story

These 9 North American small- to mid-caps stand out for converting revenue into cash, earning strong returns on capital, and carrying low debt.

9 Small-Mid Caps Quietly Compounding Cash

Tin’s Structural Deficit

Solder accounts for 50% of global tin demand, and there is no viable substitute. Every AI server rack, EV battery management board, and solar inverter runs on tin-soldered printed circuit boards, making this metal a direct infrastructure play on electrification and compute expansion.

Tin on the London Metal Exchange (LME) is trading around $55,225 per tonne, up 36% year-to-date and near its all-time high. The problem is that the rally appears to be driven more by investor positioning than immediate physical scarcity.

The International Tin Association (ITA) has noted that when tin hit record highs in January, underlying supply conditions had not materially changed. Instead, speculative buying, particularly on Chinese exchanges, was a major factor behind the move.

Near-term fundamentals have improved. Mine supply is recovering, exchange inventories have been rising, and the market is moving closer to balance. Yet prices remain historically elevated.

That doesn’t mean the long-term investment case has disappeared. Myanmar’s largest mine remains restricted, Indonesia continues its crackdown on illegal operations, and the ITA expects global tin demand to grow by around 40% by 2030, driven by EVs, solar installations, and data centre expansion.

The long-term outlook for tin remains compelling, but current prices appear to be running ahead of today’s supply-demand reality.

We've updated our full guide to tin stocks, covering producers, developers, and ETFs, with the latest data. Read the updated guide →

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Earnings Performance

Salesforce Inc (NYSE: CRM)

Salesforce Inc (NYSE: CRM) delivered record first-quarter results with EPS up 52%. AI adoption is accelerating fast enough to materially change Salesforce’s growth profile, not just its marketing narrative. Its AI agent platform, Agentforce, hit $1.2 billion in annual recurring revenue in Q1 FY27, up 205% year-over-year, as the company reported $11.1 billion in total quarterly revenue, 13% higher than a year ago.

The company shows a sharp ramp in Agentic Work Units, which jumped from 304 million in Q2 FY26 to 1.6 billion in Q1 FY27, with cumulative AWUs delivered reaching 3.8 billion. That matters because it shows customers are moving from AI experimentation into real production usage.

Other Earnings Updates

• Snowflake (NYSE: SNOW): Posts Record Sequential Revenue Growth

• Costco (NASDAQ: COST): Posts 11.6% Sales Rise in Q3

• Dell (NYSE: DELL): Posts 88% Revenue Jump on AI Server Surge

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

Where $18 Trillion of Market Value Was Created

AI infrastructure, semiconductors, and digital advertising emerged as the dominant drivers of market cap growth, accounting for the majority of gains since 2022.

Edition #158
Investing Unlocks: How to Capitalize on the Hot Topics From The Last 7 Days

We analyze recent trends and opportunities, offering strategic insights that help you manage risks and identify growth opportunities for your portfolio.

👀 AI Chips and Bond Jitters Close Out a Wild Week

Last week, US stocks managed to eke out gains despite a turbulent stretch driven by surging bond yields and Middle East uncertainty. Semiconductor and AI stocks stayed resilient after Nvidia’s strong earnings and guidance reinforced confidence in AI spending, despite post-earnings profit-taking in Nvidia shares.

This week, markets open Tuesday after Monday’s Memorial Day holiday, leaving four sessions to absorb a packed economic calendar. The standout releases are the first-quarter GDP revision and the core PCE price index. With new Fed Chair Kevin Warsh now at the helm and bond traders already pricing in a possible rate hike by year-end, a hotter-than-expected inflation number could rattle equities, especially rate-sensitive sectors like real estate and utilities. Earnings from Salesforce, Costco, and Dell will add a consumer and enterprise spending lens, giving investors a clearer picture of whether corporate America is holding up under elevated energy costs.

PRESENTED BY THE CRYPTO COMPANY

The Crypto Company (OTC: CRCW) is focused on operating businesses across crypto, blockchain infrastructure, and emerging technologies such as AI, with a goal of growing revenues and improving profitability across its portfolio.

Download the Exclusive Investor Report.

Hot Topics

• Stock Markets Are Increasingly Vulnerable to Rising Bond Yields

• What to Know About the SpaceX IPO

• Delivery Hero shares surge to 18-month high as Uber eyes takeover

• Supply hits galvanize zinc as expected surplus fails to show

• Don’t look now, Amazon. Walmart is coming for your customers

• Platinum, Rhodium to Outpace Palladium in 2026

• Sustainable Fashion Brand Sold to Shein

• NextEra plans to buy Dominion Energy for $66.8 billion

• Elon Musk lost another lawsuit. Will he keep fighting?

Investing Data Story

These 9 North American small- to mid-caps stand out for converting revenue into cash, earning strong returns on capital, and carrying low debt.

9 Small-Mid Caps Quietly Compounding Cash

Luxury Spend Turns Positive

U.S. fashion luxury card spend is now growing across every income bracket simultaneously. Bank of America internal card data shows higher-income consumers up roughly 15% year-over-year so far in Q2, with middle and lower cohorts posting high single-digit and low single-digit gains, respectively.

The synchronized recovery matters. After troughing near -17% for lower-income shoppers in Q1 2024, all three cohorts are now in positive territory simultaneously, a first since before the 2024 luxury downturn. LVMH, Kering, and Richemont all flagged soft U.S. demand as a 2025 headwind; this data flips that narrative.

The risk is the gap between spending intent and actual conversion. Luxury stocks remain oversold after March’s sharp selloff on Middle East tensions and oil price spikes. Card data leads, but if Hormuz disruption persists, foot traffic and travel retail revenue will lag the signal.

Gulf Shock Splits Aluminium Market

The Iran war has caused a major supply shock in the aluminium market, with missile strikes damaging Gulf smelters and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz disrupting logistics. The Gulf produces over a fifth of non-Chinese aluminium, and output has plummeted to its lowest level in over a decade. While the headline LME price is only up 14% and appears relatively calm, the real stress is showing up in physical premiums that have doubled or more in some regions, rapidly draining warehouse stocks, and tightening time spreads that signal genuine near-term scarcity.

China is producing more but is close to its government capacity cap, and exchange stockpiles can only cushion the shortfall for so long. Physical buyers are already paying significantly more to secure metal, and the longer the Strait of Hormuz stays closed, the worse the deficit is likely to get.

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Earnings Performance

Frontline Plc (NYSE: FRO)

Frontline Plc (NYSE: FRO) shares slipped on Friday after the tanker operator reported Q1 adjusted earnings of $1.55 per share, missing Wall Street expectations.

However, results show tanker demand is being driven by distance, not just volume. Even with lower overall Gulf exports, vessel utilization stayed tight because ships are spending longer at sea, and more Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) are tied up waiting, rerouting, or repositioning. While Arabian Gulf exports fell by roughly 13.8 million barrels per day, Asia replaced part of that supply with longer-haul barrels from the Atlantic Basin, West Africa, and the Americas.

Frontline reported Q1 2026 revenue of $714.2 million and adjusted profit of $344.9 million, or $1.55 per share, while reported EPS reached $2.51 due to vessel sale gains. Frontline’s fleet breakeven is around $24k/day, while current contracted Q2 VLCC rates are already above $180k/day.

Other Earnings Updates

• TruGolf (NASDAQ: TRUG): Reports Q1 Net Loss Cut Nearly in Half

• Toll Brothers (NYSE: TOL): Reports Q2 Orders Up 8%, Raises Outlook

• Home Depot (NYSE: HD): Reports Q1 Sales of $41.8B

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

The Gold Stocks Playbook for a New Bull Cycle

Gold has reclaimed its place in investor conversations, but the equities behind the metal rarely move as one. Senior producers, mid-tiers, juniors, royalty companies, and explorers each respond to a different mix of forces. Understanding which tier you are buying matters as much as the bullish thesis on gold itself.

This series breaks the gold mining sector into its working parts. Each piece looks at a distinct tier or category, what defines it, how the economics differ, and what investors should weigh before committing capital. The goal is not to pick winners, but to give retail investors a framework they can apply when the next gold name lands in their inbox.

From scale and predictability at the top of the market, to the asset-light royalty model, to the geographic risk embedded in every project, the series builds a complete map of how to think about gold equities.

Explore the full breakdown:

• Guide to Investing in Gold Mining

• Gold Stocks to Buy: A Framework for Gold Equities

• Senior Gold Producers: A Survey of the Tier

• Newmont (NYSE: NEM) Shows What Scale Buys in Gold Mining

• Mid-Tier Gold Miners: What to Know About the Growth Tier

• Alamos Gold Shows What Mid-Tier Growth Looks Like

• Junior Gold Producers and Single-Asset Operators

• Gold Royalty and Streaming Companies

• Gold Explorers and Developers

• Jurisdiction-Focused Gold Stocks

Edition #157
Investing Unlocks: How to Capitalize on the Hot Topics From The Last 7 Days

We analyze recent trends and opportunities, offering strategic insights that help you manage risks and identify growth opportunities for your portfolio.

