So, we’ve got three contenders today. Three dividend dynamos. First up, we’ve got Realty Income (O +0.68%). Then there’s PepsiCo (PEP +0.45%), a company that’s been slaking our thirst for, oh, a century or so. And finally, Ares Capital (ARCC +0.43%). A bit of a wild card, that one. Like a chihuahua with a Napoleonic complex. Let’s dive in, shall we? But hold onto your hats, because this could get… profitable.
Recalls are anticipated, budgeted for, a line item in the endless accounting. Yet the figure for 2025 – 153 recalls affecting nearly thirteen million vehicles – transcended mere anticipation. It was, rather, an assertion of entropy, a demonstration that even the most meticulously assembled machine is, at its core, a collection of potential failures waiting to manifest. To surpass the previous high of 2014 (General Motors, 77 recalls) by such a margin suggests not a temporary lapse in quality control, but a fundamental law of automotive existence. The company’s COO, Kumar Galhotra, acknowledged the situation, speaking of “reducing the cost” as though cost were the ailment, not the symptom. The phrasing itself felt…distant, a bureaucratic incantation against an inevitable tide.
Mr. Elon Musk, that enterprising fellow, possesses a knack for captivating the investing public, promising innovations that would make Jules Verne blush. However, as the old timers say, deeds are the things, and Tesla’s recent performance has been, shall we say, a bit more earthbound. Last year saw a gain of a mere 11.4%, a distinctly un-sparkling result when compared to the S&P 500’s 16.4% and the positively zippy 20.4% of the Nasdaq Composite. A bit of a pickle, what?
The stock is up a frankly astonishing 136% from its recent nadir. Last August, when the market cap hovered around the $2.5 trillion mark, I ventured the prediction that it would surpass $3 trillion before 2027. A perfectly reasonable assessment, as it turns out. It seems I underestimated the current momentum. One now suspects it has rather more steam left in it, potentially pushing it toward the $5 trillion territory before the year is out. One hopes it doesn’t become too ostentatious, naturally.
Amazon. A name that echoes through the digital forests. Most consider it a titan, a behemoth. And that’s precisely why they miss the bargain. It’s become so…expectedly successful that people forget to actually look at the numbers. In 2025, it didn’t exactly set the world alight, did it? A mere 5% rise. But beneath the surface, things were stirring. Several operating segments were showing genuine muscle. It’s a bit like a slumbering dragon – looks peaceful enough, but you wouldn’t want to poke it with a stick.
There are whispers of hope, naturally. Glimmers, like fireflies in the evening mist. And so, if one is compelled to consider an investment in this vast, complex entity, let us examine the currents that might, just might, carry it forward. Though, to believe in certainty is the first step toward delusion.
Berkshire Hathaway’s fondness for Coca-Cola stretches back decades – a testament to consistency, if nothing else. Though, I’ve known portfolios with more exciting histories. The thing about long-term holdings is, they witness everything. The booms, the busts, the rise of avocado toast. They become…weary. Costco and Walmart flitted in and out of the Berkshire orbit, transient visitors. Perhaps a wise precaution. One doesn’t want to become too familiar with the habits of the masses.
One cannot help but observe that Nebius has, in a manner of speaking, rather outdone itself. A tripling of the share price in a single year is a circumstance which, while undeniably pleasing, does raise the question of sustainability. The company, it must be confessed, is currently valued at a premium, a fact which, whilst not alarming, does require a discerning eye.
I mean, the long-run average is around 10%, isn’t it? Which feels… sensible. This, however, is not sensible. 2025 was the worst year in the last three, at only 16%. The sheer audacity. 2024 and 2023 were both over 20%. It’s like the market decided to have a mid-life crisis and buy a sports car. I keep telling myself it’s just a temporary blip, but then I remember history. And history, as I’ve learned, is rarely kind to optimists.
One finds, then, a pair of companies frequently touted as inheritors of the Buffettian spirit. Amazon and American Express. Both, undeniably, successful. Though success, as any seasoned observer knows, is often merely the prolonged postponement of failure, elegantly disguised. Let us dissect these specimens, shall we?