Here’s what I gathered: Ford, that old stalwart of American manufacturing, is betting big on electric vehicles (EVs). Not just any EVs, mind you, but ones affordable enough to make your accountant cheer. The plan? Roll out a $30,000 electric pickup truck by 2027 using something called the “Ford Universal EV Platform.” It sounds impressive, though if we’re being honest, so does “quantum computing,” and I still don’t know what that means either.
From 2007 to 2024, MercadoLibre’s revenue grew at a CAGR of 38%, a pace that would make even the most ambitious of investment bankers blush. It secured its position as Latin America’s e-commerce hegemon, wove a logistics web through the region’s less-than-civilized terrain, and lured shoppers into its Mercado Pago financial services with the charm of a well-tied cravat. Profitability, that elusive beast, returned in 2021, with net income leaping at a CAGR of 184% over three years. One suspects the company has mastered the art of selling higher-margin goods, expanding credit services, and leveraging scale with the precision of a Swiss watchmaker.
But ah, the contrarian heart beats on. While the market yawns, I, a man of eccentric convictions, doubled down in 2021 and 2022. A fool’s errand, some might say, but what is life without a touch of madness? The numbers, though, tell a tale of resilience: a 16% gain, a testament to the alchemy of patience and poor judgment.
Which is why, dear reader, when the U.S. Army announced last month that it had bestowed upon Palantir (PLTR) a staggering $10 billion contract, I felt as though someone had tossed a bucket of cold water onto my desk. Surely, this was no ordinary drizzle; it was a monsoon of military largesse.
What, one might inquire, fuels this fevered arithmetic? The prediction markets, those fickle oracles, whisper of a 70% chance to breach $4, a 29% to kiss $5. Yet, the all-time high, that elusive $3.84, has been a ghost haunting the ledger for over a decade. To believe in a $5 future is to wager on a mirage, a mirage that shimmers with the same allure as a dandelion seed in a hurricane.
Ford Motor Company (F) is like that family heirloom car in the garage-iconic, but with a few too many “mechanic” stories involving questionable duct tape solutions. Yes, it’s American royalty in the automotive world, but let’s not pretend it’s not struggling to keep up with the EV revolution. Its electric vehicle sales? A paltry 2% of revenue last year-down from 2023. Ouch.
Yet, amidst this labyrinthine market, there exists a path less encumbered by the whims of speculative fervor-a way to partake in the grand experiment of cryptocurrency without surrendering entirely to its capricious nature. With $500, one may still claim a foothold in this domain, not through reckless gambles, but through prudent positioning.
The better: Defense stock prices bounced back. If you’re already in, congrats, you’re probably not crying into your coffee. The worse: These stocks are now more overpriced than a midtown condo. For anyone trying to buy in, it’s like ordering a salad and getting a whole chicken.
UPS, that stalwart of the shipping trade, and Whirlpool, the industrious purveyor of domestic comforts, now stand in the market’s parlour, their fortunes dimmed by years of gradual decline. Yet, as the recent quarterly reports have shown, only one of these ladies has chosen to trim her gowns to fit her diminished means.
Significant commentary is expected regarding exports to China-oh, the excitement!-especially in light of Nvidia’s decision to don a rather burdensome 15% export tax hat. One dare not underestimate the return of the Chinese market as a catalyst for Nvidia’s stock. Expect the festivities to commence post-results.