🛢️ Oil and Yields Crash the AI Party

Last week, stocks finished mixed as a hot inflation print and a jump in Treasury yields cooled an otherwise tech-led tape. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq scratched out small gains while the Dow drifted flat, with semiconductors and AI names doing most of the heavy lifting before a Friday pullback. The Trump-Xi summit produced warm words but no real breakthroughs, while crude pushed toward $109 on stalled Iran talks.

This week, Nvidia’s earnings on Wednesday share the stage with FOMC minutes from Powell’s final meeting, the first big read on the policy mood as Kevin Warsh takes over the Fed. Walmart, Home Depot, Lowe’s, Target and TJX will offer a close-up of the US consumer amid sticky inflation. With rate-hike odds for 2026 now near 45% and the AI trade looking stretched, a clean Nvidia beat plus dovish minutes could refuel the rally, but any disappointment risks a sharper rotation out of the high fliers.

PRESENTED BY CANCAMBRIA ENERGY CORP

CanCambria Energy Corp. (TSXV: CCEC) (OTCQB: CCEYF) (FSE: 4JH) is building a scalable tight gas development platform in Central Europe. Years of underinvestment, declining domestic production, reduced reliance on Russian imports, and persistent energy security concerns have pushed pricing well above North American benchmarks. CanCambria’s goal is to apply proven unconventional techniques and scale in this higher-priced natural gas market.

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Hot Topics

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• Roundhill DRAM ETF Hits $6 Billion in Five Weeks

• The Current State of the Global Bond Market and Its Effects on Cryptocurrency

• Cerebras IPO jumps to almost $70bn valuation

• What does AI do when no-one’s watching?

• Big risks and rewards in IPOs at SpaceX, OpenAI, Anthropic

Investing Data Story

Global gas benchmarks show a wide price gap, with North America far below Europe and Asia, shaping trade, margins, and energy stocks.

Visualized: Natural Gas Price Gaps Reshape Global Energy Trade

The State of Copper Exploration

Mining companies spent $3.3 billion looking for new copper deposits in 2025, up just 2% on the year and still well below the 2012 peak of $4.7 billion. That is striking given copper was already trading near $10,000 a tonne when those 2025 budgets were set, and prices have since pushed higher still, currently around $13,500 a tonne. In previous cycles, high prices triggered a surge in exploration. This time, the response has been muted, and within that budget, more spending is going on, extending existing mines rather than hunting for new ones.

The implication is a tightening supply pipeline at exactly the point where demand from electrification, grid investment, and data centres is accelerating. New discoveries take 15 to 20 years to reach production, so today’s underinvestment shows up as tomorrow’s deficit. That favours three types of companies:

• Established miners that already produce copper from long-life mines

• Smaller companies with advanced projects close to production, which big miners may want to buy

• Early-stage explorers

The risk to this view is cyclical. A China slowdown, recession, or substitution could pressure prices in the near term, even as the structural case strengthens.

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Earnings Performance

Cisco Systems Inc (NASDAQ: CSCO)

Cisco Systems Inc (NASDAQ: CSCO) AI infrastructure orders from hyperscalers are now expected to hit $9 billion in FY26, up from $2 billion in FY25, a sign that AI networking demand is accelerating faster than expected. The company already booked $5.3 billion of AI orders year-to-date, driven by both switching and optical networking products.

That demand is flowing into results. Q3 revenue rose 12% to $15.8 billion, non-GAAP EPS increased 10% to $1.06, and Service Provider & Cloud orders surged 105%. For investors, the takeaway is that Cisco is emerging as a key supplier in AI infrastructure buildouts, not just a legacy enterprise networking company.

Other Earnings Updates

• Sigma Lithium (NASDAQ: SGML): Posts Record 1Q26 Margins

• Applied Materials (NASDAQ: AMAT): Reports Record Q2 Revenue

• Honda (NYSE: HMC): Posts First Annual Loss on EV Writedown

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

The Gold Stocks Playbook for a New Bull Cycle

Gold has reclaimed its place in investor conversations, but the equities behind the metal rarely move as one. Senior producers, mid-tiers, juniors, royalty companies, and explorers each respond to a different mix of forces. Understanding which tier you are buying matters as much as the bullish thesis on gold itself.

This series breaks the gold mining sector into its working parts. Each piece looks at a distinct tier or category, what defines it, how the economics differ, and what investors should weigh before committing capital. The goal is not to pick winners, but to give retail investors a framework they can apply when the next gold name lands in their inbox.

From scale and predictability at the top of the market, to the asset-light royalty model, to the geographic risk embedded in every project, the series builds a complete map of how to think about gold equities.

Explore the full breakdown:

• Guide to Investing in Gold Mining

• Gold Stocks to Buy: A Framework for Gold Equities

• Senior Gold Producers: A Survey of the Tier

• Newmont (NYSE: NEM) Shows What Scale Buys in Gold Mining

• Mid-Tier Gold Miners: What to Know About the Growth Tier

• Alamos Gold Shows What Mid-Tier Growth Looks Like

• Junior Gold Producers and Single-Asset Operators

• Gold Royalty and Streaming Companies

• Gold Explorers and Developers

• Jurisdiction-Focused Gold Stocks

Edition #156
Investing Unlocks: How to Capitalize on the Hot Topics From The Last 7 Days

We analyze recent trends and opportunities, offering strategic insights that help you manage risks and identify growth opportunities for your portfolio.

🚀 Stocks Hit Record Highs on Jobs Beat

Last week, Wall Street stretched its winning streak to six weeks, the longest since 2024, as the S&P 500 climbed 2.3% and the Nasdaq jumped 4.5% to fresh records. Strong Q1 earnings, especially from mega-cap tech and AI names, drove the tape, while a hotter-than-expected April jobs report reassured investors on growth. Sentiment held up even as the US and Iran traded fresh strikes around the Strait of Hormuz, with traders betting the ceasefire would stick.

This week, April CPI is the main event, followed by PPI, retail sales, and consumer sentiment, with results from Cisco, Alibaba, and Applied Materials testing AI and tech enthusiasm. A hotter inflation print could dent rate cut hopes and pressure the richly valued tech leadership that has powered the rally, while Iran headlines and the US-China summit remain key swing factors for risk appetite.

PRESENTED BY HAMAK STRATEGY LTD

Hamak Strategy (LSE: HAMA) (OTCQB: HASTF) is a junior exploration company building exposure to gold assets in established West African mining regions.

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Hot Topics

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• S&P 500 Weigh Faster Entry For Mega-IPOs

• Shell to Acquire ARC Resources

Amazon Opens Its Logistics Empire

FedEx and UPS stocks dropped after Amazon launched a service that opens its entire logistics network to outside businesses.

Amazon Supply Chain Services bundles freight, fulfillment, distribution, and parcel shipping into a single offering. Early customers include Procter and Gamble, 3M and Lands’ End. Amazon has already passed both legacy carriers to become the largest US parcel shipper by volume, per ShipMatrix.

Morgan Stanley analyst Ravi Shanker called the launch a potential “watershed moment” for North American freight. The clearest losers are parcel incumbents FedEx and UPS, whose B2B and healthcare pivots now face a credible new bidder with surplus warehouse and air capacity.

Solar Leads, Coal Retreats

Global electricity generation grew by over 850 TWh in 2025, with renewables and nuclear together adding more than the total increase, while coal-fired output fell for the first time outside a crisis period in a decade.

Solar PV led the way with a record 600 TWh jump, and wind held steady at around 200 TWh of new generation. Coal flipped from a 155 TWh gain in 2024 to a roughly 50 TWh decline in 2025, as China and India recorded simultaneous drops for the first time in fifty years.

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Earnings Performance

ZipRecruiter Inc (NYSE: ZIP)

ZipRecruiter Inc. (NYSE: ZIP) posted Q1 2026 revenue of $107.5M, landing above the midpoint of its own guidance, but the headline GAAP figure was a $4.7M net loss. Management’s preferred metric, Adjusted EBITDA, came in at $9.7M (a 9% margin), and the chart shows how it gets there: stripping out $8.4M of stock-based compensation, $7.4M of interest expense, and $2.9M of depreciation, partly offset by other income and a small tax benefit.

