There’s a fine line between charging a premium because you can and acting like a mobster to your customers. $Apple(AAPL)$ can charge a premium because people value their products more highly than competitors. On Shoes can charge a premium because it has a premium shoe brand among dozens of other choices. $Ferrari NV(RACE)$ can charge whatever it wants because…it’s Ferrari. That’s pricing power. The POWER is in the consumer’s CHOICE to pay more. Then there’s extortion pricing. Extortion is about power, but it’s about POWER over a customer that has NO CHOICE. Extortion is the crime of obtaining money, property, or services through coercion, threats, or the misuse of official power. Google This is impor

Why Everything In the Market Just Changed Debt will fuel the next phase of the market, for better or worse. The AI buildout has been driving the market in incredible ways over the past three years. Memory has exploded, fabs are going vertical, and equipment-makers are on a massive hot streak. S&P 500 $S&P 500(.SPX)$ heat map over the past year. What’s unique about this moment is the scale of the value the market has put on all things AI. 45% of the S&P 500’s value is in AI-related stocks. And those stocks aren’t cheap. Over half of the S&P 500 trades for over 10x sales. This is something I’ve been concerned about for a while, but it’s taken a turn recently. Why? Debt at an unprecedented scale is now involved. More on that in a mom

$Mobileye Global Inc.(MBLY)$ ’s Gambit Mobileye is going to own robotaxis, which is a big risk. Mobileye made one of the most surprising announcements in the market this week. Instead of waiting for customers to adopt its Level 4 robotaxi software and hardware solutions — continuing the modular business model it’s been using for years — Mobileye is making its own robotaxi vehicle and ride-sharing app. Mobileye isn’t abandoning its old business model, but it is bolting on a high-risk vertical integration model. Upon further review, this makes a lot of sense, even if it’s not being done from a point of strength. Mobileye’s current business model is selling autonomy hardware and software to automakers, which is ultimately reliant on OEMs for demand.

The Week Ahead Here’s what I’m watching. The market has been in a strange place the past few weeks. Stocks seem to rise or fall rapidly depending on posts about negotiations with Iran, a fight that didn’t need to happen and has had little impact on the global economy, despite fears to the contrary. AI spending keeps rising, despite companies saying they aren’t seeing an ROI. And with all of my skepticism about certain segments of the market, earnings have been solid. So, here’s what I’m watching this week: Iran Peace Rate Cut Hope AI in Politics Valuations More on that in a moment. What I’m Watching It’s a light earnings week, so here’s what I’m watching most closely. Iran Peace Deal Markets are surging this morning after President Trump announced a deal with Iran that would open the Strai

Before I get to the SpaceX IPO, I’m going to be doing my regular State of the Portfolio series starting tomorrow. I hope this helps show what I do, and don’t, like about the stocks in the Asymmetric Portfolio today. After a rough start to 2026, my regular reviews have me liking the long-term trajectory of most companies, and valuations are compelling, but that doesn’t mean the market agrees with me. That will be going to premium subscribers and will be completed in a series of articles over the next few days. Now, on with my thoughts on SpaceX’s IPO. The SpaceX IPO $SpaceX(SPCX)$ is going public on Friday with a stock price of $135 per share and a market cap of $1.77 trillion. To be honest, this is one of the wildest IPOs I’ve ever seen. The debat

According to Cox Automotive, EV sales have dropped dramatically in the past 2 quarters (no surprise with the tax credit gone) in the U.S. What's interesting is that $Rivian Automotive, Inc.(RIVN)$ and $Lucid Group Inc(LCID)$ are increasing supply in a market that's seeing demand destruction and interest rates are rising, putting further pressure on prices and demand. Why would buyers suddenly have interest in these EVs when they're trending to ICE vehicles already? It's a mix I wouldn't want to own. Disclosure: Short RIVN via long-term puts. I know, I know, I'm the Rivian hater. But come on! No one buying an SUV wants rear wheel drive! This makes it unusable anywhere it snows. Realistically, the R2 starts

