Tag: S&P 500 Index

Market volatility is picking up. How to use option spreads to protect and maximize returns

Stock returns aren’t normally distributed. Very small daily returns occur more frequently than a normal distribution would suggest, and very large daily returns also occur more frequently than a normal distribution would suggest. The “average” move, perhaps unintuitively, occurs less frequently than a normal distribution would imply. If this doesn’t make sense, imagine a room […]

Your portfolio may be more tech-heavy than you think

If you own an S&P 500 index fund, artificial intelligence is already a major part of your investment strategy. In recent years, the stock market’s gains have been fueled largely by a small group of tech giants that are aggressively investing in AI. Nvidia, Microsoft, Apple, Google parent company Alphabet and Amazon — the five […]

This insurance stock is breaking out, but remains cheap. How to get long with options

Elevance Health is emerging from a 2025 reset with improved positioning to restore margins and grow its earnings base. Management has demonstrated discipline by lowering guidance to reflect elevated costs rather than delaying recognition, clearing the decks for the future. At the same time, the Carelon platform continues to deliver robust growth, diversifying revenue streams […]

As the market pulls back, Jim Cramer explains how to handle sell-offs

CNBC’s Jim Cramer unpacked Tuesday’s market action and suggested that it can be worthwhile to stick with good stocks as they weather losses, telling investors to buy, not sell, into weakness. “When you get hit with a sell-off…that’s when you should buy more of your favorite growth stocks…the ones you’ve done the homework on and […]

Investors aren’t quite sure how to react to the Fed’s quarter-point cut

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell takes questions from reporters during a news conference following a two-day meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee at the Federal Reserve on Sept. 17, 2025 in Washington, DC. Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images The U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday stateside cut interest rates by a quarter point, bringing the […]

How to trade record S&P 500 before it reaches bull market limit

There is more than enough focus on Wall Street about what the Fed will do next, and Friday’s weak nonfarm payrolls report will add to expectations for a rate cut. But maybe there is not enough planning among investors about what they should do to preserve the hefty gains embedded in market portfolios since the […]

Jim Cramer explains how to handle Tuesday’s market decline

CNBC’s Jim Cramer unpacked Tuesday’s market action, explaining why stocks fell and how investors can deal with losses. “Days like today are…dispiriting, they’re painful, and they usually aren’t alone,” he said. “You have to trust the companies you believe in. Trust the market. That’s the only way to make big money in stocks long term.” […]