[CNBCfix Fast Money Review Archive — January 2019]
Gorgeous Karen Finerman in blue: ‘I think there’s still room to run, if they get a trade deal. But, some stocks have run too far. Already. Right’
Karen Finerman on Thursday's (1/31) 5 p.m. Fast Money said there was a "lack of any bombshells," which of course was NOT true if talking about her own show but was true in reference to GE's report.
Meanwhile, Karen's quote about the general market (in the headline above) left us scratching our heads; apparently she thinks some stocks are going up and others are going down.
Or perhaps she just thinks (as Steve Weiss expressed Wednesday 1/30) that this is a "stock-picker's market (snicker)."
Someone on Thursday's (1/31) Halftime Report stated she couldn't invest in AMZN because of ... the multiple. #effectmistakenascause
Judge didn't sound terribly impressed by Intel's CEO hire. "I don't know this, this gentleman from a hole in the wall," Judge said, but "this doesn't sound to me like the exciting pick that, that we've been waiting 6 months for."
Howard Marks spoke in Florida about being "generally constructive" on emerging markets.
On Wednesday's (1/30) Halftime Report, Judge actually clipped Joe Terranova for that embarrassing bungle of a flip-flop from loving the market Friday to not loving it so much Monday, "which I didn't get," Judge said.
Joe responded, "First of all, we were in a technical area (Zzzzzzzz)," but then he said he was "concerned about what I was hearing about this economic slowdown and there seems to be this- this narrative surrounding it now (snicker)."
Judge on Thursday's Halftime didn't mention that Mike "sell at 2,600-2,650 but Wednesday he's insisting it was 2,650" Wilson was on the 5 p.m. Fast Money the night before and said to sell the rally because earnings suck. Isn't this person always right about the stock market?
16-13
This time of year, no episode of Halftime Report/Fast Money is going to get in the way of our watching the NFL Films "Super Bowl Highlights" of I through XIV. (For example, today was V, one of the greatest pro football games ever played ... BOTH defenses playing offense ... Facenda, the music, O'Brien's kick ...) (If you don't know what we're talking about, totally fine. If you do know what we're talking about, then you totally get it.)
Anyway, on Tuesday's (1/29) Halftime Report, Kevin O'Leary made the most waves stating the GE equity is "a crime scene" and a "zero" and suggesting it's all beyond fixable no matter who the CEO is.
Josh Brown said he wouldn't be long or short GE and drew an interesting reference to F not going anywhere for years, frustrating both bulls and bears.
Remember not too long ago when anything associated with bitcoin was totally awesome?
It was just Friday that Joe Terranova stated, "I think I love the market. ... The market's telling you something today," and he went to great lengths to explain the difference between late January 2019 and late January 2018.
Monday (1/28) on the Halftime Report, Joe actually discussed how he ordered sales of 25% of every one of his positions and made it sound like this might well be late January 2018 all over. #severemomentumtrading
Steve Weiss tried to identify about 15 headwinds. Jim Lebenthal asserted, "I think we're being way too negative."
"I'm long enough at this point," Weiss shrugged.
Shannon Saccocia discussed AAPL and said, "This is a sign of a deflationary environment."
Weiss said the AMGN downgrade might be a good call. "There isn't much upside" over several years, said Shannon Saccocia. Joe likes ABT and suggested ABBV though he's "very surprised" at the rate of the latter's decline.
Pete Najarian did the Options Action thing, then said the slam in CAT is a "gift for Caterpillar."
On the 5 p.m. Fast Money, Karen Finerman, looking summery in sleeveless blue top, mentioned NVDA. "I thought that was really bad," Karen said.
As the crew discussed Washington politics/investigations, Karen said, "To me, it's all- the market is all about the trade issue."
Missy Lee showcased a dynamic new cream-colored outfit.
Jan. 2019 vs. Jan. 2018: Joe says ‘This time is different’
Joe Terranova unleashed the Comment of the Day on Friday's (1/25) Halftime Report.
"I think I love the market. ... The market's telling you something today," Joe said.
Honestly, we're not really sure what that is, other than stocks were up.
Liz Young wasn't as enthusiastic and said the truth between the visions of late 2018 and early 2019 lies "somewhere in the middle."
However, "I don't think that we're gonna retest those lows," Young added.
Dubravko Lakos stated, "We do see some form of trade deal around the corner."
