In trading on Wednesday, the VanEck Oil Service ETF is outperforming other ETFs, up about 3.2% on the day. Components of that ETF showing particular strength include shares of Valaris, up about 7.8% and shares of Transocean, up about 7.5% on the day. And underperforming other ETFs today is the ARK Fintech Innovation ETF, down about 4.7% in Wednesday afternoon trading. Among components of that ETF with the weakest showing on Wednesday were shares of Zillow Group, lower by about 19.1%, and shares of Shopify, lower by about 12% on the day. VIDEO: Wednesday's ETF Movers: OIH, ARKF The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Jeremy Woodhouse/DigitalVision via Getty Images Co-authored by Kody's Dividends Real estate has been a massive driver and generator of wealth for generations. For long periods of human history, those who owned the land were the rich. At the very beginning of the United States of America's electoral system, only the landowners were allowed to vote . Interestingly, this became a point of contention, and eventually the vote was extended to every citizen, whether they owned property or not. The idea was that if you owned land, you had a greater connection to and focus on the benefit of the country than those who didn't. This belief is well-established throughout English history. You do not have to own land to be wealthy or own land to be financially grounded, but there are significant benefits to owning real estate. But for the vast majority of investors, the ability to go out and buy multiple properties to extract wealth from them is beyond their financial capabilities. Instead, however, we have the ability to own parts of companies that do exactly this! They pool the wealth and resources of multiple investors together and provide them with high income via dividends and capital appreciation, especially when they're well-run. Today, I want to take a look at a long-standing real estate investment trust that provides returns and dividends to its shareholders. Let's dive in! Own Land Like Royalty NNN November 2025 Institutional Investor Presentation As of December 31st, 2025, NNN REIT ( NNN ) owned approximately 3,692 single-tenant net lease properties throughout the United States, spread across over 400 national and regional tenants in more than 35 lines of trade. In other words, tenants are responsible for the typical expenses associated with properties (i.e., taxes, utilities, maintenance, and insurance), as well as cutting a rent check to NNN each month. There's even more to like about NNN's net lease business model. Typical initial lease terms range from 10 years to 2...

These developments were on display in the company’s fiscal first quarter (November quarter) readout. Revenue reached $13.64 billion, topping estimates by $760 million, while adj. EPS reached $4.78, exceeding expectations by $0.82. The FQ2 guide was even more impressive. Micron guided for F2Q revenue of $18.7 billion at the midpoint and adj. EPS of $8.42 at the midpoint. The Street was only expecting $14.23 billion and $4.49, respectively. In fact, Micron has said that its all its HBM is essentially fully booked through 2026, as intense AI data center demand has absorbed available supply. Meanwhile, the demand/supply imbalance has also resulted in massive price increases. You could argue that with Micron shares up by 300% over the past year, it has clearly enjoyed an up cycle, but the thing is, this cycle is different from others. Because, unlike past waves, the current memory boom is powered by AI infrastructure, and AI workloads require massive, ongoing memory capacity for data centers, GPUs, and accelerators. First up, memory giant Micron, a company heavily associated with the boom-and-bust dynamics of the memory industry. It’s a simple cycle really: when demand surges – often from consumer electronics like smartphones, PCs, or gaming consoles – prices spike and manufacturers ramp up production. But once supply catches up or demand slows, prices can collapse just as quickly, leaving producers with excess inventory and shrinking profits. These cycles have made memory one of the most volatile sectors in tech, with fortunes rising and falling in tandem with short-term shifts in supply and demand. Semiconductor memory specialists such as Micron (NASDAQ:MU) and SanDisk (NASDAQ:SNDK) have been reaping the rewards, with shares of both piling on the gains over the past year as sales have gone through the roof. However, given AI’s insatiable need for memory, Street analysts see more good times ahead for these names. So, let’s see what still makes these two memory stalwarts...

A spokesperson for Lloyds said: "Customers want the freedom to bank in the way that works for them and we offer more choice and ways to manage money than ever before."

