Dear reader,
On April 16th, two things happened.
The U.S. Treasury executed a $15 billion buyback of its own debt — the largest in history.
And on that same day…
Former Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson publicly warned about a potential collapse in demand for U.S. bonds.
That’s not a random coincidence. It’s a clear signal of danger – one that everyone holding dollars needs to understand…
And after 20 years studying gold and debt cycles, I can tell you this:
When governments start aggressively buying their own debt…
You’re close to a breaking point… and that’s the moment when you cannot own enough gold.
Go here now to see the top four gold miners positioned for what comes next.
A Treasury buyback isn’t just “liquidity management” (or whatever pleasant-sounding name they choose to call it)...
It means the market doesn’t want any more US debt.
So the government steps in to buy its own bonds.
This doesn’t solve the problem – it delays it… and makes it worse. For over 30 years the US government has been “kicking the can down the road.”
Now, there’s no more road – and the can is getting too big to kick.
Because trillions in debt are still coming due – and the natural buyers are disappearing.
As the Fed steps in as the buyer of last resort, you will see money printing on a scale that will dwarf the 2008 and COVID crises.
Which means the biggest move in gold is still to come – and that’s why I’m writing to you...
Because the real upside won’t be in physical gold bullion.
It will show up in the miners still priced for a world that no longer exists.
Go here for details on the four best miners positioned to benefit from what comes next.
To your wealth,
Garrett Goggin, CFA, CMT
P.S. The Treasury just bought back $15B of its own debt while insiders warn of collapsing demand. That could be the last warning before something cracks in the bond market. Go here to see the top four miners before things escalate.
AI Memory Demand Has Turned These 5 S&P 500 Stocks Into Market Leaders
Authored by Ryan Hasson. Published: 6/16/2026.
Key Points
- The S&P 500’s latest leaders show that the AI trade has moved beyond the most obvious chip stocks.
- Memory and storage companies are benefiting as AI data centers require more hardware to process, move and store information.
- After massive gains, investors have to weigh a real demand story against valuations that already reflect a lot of optimism.
- Special Report: The company SpaceX cannot operate without
As we approach the halfway mark of 2026, the leaderboard of the S&P 500's top performers tells a remarkably consistent story. The five best-performing stocks in the index this year are not pure-play AI chip designers, cloud platforms or traditional software companies. For the most part, they are memory and storage companies. The explosion in demand for high-bandwidth memory, NAND flash and high-capacity storage to support the AI data center buildout has triggered one of the most powerful memory supercycles the sector has ever seen. Many of the names below have been the prime beneficiaries.
It’s worth understanding why this is happening now. For years, memory and storage were treated as commoditized, cyclical businesses prone to brutal boom-and-bust swings. But the scale of AI infrastructure spending has changed the equation. Every AI server needs vast amounts of high-bandwidth memory alongside its GPUs, and every dataset generated by AI training and inference needs somewhere to live. That has created a structural supply-demand imbalance that has sent pricing, margins and earnings soaring.
ALERT: Drop these 5 stocks before the market opens tomorrow! (Ad)
The Wall Street Journal is already raising the alarm about a potential market crash, and Weiss Ratings research points to the first half of 2026 as a particularly rough stretch for certain holdings.
Some of America's most popular stocks could take serious damage as a radical market shift plays out. Analysts at Weiss Ratings have identified five names you may want to remove from your portfolio before this unfolds.
If any of these are in your portfolio, now is the time to review your positions.
See the 5 stocks to avoidThe question every investor is now asking is whether the run can continue, or whether the easy money has already been made.
Sandisk: Up Nearly 800% and Leading the Index
SanDisk (NASDAQ: SNDK) is not just the best-performing stock in the S&P 500 this year. It is in a category of its own, up almost 788% year to date after being a top performer in 2025. The NAND flash specialist, which was spun off from Western Digital (NASDAQ: WDC), has ridden a perfect storm of surging enterprise SSD demand, tight NAND supply and explosive pricing power. Its fiscal Q3 2026 results, reported on April 30, delivered triple-digit revenue growth and dramatically expanded gross margins as the supply-demand imbalance worked entirely in its favor, alongside guidance that blew past estimates.