For retail investors, the key takeaway is that the business generates operating profitability on an adjusted basis, but interest costs from its debt load and ongoing share-based pay to employees are weighing on bottom-line results. CEO Ian Siegel framed the quarter around AI-powered matching and market share gains, themes worth tracking in subsequent quarters to see whether revenue growth reaccelerates.

Other Earnings Updates

• Vistra (NYSE: VST): Reports Q1 Profit Swing to $1B

• Gilead Sciences, Inc (NASDAQ: GILD): HIV Growth Offsets Acquisition Costs

• Walt Disney Co (NYSE: DIS): Q2 Earnings Show Strong Streaming Growth

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

Closing the Gap

Alphabet has closed the gap on Nvidia in a remarkable run, with both companies now sitting near the $5 trillion mark. Nvidia surged ahead through 2024 as AI chip demand exploded, peaking well above Alphabet for much of 2025. But Alphabet’s steady climb through 2025 and into 2026, driven by its own AI silicon ambitions and cloud momentum, has brought the Google parent within striking distance of overtaking the chipmaker as the world’s most valuable company.

Edition #155
Investing Unlocks: How to Capitalize on the Hot Topics From The Last 7 Days

We analyze recent trends and opportunities, offering strategic insights that help you manage risks and identify growth opportunities for your portfolio.

💼 Jobs Week Tests Market Momentum

Stocks ended last week near record highs, but the story now shifts from earnings to the economy. Tech and communication services continue to lead, helped by strong AI spending and solid profit growth; firmer oil prices keep inflation concerns in play. The rally remains healthy, but elevated expectations leave less room for disappointment.

This week’s labor data is the main event. Economists expect payroll growth to slow from March’s 178,000 gain, with unemployment seen holding near 4.3%. If the jobs report is weak, Treasury yields could fall, lifting rate-sensitive sectors like real estate and utilities. If the report is strong, expensive growth stocks may come under pressure.

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• Robinhood CFO on OpenAI Access, IPO Investor Demand

• Pershing Square Holdings shares fall in anticipated debut

• Nuclear reactor company X-energy shares surge in IPO

Medtech’s Lost Decade

The S&P 500 compounded at 12% annually from 2017 to 2025, while medtech returned just 3%, the weakest performance among industries tracked by McKinsey & Company.

Nearly 80% of public medtech companies delivered flat or negative returns over the past four years. Yet, medtech is not a bad business. A 25% EBITDA margin ranks 5th across all ten sectors, and a 7% revenue growth outlook for 2025-27 matches the S&P 500. The problem is capital efficiency. Return on invested capital (ROIC, a measure of how efficiently a company generates profit from the money it deploys) sits at just 6% for the sector.

Intuitive Surgical (NASDAQ: ISRG) is the clearest exception, as a 19% ROIC and consistent revenue growth from its da Vinci surgical robotics platform shows what disciplined reinvestment actually looks like in this space.

More broadly, medtech companies are shifting capital toward higher-margin areas like heart valve repair and robotics, but stronger margins and better capital allocation will be needed for the sector to close the gap with the wider market. Watch for names already demonstrating measurable margin expansion and rising ROIC.

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Earnings Performance

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: ICE)

Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: ICE) beat first-quarter profit estimates, but its stock has modestly lagged major exchange peers in 2026, while rivals such as Cboe Global Markets and CME Group have posted strong double-digit gains. While ICE has also benefited from heightened market volatility, its more diversified business mix has made it a lower-beta play on the trading surge.

Other Earnings Updates

• Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN): Posts AWS Growth at 15-Quarter High

• Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT): Posts $37B AI Run Rate, Up 123%

• Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL): Posts 63% Cloud Growth as Backlog Nears $460B

• Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO): Posts 18% EPS Growth in Q1 2026

• Visa Inc. (NYSE: V): Q2 Earnings Surge 17% on Revenue Growth

• T-Mobile (NASDAQ: TMUS): Posts 15% Postpaid Revenue Growth, Raises Guidance

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

Beijing Eases Yttrium Grip

A single 60-ton shipment of yttrium oxide cleared Chinese customs in March, 50% more than all yttrium exported to the U.S. combined since Beijing imposed controls last April. Prices had surged roughly 6,900% in the 12 months to February as aerospace and semiconductor firms rationed supplies, and some coating production lines idled.

Yttrium oxide is indispensable to aerospace, forming the thermal barrier coatings that keep jet engines from overheating. When supply tightens, engine overhaul facilities and new-build programs face immediate production risk. U.S.-bound shipments collapsed from 333 tons in the eight months before controls to just 17 tons afterward, forcing North American coating suppliers to reserve material for tier-one customers such as Boeing and Airbus.

China’s export control system requires companies to apply for licenses to ship rare earths abroad, with aerospace and defense end uses facing the most scrutiny. U.S. domestic alternatives at MP Materials and Lynas Rare Earths are scaling, but a commercially viable non-Chinese supply is still years away.

The risk is that this shipment reflects tactical easing tied to trade talks, not a durable policy shift. Watch aerospace supplier margins and yttrium spot prices as leading indicators of whether this opening holds.

OPEC’s Grip Is Loosening

The UAE is leaving OPEC, a major blow to the cartel’s already-fading authority. As OPEC’s fourth-largest producer at roughly 12% of output, Abu Dhabi’s exit is driven by a desire to expand production beyond quota limits toward a 5 MMbpd target.

With the Strait of Hormuz blockade already paralyzing Gulf exports, the immediate market impact is muted, but the longer-term signal suggests that once the Iran conflict ends and barrels return, a multi-way market share war between OPEC remnants, the UAE, and U.S. producers could send oil prices sharply lower.

Edition #154
Investing Unlocks: How to Capitalize on the Hot Topics From The Last 7 Days

We analyze recent trends and opportunities, offering strategic insights that help you manage risks and identify growth opportunities for your portfolio.

🤖 Chips and Peace Hopes Push Markets to Records

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq closed the week at fresh all-time highs, with technology and semiconductors doing most of the work. The Philadelphia Semiconductor index surged more than 10% on the week, its 18th straight winning session, while the broader S&P 500 gained about 0.5%. With a quarter of S&P 500 companies now reported, more than 80% have beaten estimates, putting the index on track for double-digit profit growth for the sixth straight quarter.

The Fed wraps its two-day meeting April 29 with a rate hold widely expected at 3.50%–3.75%, so all eyes will be on Chair Powell’s tone around inflation. April 30 then delivers a triple hit: the first read on Q1 GDP, March core PCE (the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge), and the Employment Cost Index, all before the open. Five of the Magnificent Seven (Microsoft, Alphabet, Meta, Amazon, and Apple) report between April 29 and May 1, with AI capital spending in sharp focus.

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• John Ternus to become Apple CEO

• TMX Group to acquire Cboe exchanges in Australia and Canada

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• SpaceX Secures Option to Buy Cursor for $60B

401(k) Millionaires are a Growing Club of Few

Fidelity now counts roughly 625,000 millionaire 401(k) accounts out of nearly 25 million it administers, a record high, but still under 2.5% of its account holders.

Strategic Oil Inventories

While this chart highlights the scale of strategic crude inventories entering 2026, particularly China’s dominant position, it should be viewed as a pre-crisis baseline.

Since the Iran conflict disrupted Middle East supply flows, major consuming nations have drawn on emergency stockpiles to stabilize markets, materially reducing available inventories in the United States, Europe, Japan, and South Korea. China likely retains the largest strategic cushion by a wide margin, but absolute barrel counts alone no longer tell the full story.

What matters now is remaining usable reserves, recent drawdowns, and how many days of import cover each country still holds, which together determine who has the greatest capacity to withstand a prolonged supply shock.

European Gas Prices: Shock and Persistent Premium

The Middle East conflict sent TTF (European gas benchmark) prices sharply higher in late February 2026, briefly approaching oil parity. A two-week ceasefire brought some relief, but prices remain nearly 40% above pre-conflict levels. The forward curve shows the market now prices in a sustained premium well into 2028, reflecting a structural supply shortfall due to damaged Qatari infrastructure and delayed expansion projects. A ceasefire alone is not a price reset.

AI Investment: From Niche to Mainstream

Global corporate AI investment grew fortyfold between 2013 and 2025, hitting $581 billion last year, a 130% jump in a single year. Private investment led at $345 billion, with M&A close behind, both roughly doubling year-over-year. The chart shows investment was largely flat through most of the 2010s, then began compounding sharply after 2020. For a retail investor, the message is clear: AI capital commitment is no longer speculative; it is structural and accelerating.

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Earnings Performance

GE Aerospace (NYSE:GE)

GE Aerospace (NYSE:GE) is seeing demand for engine services exceed its ability to supply parts and capacity, with backlog covering the vast majority of near-term revenue and engine removals already ahead of plan. This creates unusually strong visibility, as much of 2026 services activity is effectively pre-committed rather than dependent on future flight trends.