Robinhood Markets ( HOOD ) is "in the long run very bullish on the crypto industry," CEO Vlad Tenev said in a broadcast interview on Wednesday, the day after the company's Q4 earnings reflected the impact of falling bitcoin prices. For example, after the company's earnings call on Tuesday evening, Robinhood ( HOOD ) announced the launch of its public testnet for Robinhood Chain in its bid to accelerate the development of onchain financial services. The current phase allows developers to build and verify apps on the chain. Infrastructure providers, including Alchemy, Allium, Chainlink, and LayerZero, have started integrating with Robinhood Chain, the company said. "Crypto is a big part of it, but it's really about driving forward tokenization and making sure that crypto technology blends with assets that have real fundamental utility, like tokenized stocks and other things," Tenev said in a CNBC interview on Wednesday. While Robinhood ( HOOD ) continues to build its crypto business, it's also seeking to diversify. And Tenev doesn't believe that the stock has yet reflected that effort. HOOD stock sank 12% in Wednesday midday trading. "I think perception lags reality, to some degree," he said. "We now have 11 businesses that generate $100M or more in annual revenue. And that's up dramatically in just the past couple of years." One area of diversification is prediction markets, where Tenev sees an opportunity to expand beyond sports events. "I think that the interesting thing about prediction markets is that it's more than just sports," he said. For example, the week after the NFL season ended, the government shutdown contract got more volume than many individual sporting events, he noted. More on Robinhood Markets Robinhood Markets, Inc. (HOOD) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript Robinhood Markets, Inc. 2025 Q4 - Results - Earnings Call Presentation Hands Off Robinhood - Until Crypto Winter Ends (Preview) Robinhood leads crypto-tied brokerages lower in broader market rout...

spawns Shares of Acadia Healthcare ( ACHC ) gained ~12% on Wednesday on above-average volumes after hedge fund manager David Einhorn highlighted the psychiatric facility operator as one of his recent buys. Einhorn, president of New York-based investment firm Greenlight Capital, issued the remarks on the CNBC show “Money Movers’ on Wednesday. While nearly 6.0M Acadia ( ACHC ) shares have changed hands so far compared to the 65-day average of approximately 3.4M, the stock has recorded its second-best intraday rally for 2026 following more than a 64% decline last year. Acadia ( ACHC ) has added ~9% YTD, including over a 20% rally in mid-January when former CEO and board member Debra Osteen took over the company’s leadership, replacing Chris Hunter, who assumed the reins from Osteen in April 2022. More on Acadia Healthcare Acadia Healthcare Company, Inc. (ACHC) Presents at 44th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference - Slideshow Acadia Healthcare Company, Inc. (ACHC) Presents at 44th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference Transcript Acadia Healthcare: Structural Problems, Not A Temporary Rough Patch Acadia Healthcare names Debra Osteen as CEO; reaffirms guidance Acadia Healthcare drops after hours on reduced 2025 guidance

格隆汇2月12日｜道明证券将美联储下次降息时间点的预测从此前的3月推迟至6月，仍预计今年将累计降息75个基点，降至终端利率3%。道明证券预计美联储将在6月、9月和12月各进行一次25个基点的降息。该机构首席美国宏观策略师Oscar Munoz领衔的团队表示，预期中的政策宽松并非源于经济状况恶化，而是随着通胀逐步回到目标水平，货币政策走向“正常化”的结果。就业前景改善应能让美联储把注意力转向通胀任务。该机构同时预计，美债收益率今年将会继续下行，10年期收益率至年末将降至3.75%（此前预计为3.5%）。

AIS present AMD™ with the Production Technology Lumiere Award AMD

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The US labor market is coming off one its worst years for hiring in decades. Revisions to employment figures showed the nation added 181,000 jobs in 2025, the lowest annual total outside of recession years since 2003. That averaged out to just 15,000 job gains per month, down from an initially reported 49,000 pace, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data out Wednesday. While the revisions were expected to reflect a notable markdown in last year’s hiring pace, economists were pleasantly surprised by how the labor market rebounded in January. Payrolls growth last month exceeded nearly all forecasts and the unemployment rate unexpectedly fell. Read More: US Adds 130,000 Jobs and Unemployment Falls After Tepid 2025 With the release of each January employment report, the BLS benchmarks payrolls to a more accurate but less timely series called the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages. That data is based on state unemployment insurance tax records and covers most US jobs. The agency also updated its so-called birth-death model, which accounts for the net number of businesses opening and closing.

