Stock Picks & Recommendations - First Solar was named a top pick at Mizuho, despite a 6% drop in stock price today [1][2] - Live Nation is considered a top pick at Evercore, seen as a crown jewel in a secular trend of intensified concert attendance [2][3] - Estee Lauder's target was raised to $100 at Jefferies, with optimism for a turnaround by 2026 driven by recovery in US and China prestige makeup markets, margin rebuild plan, and cost-cutting efforts [3][4] - Amtech is at a record high, benefiting from strong momentum in electrical equipment and supplies across commercial aerospace and utilities sectors [6][7] Company Specifics & Industry Trends - Alphabet's move into clean energy benefits First Solar, as Intersect Power is a customer [1] - The speaker believes the Estee Lauder turnaround, called "beauty reimagined strategy," will be slow but driven by a CEO with extensive experience in the prestige market and fixes to distribution problems in China [5][6] - Commercial aerospace exposure has been important in 2024 and is driving momentum for companies like Halmed and Amtech [7] - FedEx is considered inexpensive and is undergoing a turnaround, with a potential run towards $300-$315 [9][10] - FedEx plans to spin off its troubled freight division into a separate publicly traded company (ticker: FDXF) in June, which is expected to unlock shareholder value [10][11] Valuation & Market Sentiment - First Solar is considered cheap on a valuation basis [2] - Amtech is considered cheap on a valuation basis [7] - FedEx is considered one of the most inexpensive names in coverage [9]

For more on what this all means for the markets, let's bring in UBS Global Wealth Senior Portfolio Manager, Alan Rex Shaffen. Alan, thank you for being here. Um, what do you make of Kevin Hassid's comments there.>> You know, I I think it's Leslie, thank you for having me on, Carl. Thank you. Um, what you saw in 2025 was a period of fog and uncertainty.And I think what you heard from from Kevin Hasset and what you're seeing in the administration that 2026 is going to be a time of clarity, of normalization, a ...

Two of the world's top AI scientists now in this heated public debate over the state of the technology disagreeing on whether it can ever be as smart as humans or if we need a new type of AI entirely. Our dear DOS is digging into that in today's tech check. Morning D. >> Hey good morning Carl.So at its core this debate is really about whether the current AI buildout actually pays off. Yanlakan is one of the most influential and one of the most controversial minds in AI, a pioneer of modern neural networks, ...

Welcome back to Money Movers. December consumer confidence data crossing the wires last hour showing the fifth straight month of declines and the lowest level since April and Visa out with a new report today signaling a more bullish outlook for the consumer with overall spending coming in 4% higher than last year. Here with us now to discuss is the CEO of Tanganger, Steven Yalof.Thank you very much for being here. Um, >> you know, it's hard to kind of disentangle the two because sentiment feels so dire, but ...

Joining us to discuss all of that this morning is Greg Ry Allen, senior adviser of the Wadbani AI center at CSIS. Greg, welcome back. Good to have you.>> Great to be here. >> You want to walk us through this so-called Manhattan project and whether it does move the needle for them in the way of dominance. >> Sure.To begin, we need to talk about just how complex modern AI chips are. For a chip that might be the size of your thumbnail, there are more than a hundred billion transistors, which are individual lit ...

THE S&P SINCE 2018. MEANTIME, WE GOT Q3 GDP OUT THIS MORNING. GROWTH COMING IN AT 4.3%.THAT IS SIGNIFICANTLY BEATING EXPECTATIONS. AND JOINING US THIS MORNING FROM THE WHITE HOUSE TO DISCUSS IS THE NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL DIRECTOR KEVIN HASSETT. KEVIN, GREAT TO HAVE YOU BACK.GOOD MORNING. >> OH THANKS. GREAT TO BE HERE.YEAH. >> WALK US THROUGH WHAT YOU THOUGHT WAS IMPORTANT AND WHETHER OR NOT I MEAN IT'S A GREAT BEAT. HOW MUCH WAS BOOSTED BY TRADE ELEMENTS.>> RIGHT. WELL IT'S REALLY A FANTASTIC NUMBER. AN ...

Industry Overview - The restaurant business and food industry experienced a volatile year due to weak consumer sentiment and tariffs [1] - Value deals and discount campaigns have shown some success in revitalizing brands, but many still face challenges [1] Key Factors to Watch - Commodity inflation, particularly beef prices, will be a significant factor, especially for company-operated fast-casual chains like Chipotle and steak players like Texas Roadhouse [2] - Demand destruction in supermarkets could positively impact companies like Texas Roadhouse and Darden, which spend significantly on beef [3] - The net effect on middle-income consumers will be crucial, with potential consumer engagement expected by the second quarter of 2026 [3] Investment Opportunities - The dining space looks promising, even considering headwinds from GLP1s; casual dining is less affected by negative factors and benefits from early tax relief [4] - Brinker, with its strong execution and value offerings, is a favored name, along with Darden [5] - Value players within the fast-food sector may perform well; McDonald's is mentioned as a GARP (Growth at a Reasonable Price) name [5]

Getting some news out of Washington on student loans. For that, we'll turn to Emily Wilkins. Morning, Emily. >> Good morning, Carl.Well, yes, the Trump administration is announcing that they are going to be garnishing wages for Americans with student loans who are in default. Now, that's about 5 million Americans at this point, but the education department is actually expecting that to grow potentially to 10 million. This is, of course, the first time the Trump administration is looking at taking funds out ...

Joining us now here at Post9 is John Lvalo, senior US home building and building products equity research analyst at UBS. Uh John, any any thoughts on kind of what we could see from this this big new plan that could impact affordability. >> Thanks Leslie.Yeah, so I think there's a few things. It could be short-term, intermediate, and then housing emergency. In the short term, we could utilize the GSC's to subsidize mortgages, to buy more NBS for their portfolio, and to reduce G fees.G fees could be 60 basis ...

Let's bring in former UK Treasury Secretary Jim O'Neal. He is chair at Northern Gridstone. Uh Jim, it's great to have you on.Uh also a great time to kind of assess uh what we saw this year, which was plenty. Uh if you go back, you know, eight or nine [clears throat] months and it was all the talk was, you know, with the tariff panic, it was going to be end of US exceptionalism, um flows away from dollar assets. Maybe that didn't continue, but you did see outperformance by non US equity indexes and also just ...