The fundamental story remains strong, with MarketBeat showing projected earnings growth of over 180%. But investors should be clear-eyed. The stock trades at a forward Price-to-Earnings (P/E) multiple of 32.93, carries a beta of 4.88, making it one of the most volatile names in the entire index, and sits well above its consensus price target of $1,580.67, implying roughly 25% downside. After a move of this magnitude, the risk-reward has clearly shifted. The supercycle may have further room to run, but expecting another 800% from here would be a mistake. This is now a stock where position sizing and discipline matter more than ever.
Micron: The Most Reasonably Valued Name in the Group
Micron Technology (NASDAQ: MU) has climbed nearly 280% year to date, and of the five names on this list, it arguably has the most compelling forward-looking case. Micron is the only U.S.-based manufacturer of both DRAM and NAND at scale and, critically, a primary supplier of high-bandwidth memory (HBM), which sits directly alongside NVIDIA's GPUs in AI servers. That HBM exposure is the single most important driver of the memory supercycle, and Micron is right at its center.
What makes Micron stand out is its valuation. Despite the enormous run, the stock trades at a forward P/E of just 18.37, the lowest of any name on this list and a discount to the broader market. That reflects the substantial earnings growth analysts expect, projected at nearly 78%. Micron reports fiscal Q3 2026 earnings on June 24, one of the most anticipated reports of the season, and TD Cowen recently lifted its price target to $1,500. While the stock trades above its consensus target of $788.13, the combination of HBM exposure and a reasonable forward multiple makes Micron the name with arguably the most room left to run. If the June 24 report confirms continued HBM strength and pricing gains, the case for further upside strengthens considerably.
Western Digital: The Storage Giant at Fresh All-Time Highs
Western Digital (NASDAQ: WDC) has surged almost 279% year to date, hitting a new all-time high on June 15 after Morgan Stanley raised its price target by 33%. The company sits at the intersection of two booming markets: high-capacity hard disk drives for nearline data center storage and NAND flash through its remaining storage operations. As hyperscalers scramble to add storage capacity to support AI workloads, Western Digital's high-capacity drives have become a critical and supply-constrained component.
Gross margins exceeded 50% in Q3, reflecting the pricing power that comes with tight supply, and projected earnings growth exceeds 79%. However, the stock trades at a forward P/E of 68.08, a meaningful premium, and trades far above its consensus price target of $450.46, a striking gap that shows how aggressively investors have moved ahead of Wall Street’s average expectations. That is one of the widest gaps between price and consensus target of any name here, and it is worth keeping in mind that with the valuation now stretched, new investors are paying up considerably for continued execution. The fiscal Q4 report due in late July will be the next major catalyst.
Seagate: The High-Capacity Storage Pure Play
Seagate Technology (NASDAQ: STX) rounds out the storage theme on the list, up almost 269% year to date. Like Western Digital, Seagate is benefiting enormously from surging demand for high-capacity nearline hard drives used in data centers. The company's HAMR technology, which dramatically increases the storage density of hard drives, has arrived at exactly the right moment as hyperscalers need to store the massive datasets generated by AI training and inference. That technology edge has helped Seagate command better pricing and win share in the highest-capacity segments of the market.
Projected earnings growth of 84% underscores the strength of the current cycle. But Seagate has the highest trailing P/E in the group at 96.66 and a forward P/E of 72.05. The stock also trades dramatically above its consensus price target of $831.79, with the latest rally pushing shares well beyond Wall Street’s average 12-month expectations. Notably, MarketBeat data shows consistent insider selling in recent weeks, with the CEO, CFO and multiple directors all reducing their holdings. Insider selling after a 270% run is not unusual, and it is rarely a reliable timing signal on its own. But when it is this broad-based across the executive team, it is worth noting as one input among many.