Grandpa Josh Brown pointed out that a year and a day ago, the market was topping for 2018-except-for-the-run-to-September (which Brown called a "false breakout" as though it didn't happen), which is relevant now because ...?
Joe insisted that the last couple weeks look "incredibly different" than last year at this time. Joe said that back then, there were "tremendous inflows" into small-caps and momentum names. "This time is different," Joe said, citing "institutional flows."
Brown grumbled that it's been a straight-up "melt-up" since Christmas Eve.
Joe gave a tepid endorsement to financials.
Unlike Dubravko Lakos, Liz Young actually told Josh Brown she expects a tariff hike with China in March. Brown said if that happens, we'd be "through the lows." Young said "Let me clarify," she thinks they'll just "kick the can" without a "definitive, end-all, be-all deal this year."
Jim Lebenthal said FB is "actually an attractive stock." But Josh Brown said the problem is that "ad load on Instagram has now grown obscene because of a lack of engagement on Facebook classic." (This writer is long FB.)
Joe Terranova said he's "suspicious about the timing of this op-ed" by Mark Zuckerberg and wonders if it means Facebook is concerned about regulation.
Brown suggested TWTR (Zzzzzzzzz) is "growing faster than Facebook classic." Then he said he "wouldn't be shocked if they have a revenue surprise to the upside, just given all of the political stuff going on" and the "NBA season" and its "blockbuster windfall" (snicker).
Jim started to talk about INTC (Zzzzzzz) and suggested the company may have been "lowering the bar" for the next CEO.
Jim said to "take the money and run" on CELG. Joe suggested a bunch of alternatives to MO. Josh Brown said he still owns massive dog ALB even though it hasn't bounced back; "maybe it's a late-bloomer." (This writer is long ALB.) Liz Young said HYG "could go up further," but she didn't sound too excited.
Josh Brown said he bought AMZN on Christmas Eve and got filled on an "obscenely low price." (#timemachinetradesyoucan'tmakerightnow)
Buying before the bottom (or Wait Until AFTER Intel Reports)
On Thursday's (1/24) Halftime Report, Shannon Saccocia had this advice about buying semicondutors: "You kinda wanna be in before they bottom."
Joe Terranova said he bought TER and NXPI on Thursday. Jim Lebenthal later endorsed the latter.
Steve Weiss advised people to be "cautious" about the semiconductor rally and noted MU was doing buybacks at "45 or so" (snicker). (This writer is long MU.)
Given too much time to revisit this tired topic, Jim tried to imply that INTC could easily go higher (snicker) after its Thursday night report. (This review was posted overnight Thursday/Friday.) Weiss said he owns it and asked Jim what do you do if INTC "doesn't deliver tonight." Jim admitted, "It's not good."
Nevertheless, "You never know for sure. But it's unlikely for them to lay an egg today," Jim asserted of INTC.
Pete Najarian said of INTC, "I see options activity that's telling me they think this stock's going a lot higher." Let's see ... that's the "smart money," right?
Weiss said Wilbur Ross was "incredibly out of touch." Pete said Draghi's remarks were more important than Wilbur's.
Judge asked Eamon Javers if Wilbur Ross' comments will be a "defining moment" of the shutdown.
Javers actually said that Larry Kudlow made a "Robert Frost poetry joke." (#judgetweetsaboutfootballnotpoetry)
Weiss said of GE, "Why own it?" Jim said it's had a "dead-cat bounce."
On the 5 p.m. Fast Money, Karen Finerman and the crew assessed the state of the entire stock market. "I think there's something for everyone here," Karen said.
Karen said, "I think we are closer" to a shutdown deal. Karen also called SQ "too expensive." (This writer is long SQ.)
The Magnificent Ambersons
The star guest of Wednesday's (1/23) Halftime Report was Mario Gabelli, but it was Pete Najarian who uncorked the strongest comment about ... something or other.
Pete revealed, "I have the smallest amount of equity in the options world than I've ever had since I've been trading."
Well, that seems to us like there just hasn't been much on the HeatSeeker recently, rather than an indication of a powerful stock-market call.
Gabelli was asked to speak for much of the program. (We don't think he was asked to opine on GE, which he recommended at 16 a year ago.)
Gabelli painted a rosy scenario of Q1 2020 and said we might be "kind of grinding our way through the next 3 or 4 months" until things get good.
