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Last year, the provinces to the north demonstrated a particular vibrancy. While the U.S. market plodded along, Canada’s S&P/TSX Composite Index ascended a respectable 28.3%, leaving the S&P 500‘s 16.4% gain looking rather… pedestrian. A twelve-percentage-point difference, mind you, is not merely a gain; it’s a declaration. The first such triumph since 2016, and some analysts, those oracles of financial forecasting, predict this northern surge will continue through 2026. Naturally, they could be wrong. Predicting the market is rather like predicting the weather – a noble pursuit, often resulting in a soaking.

The International Atomic Energy Agency – which, let’s be honest, sounds like a Bond villain organization – is now saying nuclear capacity could double and a half by 2050. That’s a lot of atoms splitting. So, maybe it’s time to look at a couple of stocks that aren’t just relics of the Cold War. We’re talking Cameco (CCJ 3.65%) and NuScale (SMR 5.68%). Consider this your official permission to stop doomscrolling and start… stock-scrolling?

Lilly’s success is impressive. With a wide range of established medicines, it’s considered a reliable investment because people will always need their prescriptions, even during tough economic times. Plus, Lilly is now a major player in the rapidly growing weight loss drug market, which experts predict will be worth almost $100 billion within the next few years.

Dogecoin, unlike some of its brethren, carries little of the practical burden of utility. It exists as a whisper, a suggestion of value, a phantom limb of the financial world. Yet, it persists, a testament to the strange currents that animate the market, remaining, inexplicably, within the top ten by capitalization. One is reminded of a forgotten melody, played on a broken instrument, still capable of stirring a faint echo within the listener.

Is this, then, a haven for the discerning investor? Or merely a postponement of the inevitable reckoning? A gilded cage constructed to lull us into a false sense of security before the fall?

Aehr manufactures equipment for testing semiconductors – ensuring they don’t, you know, spontaneously cease functioning. A critical service, naturally, as a malfunctioning chip can cause issues ranging from mild inconvenience to catastrophic failure – particularly in electric vehicles (EVs), where a sudden loss of power tends to be frowned upon. The EV sector, specifically silicon carbide (SiC) chips, was once Aehr’s primary haunt. Sales boomed during the lockdowns (a period of heightened optimism, now largely regarded as a collective delusion), only to…adjust…when the anticipated automotive revolution failed to materialize quite as spectacularly as some had hoped. (It’s always the hopes, isn’t it?)

NextEra, you see, is a bit like a clever badger. It’s got two burrows. One is the old-fashioned, dependable sort – providing electricity to homes and businesses. Solid. Reliable. A bit…dull, perhaps. But the other burrow…ah, that’s where the magic happens. That’s the renewable energy side – solar farms, wind turbines, all sorts of clever contraptions that snatch power from the sun and the breeze. A delightfully sneaky combination, wouldn’t you say?

The iShares Silver Trust (SLV 12.23%)… it’s a thing, isn’t it? A vehicle for hoping silver will do something nice for your retirement account. But it’s been a bit of a rollercoaster, and frankly, I’ve seen more predictable behaviour from my ex.

Last night, FMC released its fourth-quarter earnings, which, let’s say, didn’t exactly set the fields ablaze. Furthermore, management announced they were exploring “strategic options,” which, translated from corporate-speak, generally means “we’re considering whether or not to sell the entire thing.” It’s a bit like deciding to dismantle a perfectly good spaceship, but then again, “perfectly good” is a relative term, isn’t it?

The market, predictably, is having a collective anxiety attack. Is this still the streaming king? That’s the question. And frankly, I’m starting to think it’s less about whether it is and more about how much we’re willing to pretend it is. Because let’s be real, nobody likes uncertainty, and this deal is practically swimming in it.