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The fourth quarter, you see, is when the great annual spending ritual takes place. A time of frantic acquisition, of desperate attempts to fill the void with material possessions. The charts, predictably, exhibit a peculiar undulation, a yearly rise and fall mirroring the collective madness. One might almost suspect a cosmic influence, a celestial alignment that compels humanity to…purchase.

The analysts, those diligent number-crunchers, were expecting $2.11 a share on sales of $113.7 billion. Sales came in a hair under, at $113.2 billion – hardly a catastrophe. Earnings, adjusted for the usual accounting wizardry (because, let’s face it, accounting is a bit like a magic trick – impressive, but you’re never quite sure where everything went), hit the mark. But, as the saying goes, the devil is always in the details, and these details were…peculiar.

According to a filing dated January 26, 2026 – a date which, I confess, feels frightfully futuristic – Rye Brook Capital has relinquished its entire stake in IBB. The transaction, valued at $3.50 million based on the average share price during the quarter, has resulted in a corresponding decline in the fund’s quarter-end position. Post-trade, they report a distinct lack of remaining shares. A clean sweep, as it were. Rather like clearing out a particularly dusty attic.

The stock, as of January 22nd, had embarked on a rather dramatic descent, losing a startling 76% of its value over the past year. Three years of losses averaging 8.6% annually suggest a pattern. A pattern, one suspects, that doesn’t necessarily involve dividends. (Which, as a dividend hunter, is a point of some concern. We’re looking for income streams, not performance art.)

EQT, unlike many of its brethren in the energy sector, has pursued a strategy of vertical integration – a deliberate attempt to control the entire chain, from the extraction of gas from the earth to its delivery to the power plants. This is not merely efficiency, but a reclaiming of control – a bulwark against the vagaries of market forces and the predatory practices of intermediaries. The acquisition of Equitrans Midstream, completed in 2024, was not simply a business transaction; it was a consolidation of power, a tightening of the fist.

My initial thesis – that elevated valuations breed fragility – proved sound. The market, like a delicate porcelain doll, requires only the slightest provocation to shatter. It wasn’t the steepness of the fall that surprised me, but the sheer predictability of it. One suspects the market, much like society, rewards the audacious, but punishes the merely foolish.

It was already a titan, shaping the digital landscapes we inhabit with its chips. But to render a convincing sunset is a trivial matter compared to mimicking the human mind. And so, Nvidia ascended, its stock a gaudy monument to this ambition, soaring as if defying gravity – or, perhaps, merely postponing the inevitable fall. A thousand percent increase… a vulgar display, really. It attracts attention, naturally. The vultures circle, eager to discern which carrion will be next.

The answer, after a careful examination of the accounts and a healthy dose of skepticism, is a resounding ‘yes.’ Though one must always be wary of a stock that appears to defy gravity. The current situation at Eli Lilly isn’t merely growth; it’s a carefully orchestrated advance, a strategic repositioning in the burgeoning fields of weight management and diabetes care. A most profitable venture, naturally.