Stocks are tracking for yet another record close. Here with her best ideas on positioning at these lofty levels is SoFi's head of investment strategy, Liz Thomas. Nice to see you. Nice to see you, too.Best positioning right now in the market again. We're we're going to have record close, we think, is where. Well, I've been talking about for a while investors needing to diversify their growth and momentum exposure.Obviously, we've had long periods of time where growth stocks, momentum stocks have led the mar ...

Economic Resilience and Inflation - The economy has shown more resilience than expected, with companies reporting stable conditions during the second quarter [2] - Anticipation of the Federal Reserve's actions in September is noted, with a focus on small-cap performance [3] Small-Cap Market Performance - Small caps have outperformed by approximately 400 to 500 basis points since April 8, largely unrecognized in the broader market [4] - Relative valuations for small caps remain cheaper compared to large caps, with small caps yet to reach new highs since November 2021 [5] Earnings Outlook - Small cap earnings turned positive in the second quarter after two years of negative performance, which is crucial for continued outperformance [6] - Expectations are that small cap earnings may outperform large cap earnings in the third quarter [6] Impact of Interest Rates - A lower interest rate environment would benefit small cap companies, particularly those with variable debt [7] - The anticipation of lower rates is already being factored into the small cap market [7] Capital Expenditure Cycle - The recent legislation allowing 100% depreciation on capital expenditures may signal the start of a capex cycle that benefits small cap companies [8] Focus on Industrial Sector - The focus is on economically sensitive areas, particularly industrials, which are expected to benefit from reshoring and re-industrialization in the U.S. [10][11] Historical Context of Small Caps - The Russell 2000's representation as a percentage of the Russell 3000 was 4.2% at the end of the second quarter, a level not seen since the 1980s [12] AI and Market Broadening - The AI narrative is shifting towards beneficiaries of AI, which may drive broader market participation beyond large caps [14]

Market Trends & Sentiment - Tech sector performance is bifurcated, with Alphabet and Apple leading while the rest of the complex lags, indicating potential dispersion in investor sentiment [1][3][4] - Energy and materials sectors have been leading recently, though their impact is limited due to the large size of the tech sector, suggesting a healthy rotation [3] - Large-cap stocks are favored over small-cap stocks [4] Economic Outlook & Jobs Report - The worst of the economy was likely a couple of months prior, coinciding with tariff uncertainties [12] - A jobs report significantly above or below the estimated 75,000 by 10,000 could trigger a market move [11][12] - A much better than expected jobs report might reduce expectations for future Federal Reserve rate cuts [13] - The Federal Reserve is still expected to cut rates in the coming weeks, but potentially not as many times as anticipated over the next 16 months [13] Market Performance & Seasonality - S&P typically pulls back about 2% on average in September based on the last decade's data, indicating seasonality [6] - After the S&P has been up over 25% over 100 days, the average return after one month is 1%, and after three months is approximately 6% [6] - Historically, three months after a similar market condition, the market has been higher 11 out of 11 times, and a year later, up an average of 13% [7] - The strength seen off the lows is inconsistent with a bear market [8] Bond Market & Credit Conditions - The 30-year yield is up around 5%, the highest in a long time, with long-term yields breaking out [9] - Credit markets are showing virtually no signs of stress, with no warnings in high yield or junk bonds, and credit spreads not broadening out [9][10]

And Bryant, that brings us right to you and your valueoriented fund. Um, of course, tech a clear beneficiary from AI and we've heard a lot of talk coming from productivity gains and other sectors from the AI buildout. Where are you seeing value and AI intersect.Is there anywhere where that ven diagram crosses. >> Yeah, sure. We we certainly saw the same thing Todd saw which was financials especially banks were highly attractive coming into the early part of the year and through today within financials we're ...