That strength is reflected in the quarter. Adjusted revenue grew 29% to $11.6B, operating profit rose 18% to $2.5B, and EPS increased 25% to $1.86. Free cash flow reached $1.7B, up 14%, while orders surged 87%, supported by a commercial services backlog above $170B.

The key takeaway is durability. Even with softer air traffic expectations, services growth is supported by backlog, maintenance cycles, and constrained supply, not just demand. This supports pricing power and earnings resilience, with execution on capacity the main variable to watch.

Other Earnings Updates

• Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG): Reports 7% Sales Growth in Q3 2026

• Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA): Reports Q1 Deliveries, Output

• UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH): Reports Q1 2026 Results

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

The Infrastructure Bet Behind AI

Since ChatGPT’s launch, the hyperscalers (Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Meta, and Oracle) have more than doubled their annual capital expenditures, with Google alone exceeding $150 billion in 2025. This spending funds the data centers, chips, and networking that every AI product runs on.

For an investor already holding these stocks, the chart reframes them: these are no longer just cloud or advertising businesses. They are the foundational infrastructure layer of the AI economy, and they are spending accordingly.

Agentic AI: The Coverage Gap

Major insurers, including Berkshire Hathaway, Chubb, and Travelers, are tightening coverage for AI-related damages just as enterprise adoption of agentic AI accelerates. That leaves businesses increasingly exposed to a category of loss that is fast, potentially large, and difficult to attribute.

That matters because agentic AI is not just software; it can act. Systems that browse the web, execute code, call APIs, and modify live databases can trigger errors or unauthorized transactions at machine speed, with losses landing before a human can intervene.

For investors, the bigger story is where spending shifts next. If insurers are unwilling to absorb broad AI risk, companies will need to build their own safeguards, from monitoring tools and access controls to compliance systems and cybersecurity layers. That creates a picks-and-shovels opportunity in AI governance infrastructure.

The caveat is that adoption may become more measured. As liability exposure becomes clearer, enterprises may slow high-risk deployments until stronger guardrails are in place, delaying near-term demand while reinforcing the long-term need for governance tools.

Consumer Confidence Hits Historic Low

Edition #153
Investing Unlocks: How to Capitalize on the Hot Topics From The Last 7 Days

We analyze recent trends and opportunities, offering strategic insights that help you manage risks and identify growth opportunities for your portfolio.

⛽ Hormuz Shuts Again, Markets on Edge

The S&P 500 closed at a record high on Friday after Iran briefly declared the Strait of Hormuz open, sending crude oil tumbling nearly 10%. Tech and financials led the charge all week, with the Nasdaq notching its longest winning streak since 1992.

Iran closed the Strait again over the weekend, and markets are opening Monday with oil jumping and equities under pressure. G7 energy and finance ministers hold an emergency call today, and Fed chair nominee Kevin Warsh faces the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday, both capable of sharp moves in either direction. Earnings from Tesla, Boeing, GE Aerospace, and UnitedHealth report mid-week.

Hot Topics

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• Aerospace parts maker Arxis raises $1.13 billion in US IPO

• Uranium Royalty to merge with Sweetwater Royalties in a $1.9bn deal

• Madison Air Prices Biggest US Industrial IPO in Nearly 27 Years

• Uber and PIF complete $750m investment in Lucid

• Struggling shoe retailer Allbirds makes bizarre pivot to AI

• Unilever (LSE: ULVR) to Acquire Grüns Brand

• Adam Back says he is not Bitcoin founder Satoshi Nakamoto

Defense Tech Boom

Defense funding is surging, with investment jumping to $11.2B in 2025 and staying elevated into 2026, signaling sustained investor appetite.

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Earnings Performance

Bank of America (NYSE: BAC)

Bank of America (NYSE: BAC) delivered broad-based growth in Q1 2026, with all four segments contributing to higher earnings and reinforcing the strength of its diversified model.

Consumer Banking remained the largest profit driver, generating $3.1B in net income, up 21%, while Global Wealth and Investment Management led growth, with net income rising 32%, supported by strong asset flows and higher asset management fees. Global Banking and Global Markets delivered steady contributions, with net income of $2.1B and $2.0B, respectively, reflecting solid investment banking activity and continued momentum in trading.

Returns remained strong across the franchise, led by a 27% return on average allocated capital (ROAC) in Consumer Banking, highlighting disciplined capital allocation and consistent profitability across segments.

Other Earnings Updates

• Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX): Q1 Revenue Up 16%; EPS Boosted by One-Off

• PepsiCo (NASDAQ: PEP): Reports Q1 2026 Results

• ASML (NASDAQ: ASML): Boosts 2026 Outlook with €8.8B Q1 Results

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

Anthropic Adoption Accelerates

Ramp AI Index shows business AI adoption crossed 50% for the first time in March, up from 35% a year ago. Anthropic adoption has surged since January, despite the Defense Department designating it a security risk.

AI Capability Far Exceeds Usage

A wide gap persists between what AI could do and what workers actually use it for across occupations. The chart shows theoretical task coverage far exceeding observed usage in nearly every category. This matters as enterprises shift from experimentation to scaled deployment.

Research from Anthropic suggests LLMs could handle a large share of tasks in fields like finance, law, and software, but real-world usage remains limited by legal, technical, and workflow constraints.

AI’s near-term impact is constrained more by integration and governance than capability. The pace at which usage converges with potential remains uncertain.

Edition #152
Investing Unlocks: How to Capitalize on the Hot Topics From The Last 7 Days

We analyze recent trends and opportunities, offering strategic insights that help you manage risks and identify growth opportunities for your portfolio.

⚠️ Ceasefire Unravels, Oil Tops $100 as Blockade Begins

Stocks rallied sharply last week after a US-Iran ceasefire triggered a classic relief move. Equities jumped while oil plunged as investors priced in de-escalation, even as the deal showed cracks within hours of being announced, and shipping through the Strait of Hormuz remained well below normal levels.

That optimism has now fully unwound. Talks in Islamabad collapsed over the weekend without an agreement, and CENTCOM confirmed a naval blockade of Iranian ports beginning today. Oil has surged back above $100, reintroducing inflation risk into an already strained CPI and consumer spending picture.

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Big Tech Doubles Down on AI Spending

Leading tech firms are ramping up R&D investment at an unprecedented pace, with spending increasingly concentrated on AI and advanced computing. The surge highlights an intensifying arms race for innovation, as companies prioritize long-term growth and competitive advantage despite uncertain near-term returns.

Figma is rapidly scaling investment in R&D as it pushes deeper into AI-powered design and collaboration tools. The elevated spending signals a clear priority on product innovation and platform expansion, positioning the company to compete more aggressively as the design software market shifts toward intelligent, automation-driven workflows.

Commodities Lead, Crypto Lags in 2026

Commodities dominate 2026 returns, with Brent crude and gold posting outsized gains, while equities deliver modest performance across regions. Fixed income remains largely flat, reflecting tight ranges in yields. In contrast, Bitcoin significantly underperforms, standing out as the weakest major asset year-to-date.

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Earnings Performance

PriceSmart Inc (NASDAQ: PSMT)

PriceSmart Inc (NASDAQ: PSMT) reported Q2 financial results on April 8. PriceSmart’s growth profile remains both consistent and high quality, with comparable club sales increasing in the mid-single-digit range on a constant currency basis while total net merchandise sales have scaled to over $5.4 billion on a trailing twelve-month basis. Continued expansion in total sales reflects a combination of new warehouse openings and sustained member spending, supporting a long-term compounding growth story rather than a one-off uplift.

Other Earnings Updates

• Constellation Brands (NYSE: STZ): Reports FY2026 Results

• WD-40 (NASDAQ: WDFC): Reports Q2 FY26 Results

• Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL): Reports Q1 2026 Results

• Levi Strauss (NYSE: LEVI): Reports Q1 2026 Results

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

Energy Shock Sends Fuel Prices Soaring

Fuel markets have surged in 2026, driven by escalating geopolitical tensions. U.S. gasoline prices have jumped sharply to over $4, while jet fuel has more than doubled year-to-date, reflecting acute supply concerns following conflict in the Middle East. The rapid rise underscores how sensitive energy markets remain to global disruptions.

Redemption Pressure Hits Private Credit

Private credit funds faced a sharp surge in redemption requests in Q1, with several vehicles seeing demand far exceed payouts. While most funds met only around 5% of redemptions, requests spiked as high as 40.7% in some cases, highlighting growing liquidity strain and investor caution in the asset class.

