TheStreet Pro Portfolio Podcast

TheStreet Pro Podcast #71 – Lindsey Bell on the Markets and the Goldilocks Economy

On this edition of TheStreet Pro Podcast, Chris Versace is joined by Lindsey Bell, Chief Strategist at 248 Ventures. The two start off reminiscing about Lindsey interviewing Chris several years ago when she was at TheStreet, and after sharing her journey to 248 Ventures, the conversation pivots to one about the economy and why Lindsey thinks a Goldilocks economy is emerging. The jobs market and its implications are discussed as well as the housing and manufacturing markets with Lindsey explaining why she is interested in the materials sector. The two agree the upcoming earnings market is likely to be volatile, but as investors periods like that bring opportunity with them.

TheStreet Pro Podcast #70

On this week’s TheStreet Pro Podcast, Chris Versace is joined by Cole Smead, CEO and portfolio manager at Smead Capital Management based in Phoenix, Arizona. Ahead of the March CPI report, the conversation starts with the two discussing their expectations for that report, what it means for Fed policy, and the Fed’s role as a cheerleader for the economy. Cole raises the issue of structural changes in the economy, including the shift in fixed business investment, and why he thinks it means the economy can make do with a higher natural interest rate. The conversation shifts to AI and the CHIPs Act, with Cole sharing why he is wary of diminishing marginal returns for the tech industry.
The two discuss how UniCredit (UNCFF) came to be one of the largest holdings at Smead Capital Management and why the team likes Western Alliance Bancorporation (WAL) and Credit Acceptance Corp. (CACC). Other sectors discussed include Energy and Financials, with Cole sharing he sees 30% fewer banks in the coming years. The two also touch on Cole’s co-hosting duties for the “A Book With Legs” podcast.
Note: There was a modest technical glitch at the 27-minute mark in the conversation.

Podcast #69 – Sarge on the markets, Palantir, GE Aerospace, and much more

On this edition of TheStreet Pro Podcast, Chris Versace is joined by Mr. Morning Recon himself, Stephen “Sarge” Guilfoyle. Out of the gate, the two talk about the current market setup, why Sarge is incrementally bullish on the economy, and the reason he watches Gross Disposable Income as much as GDP. We discuss what levels Sarge is keenly focused on with the Nasdaq Composite as it potentially breaks its lower channel support level. From there Chris and Sarge touch on a few Portfolio holdings and run through Sarge’s thinking on GE Aerospace (GE), Boeing (BA), and Palantir (PLTR), and how to use a GTC scale order.

The Street Pro Podcast #68 – Helene Meisler Returns!

On this edition of TheStreet Pro Podcast, Chris Versace is joined by Helene Meisler for a technical look at the market. The two discuss the channel Helene sees in the S&P 500 and she explains why she is carefully watching the upward climb in that channel as well as the market’s overbought nature. As she shares, uptrend lines are made to be broken, and while it may not be in the very near term, she explains why she is on high alert.
The conversation morphs into one about the S&P 500’s performance compared to the Nasdaq, why investors should be mindful of what Helene calls “spike highs” in stocks, and what to watch to determine if a stock may power ahead of it. Helene also runs through the sentiment indicators she is watching and discusses why one could be flashing yellow lights in the not-too-distant future. All that plus an interesting and unexpected story about the bond market and Good Friday.

TheStreet Pro Podcast #67 – Peter Jackson, CFO of Builders FirstSource

Joining portfolio manager Chris Versace on this edition of TheStreet Pro Podcast is Peter Jackson, CFO of Builders FirstSource (BLDR). The conversation starts with some thoughts on the domestic housing market, one that accounts for more than 80% of Builder’s mix of business and turns quickly to the single-family housing market. That economic engine drives roughly 70% of Builder’s business and the company sees it rising mid-single digits. The conversation quickly turns to the expanding and higher margin Value Add business and how that ties into the company’s digital strategy, one that aims to reduce pain points for homebuilders ranging from large public companies to smaller, regional players and growing dollar share for Builder.
Folks looking for more information on Builders FirstSource may want to visit the company’s Investor Relations website and its latest investor presentation.
 