Steve Weiss seemed rather lukewarm and offered this reach: "Everybody's worried (snicker) about U.S. debt to GDP." But he said it's only 1:1, vs. China being at 2.5:1 without even including its "massive debt in the banks."
Bryn Talkington (that's correct, not Booth Tarkington) (#scotttweetsaboutfootballnotliterature) said the December technical damage is "legitimate" and predicted headlines will continue to keep the market "range-bound."
Pete Najarian said the WMT overweight rating is "a very late call" by Morgan Stanley. Joe Terranova somehow acknowledged that Pete's "always right" in the debate of TGT (Pete) vs. WMT (Joe). Joe said he doesn't look at WMT on the basis of going from 98 to 105 but "from a portfolio standpoint." We'll take the other side of that phrase. Your WMT shares don't care what kind of "portfolio" they're in or what your other stocks are. Either they're going up or they're not. If they're not, you don't buy it. You're welcome.
Judge asked Gabelli what he thinks of "Masters of the Universe" including Einhorn, Ackman and Lampert (snicker). Gabelli said "They're all terrific." Judge scowled.
Gabelli made the case for MGM and NAV and GFF as well as other names.
Ira Sohn champ got a couple appearances on Judge’s show to tout his long EBAY/short PYPL call
Judge struggled in Tuesday's (1/23) Halftime Report to get panelists to declare whether we will or will not retest December's lows.
Kevin O'Leary and Mark Tepper both said no. But Josh Brown insisted "history has shown" that there could be a retest because of the amount of P.E. compression last year. Stephanie Link said no, provided 4-5% earnings growth takes place as she expects (which is basically like not answering the question).
Joe Terranova actually claimed with a straight face that there was a "tremendous amount of optimism" (snicker) about banks just last week, and Joe wondered if the panel had lost the "excitement" about the sector in just 2-3 hours. Kevin O'Leary scoffed that banks will never have the leverage again to be anything special.
Judge utterly avoided any conversation about the arts and whether the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences made respectable choices. (#scotttweetsaboutfootballnotFaulkner)
Judge told Ivy Zelman the housing sales number was "ugly" and wondered what's going on. Ivy started to answer, then launched into a term paper-style explanation of "confidence erosion," or basically people thinking they might be buying at the top. This went on for maybe 10 minutes. Unless you're a Realtor or homebuilder, Ivy's session was TMI.
Stephanie Link called UAA a better buy than NKE now. Joe said he "rang the register" on NKE in the mid-70s and seems to regret it.
On the 5 p.m. Fast Money, Karen Finerman noted the market's big gains just since Thursday and opined that "to pull back a little like this is, is fine." Karen and Steve Grasso also had an interesting exchange about EBAY and whether it should shed its lucrative assets. Grasso said he doesn't favor companies letting go of their crown jewels and pointed to PYPL. Karen said that if spinoffs are done, EBAY shareholders get those shares. No one mentioned that the Ira Sohn conference gave a standing ovation in May 2017 to the college dude who suggested a long EBAY/short PYPL trade because of the contractual end of the EBAY/PYPL agreement by 2020. (See, even when super-rich guys applaud a trade, it might really be for suckers.)
Mike Wilson already wrong;
Joe on fire
On Friday's Halftime Report, Joe Terranova revisited what's instantly the year's best call so far — that the S&P will "power through" 2,650.
Joe noted how a lot of people (including Mike Wilson, but Joe didn't single anyone out) have been calling for the S&P to temporarily peak at 2,600-2,650, and "Everyone made the reservation, that's where you're supposed to sell the S&P, and then it goes back down and tests the bottom."
But here we are around 2,670 on Friday, just 3 days after Joe suggested that with so many people believing in the instant retest from 2,650, actually "you're gonna power through it on a short squeeze."
Steve Weiss admitted his stock exposure is longer than in "such a long time" because ... "yes, stocks have gone up." (Translation: People have been buying stocks recently, so they're going to buy more in the future.) (#momentumtrader)
Weiss said Donald Trump needs a win "very, very, very badly."
"There's stuff to buy. I added to Visa this morning," Weiss said.
Josh Brown though, acknowledging stocks are up 6.5% in January and up 14% since the December lows, explained, "Bigger picture, I'm still in the retest camp."
Curiously, despite shrugging at the sell-2,650 crowd, Joe said he's more inclined to sell AAPL and AMZN and buy later than chase them here.
Steve Liesman and Jon Najarian tangled over volatility, neither stating that it's a cause of nothing but an effect of everything.