Intel: The Turnaround Wildcard
Intel (NASDAQ: INTC) is the outlier on this list, and the only name that is not a pure storage or memory play. The stock is up almost 246% year to date, driven by a turnaround that is now evident in both sentiment and financials. A $5 billion NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA) investment, a major Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOGL) foundry partnership that gained further momentum just this week, the 18A process node reaching high-volume manufacturing and participation in Elon Musk's Terafab project have collectively transformed the narrative around a company many had written off entirely.
Crucially, the numbers have started to follow. Intel's Q1 2026 results, reported on April 23, delivered earnings per share (EPS) of 29 cents, crushing the 1-cent consensus, on revenue of $13.58 billion, which grew 7.4% year over year and beat estimates. That followed beats in both Q4 and Q3 of 2025, marking a clear run of improving profitability after years of losses. Full-year 2026 EPS is now projected to grow to 97 cents, and the Data Center and AI segment has been a meaningful contributor to the recovery.
The caution here is about valuation and consistency rather than direction. Intel's trailing 12-month earnings remain negative, weighed down by older quarters, and the recovery is still young. The consensus rating is Hold, the only non-Buy rating on this list, and the consensus price target of $87.31 implies over 30% downside potential.
However, if execution continues on its recent trajectory, the rally has a genuine fundamental basis. If it stumbles, the downside risk is real.
Can They Keep Running?
The memory and storage supercycle driving most of these five names is real and structural, and it likely has further to run as AI infrastructure spending continues to accelerate through 2026. Pricing remains firm, supply remains tight and the hyperscalers show no signs of slowing their buildouts. But every single one of these stocks now trades above its consensus analyst price target, in several cases by 20% to 30%, with several carrying stretched valuations and elevated volatility.
The setup heading into the second half of the year is one where the fundamental tailwinds remain firmly in place, but the margin of safety has largely evaporated. That distinction matters. A great company and a great stock are not always the same thing, particularly after a triple-digit move. Discipline, position sizing and a clear-eyed awareness of how far these stocks have already come will matter far more in the second half than they did in the first.
Bread’s Comeback Is Real—But Is the Easy Money Gone?
Authored by Peter Frank. Published: 6/17/2026.
Key Points
- Bread Financial delivered strong first-quarter results, supported by higher earnings, improving credit quality, and expanding customer partnerships.
- Better loan performance and growing deposits strengthened the company's outlook, though economic uncertainty remains a key risk.
- Shares have rallied more than 35% this year, leaving investors to weigh future growth against a richer valuation.
- Special Report: The company SpaceX cannot operate without
Bread Financial Holdings (NYSE: BFH) is winning over the market. Its first-quarter earnings easily topped analyst forecasts, the stock is up more than one-third year to date, and management expects growth to continue this year.
For this provider of private-label credit cards, loyalty programs, savings accounts, and other financial products, 2026 is shaping up to be a year to remember.
ALERT: Drop these 5 stocks before the market opens tomorrow! (Ad)
The Wall Street Journal is already raising the alarm about a potential market crash, and Weiss Ratings research points to the first half of 2026 as a particularly rough stretch for certain holdings.
Some of America's most popular stocks could take serious damage as a radical market shift plays out. Analysts at Weiss Ratings have identified five names you may want to remove from your portfolio before this unfolds.
If any of these are in your portfolio, now is the time to review your positions.
See the 5 stocks to avoidFor new investors, however, it may be a year to wait and watch. The question is whether the stock still has room to climb, or whether the good news is already priced in.
Bread Delivers a Strong First Quarter
There’s no question Bread’s first quarter impressed. The company’s business of providing store credit cards, installment loans, and competitive CDs delivered a strong showing, with higher income, improved margins, and better underwriting.
Net income climbed 32% to $181 million for the quarter, driving a 50% jump in diluted earnings per share (EPS) to $4.15. Adjusted EPS came in at $4.18, far above the $3 analysts had projected. Revenue reached $1.02 billion, up 5% from a year earlier and also ahead of expectations.
