My Top Five Buys Right Now

Market volatility brings opportunity for those who can stomach it...

"Forgive me, the last month has been tough in the markets."

This was a comment from one of our TikStocks Portfolio members last week.

And to that I say...

I agree it's been a volatile start to the year, which you should have fully expected based on my previous research. But the S&P 500 is already up 3.4% this year. That's hardly a "tough start" as that would equal a 36% gain for the year if every month was this “tough.”

I still expect a lot more volatility this year. However, riding the volatility - and adding on dips - has been the right strategy so far in 2025. And until I'm proven wrong, that will continue to be the strategy I employ.

That means it's important to review where our portfolio stands and have our buy list ready, which is what we'll do today.

Core Portfolio (SPY, QQQ, etc.)

I am optimistic we're going to have another leg higher over the next few months now that earnings-related volatility is over.

I expect this rally to be driven by the Magnificent 7 tech stocks, which are all trading well below their all-time highs (except $META). CPI this week will be the tell, however Truflation - which has been a fairly accurate the last few years - is showing a steep decline in inflation.

This is big news, since the 10-year has been rallying at least in part because inflation expectations have been rising. Seems those expectations have peaked, if Truflation is to be believed. A falling 10-year yield will be a major tailwind for stocks, particularly small caps.

I still expect more volatility this year. That is a feature rather than a bug of this market.

However, riding the volatility - and adding on dips - has been the right strategy so far in 2025. And until I'm proven wrong, that will continue to be the strategy I employ, especially considering the market's primary trend (i.e. 200-day MA) is up.

With that in mind, I will continue holding my positions.

New Members: Allocate 5% of your portfolio to a long position in the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) and 5% of your portfolio to a long position in the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ).

Mega Cap Tech Holdings

There was a time when you could buy all the Magnificent 7 tech stocks and beat the market.

But that was then, and this is now. That is why we will again scale down one of our core Mag7 holdings again this week and re-allocate to stronger names with better fundamentals and technicals.

First on my Mag7 sell list is…