Weiss said he'd rather short TSLA than be long, because "eventually it's goin' way down."
Josh Brown said IBM is at the same level as 1999 (the dividend was not noted), but "if they fix that cloud problem," it would be a great buy.
"Think of how much they've wasted on the share repurchases," Doc grumbled.
Joe mentioned TCBI again, one of his favorites. (He didn't mention PANW or LPX.)
Joe mentioned SIVB and referred to this week's call by "Kari Fineman" (sic meant "Firestone," later corrected himself).
"I added a lot to B of A," Weiss said, the type of thing he says about banks all the time.
Weiss mentioned Maxine Waters. Guest host Mel mentioned Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. "I'm not concerned about her ... she's clueless," Weiss said.
Joe really waffled on CVS.
Josh Brown said he doesn't like the type of call Nomura made on NXPI; there's "no real catalyst" for the upgrade.
Josh Brown said there are "better names" than MU but that it trades like the semiconductor index. (This writer is long MU.)
Joe said that later in the afternoon, he'd be selling half of his AAPL stake that he bought at 149. Meghan Shue's final trade was XLC.
On Wednesday's (1/16) 5 p.m. Fast Money, Steve Grasso expressed skepticism about banks because of "low-quality beats."
Karen Finerman on Thursday's (1/17) 5 p.m. Fast Money praised Netflix's "extraordinary job" of becoming a content company. Mel gushed about the success of "Bird Box," "for less than the price of a Hollywood movie." Karen took up a common CNBC parlor game of the last several months, stating trade is "by far and away the most important thing" to the stock market.
Weiss misquotes Jeff Kilburg;
Jim misquotes Sully
Steve Weiss on Wednesday's (1/16) Halftime Report said banks are "OK here" (Zzzzzzz) and "probably trade up" (Zzzzzzz), but he's not putting money into the sector.
Jeff Kilburg suggested GS could top $200 even though "I'm not saying to buy Goldman Sachs today." (That's helpful advice.)
Jim Lebenthal quibbled with Sully's description of bank results. "I don't think these give the all-clear," Jim said. Guest host Sully insisted, "Hold on Jim, I didn't say that they give the all clear." Kari Firestone added, "A little bit."
Weiss started complaining about CAT during a bank discussion, prompting Sully to cut in.
Sully asked Jeff Kilburg if he sees a slowdown. Kilburg said no, he was just down in Dallas for the Cotton Bowl, and "there's cranes everywhere."
Kilburg said the economy looks good but they're not talking about the impact of the shutdown and that experts are doubling forecasts for shutdown-related slowness.
Weiss strangely blurted to Kilburg that CEOs are not "gonna come out at- and criticize Trump or the shutdown the way that you just did."
"I did not criticize, I'm just pointing out a fact," Kilburg said.
"I'm not picking on you," Weiss said.
"Sounds like he's picking on you," Sully said.
Weiss also knocked another of Kilburg's bits of evidence, stating "Cranes don't stop right away."
Much of the show was preempted by Jamie Dimon's remarks in New York. Mr. Banking Badass stated, "Wall Street estimates are what 20 people think are estimates. ... I call 'em the smart-dumb average. I really don't care what their estimates are."
Dimon went on to state things the country needs to do. Wonder if politicians care what bank CEOs' estimates are.
He wasn't asked whether his stock is simply a yield-curve trade.
Dimon said there are 325 million Americans, and "only so many watch CNBC."
Sully acknowledged later that Dimon "kinda knocked us in the media a little bit."
For final trades, Jim touted ALK, Weiss offered ADC. Kari Firestone suggested SIVB and Jeff Kilburg took a page from Joe's playbook and said PANW.
Joe questions what ‘experience’ a shopper gets in a brick-and-mortar store; Fast Money crew does not see 20% this year
Tuesday (1/15), the Halftime Report, guest-hosted by Sully, resorted to its typical crutch, Jim Cramer, because it apparently needs help, and Sully didn't waste any time (save for that green blotch from the graphics gremlins as the show opened) calling on Jim to start the proceedings, quickly joined by Stephanie, everyone talking about how great JPMorgan is. #stale
Stephanie Link actually said David Solomon is "gonna be a great CEO."
Jim Cramer wondered whether it's "couldn't care less" (yes) or "could care less" (no).
