The Market Structure Map
June 5, 2024
Somebody pulled a pin and dropped a grenade in the stock market and nobody noticed. Let me explain: Now, there were explanations. Index options on the SPX expired at month-end as they do every last trading day of the month, and MSCI indices rebalanced. But...
May 29, 2024
Size matters. Does trade-size matter? The average trade in S&P 500 stocks is 87 shares this week (five-day average). Think about that. Quotes are in 100-share increments but the trades average less than the quote. It can fluctuate around month-ends, index-rebalances, options-expirations. NVDA’s average is...
May 22, 2024
It’s tough being a market strategist. Mike Wilson, chief equity strategist for Morgan Stanley, has thrown his bear towel on the laundry pile and lifted his year-end target for the S&P 500 to 5,400 from 4,500. He’ll be braining himself with a brick if the...
May 1, 2024
The cost of fast food has exploded. No, I’m not doing field research. While I’ve got nothing against fast food, it’s generally incompatible with getting in boat shape (ever harder as I get older), riding bikes, skiing, etc. And I’d rather take my empty calories...
April 24, 2024
April 10, 2024
You wonder what’s going to happen next. I mean, look around. The South Carolina women ran ruthlessly through everyone, capping a 38-0 season with the NCAA basketball championship. Right before a total eclipse not of the heart but of the sun. Then UConn trammeled the...