Jonathan Ferro, Lisa Abramowicz and Annmarie Hordern speak daily with leaders and decision makers from Wall Street to Washington and beyond. No other program better positions investors and executives for the trading day. (Source: Bloomberg)

Too soon. It’s too soon to know when Keir Starmer will be off. It’s also too soon to know whether AI-induced angst is appropriate, but in the last 24 hours we’ve seen another “mini sell off.” While Starmer lived to fight another PMQs this lunchtime, few independent analysts think he can survive the coming double electoral trials: first the by-election at the end of the month, then the local and devolved elections at the start of May. The new consensus in Westminster according to our reporters is that Angela Rayner has emerged from the last few days enhanced, but Wes Streeting has been damaged. The result of that is that we are possibly entering a period of even greater public spending, yet the bond markets are relaxed, clearly still believing it’s...too soon to worry. But even though Starmer is currently getting the benefit of the doubt, some sectors of the economy are most definitely not. In this piece one money manager our reporters spoke to put it like this: “ Every company with any sort of potential disruption risk is getting sold indiscriminately.” Just look at this graph: Nvidia boss Jensen Huang called last week’s sell off “illogical” but, Jensen, so said lots of people during lots of sell offs throughout history. And it’s happened again — this time it was the turn of the wealth management sector after a release from a little known outfit called Altruist, scaring established firms. Bloomberg Opinion ’s Paul Davies takes a look at whether AI threatens the “finance industry’s perpetual profit machine.” “ While I mostly suspect that the banking industry’s talent for self-preservation will defend it from technological change, I do wonder if the extreme version of our fully automated AI future could make financial services as irrelevant as everything else,” he writes. One idea taking hold, he says, is that money would become entertainment in an AI era: “ Prediction markets, gambling with stock options and crypto are just that. The inglorious future of finance coul...

From AI working alongside other AI to the power of patience and perspective, this episode is an invitation to slow down just enough to see what really matters as change unfolds. To catch full episodes of all The Motley Fool's free podcasts, check out our podcast center. When you're ready to invest, check out this top 10 list of stocks to buy. Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue » A full transcript is below. Where to invest $1,000 right now When our analyst team has a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, Stock Advisor’s total average return is 920%* — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 196% for the S&P 500. They just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy right now, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of February 11, 2026. This podcast was recorded on Feb. 04, 2026. David Gardner: About this week's guest, founding editor of WIRED Magazine, Kevin Kelly, the long time technology journalist David Pogue had this to say. Anyone can claim to be a prophet, a fortune teller, or a futurist, and plenty of people do. What makes Kevin Kelly different is that he's right. [LAUGHTER] Kevin has spent decades paying attention to what most of us rush past. This week, he returns with that same calm, long view perspective unhurried, curious, quietly provocative. What does the future hold? Only on this week's Rule Breaker Investing. Welcome back to Rule Breaker Investing. Well, I'm absolutely delighted to welcome back Kevin Kelly to this podcast. I've had Kevin on a couple of times before, and each time it's such an enjoyable. Well, for me, anyway, I hope for our listeners, too, I don't know whether Kevin enjoys it or not, but it's such an enjoyable conversation. I do want to mention that Kevin started blogging agai...

With Medicare coverage of obesity drugs slated to begin in mid-to-late 2026, Novo Nordisk ( NVO ) CEO Mike Doustdar believes the company can add 15M new patients for its weight loss drugs. Considering "specifically our products and the target group, I think around 15 million people would be a good number to target," he told CNBC. The exec added that Novo is currently in negotiations with the federal government to determine when coverage would begin. The Danish pharma markets Wegovy (semaglutide), which is available as a subcutaneous weekly injection and a daily pill for weight loss. Novo competes with Eli Lilly's ( LLY ) Zepbound (tirzepatide) in the obesity treatment market. Doustdar is optimistic that a higher-dose version of the injectable version of Wegovy—7.2 mg—could take market share away from Zepbound. A decision from the US FDA on 7.2 mg Wegovy is expected this quarter. More on Novo Nordisk Novo Nordisk: How Low Is Too Low? (Downgrade, Technical Analysis) Novo Nordisk: Ugly Guidance, But Stock Refuses To Break Down Further Novo Nordisk: Full Kitchen Sink Reset Or Another Shoe Yet To Drop? Novo Nordisk board proposes DKK 7.95 final dividend for 2025, initiates DKK 15B buyback Novo Nordisk’s 2026 outlook in focus as competition pressures sales