Joe Terranova continued to insist there was a "liquidity issue" in December. But Joe also pointed to widespread belief that the S&P will fail around 2,630, suggesting that when so many people (e.g., Mike Wilson) seem to believe this, it won't happen. "Ultimately you're gonna power through it on a short squeeze," Joe said.
Bill Nygren, always a class act, said he'd love to get more money to invest during downturns such as Q4, but it doesn't happen that way. He sees a lot of opportunity in beaten-down names. "Half our portfolio now is invested in the sectors that ETF flows were the most negative in in the fourth quarter," Bill said.
Sully questioned why Bill is in EBAY and NFLX given that Bill is known as a "value" investor. Bill said eBay trades below market multiple as basically an online off-price retailer. And, "We don't think GAAP accounting does a reasonable job of measuring Netflix value and value creation at all," Nygren said.
Sully asked about GE. Nygren singled out Larry Culp and said the stock is attractive on a "long-term time horizon."
Joe seemed shocked to be asked to opine on M. "I'm not sure as a consumer why I need this experience of going to a store," Joe said.
The night before on the 5 p.m. Fast Money, Melissa Lee asked who on the panel thinks the stock market will rise 20% this year. No one raised their hands. Pete Najarian said he "maybe" could do 10-15%. In terms of sectors, Karen Finerman said energy stocks could get 20% if the commodities surge, and retail could also gain 20%.
Mike Mayo says you can pick bank stocks blindfolded and outperform the market
Mike Mayo on Monday's (1/14) Halftime Report brought his usual refrain.
"The bogeyman is not coming for banks," Mayo asserted, and it doesn't matter whether banks go up or down, they're always incredible investments that have never been on more solid ground, etc.
We didn't know Mayo actually has an 82 target (snicker) on Citigroup; he told Judge "absolutely" it can get there and double in 4 years (snicker).
Mayo even advised, "Put a blindfold on and buy the largest banks ... and we think they all outperform this year."
Mayo acknowledged "there are issues" with GS, but he's sticking by his 235 target (snicker).
Joe Terranova struggled to get a good answer from Mayo about consumer credit losses at the highest level since 2014. Basically, all Mayo could say was that they were previously very low.
Mike’s got a new call
Mike Wilson wasn't on Monday's (1/14) Halftime Report, but his name was introduced by CNBC voice Jim Birdsall (who's a Chiefs fan) as "The man who called the 2018 stock smackdown."
So if Mike knows what nobody else does, why bother listening to anyone else on the Halftime Report?
Judge said Mike's latest call is "beware of the retest" and to start selling at 2,600 or 2,650, then expect December lows.
Pete Najarian said, "This is a guy who's been right, so we always like to follow those- that kind of a lead."
So we'll ask again ... if Mike's the one who's right, why listen to anyone else on the show?
Jon Najarian utterly hemmed and hawed as to whether there will be a retest. But Doc said, "He's a guy that's right ... again, Mike Wilson has called this much better than I have."
So again, we'll ask, why bother to listen to the Najarians if you're better off subscribing to Mike's notes?
Joe Terranova wasn't quite as effusive, stating technicians have been pointing to 2,600 or 2,630 as resistance; "I think everyone kinda sees that coming."
GE chief is called a ‘fighter’ for ... hiring an analyst
Judge on Monday's (1/14) Halftime Report mentioned the William Blair bull call/looks-like-it-can't-get-any-worse opinion on GE.
Pete Najarian said it might be "a little early" to get into GE.
Sarat Sethi opined, "GE is so dependent on the credit markets right now."
Jon Najarian waffled like l'eggo my egg'o and said he "can't blame 'em" for maybe thinking the GE bottom is in given how a bunch of options traded in December.
Joe Terranova offered that "Lawrence Culp is a fighter" and "Gotta give him credit" for hiring a UBS analyst as VP of investor relations. (Will this person's pension accrual add to GE's problems in this department?)
Meanwhile, Pete noted that "everybody seemed to love" NVDA trading at 285 with a multiple that was "absolutely ridiculous."
Joe said CNBC's Pippa Stevens sometimes accuses him of being "a little lukewarm" on defense names (or perhaps viewer-question names in general; it wasn't clear).
Sarat said "it's very hard right now" to get into retail stocks.
Jim claims Friday is dawn of a new era in GM trading
The highlight of Friday's (1/11) Halftime Report was Tom Lee suggesting ... at least 10% in stocks.
"The probability of a double-digit year we think is the highest since 2009," Lee said, suggesting stocks might move 15-17%.
