Friends

The quarter ended peacefully for stocks and given that the Magnificent Seven stocks (Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, Meta, Alphabet, Tesla, and Nvidia) saw over $2 trillion wiped off their valuations in June, it’s amazing just how calm the overall market averages have been. Remember, for much of the rally from the Covid lows these stocks have carried the water. It’s refreshing to see that sector rotation and specifically value is still alive and well.

As for today, by the close the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 136 points to finish the day at 52,319. The S&P 500 was up 58 points to close at 7,499. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 393 points to close at 26,213. Gold was down $2 to trade at $4,036 per ounce, while oil was down $.70 to trade at $70.05 per barrel WTI.

As mentioned, recent gains in value stocks and small cap stocks helped soften the blow of the big growth companies spitting the bit in recent weeks. So, half of the year is behind us. What do we have in store in the second half of 2026? This upcoming earnings season will likely set the tone for trading in coming weeks, but we always have global conflict concerns to keep an eye on. Buckle up, I kind of think the next 6 months could be a bit more of a volatile ride.

Have a nice evening everyone.

Jim