Just when everything is looking good in the markets and the economy, something has to show up and throw a wrench in the works.  When the S&P 5001 hit an all-time high on May 1st, the tweeting began.  And just like that, the US is flirting with a trade war …

After an impressively and unexpectedly bad Q4 of 2018, the stock market rebound (specifically the S&P 5001) is finally getting close to where it stopped and rolled over in late September.  However, not all areas are participating.  Small Cap stocks (Russell 2000) still have a while to go before getting …

The first quarter of 2019 was a nice change from what we saw in Q4 of last year.  And while it was one of the strongest first quarters since 1998 (cnbc.com), the S&P 5001 still hasn’t recovered the all-time highs it reached in September 2018.  It ’s also been interesting …

Wow, this year isn’t going as many investors and investment managers predicted.  But that might be a good thing.  I’m often in touch with several other money managers during the month to compare notes about what the market is doing and how others are responding to it. Surprisingly, I’ve found …

After an unexpectedly and uncharacteristically ugly December, January 2019 so far has been a nice break from the down-trend.  The government shutdown, while a big source of debate politically, was a non-issue relating to movement in the stock market.  It could be argued that the market approved of the government …

The Grinch apparently stole the Christmas rally this year.  Even with odds favoring a positive December, the S&P 5001 is somehow now on the verge of the worst December in history (cnbc.com).  That being said, a post-Christmas rally appears to be bringing the oversold bounce we’ve been expecting for days …

It’s been a rollercoaster of a ride so far this November.  The S&P 5001 has been up, down, and is now back just above where we started the month (stockcharts.com).  We remain hopeful and optimistic that we’ll see the famed “Santa Clause Rally” that often occurs in the second half …

Historically, the months of September and October don’t have good odds of positive returns in the stock market (Stock Trader’s Almanac).  And while September this year was slightly positive, October came in and gave back all the gains of the S&P 500 for the year so far (Fast Track data).  …

Yesterday’s market declines (the S&P 500 down 3.29%, according to FastTrack data) were entirely within the range of a normal adjustment. Despite the claims of talking heads, this doesn’t appear to be a “crash,” nor is it a reason to panic. It has been our outlook for the second half …

“So far, so good” is surprisingly how we are faring in the 3rd quarter of this year.  We continue to remain in a seasonally questionable time, but overall the S&P 5001 is still holding above its long-term moving averages (see chart below).  And while we’ve seen a slight rotation from …