At the time they were talking about it, the S&P 500 was already ahead about 3% on this young year, so at current pace, 15% doesn't sound terribly difficult.
Lee said the key is avoiding recession.
Joe Terranova asked Lee what Judge didn't, which is whether Lee was talking about 10% or 20%, because 10% is basically only 2,750. "We'll know by mid-year," was Lee's helpful answer.
Josh Brown pointed to the jobs report and said there's no sign of a Fed mistake in terms of econ data. Joe asserted that the Fed's "reacting to the credit market."
Judge insisted to Joe that the "tone of the Fed changed," and "that's just a fact."
Joe said, "We're just gonna disagree."
Judge said, "Well, I mean, I'm presenting you facts."
Joe said, "If you wanna talk about the facts, talk about what went on in the high-yield market (snicker)."
Jim Lebenthal said a China trade resolution is "at least partially priced in" to the stock market, but Josh Brown cited an already "torrid" rally and noted NFLX is up "45% in 12 days."
Tom Lee suggested "millennial FANG" could be names such as SQ, PYPL. But he said AXP is "actually kind of a winner." Lee missed the big picture, which is that it's not the specific fintech names that threaten banks but the fact all the money and much of the young brains are in Silicon Valley right now and that several companies could scoop up Goldman Sachs if they really wanted it. (This writer is long SQ.)
Joe admitted he sold PYPL; "made some profit on it ... I'll buy it back on a dip."
Jenny Harrington said she doesn't see the "millennial crossover" in GIS.
Josh Brown said MCD and SHAK are his 1-2 in the Piper Jaffray restaurant list.
Joe said "I bought Chipotle; I believe in the turnaround story." Jim, who tends to stick to the notion that high-P.E. stocks are doomed to fall and low-P.E. stocks are bound to rise, said CMG is 45 times earnings.
"Ooh, that scares me," Joe said. Judge pointed out that Jim bought ROKU. Jim said "That's not even remotely comparable." (This writer is long ROKU.)
Josh Brown started to point out to Jim that you can't just take an algorithm and hit winners based on P.E. ratios. Jim cut him off and stated, "I am telling you, I don't wanna own this industry."
Jim and Josh got tangled up over CLF's "mines" vs. "mills."
Jim was trying to talk about the "pretty huge" (snicker) fundamentals in GM and insisted "today is different" in how the stock is trading. Josh Brown though called GM a "value trap" and said the price is the same as 5 years ago.
Joe pointed out all the GM plant closures. Jim insisted Mary Barra has "done a very good job." Jenny Harrington claimed she bought it at 29 a couple years ago.
Karen Finerman clarifies curious tweet thanking colleagues for the ‘wild, fun, fascinating learning experience’ of the last 12 years
Whew.
Karen Finerman is NOT leaving CNBC's Fast Money.
Eyebrows were raised around CNBCfix HQ the other day when we noticed Karen Finerman was tweeting to Fast Money colleagues, "I cannot thank you all enough for the privilege/pleasure of being a part of this team for ~12 years. What a wild, fun, fascinating learning experience it's been."
Sometimes, that's the type of terminology people use when they're, um, tired of guessing the bottom in AAPL.
Apparently, other folks wondered the same thing. Finerman apparently received enough reaction to clarify a day later, "I am not planning on leaving the show ... I have gotten some funny, nice and confused calls, however." (Note: This site doesn't do Twitter, nor do we call people like Karen out of the blue.)
So we're at 12 years of exceptional brainpower, extraordinary down-to-earthness, spectacular sense of humor and stunning visuals.
And counting.
Judge tweets 18 times over weekend about football teams he doesn’t like
Thursday's (1/10) Halftime Report was back-ended by Jerome Powell/David Rubenstein comments.
That's fine, because there wasn't a whole lot else going on.
Judge went around the horn on Jeff Vinik's 10-year bull forecast, as if anyone has a 10-year bull-market plan.
"Risk assets are back in focus," said Jon Najarian, who also mentioned the VIX, ignoring that the VIX is an effect and not a cause of anything.
Joe "Chief of Staff" Terranova said the "real question" is whether we'll "ever" revert to the days with a "sustained" VIX under 12. Pete Najarian and Kari Firestone quibbled with "ever" and said someday, sure, but Pete thinks this year is more likely 18-20.
Joe mentioned some non-stock financial sectors and explained that "you're seeing the healing in the components of the market in terms of asset pricing" to sustain a market advance.