Source: Bloomberg, 9:25

Key Points Centrus Energy reported fourth quarter 2025 financial results after the market closed yesterday. The company failed to meet analysts' revenue and profit expectations. Investors interested in exposure to the nuclear energy industry shouldn't be dissuaded from considering Centrus Energy stock. 10 stocks we like better than Centrus Energy › Giving back the 9.2% gain that Centrus Energy (NYSE: LEU) stock had logged from the start of 2026 through the end of trading on Tuesday, shares of the nuclear fuel specialist are plunging today. Following the company's disappointing fourth-quarter 2025 financial results yesterday after the bell, investors are now expressing their disapproval, sending the stock lower. As of 11:38 a.m. ET, shares of Centrus Energy are down 19.3%. Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now, when you join Stock Advisor. See the stocks » A substantial backlog can't distract from a weaker-than-expected bottom line Failing to meet analysts' expectations that it'd post sales of $147.1 million, Centrus reported Q4 2025 revenue of $146.2 million, a 3.6% year-over-year decline. The company's bottom line also came up short of the consensus among analysts that Centrus would report earnings per share (EPS) totaling $1.63. Instead, Centrus reported Q4 2025 diluted EPS of $0.79, representing a smaller profit than the diluted EPS of $3.20 and $3.58 that it reported in the fourth quarters of 2024 and 2023, respectively. Despite the disappointment investors found in the income statement, Centrus has a robust backlog that bodes well for the company's prospects. At the end of 2025, the company's backlog had grown to $3.8 billion from $3.7 billion at the end of 2024. Centrus Energy can be an excellent nuclear energy industry stock to power your portfolio Although the steep decline in Centrus Energy stock today may be disconcerting, potential investors should hardly consider it a si...

laddawan punna/iStock via Getty Images Market Overview Gold finished 2025 much the way it began, as it continued to establish a series of new all-time highs while delivering its best annual performance in a generation. Though they fluctuate in intensity, the drivers of gold demand in recent quarters—including monetary policy uncertainty, questions about Federal Reserve independence, disruptive trade policy, shifting fiscal policies, heightened local and geopolitical tensions, and high sovereign debt levels—remain intact. The gold spot price climbed 11.9% in the fourth quarter to bring its 2025 gain to nearly 65%, the largest annual advance since 1979. The FTSE Gold Mines Index has been even stronger, which is not surprising given that the stocks of miners historically have been leveraged to the price of gold; its 14.6% climb during the quarter brought the index’s annual return to nearly 170%.1 Market Summary 4th Quarter 2025 FTSE Gold Mines Index +14.58% MSCI World Index +3.12% S&P 500 Index +2.66% German DAX Index +2.55% French CAC 40 Index +3.62% Nikkei 225 Index +12.18% Brent Crude Oil -9.21% $60.85 a barrel Gold +11.93% $4,319.37 an ounce US Dollar +6.13% vs. yen +0.05% vs. euro Click to enlarge Source: Bloomberg, WM/Reuters. Another Quarter, Another Series of Records The 43-day US government shutdown that began on October 1—the longest in history—set the tone for gold demand in the fourth quarter, highlighting the value of a potential “safe haven” asset amid the elevated fiscal and political risks facing the country. Further, the shuttering of numerous federal agencies responsible for producing economic data left investors uncertain about the Federal Reserve’s next policy move after its September rate cut. Despite limited access to official data, the Fed announced another cut following its October meeting, though Chair Powell tempered expectations for what had been a widely expected December cut and motivated some profit taking by gold investors in the process....

Investors in unprofitable nuclear stock NuScale might have to wait even longer for profits. Shares of small modular (nuclear) power plant-builder NuScale Power (SMR 8.87%) stock tumbled 9.3% through 11:45 a.m. ET Wednesday. You can blame Wall Street analyst TD Cowen for that. TD kicks NuScale to the curb This morning, you see, TD Cowen analyst Marc Bianchi downgraded NuScale stock from buy to hold, warning of a negative catalyst that could soon damage the stock -- and add to the 36% losses NuScale investors have already suffered over the past year. As Bianchi explains, NuScale customer Nuclearelectrica will make a Final Investment Decision (FID) on its Doicesti Romanian small modular reactor (SMR) project this week. Bianchi believes Nuclearelectrica will proceed with the project -- but shift some project risk onto NuScale, and push back closing to 2033 or even 2034. Recalling that the project completion date was last expected no later than 2030, this would be a significant setback -- and could significantly delay NuScale's scaling up revenue and achieving profitability. Worse news for NuScale, Bianchi believes other nuclear utilities are using Doicesti as a test case, and "an important validation point for NuScale's commercial potential." They may base their own decisions on its success. Expand NYSE : SMR NuScale Power Today's Change ( -8.87 %) $ -1.49 Current Price $ 15.26 Key Data Points Market Cap $4.7B Day's Range $ 14.87 - $ 16.85 52wk Range $ 11.08 - $ 57.42 Volume 964K Avg Vol 26M Gross Margin 64.95 % Is NuScale stock a sell? Long story short: If Nuclearelectrica delays opening its SMR plant, there could be knock-on effects delaying the timelines for NuScale's several other customers. So what does this mean for NuScale investors? At last report, most analysts polled by S&P Global Market Intelligence expected NuScale to report its first profit in 2030 -- the same year Doicesti would open. If opening gets delayed three or four years, though, so might NuScale's ...