The answer may shock you. One of the best quotes about valuation I’ve ever seen came from Sun Microsystems’ CEO after the dot-com crash. At 10x revenues, to give you a 10-year payback, I have to pay you 100% of revenues for 10 straight years in dividends. Zero costs. Zero R&D. Zero taxes. Zero employees. What were you thinking? Sun Microsystems CEO Scott McNealy How much of the $S&P 500(.SPX)$ is trading for this crazy valuation today? The answer may shock you. I’ll get to that in a moment. Stock Valuations This post from Thierry was what had me digging into valuations today. It’s true that we’ve normalized 10x price-to-sales multiples, but as long-term investors, we shouldn’t because it’s extremely difficult to live up to that valuation.

Shares of $MGM Resorts International(MGM)$ surged this week on news that the company got a buyout offer from Peoples Incorporated, formerly known as IAC, the name I’m going to use here. The offer is for all of MGM for $48.30 per share. Here is the letter in full: Dear Members of the Board of Directors: People Incorporated (f/k/a IAC) began investing in MGM in 2020, based on our view that it represents a durable growth business not easily displaced by technology. We believe that MGM’s assets and businesses are not currently realizing their full potential in the public markets and that it will be difficult to correct this situation in MGM’s current form as a public company. Accordingly, we would like to work with MGM to agree on a transaction in whic

One of the things you develop after a few decades of investing is battle scars and a historical view of where we are today. History never repeats, but it often rhymes. As we’ve watched some of the absolutely crazy stock performance in 2026, I think it’s important to give some of that historical context to some parts of the market. I don’t know how this all ends, but I know how it’s ended before. I’ve seen these growth numbers. I’ve felt the investor confidence. And I’ve learned lessons along the way. The Market’s Rocket Ships Today, the market is bidding up all stocks related to AI, semiconductors, rockets, and dreams. Some of the stocks rising rapidly are seeing outstanding earnings, and we could debate if those are sustainable or not, but others are spending money at a growing clip to fu

For those of us looking for signs of an AI bubble popping, there are no signs. Earnings coming out of chip, energy, and infrastructure stocks are incredible right now. As trillions of dollars are poured into the AI buildout, there seems to be no end to the exponential growth for the companies involved. It’s not just $NVIDIA(NVDA)$ that’s seeing growth and guiding for 🚀 demand. It’s $Intel(INTC)$ $Advanced Micro Devices(AMD)$ $Bloom Energy Corp(BE)$ $Cerebras Systems(CBRS)$ to name a few. Anyone who can make a chip or build some energy is going to the moon. And that exponential grow

In early 2021, inflation was something written about in history books. Unless you remembered the late 1970s, you had never really experienced inflation. At the end of 2021, inflation was a very real problem for real people, but the market thought it was a short-term event. Stocks rose nearly 30% during the year, and there was reason to be optimistic as jobs opened up and the pandemic subsided. But that euphoria only lasted so long. Inflation caused very real changes in how people spent money and prompted a major response from the Federal Reserve. When the market finally woke up, it wiped out all of 2021’s gains and, in the case of the Nasdaq, then some. Are we in the same place today? It may be worse. But more on that in a moment. What’s Up With Inflation? April inflation data — known as t

$S&P 500(.SPX)$ profits are soaring, there’s no doubt about that. And the market has gone higher with those profits. My question is around what’s sustainable and what isn’t in today’s economy. For example, can you guess what company this quote is about? [Company X] today posted robust earnings that roughly tripled expectations, a surge primarily caused by sales in its memory division. Yep, it’s Micron $Micron Technology(MU)$ ( ▼ 6.62% ). Now, guess what year this was written? I’ll give you a hint, it wasn’t 2026. It was 2000. September 26, 2000, to be exact. Micron is by its nature a cyclical stock. When times are good, profits surge and the money is reinvested in growing capacity, which inevitably lead