The commodity market moves to the beat of its own drum, usually reflecting specific supply and demand dynamics. A number of commodities have seen either a supply shock or rising demand in recent years. Those tend to be good for prices. Sometimes, however, commodities fall out of favor. For instance, declining demand for EVs has led to a big drop in lithium prices. Lithium is a key component for rechargeable battery technologies, and EVs are a big chunk of that demand. However, the market is now stabilizing. Lithium producers likeAlbemarle (ALB) have scaled back new production from mi...

With rising geopolitical tensions, investors have been pushing defensive names higher. That includes gold, which has hit new all-time highs. Oil has had some small spikes higher, but nothing major yet. One big winner from this rising trend is defense contractors. Military spending is likely to increase, both domestically and abroad, and major U.S. contractors will likely reap the largest benefits, especially those companies that also help supply American allies. In the defense space, aerospace contractorLockheed Martin (LMT) could see further gains. Lockheed just reported a beat on e...

Some companies make their profits because they benefit from a network effect. Simply put, the more users there are on a network, the more valuable that network is. Companies that advertise to that network or support that network benefit from large or growing networks. Investors who buy companies that can benefit from the network effect when they’re trading lower can earn above-average returns over time thanks to this powerful effect. One example of a network is the network of smartphones. Companies that provide access to cell networks tend to earn steady, and above-average returns ov...

Streaming stocks have gone in and out of favor with the market over the past few years. Today, Wall Street analysts have conditioned investors to focus on metrics like total subscriber count. The past year has seen the major streaming platforms find ways to crack down on password sharing. And that’s created more account users. However, that’s not always the best way to maximize earnings. Despite beating on subscriber count and earnings,Netflix (NFLX) saw shares drop off. Part of the reason is the current market correction. But Wall Street also doesn’t like that the company will st...

With markets now decisively off their most recent highs, uncertainty is rising in markets. We don’t know how long or how deep a market pullback will go. Typically, in the absence of a major crisis, the pullbacks aren’t too bad. That can give investors an opportunity to buy great companies at more reasonable prices. With earnings season underway, investors can also buy a company after reporting a fresh update on their operations. One market winner here could be asset managerBlackstone (BX). The company just dropped after earnings, but they did report that their credit trading strategi...

After its 10th longest winning streak in history, the stock market has finally pulled back. The S&P 500 sank to the 50-day moving average, a sign that the uptrend may be over. However, the market often has small pullbacks of this nature. These pullbacks cause investors to unwind leveraged positions, take profits, and look for new buying opportunities. Pullbacks are healthy, and typically happen a few times per year. With the recent pullback occurring at the start of earnings season, there may be some new buying opportunities. Companies that miss on earnings during a market pul...

Markets hate uncertainty. An increase in uncertainty is a nearly guaranteed way to ensure that a company’s shares decline. Big uncertainties about the economy or geopolitical events can rattle the markets. The reverse is also true. Investors pay up for certainty. That’s a premium that investors can avoid by buying great companies when they’re still contending with uncertainty. One way to avoid uncertainty is to look at facts of a company that are certain, starting with its earnings. In particular, the trend of a company’s earnings growth can show a business that’s on the upswing, eve...

It’s always a stock picker’s market. Today, with the market slowing down after a massive rally, that’s more important than ever. And the latest earnings season shows that big banks can be profitable when interest rates rise, but there can be downsides too. That’s why it’s crucial that investors carefully look for winners that can succeed with today’s high interest rates. And that they’re structured to fare well when interest rates do start to decline later in the year. While interest rates have been rising, capital markets have started to see more action with the stock market rally o...

Cryptocurrencies have already had a great start to the year. But that rally isn’t over yet. Bitcoin is just days away from its halving, when the reward for mining the crypto is cut in half. Each of the prior halving events have seen a big price rally in the following months. Today, investors have plenty of ways to play this trend, from bitcoin and altcoins to bitcoin ETFs. But a big winner here may be the crypto exchanges themselves. These companies performed well during the last halving cycle, and today, the ones that still trade are still well off their highs. In the space, stick w...

With the overall stock market slowing, investors should look to take profits in areas that have had large moves higher. And the proceeds should move to stocks still trending higher today. Typically, food and beverage companies are recession-resistant. But changing consumer tastes and higher food costs have largely weighed on this sector. One niche of this space, however, looks unaffected, and could continue to keep moving higher. The space is the spirits industry. Alcohol sales have remained robust, and beer sales are on the rise again after a shift away in recent years. That’s al...