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📊 War, Oil Shock Drive Market Swings

Stocks rebounded last week, but the tone has turned more fragile as investors track the U.S.-Iran war and a fresh deadline on the Strait of Hormuz. Oil’s surge has lifted inflation concerns and complicated the rate outlook, with markets increasingly driven by geopolitical headlines. Positioning has become more cautious as risks of further escalation rise, marking a shift away from typical macro-driven trading.

Focus turns to Friday’s CPI report, which could reflect early signs of energy-driven inflation pressure. Investors are also watching developments around the Strait of Hormuz, with any escalation likely to push oil higher and weigh on equities. Fed commentary will be secondary to geopolitical developments in the near term.

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STAX Slips as Sentiment Cools in March

Charles Schwab’s clients grew modestly more bearish in March as the Iran conflict erupted, pushing the STAX 2.23% below February’s peak.

STAX saw its biggest drop since May’s tariff-driven decline, but at 56.04 it still ranks among the strongest recent readings, suggesting Schwab clients remain less bearish and expect the selloff to ease rather than signal lasting weakness.

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Earnings Performance

Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ: CALM)

Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. reported a 53.0% drop in quarterly net sales to $667.0 million, driven by sharply lower egg prices. Net income fell 90.1% year over year, underscoring how quickly prior pricing tailwinds have reversed. The results highlight the volatility of commodity-linked earnings and the company’s push to stabilize its mix. However, Cal-Maine’s growing specialty egg volumes and rising mix highlight a strategic shift toward more stable, higher-value products.

Other Earnings Updates

• SolarMax Technology (NASDAQ: SMXT): Reports FY2025 Results

• Lamb Weston (NYSE: LW): Reports Q3 FY2026 Results

• Conagra Brands (NYSE: CAG): Reports Q3 FY2026 Results

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

Stocks That Move on AI Power Bottlenecks

Here is a selection of stocks analysts are watching across the different layers of the AI power bottleneck:

The “off-grid” and independent power producer plays (BE, VST, TLN) are the most directly tied to the bottleneck itself, since regulated utilities earn fixed returns regardless of price spikes. Some of this AI power narrative may already be priced in for certain names after strong 2025 runs.

ETF Demand Cools Sharply in March

According to FactSet, March shows a clear cooldown in ETF demand, with total flows dropping sharply from prior months. Equity inflows slow materially but remain positive, while fixed income continues to attract capital at a solid pace.

In plain terms, investors pulled money out of commodities, and there was very little interest in areas like currencies or alternative investments. Notably, most of the remaining money going into ETFs was focused on bonds, with some still going into stocks, but overall demand was weaker and less broad than in previous months.

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📉 Stocks Slide as Correction Fears Build

US equities fell sharply in the week of March 23–27, 2026, pushing major indexes toward correction territory, typically defined as a 10% drop from recent highs. Weakness was broad, led by tech and consumer discretionary as rising yields and persistent inflation concerns weighed on valuations. Defensive sectors like utilities and health care outperformed, reflecting a shift toward safety.

Looking to the week ahead, focus shifts to labor data, with job openings data early in the week and the March jobs report on April 3 likely to set the tone. Markets remain sensitive to any surprises that could shift expectations for Fed rate moves.

Investing Data Story

Copper is not running out, but economic supply is tighter than it appears. Here is what that means for prices and mining stocks.

Charted: World Copper Reserves and Mine Production

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Aluminum Holds Gains as Supply Risks Rise

Aluminum prices have been volatile over the past 90 days, but the overall trend is upward. Recent geopolitical disruptions in the Middle East, including damage to key production facilities and restricted exports through the Strait of Hormuz, are tightening global supply and helping sustain elevated prices despite the pullback.

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Earnings Performance

Smithfield Foods Inc (NASDAQ: SFD)

Smithfield Foods Inc (NASDAQ: SFD) reported improved financial flexibility in 2025, with net debt leverage declining to 0.3x from 0.8x, alongside higher operating cash flow and increased liquidity of $3.8 billion.

Q4 2025 sales of $4.2 billion were up 7.0% from the prior year, while operating profit increased 19.6% to $400 million. Adjusted operating profit rose 27.8% to $402 million, and diluted earnings per share from continuing operations were $0.83. The results reflect improved profitability across key segments, including continued strength in packaged meats and a return to profitability in hog production.

Other Earnings Updates

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• Commercial Metals (NYSE: CMC): Reports Fiscal Q2 Results

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

Stocks That Move on Nuclear Revival

AI data center power demand, the Strait of Hormuz closure (pushing energy independence urgency), and bipartisan U.S. government support are all accelerating the nuclear thesis right now.

Here is a selection of U.S. stocks that tend to move on the nuclear revival theme, organized by their role in the supply chain.

US Gas Price Surge

IPO Watch

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⚠️ Inflation Fears Return With Oil Jump

Stocks started last week with an AI-led bounce. Gains faded on hotter February producer prices, the Fed’s March 18 hold, and an oil spike tied to the Iran war, which pushed yields higher and cooled risk appetite. Energy held up better than most sectors, while rate-sensitive growth shares lost momentum.

Tuesday, March 24, brings the flash S&P Global US PMI, an early read on whether higher energy costs are hitting activity. Thursday, March 26, brings weekly jobless claims, and Friday, March 27, brings the final March Michigan sentiment. The main market risk is simple: oil and yields, especially with some key government releases still delayed after the shutdown.

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Gold Slides as Real Yields Surge, Flows Break

Gold is on track for its biggest weekly loss in six years, and the selling pressure is not a single-factor story; it’s a stacked macro unwind hitting the metal from multiple directions simultaneously.

Some of this pressure may be temporary. The leveraged long unwind, the Dubai hub disruption, and the absence of Iranian buying are positioning and logistical issues. They reverse. The higher real yields and dollar strength driving the structural move may be harder to shake until the rate outlook shifts.

Patent Cliff Fuels Pharma M&A

Roughly 8,000 drug patents will expire by 2030, putting $230-$300 billion in U.S. pharmaceutical revenue at risk, according to FDA Orange Book data. Generic competition hits fast, with prices falling by a third within a year of expiry and by more than 80% within eight years.

Building replacements internally costs $2.2 billion per asset and takes decades. Acquisitions are the faster fix. Total biopharma M&A nearly doubled to $200 billion in 2025, with Merck’s $9.2 billion Cidara deal and Novartis’ $12 billion Avidity purchase as recent examples.

Capital is concentrating in three areas:

• Oncology: precision cancer treatments and cell-based therapies

• Immunology: next-gen treatments displacing aging biologics

• Metabolic disease: obesity and heart disease treatments riding the GLP-1 wave

Who benefits: Biotech platforms in these three areas are the clearest acquisition targets, gaining liquidity and validation. Large pharma swaps slow internal R&D for faster external dealmaking.

The risk: Acquirers are paying premium prices for early-stage science. A run of Phase 3 failures could cool deal appetite quickly.

Consolidation in these three therapeutic areas has real momentum. Watch for continued M&A activity through at least 2030.

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Earnings Performance

FedEx (NYSE: FDX)

FedEx (NYSE: FDX) reported Q3 FY26 revenue of $24.0B, up 8% YoY, with adjusted operating income of $1.62B, up 7%, and adjusted EPS of $5.25. Results were driven by higher U.S. domestic volumes, improved yields, and ongoing cost discipline.

Management raised its FY26 outlook, now expecting adjusted EPS of $19.30 to $20.10 and $16.05 to $16.85 before adjustments, signaling continued margin expansion and execution strength.

Performance remains uneven across segments, with strength in Express offset by continued weakness in Freight due to lower shipments and spin-off-related costs. The outlook depends on sustained demand and the successful execution of the planned Freight separation.

Other Earnings Updates

• XPeng (NYSE: XPEV): Reports First Profit Ever in Q4 2025

• Micron (NASDAQ: MU): Reports Strong Q2 as AI Demand Strains Supply

• HealthEquity (NASDAQ: HQY): FY26 Earnings Jump, Raises FY27 Outlook

• Lululemon (NASDAQ: LULU): Reports Q4 FY2025 Results

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

Stocks That Move on Sticky Inflation

When inflation is sticky, the market consistently rotates into a small set of pricing-power and real-asset winners.

A sticky inflation environment pushes money into sectors that either benefit directly from rising prices or can pass costs through, like energy, financials, real assets, and consumer staples.

Energy and commodities lead because they are the source of inflation, banks gain from sustained high rates, and companies with strong pricing power protect margins.

The trade works as long as inflation stays above target without tipping into a deep recession, but it unwinds quickly if inflation drops or demand weakens.

Apparel Retail Cheap, but Margins Cap Upside

S&P 500 apparel retail trades near 8 to 10x forward earnings while profit margins sit around 8 to 11%, well below pre-2015 peaks near 20%. Fundamentals are improving, with revenues and earnings trending higher and revisions turning positive. The gap between low valuations and weaker margins is the key tension for investors now.