Steve Weiss proclaimed the airlines' "golden years" (snicker) over.
In a discussion on a TWTR upgrade, Joe curiously stated, "I thought we were supposed to be long-term investors." We thought the show is an offshoot of a program titled "Fast Money."
Joe correctly dismissed the supposed "recovery" in TWTR, pointing out the stock in 2014 was $66, and in June of last year it was $46, and "it's 32 now."
He could've put it better simply by stating what this page has stated several times before, that TWTR was $35.84 on June 11, 2015, the day Dick Costolo was forced out ... and today it's $33 ... but it was all Dick's fault, and Jack's a whiz with everything.
Nevertheless, given that Scott Wapner, an up-and-coming TV star who obviously has limited free time, devotes some of that free time to posting tweets about football teams he doesn't even care about, we think Joe's Dec. 19 claim that "we have reached social media exhaustion" is probably a little off-base.
Tired material
We had to fast-forward through much of Wednesday's (1/9) Halftime Report, given that Judge spent considerable time on the "Is Apple innovative?" subject again featuring Steve Weiss.
Weiss insisted that Tim Cook is "mediocre."
Weiss makes quality points; the only problem is, we've heard them many times for many years. #stale
Meanwhile, Weiss said "the China talks, frankly" prompted him to buy, as well as the "Fed put."
Kevin O’Leary on Powell:
‘Trump jawboned this guy!’
Monday's (1/7) Halftime Report lacked absolutely any pizzazz as Judge tried asking for the umpteenth time the last 3 months whether the bottom is in.
Eventually they got to the Fed, and Kevin O'Leary claimed, "Trump jawboned this guy, and it worked!" But Kevin added, "Look, I'm not endorsing Trump; don't send me any emails on that stuff."
"The market spoke to Powell more than Trump did. I mean, come on," Judge asserted.
Joe Terranova stressed that "several managers of institutional money" told him that the market Powell seems most concerned about is the credit market (Zzzzzzzz).
Judge said the Fed's listening to the equity market too. But, "I'm not saying that they didn't talk about the equity market," Joe assured Judge.
This is burying the lede, but Pete Najarian's daughter was crowned Miss Nebraska USA. Just for clarification, Judge and Jon Najarian both left off "USA." (There are competing pageant groups.)
On the 5 p.m. Fast Money, Karen Finerman, consensus favorite for any pageant, said "there's still legs here" (in retail stocks; they've been "overdone"). Karen thinks trade, not the Fed, is driving the market. Karen wasted time arguing with Tim Seymour.
Kevin O’Leary:
‘Bottom’s not in yet’
Kevin O'Leary on Monday's (1/7) Halftime Report bluntly declared, "The bottom's not in yet."
But Jon Najarian said that if the bottom's not in, "I think we're really close." Doc said he's trading names like MAT after a recent double bottom.
Joe Terranova opined, "I think the bottom's in, and I think the top's in." Joe said he bought CMG.
Josh Brown said high beta has been on fire but said XLE and XLF still don't look too exciting. Brown said "people are not feeling good" about recent leadership stocks AAPL and FB.
Shannon Saccocia contended "the market was not led by breadth on the way up." Brown insisted, "The market was led by breadth."
More from Monday's Halftime later.
Jim was right, AAPL easily buyable under $150
Normally, we like to get the new trading year off to a fresh start by taking note of CNBC commentary.
Real life intruded on things at CNBCfix HQ last week, so we haven't been able to pay close attention yet, except we do know that Jim Lebenthal on New Year's Eve boasted about how he'll be able to buy AAPL under 150, and sure enough, within a few days, that was easily possible, making Jim's call the first big success of 2019 (even though it technically might've happened in 2018).
On Friday's Halftime, Pete Najarian said "volatility's way too cheap." Steve Liesman actually referenced "The Godfather: Part III" and wasn't sure what movie he was talking about; others clued him in.
It's become an annual tradition around here to handicap the entire NFL playoffs before the first kickoff of wild-card weekend. It's the toughest competition in football forecasting because the matchups are determined by correctly predicting the opening weekend's games. Unfortunately, we realized late in the week that we simply couldn't fulfill this function this season, at least not until after the kickoffs on Saturday. So we had to let it go. We like the Saints and Chargers, but those are unofficial observations, the Chargers having already played one game.
Happy New Year, and Happy Trading!