Credit Quality Continues to Improve
Importantly, Bread’s customer mix also showed resilience. In the first quarter, delinquency and net loss rates both improved year over year. Delinquencies fell 34 basis points to 5.59%, and net charge-offs — the share of outstanding loans borrowers fail to repay — declined 83 basis points to 7.33%.
That improvement fed into a 73-basis-point decline in the company’s reserve rate to 11.46%, driven by better credit performance and higher-quality new account acquisitions, the company said.
For a consumer lender that spent much of 2023 and 2024 fighting the perception that it was overexposed to a struggling borrower base, these trends are striking — and can make the difference between profits and disappointment.
The story improved even further after the quarter ended. In April 2026, Bread’s net principal loss rate came in at 7.09%, down from 7.85% a year earlier.
Growth Is Being Driven Across the Business
Bread’s recent report also shows how its business model is working. The company launched new credit card programs with brands like Ford (NYSE: F) and Ethan Allen (NYSE: ETD). Its Bread Pay installment loan business added new partners, including AAA and Dell (NYSE: DELL). And in March, the company launched the enhanced myAcademy Rewards credit card and loyalty program with Academy Sports + Outdoors (NASDAQ: ASO), deepening its position in the co-branded card market.
In all, credit sales for the quarter rose 7% to $6.5 billion, marking six consecutive quarters of year-over-year growth. Average loans grew 1% to $18.3 billion. And the company saw a 10% increase in direct-to-consumer deposits to $8.7 billion. Those deposits now fund 48% of the balance sheet, versus 43% a year earlier, giving the company a more stable and lower-cost funding base.
Thanks to this combination of rising credit sales, improving loan metrics, and a richer deposit mix, the company is projecting low-single-digit loan and revenue growth for 2026, a net loss rate contained in the low 7% range, and positive operating leverage.
Economic Risks Still Cloud the Outlook
What makes an investment decision more challenging, however, is not the company’s current performance but what lies ahead for consumers and the economy.
Bread earns most of its income from the spread between what it charges borrowers on credit-card and loan balances and what it pays to fund those assets. Higher interest rates help, as the yield on loans can outpace the rates paid on deposits. The company’s internal funding helps control that balance. But if rates come down, net interest margins could narrow.
A similar question remains around future credit losses and whether consumer health can continue to translate into timely repayments. While loss rates are declining at Bread, 7% is still high by broader industry standards. A significant shift in customer finances could have an outsized impact on the company’s earnings.
In fact, the market’s concern over inflation, interest rates, and credit risk dampened much of the immediate enthusiasm after the company reported first-quarter results on April 23. With shares already up more than 20% since the start of the year, the stock slid roughly 10% over the following week.
Management’s comments on the macroeconomic climate, coupled with broader concerns about consumer sentiment, spooked investors looking ahead to the rest of the year. Those worries quickly dissipated, however, and the stock is now up more than 35% since then.
Analysts See Limited Upside From Here
This optimism, coupled with ongoing concerns, is reflected in analysts’ outlooks. With an overall Moderate Buy rating on the stock, nine analysts suggest a Buy, four recommend Hold, and two have the company listed as a Sell.
While the highest 12-month target price is $115 a share, the average target is $96.42, roughly 5% below current trading levels. Having doubled in price over the past year and risen nearly 18% in just the most recent month, the remaining upside appears uncertain.
Some analysts effectively see fair value at current prices. But the answer depends heavily on which set of assumptions about credit, rates, and consumer behavior you find more persuasive.
A Strong Option at a Fuller Valuation
Regardless of the decision investors make, Bread Financial has clearly earned a fresh look as a standout in the financial sector. First-quarter results were strong, supported by improving credit data, continued earnings momentum, and growing analyst support. The potential is there for solid gains ahead.
But the stock is no longer cheap, and a dividend yield of less than 1% won’t offset that. Investors arriving today are buying a business that has already been rerated. Whether the upside continues remains to be seen. In consumer lending, the only certainty is that stories, good and bad, can change quickly.
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