Apparel retail offers a low-valuation entry point with improving earnings momentum, but structurally weaker margins justify some of the discount. Whether this is a value opportunity or a value trap depends on margin stabilization, which remains uncertain.

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🔥 Oil Surge, War Fears Shake Stocks

U.S. stocks fell for a third straight week, as the Iran war drove oil prices sharply higher and revived inflation fears. Oil trading near $100 a barrel has been pushing investors toward energy stocks and safe havens while tech and consumer names lag. Sentiment turned sharply cautious as stagflation worries grew and the S&P 500 closed the week at 6,632, its lowest level of 2026.

The Federal Reserve meeting on March 17–18 will dominate the week ahead, with investors watching whether rising oil and geopolitical risk push the Fed toward a longer pause on rate cuts. Retail sales and housing data will offer clues on consumer strength, but headlines around the Iran conflict and oil prices may continue to drive market swings.

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Index Shift: March 2026

Three AI infrastructure companies and a satellite communications firm are set to join the S&P 500 on 23 March, replacing four companies from sectors that have lost relative market weight.

Vertiv, Lumentum, and Coherent all supply critical hardware for the AI boom, from data centre cooling to high-speed optical interconnects, and each saw shares jump roughly 8% on the announcement. EchoStar, the outlier, brings communications sector balance to the update.

The four departing companies span dating apps, managed care, frozen food, and HR software: Match Group, Molina Healthcare, Lamb Weston, and Paycom. This is a snapshot of how dramatically the index’s centre of gravity has shifted toward AI-enabling infrastructure.

Why Bluetech Could Have Its Decade

Water problems are becoming harder to ignore. Flooding, hosepipe bans, contaminated drinking water, and rising utility bills are becoming more common; symptoms of both a tightening water supply and infrastructure that in many places is decades old.

Governments know upgrades are overdue. The US Environmental Protection Agency estimates more than USD 744 billion will be needed over the next 20 years to bring water and wastewater systems up to federal standards.

AI is accelerating the pressure. Data centres require large amounts of water for cooling, and the expansion is only beginning. By 2027, AI processing alone could consume 4.2–6.6 billion cubic metres of water annually. Meanwhile, roughly two-thirds of new US data centres since 2022 are being built in water-stressed regions, forcing operators to invest in treatment, recycling, and closed-loop cooling systems.

That creates a structural tailwind for Bluetech companies. Unlike utilities, which fund infrastructure upgrades, Bluetech firms sell the equipment and technology needed to solve the problem.

The bluetech sector returned 79% in the five years to January 2025, outperforming global equities. The opportunity is clear, but the timing is uneven. Water spending moves slowly, and contracts often lag political announcements. This is a long-term theme. For investors, a considered approach is to accumulate on weakness rather than chase momentum.

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Earnings Performance

Dollar Tree Inc (NASDAQ: DLTR)

Dollar Tree, Inc. reported fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 results, highlighting continued momentum in its core business as the discount retailer extends its long-standing streak of positive comparable store sales growth.

In fiscal 2025, comparable sales rose 5.3%, while a longer-term view shows 24% cumulative comp growth over the past five years, underscoring the durability of demand for value-focused retail.

The trend underscores how Dollar Tree has continued to drive store productivity through pricing initiatives and product mix changes, including the expansion of its multi-price strategy, helping sustain momentum despite modest traffic declines in the latest quarter.

Other Earnings Updates

• Oracle Corp (NYSE: ORCL): Q3 Revenue Surges 22% Amid Strong Cloud Growth

• Adobe (NASDAQ: ADBE): Posts $6.4B Q1 Revenue as CEO Narayen Plans Exit

• Ulta Beauty (NASDAQ: ULTA): Reports Fiscal 2025 Results

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

7 Stocks That Move on Hormuz Disruptions

When the Strait of Hormuz is threatened or closed, markets usually react within hours. Historically, the biggest moves occur in oil producers, tanker shipping companies, and defense contractors.

These seven US-listed stocks tend to show the clearest sensitivity.

Three variables set the ceiling on how far markets move: duration, price, and escalation. Each unlocks a new layer of impact.

Inflation’s Geopolitical Wildcard

The latest Consumer Prices Index (CPI) data shows inflation continuing to normalize across the U.S. economy, but the composition of price pressures tells a more nuanced story.

U.S. inflation remains relatively contained, with headline CPI up 2.4% year over year and core inflation at 2.5%. Food prices continue to run hotter at 3.1%, while energy has been a stabilizing force, rising just 0.5% over the past year.

For investors, the bigger story may be what comes next. The escalating war involving Iran has already disrupted global oil flows and pushed crude prices back toward $100 per barrel, raising the risk that energy costs could reaccelerate inflation in the months ahead.

In short, inflation looks controlled today, but the geopolitical backdrop is injecting fresh uncertainty into the forward outlook, particularly if energy markets tighten further.

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🛢️ Oil Shock Rattles Markets

U.S. stocks slid last week, as investors grappled with a sudden spike in oil prices and signs of a softer labor market. Escalating conflict in the Middle East disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, sending crude sharply higher and reigniting inflation fears. At the same time, the February jobs report showed an unexpected 92,000 job loss, raising concerns that economic momentum may be weakening. Energy stocks gained while travel, banking, and tech lagged, pushing the S&P 500 and Nasdaq to their worst weekly performance in months.

The coming week centers on inflation data and labor market signals. The Feb CPI report arrives Wed, Mar 11, a key read on whether rising energy prices are feeding into broader inflation, while JOLTS job openings land Fri, Mar 13. Markets will also watch oil prices and geopolitical headlines, which are already driving volatility and complicating the Federal Reserve’s rate outlook.

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North American IPO Activity

The chart shows a classic boom-bust-recovery cycle for North American IPOs over the past several years. Both deal value and deal count surged during the pandemic era, collapsed in the tightening cycle of 2022–2023, and are now showing early signs of recovery.

Listings surged from 2019 through 2021 as ultra-low interest rates, strong equity markets, and abundant liquidity fueled demand for growth companies. By 2021, the market hit a historic peak, with more than 1,100 deals raising over $300B.

Then the window slammed shut.

Aggressive rate hikes in 2022 crushed valuations and risk appetite, forcing many companies to delay going public. IPO activity collapsed through 2023 before beginning a modest recovery in 2024 and 2025.

Now Wall Street is betting on a stronger revival. Goldman Sachs estimates U.S. IPO proceeds could reach roughly $160B in 2026 if market conditions hold.

Much of that momentum may depend on a few blockbuster listings. Potential mega IPOs include OpenAI, which could debut at a valuation approaching $1T, and SpaceX, Elon Musk’s private rocket and satellite company.

Oil Price Fears

A rising price of oil affects almost everything in the global economy, increasing transport costs, manufacturing costs, and ultimately the price consumers pay for goods and energy.

That is why the jump in oil above $110 has rattled markets. The surge reflects fears around disruption in the Strait of Hormuz, not an immediate shortage of crude. In fact, global oil inventories are currently very high, more than 8.2 billion barrels, the largest stockpile since early 2021.

If Hormuz becomes impassable, these reserves could be released in a coordinated effort to stabilise supply, mainly flowing into the US, Europe, and parts of Asia through existing infrastructure. But those stockpiles can only cushion the shock. Around 20% of global oil supply normally passes through Hormuz, so a prolonged closure would still tighten the market and push prices higher.

The bigger risk is if the conflict spreads to critical infrastructure. Direct strikes on Gulf oil and gas facilities would remove supply from the market, while damage to desalination plants or power systems could also disrupt production. In that scenario, the current price spike could evolve into a more sustained global energy shock.

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Earnings Performance

Costco Wholesale Corp (NASDAQ: COST)

How fast is Costco’s e-commerce outrunning its stores?

Costco’s e-commerce business is growing much faster than its warehouse stores.

In Q2 2026, digitally enabled comparable sales rose 22.6% (or 21.7% excluding fuel and currency impacts), compared with 7.4% (or 6.7% excluding fuel and currency impacts) overall comparable sales growth. The trend was similar in Q1 2026, when digitally-enabled comparable sales climbed 20.5% versus 6.4% overall. Monthly figures also show strong momentum, with digital sales up 33.1% in January 2026.

Over the longer term, however, Costco’s online growth has trailed some competitors. UBS estimates its e-commerce sales have grown at an 18% annual rate since 2017, compared with about 27% for rivals like Walmart, Target, and Kroger.

Management has highlighted investment in personalised recommendations and improved product pages as driving stronger digital engagement.

