Editor's note: Investors have to sift through a lot of noise from the financial media. But according to Pete Carmasino, the chief market strategist at our corporate affiliate Chaikin Analytics, you can take a much simpler approach and still succeed. In this piece – recently published in an issue of the Chaikin PowerFeed e-letter – Pete details why now is the time to "reset" for the sake of your investing game...
Whether it's in sports or life, I often use the phrase "back to the basics" to help me...
Take golf, for example. If you play the game, you know what I'm talking about. And even if you don't, it's simple...
When things go bad, they go bad fast.
It could be poor posture, bad balance, opening the club face as you hit the ball, or swinging too hard. Any number of little changes can throw your golf swing out of whack.
Heck, everyone who plays the game has likely dealt with problems like "slicing" from time to time.
On the golf course, I see folks mentally break down all the time. But getting mad or frustrated weakens your technique. You need a simple plan to save your game.
If a golfer takes all the nuances out of his swing, it's often easy to turn things around.
When I run into trouble, for example, I just try to hit the ball straight and on target. I don't think about any of the other things that could be going wrong.
In other words... getting back to the basics is the recipe for success.
It's all about the fundamentals and making sure your technique is on point. And as I'll explain, your strategy shouldn't be so different when it comes to investing...
At Chaikin Analytics, our goal is to find the best combination of fundamental and technical indicators to pick the right stocks.
Look, things don't always go as planned... whether it's sports or life.
What matters most is how you react to the problem. And it all relates to the current market environment...
A lot of investors worry that the bull market has gone on too long. Or they fear that it's running too high, too fast.
After all, just look at this chart of the S&P 500 Index since the October 2022 bottom...
We're in uncharted territory. Stocks have just kept running higher and higher. And market cynics have plenty of reasons to feel the way they do...
Higher interest rates have lingered for longer than expected. That might hurt corporate profits.
The next presidential election in November is quickly approaching. And depending on the result, the markets could react violently one way or another.
Meanwhile, the U.S. government is more than $34 trillion in debt. It feels like our politicians are printing money every minute.
None of these worries are off base. But in the end, I want you to keep one thing in mind...
Don't overanalyze what's going on. You'll only succumb to "analysis paralysis."
The bull market is still a bull market until it isn't. You don't want to miss out on the upside of stocks because you're scared of something that might happen.
Instead, consider cutting underperformers to free up cash for stronger ideas.
The prudent thing to do is to get back to the basics...
In a bull market run like this, you want to let your winners run and cut away the losers. Focus on what matters most... And don't get bogged down in the details.
Good investing,
Pete Carmasino
Editor's note: Chaikin Analytics founder Marc Chaikin successfully predicted last year's banking crisis... 2023's bull run... and even warned investors of a crash weeks before the market tanked in 2020. Now, he's stepping forward with his latest prediction...
On Wednesday, June 26 at 8 p.m. Eastern time, Marc will reveal all the details in a free online event. Nobody is talking about the monetary shift that's underway in America today... But the strategies that have thrived during this bull market could turn dangerous in the years ahead. So make sure you tune in... Click here to save your free spot.
Further Reading
It's easy to suffer from information overload these days. Most of the time, the news we read ends up being useless to our investments. Luckily, there's a way to ignore the short-term noise – and it starts with a long-term mindset... Learn more here.
"The biggest investing returns come to those with patience," Sean Michael Cummings writes. You don't need to invest dangerously to achieve life-changing returns. You simply have to be willing to wait... Read more here.
HIGHS AND LOWS
NEW HIGHS OF NOTE LAST WEEK
Ameriprise Financial (AMP)... financial planning
Arthur J. Gallagher (AJG)... insurance
Sea Limited (SE)... Singaporean tech giant
Corning (GLW)... smartphone glass
NetApp (NTAP)... cloud storage
Netflix (NFLX)... video streaming
Motorola Solutions (MSI)... telecom
Commvault Systems (CVLT)... data security
McKesson (MCK)... health care giant
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (REGN)... biotechnology
Colgate-Palmolive (CL)... household goods
Walmart (WMT)... "World Dominator" of discount retail
Ollie's Bargain Outlet (OLLI)... discount retail
Honeywell (HON)... manufacturing
AvalonBay Communities (AVB)... apartment REIT
Ecolab (ECL)... sanitation technology
CenterPoint Energy (CNP)... utilities
The Williams Companies (WMB)... oil and pipelines
Targa Resources (TRGP)... natural gas
NEW LOWS OF NOTE LAST WEEK
Baidu (BIDU)... "China's Google"
QuantumScape (QS)... lithium batteries
Goodyear Tire & Rubber (GT)... tires
Sturm, Ruger (RGR)... guns
