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Mark Twain once said that “History never repeats itself, but it does often rhyme.” There are several periods in the market’s history that have followed that saying to a “T”. And when that happens, there’s always an opportunity to profit….

Yesterday we took a look at the regional bank sector by way of analysis of the S&P Regional Banking ETF (KRE). If you didn’t catch my analysis of the situation currently unfolding in this key sector, then take a moment…

The Fed has been talking about it for more than a year. Wall Street’s analysts have caught on in the last few months, finally. Even the Fed’s staunchest critics are starting to agree. I’m talking about interest rates.  More specifically,…

Good afternoon Trader, Have you been keeping up with my podcast releases? We’re currently working on getting them posted to some of your favorite apps such as Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, Ect. I’ll be sure to give you an update…

Should you be buying or selling the S&P 500 during the month of September? I’m gonna answer that question for you in just a second and it has everything to do with seasonality. Now, I know I’ve been beating this…

And Just like that, seasonality gets to work. OK, I always tell you that “one day is a point, two days is a line and three days or more is a trend”, so take this morning’s opening of the markets…

It starts tomorrow. The worst month of the year in terms of performance on the major indices. I’ve been setting up for the worst month of the year for quite some time It’s presenting as a  phenomenal opportunity, one that…

Yesterday, I sent you a list of stocks that are currently trading above their 50-day moving average (MA50) – it’s the stocks that make up the market breadth. If you missed it you can find the list right here. Today…

As I’m sure you know by now, I’m a technical trader.  The reason that the technicals work is because it’s a set of rules that people follow. This is why you never see a 72-day moving average, who knows, that…

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT), Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL), and NVIDIA Corp. (NVDA). Three companies that have seen their market capitalization go from $3.1 Trillion to $5.1 Trillion since the beginning of 2023. For all investors that’s mind-numbing and exciting.  The kind of…

This morning I had everything set to talk about the approach of the Retail earnings reporting season. Names like Walmart Inc. (WMT), Target Corp. (TGT), Home Depot Inc. (HD), Macy’s Inc. (M), and the rest of the crew start releasing…

Hey guys,  It’s CJ here.  I wanted to hit you with a quick market update as well as a couple of indicators we need to watch and I’ve got one stock that you’re gonna want to watch here in case…

Think of something that you enjoy, like really enjoy.   I don’t care what it is.  Maybe you like to drive, ride a bike, sail a boat, play golf, or anything. Now, think about the “sweet spot” of that thing you…

Most good movies or books have a villain of some sort.  The character that you root against, but also respect because it adds a certain excitement to the story. For the last two weeks, I’ve been warning that the seasonal…

One of the oldest cliché or sayings in the investing world, “The trend is your friend” is also one of the easiest rules to follow for the average investor.  Perhaps Sir Isaac Newton put it best with his First Law…

Hey, there traders, I sent you a report on my expectations for the Walt Disney Co. (DIS) earnings scheduled for next Wednesday.  If you missed the report you can check it out right here Save that report because there’s a…

Hey guys, I’m sure if you’ve been following me for ANY length of time you’ve heard me say the word ‘Podcast’ with no context. That’s my way of telling the people around me that I want to start a podcast…

  Earnings aren’t hard to navigate, they’re actually very simple. Ratio and fundamental scores don’t matter.  Those are the tools you use to find stocks that you are going to hold and pass on to your estate. Profits and forecasts,…

I have this funny vision in my head this morning… Janet Yellen rolls over in the middle of the night after hearing her phone give a gentle “ding”. She pulls the phone off her bedside table, and it immediately opens…

Yesterday I introduced you to the approach of avoiding “crowded” stocks ahead of earnings.  The reason is simple.  Stocks with extremely optimistic sentiment are often “priced for perfection” and find it harder to impress the “crowd”. I didn’t go into…

There’s been a clear trend developing this earnings season.  It’s not an old one, but it has to do with one of my Ten Commandments of Trading. Following this trend and my Commandment is nailing some opportunities this earnings season. …

Look, it’s no secret, I’m a notorious bear. At least lately… But, I’ve always told you that when the data changes – so will my opinion… And I went over the data changes and my new stance on energy and…

Jerome Powell took the podium for his press conference yesterday… Chairman Powell is not doing any victory laps. He reminds us that there may be more hikes to come.  The Chairman is also reminding us that rates aren’t going down…

This Sector is Getting Back to Its Bullish Way “When the facts change, I change my mind – what do you do, sir?” – John Maynard Keynes This quote applies to one sector of the market that’s ready to break…

It’s here, the real start of the earnings season! Earnings got off to a mixed start last week as the banks kicked off the season with some flair. The financials – which has been the most feared sector of the…