Legendary investor Warren Buffett advises to be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful. One way we can try to measure the level of fear in a given stock is through a technical analysis indicator called the Relative Strength Index, or RSI, which measures momentum on a scale of zero to 100. A stock is considered to be oversold if the RSI reading falls below 30. In trading on Wednesday, shares of Mattel Inc (Symbol: MAT) entered into oversold territory, hitting an RSI reading of 23.0, after changing hands as low as $15.05 per share. By comparison, the current RSI reading of the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) is 52.1. A bullish investor could look at MAT's 23.0 RSI reading today as a sign that the recent heavy selling is in the process of exhausting itself, and begin to look for entry point opportunities on the buy side. The chart below shows the one year performance of MAT shares: Looking at the chart above, MAT's low point in its 52 week range is $13.945 per share, with $22.48 as the 52 week high point — that compares with a last trade of $15.98. Find out what 9 other oversold stocks you need to know about » Also see: The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Legendary investor Warren Buffett advises to be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful. One way we can try to measure the level of fear in a given stock is through a technical analysis indicator called the Relative Strength Index, or RSI, which measures momentum on a scale of zero to 100. A stock is considered to be oversold if the RSI reading falls below 30. In trading on Wednesday, shares of Fortrea Holdings Inc (Symbol: FTRE) entered into oversold territory, hitting an RSI reading of 26.5, after changing hands as low as $12.02 per share. By comparison, the current RSI reading of the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) is 52.1. A bullish investor could look at FTRE's 26.5 RSI reading today as a sign that the recent heavy selling is in the process of exhausting itself, and begin to look for entry point opportunities on the buy side. The chart below shows the one year performance of FTRE shares: Looking at the chart above, FTRE's low point in its 52 week range is $3.97 per share, with $18.67 as the 52 week high point — that compares with a last trade of $11.95. Find out what 9 other oversold stocks you need to know about » Also see: The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Legendary investor Warren Buffett advises to be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful. One way we can try to measure the level of fear in a given stock is through a technical analysis indicator called the Relative Strength Index, or RSI, which measures momentum on a scale of zero to 100. A stock is considered to be oversold if the RSI reading falls below 30. In trading on Wednesday, shares of Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund (Symbol: FBTC) entered into oversold territory, hitting an RSI reading of 29.5, after changing hands as low as $57.23 per share. By comparison, the current RSI reading of the S&P 500 ETF (SPY) is 52.1. A bullish investor could look at FBTC's 29.5 RSI reading today as a sign that the recent heavy selling is in the process of exhausting itself, and begin to look for entry point opportunities on the buy side. The chart below shows the one year performance of FBTC shares: Looking at the chart above, FBTC's low point in its 52 week range is $54.205 per share, with $110.25 as the 52 week high point — that compares with a last trade of $57.84. Find out what 9 other oversold stocks you need to know about » Also see: The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

Earnings Call Insights: SharkNinja (SN) Q4 2025 Management View Mark Adam Barrocas, President and CEO, emphasized the company's record-setting performance, stating, "2025 concluded on a high note for SharkNinja. It was an outstanding holiday season driven by broad-based strength across product categories, geographies and channels." He highlighted net sales growth of nearly 18% year-over-year in Q4, noting, "Consumers want Shark and Ninja products, and they're discovering them in more places than ever before." Barrocas underscored market share gains, stating, "The magnitude of our outperformance is noteworthy with market share gains across each of our 4 category groupings in '25, Cleaning, Cooking and Beverage, Food Preparation and Beauty and Home Environment." Diversification was stressed as a key driver, with Barrocas saying, "We have more products, more channels and more geographies, giving us multiple paths to expand." The CEO announced a $750 million share repurchase program, describing it as "a significant milestone for SharkNinja and a testament to our operational discipline and cash management execution." Adam Quigley, Chief Financial Officer, reported, "SharkNinja achieved $6.4 billion in net sales, up nearly 16% year-over-year... Adjusted EBITDA increased more than 19% year-over-year to $1.14 billion for the full year." Quigley noted, "Adjusted earnings per share reached a new record for SharkNinja at $5.28, up nearly 21% year-over-year." Outlook Quigley provided 2026 guidance: "For the full year 2026, we expect our net sales to increase between 10% and 11%, adjusted net income per diluted share to be in the range of $5.90 to $6, an increase of 12% to 14% year-over-year. Adjusted EBITDA to be in the range of $1.27 billion to $1.28 billion, representing growth of 12% to 13% year-over-year." Guidance assumes current tariff levels persist, with minimum rates of 20% for China and Vietnam, and 19% for Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, and Cambodia. Capital expendit...