ETF Market Trends & Flows - Gold ETFs are experiencing significant inflows, hitting record highs and surpassing S&P 500 ETFs in popularity, indicating a potentially bearish market sentiment [1][2] - Equity buying is prevalent, with interest in S&P 500, bonds, and internet ETFs, suggesting a mixed approach of seeking both growth and hedging [3] - Small-cap ETFs are seeing mixed interest, with initial buying followed by quick exits, while fundamentally or factor-weighted approaches are gaining traction [3][11] - Bitcoin ETFs are competing with gold as a store of value, with cumulative flows showing a dynamic race between the two asset classes [4] - Zero-fee funds are attracting the bulk of ETF inflows, with over $300 billion flowing into products costing 10 basis points or less [22] Active vs Passive ETF - Active ETFs are gaining traction, representing close to one-third of overall flows, with firms like Baron entering the space [2][15] - Fees may be less important for active ETFs, as investors prioritize performance and are willing to pay for active management and security selection [16][18] - Vanguard's active mutual funds have outperformed the SPY (S&P 500 ETF) at a higher rate than some peers, attributed to lower fees and less turnover [24][25] - The approval of semi-transparent or non-transparent ETFs was symbolically important but did not necessarily translate into assets [42] Vanguard's Strategy & Position - Vanguard is a leader in low-cost products and is expected to push active ETFs significantly, leveraging its substantial assets under management (approximately $14 trillion to $15 trillion) [20][29] - Vanguard may eventually allow a Bitcoin ETF to capture trends among younger investors [30] - Vanguard's outperformance in active management is linked to lower fees, which allows managers to take less risk and still deliver competitive returns [26][27] Megatrend ETF & Thematic Investing - Lazard Asset Management launched a Megatrends ETF (TMHZ) to capitalize on long-term trends like AI, health, consumer behavior, and data, with a 50 basis points fee [32][35] - Thematic ETFs can fit into model portfolios as tactical themes, and active management may improve client performance in this space compared to passive approaches [38][39] - The goal of megatrend investing is to access long-term themes that will play out over decades, differentiating it from individual themes with shorter lifecycles [40]

Small caps, big dreams. What’s your top low-cap #altcoin pick? 👇 ...

Market Trends & Analysis - Yields are rangebound, indicating a neutral stance from an intermediate and long-term perspective [2] - The 10-year Treasury yield has support around 42% and resistance around 44% [3] - A breakout from the yield range would suggest higher yields, while a breakdown could lead to secondary support around 40% [4] - Small caps, represented by the Russell 2000, show strong upside momentum in both the intermediate and short term [6] - The Russell 2000 exhibits a cup and handle formation, suggesting a potential lift to new highs [6] - Consolidation is expected for small caps, aligning with seasonal influences and overbought conditions [7] - Large cap indices are losing upside momentum, potentially impacting the Russell 2000 [8] - The VIX is above its 50-day moving average, indicating expanding volatility inversely correlated to the S&P 500 [9] Crude Oil Analysis - Crude oil prices are still in a secular downtrend, requiring a substantial upside move to reverse [9] - There are indications on the monthly chart of WTI suggesting a major low in March/April, based on long-term oversold readings [10] Energy Sector - The energy sector shows signs of life, with some MLPs lifting out of prolonged consolidation phases [11] - Phillips 66 (PSX) shows a potential inverse head and shoulders formation, indicating constructive technical action despite long-term downside momentum [11]

Friday. Joining us this morning is bespoke co co-founder Paul Hickeyi to discuss. Paul, let's get the fall started.Good to have you. Um, talk about September season seasonality and whether or not there are elements that might make this particular round of September maybe a little less than feared. Yes.I mean, September, we all know it's historically a weak time of year uh for the markets overall. Uh, especially look at I mean what we've done the last four months. We're up 1% four months in a row.Um, you kno ...

Small Cap Characteristics & Performance - Small caps constitute approximately 10% of the United States market capitalization [1] - Historically, small caps have outperformed large caps by about 1.5% to 2% per year globally [3] - Small caps are currently trading at about 18 times forward earnings [6] Valuation & Investment Considerations - Small cap valuations are generally in line with their historical averages, offering a potential diversification benefit against high valuations in large cap growth companies [2][5] - Investors often express concerns about increasing valuations, particularly in US large cap companies [5] - A significant portion of small cap returns is driven by a small subset of stocks, making broad diversification crucial [8][9] ETF Strategies & Active Management - Flexibility is key in small cap investing, aiming to hold companies poised for higher expected returns [10] - Companies with high valuations, low profitability, and high balance sheet asset growth tend to underperform by 8% to 10% per year [11] - Some ETFs employ a rules-based approach with exclusions to avoid companies with lower expected returns, differentiating them from traditional index solutions [11][12]

ETF Market Overview - ETF net flows are over $789 billion year to date [1] - Investors are slightly buying the dip on the Triple Q's following Nvidia earnings [2] ETF Inflows - Vanguard Information Technology Index Fund (VGIT) saw the top inflows this week [2] - iShares Russell 2000 ETF (IWM), representing small caps, experienced significant inflows [2] - Investment grade corporate bond ETF (LQD) also saw substantial inflows [2] Active Management & JGRO ETF - JP Morgan suggests active management with the JGRO ETF, emphasizing bottoms-up research and individual stock valuation [3] - JGRO ETF focuses on large-cap growth, considered a suitable strategy in an environment driven by a few key stocks [3] - JGRO ETF is up double digits year to date, performing closely to the S&P 500 [4]