Good afternoon, As I’m sure you’ve noticed by now, I’m a sucker for the technical side of trading. Well today, I want to show you the three things I’m watching from a technical perspective.  Why? Because it’s earnings season BABY!…

Meatloaf taught us that “Two Out of Three Aint Bad”, but the market may be taking that to an extreme. Last week I outlined the thrill and the danger of a buy-the-rumor rally.  You need to review what this signature…

I’m starting to get a funny feeling about this market, almost a sense of déjà vu with everything that’s going on…   Are you?    Well maybe I’ll be able to enlighten you on why I feel this way and…

Remember Kerri Strugg’s unlikely performance in the 1996 Olympics? If not, let me refresh your memory. In the final rotation of the floor exercises the U.S. Women’s team held a lead over Team Russia.  Things turned during that final rotation…

The market is all about risk/reward, we know that as both investors and traders. Though many don’t know it, sentiment – true sentiment – is at the core of the risk-reward valuation. I’m watching two fundamentally different sentiment pictures as…

All right guys, This morning we saw the Consumer Price Index (CPI) hit the tape and it came in on the tepid side which was quite encouraging for investors as they started to lift the tide of the market and…

It’s finally here.   That one out of four times a year that the market gets to see real numbers that actually put a valuation on the stocks that they have been buying or selling for the last three months.   Not…

Live Nation Entertainment Inc. (LYV) We’ve all heard the stories about people getting out there to travel this summer.   We’ve also heard stories about how demand for ticketed events has increased from demand.  I’m here to tell you that it’s…

To say that it feels like the market feels like it has been here before would be an understatement. Stocks are rolling into early July with a full head of steam as the market is coming off a strong first…

Good evening,  CJ here. You know every time we have a nice long weekend like we just finished, the first day back always feels like a break from being on break – it’s almost more refreshing to get back to…

Several weeks ago I sent you a trading strategy using LEAP options trades that essentially negates all headline risk. This strategy also gives you the ability to write covered calls once the option is “in the money” The long and…

As hard as it is to say, I’m still bullish on the consumer. It feels so wrong, which is what makes it so right from my unique approach to tracking the market (more on that in a bit).  For more…

“Don’t Count the Consumer Out Just Yet” There are certain tenets of the economy and the market that you learn and respect.  One of those is that the consumer controls the economy, and therefore the market. That belief is based…

I’m sure most of you know and understand the dot-com bubble. If not, The dot-com bubble was a rapid rise in U.S. technology stock equity valuations fueled by investments in Internet-based companies during the bull market in the late 1990s. …

The Commercial Real Estate Market is heading toward a critical mass moment, and it’s not alone. There’s a problem that’s been brewing in the real estate market since the pandemic started. The problem is not in the residential real estate…

The Cincinnati Reds are on a run.  So is the market. The team that was forecasted to be one of the worst in the league this season, yet, has strung together 11 wins in a row.  It’s a great feeling,…

The housing market is in a bubble! Housing prices are set to fall by 30-50%! Higher interest rates are going to kill the housing market! You’ve likely heard one of these claims in the last year.  Regardless of which analyst…

The markets head into this shortened trading week with some very extreme feelings. Just last week we saw three different Wall Street firms switch their posture from bearish to bullish as the “acceptance” phase of the market rally is really…

The shorts are starting to get squeezed out of every corner of the market. We’ve talked about how the rally was starting to spread from the smaller group of large-cap tech stocks earlier this week to some of the small-cap…

Mark Twain would likely love this sector today as the reports of its death may have been greatly exaggerated. Well, maybe at least for now it has. From my perspective, This may be one of the tallest Walls of Worry…

Remember Dow 10,000? I do the anticipation, the excitement, and then the selloff. The memory of the 10,000 mark crossed my head over the weekend as I read the point-counterpoint debate over whether the market has finally entered a new…

I got a call from a friend last week with a very specific question. “Hey CJ, I saw what happened with NVIDIA stock after earnings and I need to buy some of these shares.  Do you think it’s worth dropping…

Russell 2000 Index ETF (IWM) is testing Its 200-Day Moving Average (MA200) Small-cap stocks have had a rough year as the IWM is only up 3% while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 are each up 13% and 33% respectively.  …

Wow, what a week! Last week we got to watch the market overcome one of the largest crises that it faced in the last year… the Debt Ceiling. The politicians opted not to take this right up to the eleventh…

If you need a laugh for a second, the current situation surrounding the Debt Ceiling reminds me of a Seinfeld episode.  Remember the episode when Cramer test drives the Saab to find out how far he can go on an…

