☕️ Palantir – I hope you were ready!

Howdy! 👋 

We’ve seen this play so often we know the lines. 

• Stocks drop on rising fears about AI valuations trumpets CNBC like they’ve never seen a growth story before 
• Wall Street falls after big banks warn of market pullback says Reuters as if banks and big traders aren’t the ones who built the leverage 
• AI leads stock selloff sparked by valuation angst warns Bloomberg while their own AI tools are probably helping short into the dip 

In my best Dr. Evil voice… riiiiiiiggggghhhht. 

The markets aren’t crashing, just clearing out the ticker tourists. 

Short-term profit-takers are deleveraging by cashing in, algos are puking positions and the 0DTE crew is turning otherwise rational traders into a drama disco. 

What to do? 

• If you’re a trader, get busy – you oughta be making money hand over fist today. 
• And if you’re an investor – you’ve got one heckuvan opportunity to make more money. 

That’s how pullbacks work and why you want to learn to embrace ‘em sooner rather than later. 

How? 

By doing two things. 

First, take a hard look at this chart. In fact, stare at it until your eyes bleed. 

And second, get busy investing in optimism. 

People want to believe that the markets go up all the time, but that’s not true. In fact, they require buying and selling to work properly. They zig and zag over time. 

There’s no alpha without dips and no opportunity without a little panic thrown in for good measure. 

The markets are the only store on earth where people fear a sale. 

Here’s my playbook. 

1 - Palantir sticks it to the popcorn critics again 

Palantir outdid themselves. (Read) 

Again.  

• Revenue +63% YoY 
• U.S. commercial revenue +121% YoY 
• Grew customer count to 911, +45% YoY 
• Achieved a Rule of 40 score of 114% 
• Raised full year guidance 

Meanwhile, $6.4B in cash and equivalent with no debt.  

CEO Karp said it best during the company’s earnings call when it comes to critics “Enjoy, get some popcorn, they’re crying,” 

Then, in a follow-on interview he made a comment that had me rolling on the floor. 

He called Michael Burry of “Big Short” fame “bats--- crazy” for betting against Palantir and Nvidia, two of the most significant AI choices on the planet. 

I agree. 

In fact, I think Burry simply wants to get clear of his positions without looking like a complete idiot. A view Karp himself shares. 

None of this should be a surprise. 

In fact, I told you point blank on national television yesterday ahead of earnings that I’d wait to buy because the go-fast gang was itching for a fight. (Watch) 

Then I posted this on Twitter when it began. 

Just like clockwork.

I also gave the OBA Family several very specific high probability setups yesterday prior to the close including put options, selling cash secured puts and even LowBall orders – all of which are working nicely this morning as I type. 

Personally, I paid $7.15 for a few PLTR puts yesterday prior to close and sold ’em for $11.25 this morning — a quick 57% gain in less than 24 hours, if you annualized that, you’ll need a considerably bigger calculator. 😄  

Hopefully you made a similar move… set up was practically screaming “OPPORTUNITY.” 

Btw, and if you’re an OBAer and you made the trade(s) I outlined, I suggest you now take a bow and head for the exits, too. Then get busy selling Cash Secured Puts and staging your LowBall Orders if that’s something you’d like to do, also as noted.  

Heck, even just buying a few extra shares could work nicely if that matches up with your risk tolerance, objectives and circumstances (none of which I know). 

Investing is a lot like boxing. 

The best boxers often use combinations lesser fighters don’t see coming because it helps them be devastatingly effective… and win. 

Hooyah! 

Keith’s Investing Tip: Many people want instant satisfaction, but the real profit potential comes from building knowledge over time and using what you learn as you learn. If you don’t know “how” to do something (like the tactics I’ve alluded to today), that’s a totally fixable problem. LEARN dang it! I am not the sharpest tool in the shed, and if I can, you can too! 

2 – UBER rocks but still has a robotaxi problem 

Uber reported Q3 earnings: (Read) 

• Revenue: $13.47B (+20% YoY) — beat expectations 
• Gross bookings: $49.74B vs. $48.73B expected 
• Q4 forecast: $52.25B–$53.75B (ahead of Wall Street’s $52B) 
• Delivery sales: +29% (outpacing mobility’s +20%) 
• Free cash flow: $2.4B–$2.5B guidance range 

These are good numbers, but my concern is what happens when Tesla fully gets Robotaxi up and running?  