If You'd Invested $100 in Micron 5 Years Ago, Here's How Much You'd Have Today The Motley Fool

Even investing at a near-term peak would have yielded a multibagger over five years. Tech stocks sometimes appear expensive in the near-term, but no sector has the potential for explosive, multibagger returns than the technology sector. Look no further than memory giant Micron Technology (MU +7.56%), long considered a cyclical "commodity" in the tech world, but which has really come into its own in the age of AI. Expand NASDAQ : MU Micron Technology Today's Change ( 7.56 %) $ 28.23 Current Price $ 401.48 Key Data Points Market Cap $420B Day's Range $ 386.73 - $ 410.00 52wk Range $ 61.54 - $ 455.50 Volume 1.2M Avg Vol 32M Gross Margin 45.53 % Dividend Yield 0.12 % Up 372% in five years Since Feb. 10, 2021, Micron's stock has appreciated roughly 372%, including dividends. That means $100 invested in Micron stock five years ago would be worth a whopping $472 today. That's a 36.3% annualized return -- a stunning result compared with the 8% and 10% average annual return of the stock market. Micron was actually trading at a near-term top five years ago, only to crash in 2022 when the pandemic ended, interest rates rose quickly, and the PC, phone, and cloud server end markets ground to a halt. However, the artificial intelligence revolution helped Micron not only recover but grow multiples past previous highs. AI training requires a particular type of DRAM called high-bandwidth memory (HBM). That market is projected to grow to $100 billion by 2028, according to Micron management, a figure that's larger than the entire DRAM industry was five years ago! Not only that, but HBM requires three to four times the equipment to produce as traditional DRAM. Therefore, not only is demand booming, but HBM also sucks up supply. No wonder that has led to a persistent shortage. Analysts project DRAM prices to increase over 90% just in the first quarter 2026, with another 20% price increase projected in Q2. A boom that will lead to a bust, or a "new normal"? It remains to be seen whether ...

Consumer staples have been one of the hottest sectors so far this year. Last November, I called out the State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLP +1.51%) as my top high-yield exchange-traded fund (ETF) to buy for passive income. My investment thesis centered around the fund's quality value-stock holdings and reliable passive income. I did not expect the ETF to already be up 13.2% in 2026 compared to a mere 1.3% gain in the S&P 500. Here's why the seemingly boring consumer staples sector is scorching hot, and why the Consumer Staples SPDR ETF remains a buy for broad-based exposure to it. Generating passive income from companies you can trust Top holdings in the Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR ETF include Walmart, Costco Wholesale, Procter & Gamble, and Coca-Cola. These aren't the kind of stocks that investors expect to achieve breakneck growth or make pioneering strides in artificial intelligence (AI). But they can be relied on to produce strong results no matter what the economy is doing, and many such companies pay stable and growing dividends. You may have heard the term Dividend King, which refers to companies that have paid and raised their dividends annually for at least 50 consecutive years -- names like P&G, Coke, PepsiCo, and Colgate-Palmolive. Consumer staples dominate the group, making up 15 of the 57 Dividend Kings. But the consumer staples sector has been under pressure due to pullbacks in customer spending, and many companies are struggling to pass along higher costs through price increases. In fact, consumer staples was the worst-performing stock market sector in 2025. This year, it is the third-best-performing sector. Understanding sector rotations Years of underperformance relative to the S&P 500 and a discounted valuation aren't even the primary reasons the consumer staples sector is exploding higher in 2026. Rather, it has more to do with shifting sentiment in growth-focused sectors like tech, communications, and consumer discre...