Trade Tracker: Stephanie Link buys QXO

Housing Market & Rate Sensitivity - ITB (iShares U.S Home Construction ETF) is down about 5% in a week, suggesting potential headwinds for the housing reignition due to rates or other factors [1] - Lower interest rates, potentially dropping to 6% or even 5% from north of 7% for a 30-year mortgage, could unlock millions of refinance opportunities and home turnovers, benefiting companies like Rocket [6][7] - The housing market has been in an "ice age" with depressed existing home sales and realtor/mortgage broker struggles, but signs indicate a potential thaw [6] Company Specific Strategies & Performance - QXO is making acquisitions in the building products distribution industry, aiming to leverage technology for efficiency and productivity, leading to improved profitability [2][3] - QXO's EBITDA is best-in-class, and the company is growing five times as much as the industry, while trading at a discount [3] - Rocket Companies is viewed as a turnaround story sensitive to the rate cycle and housing market, with potential benefits from increased activity [5][6] - Rocket has been investing during the market downturn, acquiring mortgage servicing portfolios (Mr Cooper) and Redfin, positioning it to benefit from a market recovery [7][8] - Dr Horton is trading at 12 times earnings, and Toll Brothers is trading at 10 times earnings [11] Investment Opportunities - Invitation Homes is viewed as a distribution play rather than a rate play, focusing on rental housing and reinvesting distributions [4][5] - D.R Horton and Toll Brothers are considered buys, despite already being up 20-30% since their (horrible) third-quarter reports, due to forward-looking market expectations of lower interest rates [9][10][11]