Other Earnings Updates

• Marvell Technology Inc (NASDAQ: MRVL): Reports Strong Q4 Earnings

• Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE: CNQ): Sees 15% Production Surge

• Ross Stores, Inc. (NASDAQ: ROST): Beats Q4 EPS, Raises Dividend 10%

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

Druckenmiller’s Playbook, Decoded

Stan Druckenmiller told Morgan Stanley’s Hard Lessons podcast in January that AI no longer drives Duquesne’s portfolio, and what replaced it is telling.

Druckenmiller described a current book built around copper futures, gold, Japanese and Korean equities, and a short on US bonds as inflation insurance. The AI exposure that dominated Duquesne for three years is now “drips and drabs.” The catalyst for the shift: last summer, the sector started rhyming with 1999.

His replacement trade was Teva Pharmaceuticals, bought at $16 and six times earnings when CEO Richard Francis was executing a pivot from generics to biosimilars. Value investors hated the growth strategy; growth investors hadn’t yet bought the transition. By January, the stock had doubled to $32 and re-rated to roughly 12x earnings.

On the dollar, he’s outright bearish, not on a “sell America” thesis, but because foreign investors are overloaded in dollar assets and the currency sits near the top of its historical purchasing-power range. On copper, he admits it’s a popular trade, but holds it on supply constraints through 2032 and AI data centre demand.

He openly flags that a Fed rate cut into a strong economy could reignite inflation, precisely the scenario his short bond position is designed to hedge, not predict.

Druckenmiller’s rotation out of AI concentration and into copper, biotech, and non-dollar assets over an 18-month to three-year horizon may signal where the next multi-year opportunities are quietly forming.

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We analyze recent trends and opportunities, offering strategic insights that help you manage risks and identify growth opportunities for your portfolio.

📉 Hot Inflation Data Rattles Stocks

U.S. stocks finished last week mostly lower as worries around AI disruption, inflation, and renewed geopolitical risk weighed on sentiment. The S&P 500, Nasdaq, and Dow all posted weekly declines, with tech and financial names hit hardest while defensive sectors outperformed. Oil prices jumped sharply on escalating conflict in the Middle East, pushing investors into safe havens and boosting energy and defense stocks.

Markets now turn to the February jobs report on Friday, alongside ISM manufacturing and services data earlier in the week. Investors will watch for signs that growth is cooling enough to ease inflation without tipping the economy into recession. Ongoing geopolitical risks remain a wildcard. Sticky wholesale inflation could delay Fed rate cuts, which tends to pressure high-growth sectors like tech.

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Investing Data Story

With 86% of exploration permits approved in 2 months or less, Newfoundland ranks as one of the fastest permitting jurisdictions surveyed globally.

Ranked: Where Exploration Approvals Move Fastest

Small-Caps Stage a Comeback

After nearly three years of grinding underperformance against large-caps, U.S. small-cap stocks are finally closing the gap, and the move looks fundamental, not just a sentiment bounce.

Since late October 2025, small-caps have sharply outpaced the S&P 500, with T. Rowe Price’s analysis showing the performance gap that built up since the end of 2022 has begun to meaningfully narrow. More importantly, earnings, which had been a persistent drag, have turned a corner. Small-cap profits fell sharply for most of the past three years, then rebounded hard in the final months of 2025.

Several tailwinds are converging:

• Fed rate cuts are easing pressure on smaller, more debt-heavy businesses

• Trade policy uncertainty has cooled, helping domestically focused companies plan ahead

• Regional banks, a critical funding source for small-caps, are in better shape

• AI-related demand is starting to filter down beyond the mega-caps.

• Early fiscal stimulus from recently passed legislation adds further support.

The thesis depends on rates staying accommodative and trade tensions remaining contained. Monitor small-cap earnings momentum through mid-2026 as the real test of whether this revival has legs.

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Earnings Performance

Celsius Holdings Inc (NASDAQ: CELH)

Celsius Holdings posted a decisive Q4 2025 earnings beat, reporting $721.6M in revenue, up ~117% YoY, driven largely by the Alani Nu acquisition, with adjusted EPS of $0.26 well ahead of expectations. The results reflect a clear step-change in scale, as expanded distribution materially lifted the company’s retail footprint and top-line growth. While Alani Nu is the primary driver of current results, the recently closed Rockstar Energy acquisition remains too early to meaningfully impact reported retail sales.

Other Earnings Updates

• Zeta Global (NYSE: ZETA): Lifts 2026 Outlook After Q4 Beat

• TJX Companies, Inc. (NYSE: TJX): Closes FY26 Above Plan, Lifts Buyback

• CAVA Group (NYSE: CAVA): Tops $1B in FY25 as Expansion Accelerates

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

China Biotech’s Leverage Shift

The days of Western pharma scooping up Chinese drug assets on the cheap are fading. Average upfront payments for licensing deals with Chinese biotechs have risen sharply since 2022, according to biopharma intelligence firm Evaluate, and 2026 is tracking even higher.

The shift reflects a structural change, not a pricing blip. Chinese biotechs have built genuine scientific depth, particularly in oncology. They now account for roughly half of all clinical-stage antibody-drug conjugates and bispecific antibodies in development globally. That kind of market share means Western companies shopping for pipeline assets, and most are, increasingly must engage Chinese counterparts at more competitive terms.

AstraZeneca’s recent collaboration with CSPC Pharmaceutical, including a $1.2 billion upfront payment and milestones that could total roughly $18.5 billion, underscores how seriously large pharma is treating Chinese-origin innovation.

Chinese firms are also less dependent on outbound licensing to survive. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Biotech Index surged over 64% in 2025, and evolving listing rules in Hong Kong have broadened capital access. More financing options translate into greater negotiating leverage and potentially fewer distressed or discounted deals.

More financing options mean more negotiating power, and, over time, more Chinese firms may pursue full acquisitions rather than licensing at all.

Investors should expect valuation pressure on Western biotechs reliant on discounted Chinese in-licensing, as that arbitrage narrows. The pending Biosecure Act could further disrupt U.S.–China biotech deal flow, increasing repricing risk for companies with concentrated Chinese pipeline exposure.

Edition #145
Investing Unlocks: How to Capitalize on the Hot Topics From The Last 7 Days

We analyze recent trends and opportunities, offering strategic insights that help you manage risks and identify growth opportunities for your portfolio.

🧭 Markets Rebound, Trade Risks Linger

U.S. markets rebounded last week after recent weakness, and stocks climbed as the Supreme Court struck down key elements of President Trump’s tariff program, easing some near-term policy uncertainty and lifting sentiment in mega-cap tech stocks.

Markets face fresh uncertainty this week as trade policy remains in flux with news of new temporary tariffs after the court ruling and lingering geopolitical risks. Major earnings reports from Nvidia, Home Depot, Salesforce, and others will command attention and could drive sector rotation or broad market moves.

Hot Topics

• Novo slides 15% after drug disappoints

• Netflix boss defends bid for Warner Bros

• Live Nation Seeks to Pause DOJ Case a Week Before Trial

• Johnson Matthey accepts 26% price cut on Honeywell deal

• Blue Owl offers a harsh lesson for semi-liquid fund investors

• Amazon stock: Buffett trims stake as Ackman doubles down

• Big Tech gets a lift after Nvidia and Meta strike a new deal on chips

• Walmart says AI users build 35% bigger baskets than others

• German Drone Deal Under Scrutiny Over Thiel Stake in Start-up

• Cyber Stocks Slide as Anthropic Unveils Claude Security Tool

• Danaher To Acquire Masimo Corporation

• Bernie Sanders Outlines His Main Concerns With Proliferation Of AI

• eBay to Acquire Depop from Etsy

Investing Data Story

With 86% of exploration permits approved in 2 months or less, Newfoundland ranks as one of the fastest permitting jurisdictions surveyed globally.

Ranked: Where Exploration Approvals Move Fastest

Robinhood Opens the Velvet Rope

Robinhood’s Ventures Fund I is among the most accessible private market vehicles ever made available to retail investors, NYSE-listed, $25 per share, no accreditation requirement, no minimums.

Trading under ticker RVI, the closed-end fund is scheduled to begin exchange operations on February 26, 2026. The initial portfolio includes stakes in Databricks, Revolut, Ramp, Airwallex, Boom, and Oura. The sponsor has also entered into an agreement to acquire shares in Stripe, a position expected to settle following the IPO. The fee structure includes a 1% management fee for the first six months (increasing to 2% thereafter), no performance fees, and intraday liquidity through exchange trading.

As a closed-end fund, RVI issues a fixed number of shares that trade at market-determined prices on the NYSE. The portfolio’s brand-name appeal is likely to attract interest from investors unfamiliar with private-market structures, which is both the product’s strength and its central risk. Familiarity can support early demand, but it can also lead to pricing that reflects enthusiasm more than valuation discipline.