  As I start my normal “Walk Down Main Street” on Monday night the three things that this market is going to be focused on couldn’t be any clearer.   First, of course, is A.I. In case you missed it, NVIDIA…

As I’m sure all of you know a friend of mine – Kenny Glick – continues to make the claim that we are in a bull market.  He says to avoid shorting the Invesco QQQ Trust Series 1 (QQQ) because…

We’re in the heat of earnings season for retail, and we’re getting a feel for how well the consumer is weathering through the recent slowdown in the credit cycle.  That’s right, the credit cycle, or what we will refer to…

Depending on who you ask about the market right now, you’ll get a variety of answers. Some people are hellbent that this is the beginning of a new bull market. Others, such as myself, realize that this market is still disconnected…

We’re kicking off the week with a familiar feeling – being a little nervous while simultaneously saying to ourselves, “There’s no way.” I Don’t Want To, But We Need To Talk Debt Ceiling There’s no way they won’t come to…

Surely you’ve heard me say this before… “Volatility is a trader’s best friend.” But let that sink in for a minute, and I’ll explain to you why you should like volatility. First, let’s establish that there are two different approaches…

Here we go, the earnings season is finally setting its sights on the retail sector, as companies like Home Depot Inc (HD), Walmart Inc (WMY), Target Corp (TGT), and TJX Companies (TJX) start providing their results and guidance. Just like…

Yesterday, the New York Fed dropped its household debt report. The findings were pretty eye-opening – even for me, someone whose been pounding the “credit-reliant” drum a lot throughout the past couple of months. Usually, after the winter holidays, people…

Biotech Stocks are Getting Ready to Breakout 8Baller and I covered this chart late last week, and it looks coverage worthy again, as the SPDR S&P Biotech ETF (XBI) is preparing to break to the top of its recent range with…

If you’re keeping score at home – and let’s face it, we’re all keeping score – the Invesco QQQ Trust Series 1 (QQQ) squeaked out another weekly win last week. However, during the same timeframe, the iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM)…

What is Technical Analysis? In its simplest form, technical analysis is the study of price. Of course, you can climb deeper than that but for now, we’ll stick with the study of price. From trendlines to stochastics, oscillators, and other…

Here we go again…  Fresh regional bank headlines crossed the wire at 7:40 this morning, as PacWest Bancorp (PACW) shares dropped 20% in the pre-market trading session.   The headlines meshed well with others from earlier in the week that implied…

Well, the markets are grinding their way through hump day with some volatility despite the CPI report delivering some good news ahead of the market open. This has some traders asking “Why?” – but we already know one of the…

A week or so ago, I ordered a package on Amazon.  Don’t worry, this isn’t me patting myself on the back for something seemingly everyone does every day.  But bear with me, because this story definitely paints a broader picture. …

That air you heard coming out of the banking sector on Monday was partially due to a little-read report (until things get interesting) from the Fed.  It’s called the Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on bank lending practices – or…

You know I consume the news like Joey Chestnut on Coney Island. Well, this one stopped me in my tracks… Now, the full quote is, “It’s widely agreed that financial and economic chaos will ensue.” This calls for a quick…

Traders jumped right in to buy the regional banks late in the trading week, as they sensed a short-term bottom may be in place. I’ll put it to you that we’re just seeing a new “Standing Eight Count” on this…

Just yesterday – I mean, literally, just yesterday – I warned you there was a volatility storm brewing in the markets. Now, one day doesn’t make for a trend, but volatility storms are usually triggered by conditions very similar to…

If you missed it Wednesday morning, I talked about how my “Walk Down Main Street” approach has pinpointed the iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM) and its constituent stocks as one of the most critical segments of the market at this…

The FOMC decision came this afternoon, but who are we kidding, it’s been made for a while. And for what it’s worth, the market has already priced in that decision – to raise rates another 0.25% and hold out for…

Yesterday, I mentioned Charlie Munger (aka “Mt. Munger”), the 99-year old almost-perpetual bull, and his prediction of trouble ahead in commercial real estate. According to Munger, the banks are packed with bad loans.  Now, if you’ve been plugged into Penny…

Six months… That’s how long this market has been trading within some relatively tight ranges.   But that appears ready to change.  Over the last week, I’ve noticed that the list of stocks that were experiencing their own volatility squeezes was…

As a technical trader, I am always looking for incongruities on the market to identify trades. Well, the Nasdaq 100 Index has been struggling to get itself into positive territory today. After outperforming the rest of the market on strong…

The markets are coming off a winning week after the S&P 500 (SPY) moved 1% higher powered by a familiar friend – large-cap technology.  But there was something missing, as one of the more important tech sectors was not only…

There are currently 32 companies in the S&P 500 that are trading within 1% of their 200-day moving average (MA200). What makes this interesting is that people are still of the mindset that everything is fine and the market is…

In the immediate wake of the Silicon Valley Bank disaster, we talked about the banking sector like a raging housefire across the street.  These spectacles are hard to ignore for the entire neighborhood – understandably so.  However, at the end…

The big tech earnings coming this week are top of mind for most people — and for good reason. But with the impact it has on the market, we’d be foolish to not be preparing for next week’s FOMC meeting….