AAP Podcast #66 – Carley Garner on Equities, Key Commodities, and Her Vegas Must-Sees

Carley Garner joins Chris Versace on the latest AAP Podcast and the conversation begins with a discussion of the equity markets. Both agree a pullback would be a positive for the market and investors, with Carley explaining why she watches the Nasdaq 100 futures and Relative Strength Indicator (RSI) levels. After a quick chat about Apple (AAPL) and Alphabet (GOOGL), Carley shares the Nasdaq 100 level she is watching closely and where we could see a healthy market correction put the S&P 500.
The conversation shifts to key commodities including the trifecta that is ag commodities (corn, wheat, soybeans), cocoa, coffee, oil, and natural gas. In that discussion, Carley reminds us about the boom-and-bust cycle of commodities and shares an upbeat outlook for natural gas and oil but warns the euphoric prices for one of those commodities could be very different in the coming quarters.
The podcast closes out with Carly sharing some of her favorite must-dos for folks visiting Las Vegas and shares a restaurant favored by locals that you probably won’t hear about if you're only on the Vegas strip.
More from Carley Garner can be found here, and be sure to follow her on X at @CarleyGarner
 
Other recent AAP Podcasts include
Market Strength, Fed Predictions and the Savannah Bananas With Bob Lang
Breaking Down the Pre-IPO and IPO Markets with EquityZen's Phil Haslett
The Hubbub on AI With Zapata's Christopher Savoie

AAP Podcast #65: Bob Lang, Nvidia, Costco and the Savannah Bananas

On this AAP Podcast episode, Chris Versace catches up with the man behind AAP’s charts, Bob Lang discussing reasons behind the market’s continued strength and why the Vix is “double bullish” for the market. The two discuss Barclays’ boosting its S&P 500 target to 5,300 and what it could take to get there.
Along the way, Bob and Chris discuss Fed policy and why the Fed’s coming update for its Economic Projections could sour some investors. Bob goes on record for when he thinks the Fed will cut rates this year and shares how many rate cuts he sees in 2025. All that and much more including what stock we added to the Bullpen this week, why our Nvidia (NVDA) price target could be conservative, what Costco (COST) and the Savannah Bananas have in common, and how the stock market tends to perform on Leap.

AAP Podcast #64 – The Pre-IPO Market with EquityZen’s Phil Haslett

While the AAP Portfolio traffics in publicly traded companies, there is a market for shares in pre-IPO companies. On this episode of the AAP Podcast, Chris Versace chats with Phil Haslett, Chief Strategy Officer and co-founder of EquityZen, an online marketplace for trading pre-IPO employee shares from privately held companies. Phil provides an overview of the pre-IPO market and the conversation morphs to Chris and Phil discussing the current state of the IPO. Phil shares why he is cautiously optimistic about the IPO market but also shares why he thinks we could see a pickup in the M&A market as well. Greater activity in one would be positive for the shares of AAP Portfolio holdings Morgan Stanley (MS) and Bank of America (BAC), but a pickup in both would that much better. The conversation then shifts to talking about AI companies and how that could impact not only the IPO market but the stock market as well. And you’ll want to hear an interesting statistic Phil shares at the end of the conversation.

AAP Podcast # 63 – The Hubbub on AI with Zapata AI’s Christopher Savoie

On this episode of the AAP Podcast, Chris Versace sits down with Christopher Savoie, the founder and CEO of Zapata AI. Zapata has been working with AI for industrial applications since 2017.  Savoie shares how his start in molecular biology and working with machine learnings for sequencing gave rise to the formation of Zapata and its use of rich analytics with real-time data and large language models to address customer-specific problems. The conversation turns to generative AI with Savoie explaining how it can drive productivity with diverse examples ranging from engineering and construction to financial products like annuities, and race car driving strategies. Versace and Savoie then discuss why generative AI is the latest in a line of tools like the Internet that will alter how we work, driving productivity along the way. Savoie also shares why GPT 4 may not be the product some are hoping it will be and why multiple, smaller language models working together, not one model “to rule them all”, will help companies address their specific problems and needs.  
Recent AAP Podcasts
The Fixed-Income Perspective with GenTrust's Jim Besaw
Talking the Housing Market, Silver Tsunami and Stocks With Jack Truong

AAP Podcast #62 – The Fixed Income Perspective with Jim Besaw, CIO of GenTrust

On this edition of the podcast, Chris Versace chats with Jim Besaw, co-founder and Chief Investment Officer at GenTrust, a firm that focuses on investment strategies for high-net-worth individuals, institutions, and family offices. Ahead of the Fed concluding its next policy meeting, we wanted to talk with Jim because of his role at GenTrust but also because of his background in fixed income. That history yields a very different take on the probability of Fed rate cuts than those captured in the CME FedWatch Tool. Jim also shares some of the risks he sees the Fed may look to avoid as they get ready to eventually dial back monetary policy.
Chris and Jim discuss some of the signals Jim is watching when it comes to the economy and a potential recession as well as how GenTrust thinks about putting capital to work in the current market environment. That prompts a conversation about the Magnificent Seven, P/E multiples, and AI, with Jim sharing how his firm has used AI since 2015. We close out the conversation by asking Jim how equity investors should approach the fixed-income markets when investing and qualities investors should look for in investment candidates ahead of what looks to be a wave of debt refinancing in the next several quarters.