I said in September earlier this year that I think Uber is a $50 stock a year from now barring some truly earth-shattering, game-changing changes to its business model. 

That still stands.  

Putskies, short or avoid. 

3 – But of course, Norway wealth fund to oppose Musk’s pay deal 🤦‍ 

Nothing says “fiduciary duty” like micromanaging the guy who turned a $6.5 billion investment into $1.5 trillion while many were busy perfecting their fantasy football lineups. (Read) 

“While we appreciate the significant value created under Mr. Musk’s visionary role, we are concerned about the total size of the award, dilution, and lack of mitigation of key person risk—consistent with our views on executive compensation,” Norges Bank Investment Management sniffed on its website. 

Translation?  

“We’re terrified of big numbers and even bigger results, so let’s pretend spreadsheets are more important than spaceships.” 

Umm, yeah. 🤦‍♂️ 

Tell me again how opposing the one CEO who’s delivered a 23,000% return since 2018 is “protecting shareholder value”?  

Last I checked, Norway’s fund owns 1.7% of Tesla—roughly $25 billion in profits courtesy of Elon’s “key person risk.” Maybe send him a fruit basket instead of a participation trophy for mediocrity. 

Love him or hate him, Musk has created more wealth for more shareholders than any suit in the history of suits. Meanwhile, the bureaucrats in Oslo are evidently busy counting paperclips and polishing their moral high horse. 

Newsflash, geniuses: If you want boring returns and no dilution risk, buy bonds. If you want to change the world—and your portfolio—quit whining and let the man do his thing. 

Just sayin. 

Keith’s Investing Tip: If you don’t like Tesla or can’t get past Musk himself for whatever reason – that’s fine. Not every stock is suitable for every investor. Just be sure to find another stock with Tesla-like potential… and yes, they are out there! 

In fact, history suggests there are 10-15 “Teslas” out there right now in various stages of maturity. Don’t dally, though. The AI train is very much leaving the station and you don’t want to get left on the platform any more than I do. 

4 - Kenvue gets a bid: deal or no deal? 

Kimberly-Clark says it’ll buy Kenvue for ~$48.7B in a cash-and-stock deal, creating a consumer-staples giant spanning Huggies, Kleenex, Band-Aid and Tylenol. (Read) 

Time to buy? 

Yeah and respectfully, if your idea of growth is watching two legacy companies high-five each other over yesterday’s staples while the FDA sharpens its acetaminophen pitchfork. 

Kenvue’s brand portfolio and margins are solid, but the narrative risk hasn’t gone away—especially with lingering acetaminophen headlines and residual J&J-adjacent liability optics.  

My point? 

You might be buying a front row seat at the penalty box tour a la Altria, Bayer and a decade of sideways trading. So there is that. 

MyPOV: Kenvue is still very much an n+1 company — meaning a business that’s tweaking the status quo, not inventing the future.  

I’d rather own businesses creating the future—innovative therapies, real pipelines, sticky recurring revenue—than pay up for yesterday’s brands packaged as “value.” 

If you need helping separating the wheat from the chaff, I’ll be here.  

5 - Starbucks is “partnering” its way out of China ☕ 

The company just inked a $4 billion joint venture with Boyu Capital, handing over 60% control of its China operations while keeping 40% and the licensing rights. (Read) 

They’re calling it “unlocking value.” 

Right. 

China’s a brutal market — pandemic hangovers, a sluggish economy, and Luckin Coffee eating Starbucks’ lunch with cheaper brews, tastier coffee and friendlier baristas. Traffic’s up, sure… but only because they’ve been discounting like crazy. 

Trade idea: Same as before — Putskies, short, and avoid. Unless management finds a way to make the coffee taste better than the latest press releases. ☕💀 

Bottom Line 

Many people swear up, down and sideways that they’ll take action when there’s a selloff or a correction only to chicken out when the time comes. That’s normal… and totally fixable. 

Remember. 

The strong feed when the meek retreat. 

BE STRONG. 

You got this – I promise. 

As always, let’s MAKE it a great day. 

Keith 😀