I told you last week that I’m bearish oil.  That piece was a fundamental analysis of the situation that uniquely impacts the price of this commodity.  When Tesla sees demand drop, it has to lower the price of its cars…

I’m sure you’ve heard by now that I’ve been working on a new filter to find contracting Bollinger bands. This is going to revolutionize my process in bringing you the best trade possible because now, with a single click, I…

After spending the first four days of the week dropping, the United States Oil ETF (USO) saw a bump today.  Traders and investors alike are losing their minds. Oil at $100? The narrative is stronger than ever.   Yeah, right.   This…

Look, it’s no secret that I love the Bollinger Bands. I talk about them all the time because I’ve been honing my skills with them more and more. They can be an extremely effective tool in ANY market – but…

Let’s use our imagination for a second.  You’re in the boxing ring against Muhammad Ali (yikes), and he lands a powerful right hook that sends you tumbling to the mat.  In this hypothetical, you’re not dead (somehow). Instead, you push…

we have a market that’s moving higher – but nobody is willing to push it beyond this point. Right now, nobody is selling, and nobody is buying. And it’s all because we are in a market that is lacking confidence …

It’s easy to get lost in the day-to-day bustle of the market sometimes.  You hear me mention certain technical indicators and different jargon often, but sometimes I think it’s helpful to slow things down a little to ensure you’re with…

Chances are you’ve heard this saying before…  “Sell before May and go away.”  It has to do with seasonality and the historical trends of given months.  Except here is the thing… It is a complete and utter fallacy.  Maybe it’s…

Semiconductors are hot right now. Whether you’re talking about NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA), Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (AMD), or another company, those pesky little chips are all over the place. They’ve got a history. Everybody who thinks they first appeared in…

I got a text from my realtor yesterday.  Now, before I go any further, that’s not a common occurrence – it’s not like we link up every Tuesday and play gin rummy.  The subject of that text was – surprise,…

Let’s talk about the New Fed in Town: Commercial lending banks. (Currently working on the jingle for the New Fed in Town game show – will report back.) The banks with feet on the ground in cities like Cincinnati, Idaho…

The market spent all weekend frothing at the mouth after seeing Friday’s jobs report.  The numbers weren’t great, and today marked the first opportunity for traders to react.  However, it’s less about the present impact and more what it says…

I’m not being hyperbolic when I say that this is the most important earning season of your life.  With major banks set to begin announcing in roughly nine days, the market is sitting on pins and needles.  I don’t need to…

I’ve been trading with a combination of technical analysis, fundamentals, and market sentiment for as long as I can remember… There is one key to this puzzle that Always gives me a bit of a funny feeling in my gut,…

Back in February, some technical indicators set off my Spidey senses.  I didn’t have a crystal ball. Trust me, if I did, I would have opened up a lot more positions.  But at the time, I went short Huntington Bancshares…

We are starting off a short week for the markets. Oftentimes, on short weeks like this one, people take time away with the family with the thought that there’s not going to be any real action to trade. Well, that’s…

I’ve been waiting for the Personal Consumption Expenditure (PCE) number all week long.  In fact, I said I wouldn’t be placing any trades until that number gets released, as traders know this is the Fed’s favorite indicator of inflation.  Well,…

We all remember those childhood summer days spent playing with a beach ball in the pool or ocean.  There was just something exhilarating about pushing it as far as you could under the water and letting go – just to…

This market is turning into the most intricate Rube Goldberg machine the world has ever known. First, it’s inflation running wild to get the ball rolling. Then, JPOW and his band of Fed heads hit the dominos with rate hikes,…

The morning started the same as any other.  Set my coffee maker, took the dog outside, booted up the computer, sat down, and started scouring the news.  Except, when I tell you how close I was to having to go…

The market got its first piece of good news from the banking missteps over the last two weeks, as North Carolina’s First Citizens went garage-sale shopping in Silicon Valley this weekend. This is the news the market is going to…

A trader’s psychology… There was a study done that shows it only takes a third of a second to decide to buy a stock or let it fall to the wayside. Any time more than that is just you trying…

You can argue the merits of relying on a groundhog to determine the length of winter.  That doesn’t change that every year, one way or another, people let headlines about shadows make them happy or sad.  Well, it’s starting to…