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Earnings Performance

Figma Inc (NYSE: FIG)

Figma (NYSE: FIG) closed out fiscal 2025 with a strong quarter, Q4 revenue hit $304M, up 40% year-over-year, pushing full-year revenue to $1.056B. The company went public in 2025, but the stock has fallen sharply since its IPO, making these results closely watched.

The standout metric is Net Dollar Retention (NDR), shown above. At 136%, it means existing customers are spending 36% more than they were a year ago, a powerful signal of product stickiness and expanding usage. After softening through early 2025, the rebound to a new high suggests Figma’s AI push, particularly Figma Make, is translating into real customer spend.

Other Earnings Updates

• Lemonade (NYSE: LMND): Beats Estimates with Stronger Earnings Report

• Palo Alto Networks (NASDAQ: PANW): Posts 15% Revenue Growth in Q2

• Deere & Company (NYSE: DE): Beats Q1 Estimates for 2026

The Rise of Agentic Commerce

AI-powered shopping agents could capture 10 to 20% of U.S. e-commerce by 2030, according to Morgan Stanley. Yet adoption remains early, with 40 to 50% of consumers using AI tools for research, but only a mid single-digit percentage are completing purchases through them.

That gap highlights both real demand and real hurdles, though early data suggests it can close faster than aggregate numbers imply. Walmart reports that roughly half of its app users have engaged with Sparky, its AI shopping agent, with Sparky users carrying average order values approximately 35% higher than non-Sparky customers.

The bigger shift is in how people start shopping. Moving from search and click to ask and buy changes who controls product discovery, and by extension, advertising. The impact depends critically on who owns the agent. Walmart is already testing sponsored placements within Sparky, suggesting retailers that control their own agent layer can migrate their retail media businesses into it rather than lose them. The existential risk falls on platforms that cede the agent relationship to a third party.

Agentic commerce is also proving its strongest use case in grocery and consumer packaged goods. Sparky can already identify shoppers who buy the same items weekly and prompt a reorder at app open, real-world validation that the frequency and conversion benefits are achievable, not merely theoretical.

The opportunity is meaningful, but asymmetric: retailers that own their agent experience are better positioned to capture the upside, while those that don’t face a more disruptive transition over the next five years.

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

More Tariff Controversy

A little-noticed Wall Street trade is drawing scrutiny after a US Supreme Court decision struck down Trump’s sweeping import taxes. As legal challenges to the tariffs wound through the courts, Cantor Fitzgerald offered to pay companies 20–30 cents on the dollar upfront in exchange for the rights to their full tariff refund once the legal process played out.

Why it’s controversial

Howard Lutnick, the Commerce Secretary who publicly championed these tariffs, ran Cantor Fitzgerald until recently, and his sons now run it. His firm was essentially betting the tariffs would be struck down, buying up these refund rights at a discount in anticipation of exactly what just happened.

The uncomfortable question: was Lutnick privately signaling to his family’s firm that the tariffs were legally shaky, while publicly defending them? Or did his firm simply have better legal instincts than most?

Edition #144
Investing Unlocks: How to Capitalize on the Hot Topics From The Last 7 Days

We analyze recent trends and opportunities, offering strategic insights that help you manage risks and identify growth opportunities for your portfolio.

📉 Stocks Slide on AI Shock

Stocks posted their worst week since November as AI disruption fears swept across markets. Tech stocks saw sharp volatility, which spilled into industrials, financials and other sectors. Consumer inflation slowed, helping temper rate concerns even as broader risk appetite weakened.

Investors will focus on housing starts and existing home sales, along with the latest FOMC meeting minutes and fresh inflation signals that could shape rate cut expectations.

PRESENTED BY CANTERRA MINERALS CORP.

Canterra Minerals (TSX-V: CTM, OTCQB: CTMCF) is advancing a fully-funded 10,000-metre drill program across its 55 km copper-gold corridor in Newfoundland.

Get all the details in our in-depth investor guide.

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Hot Topics

• Warner Bros. Discovery Eyes Renewed Discussions With Paramount

• Mr Beast Hopes To Educate Youngsters on Finance

• CME Group Plans First Rare Earth Futures Contract

• Kroger Taps Greg Koran, Ex Walmart Leader, as Chief

• Morgan Stanley Sees Bitcoin Miners As Wider Infrastructure Plays

• $900B Saudi Public Investment Fund Targets 5-Year AI, Tourism Push

• Alphabet Launches Bonds in Sterling, Swiss Francs Amid Huge Demand

Investing Data Story

Brazil’s crop exports remain near record highs in 2025, keeping potash demand strong and proving its essential role in global food production.

Potash Demand Remains Strong as Brazil Delivers Record Crops

The Battery Storage Opportunity

Utility-scale battery capacity has grown 12x since 2020, according to the IEA, with installation costs down 40% since 2024 and continued price declines expected. This isn’t speculative; deployment is accelerating in Texas and California, where grid reliability pressures are acute.

These batteries provide short-term flexibility, storing excess solar and wind power during the day and dispatching it during evening demand peaks or weather disruptions, a growing need as renewable penetration increases.

But supply chain concentration in China creates both risk and opportunity. North American investors should watch two categories:

• Western supply chain developers (battery manufacturers, lithium processors, component makers outside China) may benefit from diversification efforts

• Integration and services companies (installers, grid management software, project developers) that aren’t dependent on manufacturing

Multi-year delays in securing grid connections and permitting mean the growth trajectory isn’t smooth, and companies face execution risk even in a favorable market.

Best suited for investors focused on:

• Long-term energy transition themes (5-10 year horizon)

• Infrastructure investments with government policy tailwinds

• Diversification away from traditional energy utilities

The technology works, the economics are improving, but timing implementation remains uncertain. Monitor rather than chase.

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Earnings Performance

Anheuser-Busch Inbev SA (NYSE: BUD)

Anheuser-Busch Inbev SA (NYSE: BUD) delivered solid Q4 2024 results with EPS of $0.95, beating estimates of $0.91, while full-year 2024 revenue reached $59.32 billion with organic growth of 2% despite a 2.6% decline in beer volumes. The company achieved a significant deleveraging milestone, bringing net debt-to-EBITDA below 3.0x for the first time since 2015, which enabled management to enhance shareholder returns through a $2 billion share buyback program and a 22% dividend increase to €1 per share.

Free cash flow remained robust at $11.3 billion in FY25, matching the prior year’s strong performance and demonstrating consistent cash generation capabilities despite macroeconomic pressures.

Overall sentiment is cautiously optimistic, with analysts recognizing the company’s strong fundamentals, improved financial position, and growth potential, while remaining watchful of volume pressures and macroeconomic headwinds.

Other Earnings Updates

• Ford (NYSE: F): Novelis Disruption Masks Underlying Strength

• Robinhood (NASDAQ: HOOD): Misses Revenue Targets; Stock Drops

• Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN): Q4 2025 Revenue Misses Expectations

Investing Data Story

In 2025, gold demand flipped. As consumer appetite faded, investors and central banks took control—and miners started betting on higher prices.

The Great Gold Pivot: Why Miners Are Betting on Higher Prices

Analyst Strong Buy Ratings This Week! 📈

Looking for stocks with strong analyst backing? These companies have earned top-tier "Strong Buy" ratings from analysts, signaling potential upside for investors.

Whether you’re eyeing small-to-mid cap opportunities in the U.S. and Canada or want to stick with trusted S&P 500 blue-chip picks, this list highlights stocks that experts believe could outperform.

🔍 Do your research and see if any of these fit your portfolio!

The AI Chip Crunch

A new semiconductor crisis is emerging, driven by AI data center demand for advanced memory chips. Unlike the pandemic-era shortage, this one could last until 2027-2028.

What’s Happening: Memory makers are prioritizing high-bandwidth memory for AI over chips for consumer devices. SK Hynix and Micron are facing severe supply constraints, while Nvidia won’t release a new graphics chip for gamers this year, (the first year in 3 decades!) due to the deepening global shortage of memory chips.

Investor Impact:

• Device makers (Apple, Dell, HP): Memory price hikes could squeeze margins or force price increases.

• Memory winners (Micron, SK Hynix): Multi-year revenue visibility with premium pricing.

• AI supply chain (NVIDIA, AMD, TSMC, ASML): Extended pricing power continues.

• Equipment makers (Applied Materials, Lam Research): Benefiting from more than $600B in announced U.S. semiconductor ecosystem investments since 2020.

• Consumer tech: Potential headwinds from higher costs and constrained supply.

Bottom Line: This isn’t temporary. It’s a structural shift, favoring memory and AI infrastructure plays for 2-3 years.