Aggregated open interest, once a robust $187M, now hovers at a meager $169.76M, as if the market itself is suffering from a severe case of financial vertigo. The measure then took a downward jaunt to $167M-$168M, a move as graceful as a drunk flamingo. This pullback followed the high of positioning near $187M on the 21st, a peak so lofty it might as well have been on Mount Olympus.
And it pays a dividend. Which, let’s be honest, is the main reason anyone is looking at this. Not that I’m cynical. Okay, maybe a little. But a 4.3% increase year-over-year? That’s seventeen consecutive years of increases, people. Seventeen! I can barely commit to a Pilates class for that long.
He’s considering lowering them on things like aluminum cans and steel ovens. Consumer stuff. The kind of things people buy when they’re trying to feel better about everything. Two companies that might benefit? Coca-Cola (KO +0.11%) and Constellation Brands (STZ +0.16%). It’s a strange world. You try to build a business, and then someone decides the price of metal is a political statement. So it goes.
The rise of Taiwan Semiconductor is inextricably linked to the insatiable appetite of those entities we call ‘hyperscalers’ – those vast digital estates built by the likes of Nvidia, Apple, AMD, Broadcom, and even the sprawling empire of Alphabet’s Google. These are not companies content with mere growth; they demand exponential expansion, a relentless march forward fueled by the ever-increasing power of computation. And for this power, they turn, again and again, to the foundries of TSMC. Over the past five years, the stock has climbed by a most considerable margin—over 170%, a testament to this dependence. One observes a forward P/E ratio of 25, reasonable enough, and a PEG ratio around 1.5, suggesting, perhaps, a tempered optimism. The company, in 2025, surpassed the trillion-dollar mark in market capitalization, joining a rarefied group of economic titans.
The general semiconductor sector, as is its wont, decided to participate in this upward movement, displaying a generally enthusiastic, if somewhat inexplicable, bullishness. Intel’s rise, however, appears to be linked—at least partially—to the activities of Advanced Micro Devices (AMD +8.81%), who announced a deal with Meta Platforms (META +0.13%). A deal, it should be noted, of truly staggering proportions.
IonQ, a venture into the realm of quantum computation, exists as a solitary node in a network yet to fully materialize. Its existence is predicated on a singular ambition: to achieve commercial viability within a field defined by uncertainty. It is a precarious existence, a suspension between potential and oblivion. The company has chosen a path – trapped-ion qubits – a less-traveled road in the quantum wilderness. This choice, like the selection of a particular branch in a diverging maze, carries its own inherent risks and rewards. Their current lead in quantum accuracy, measured by a specific, and perhaps arbitrarily chosen, benchmark, is a fleeting advantage, a momentary respite from the relentless march of innovation.
The trouble, as near as I can figure it, stems from a newfangled “ERP transition” – a fancy term for rearranging the furniture in the counting house, if you ask me – that went sideways back in November. This digital tinkering disrupted operations, and not in a helpful way. Sales dipped 11%, profits followed suit with a precipitous drop of 46% and 68% respectively. Thirty million dollars in sales went missing, and half of that, they reckon, is gone for good. Seems customers don’t take kindly to promises unfulfilled, even when those promises involve sparkling clean floors.
So, what’s a sensible investor to do? Look for alternatives, naturally. And let me tell you, I’ve found one. A real gem. A diamond in the rough, if you will. (Though, please don’t actually try to find diamonds in the rough. It’s mostly just dirt and disappointment.) It’s called SoFi Technologies (SOFI +2.33%). And it’s, shall we say, a little less… exuberant… in its current valuation. A steal, practically! (Don’t tell the brokers I said that.)
I touched upon the initial market reaction a few days ago, and it wasn’t a cheerful gathering. Monday continued the downward trend. But let’s not dwell on the gloom. Let’s consider why the market, a creature normally as optimistic as a tax collector, might be entertaining a sliver of hope. It’s a bit like hoping a troll will develop a fondness for poetry.
Today, the markets stirred, a collective sigh escaping from the bellies of brokers and the blinking screens of high-frequency traders. It was a fragile recovery, a tentative dance after Monday’s sudden panic, a day when fear blossomed like a poisonous flower. The S&P 500, a restless spirit, rose by 0.8%, mirroring the cautious optimism of the Dow Jones Industrial Average which gained 0.98%. Even the volatile Nasdaq Composite, ever prone to fits of exuberance and despair, managed a steeper ascent of 1.1%, a fleeting illusion of control in a world increasingly governed by the unpredictable.