Estimating downside risk

I have warned about excessive valuation before (see 2025 Outlook: Cautious But Not Bearish). The S&P 500 is trading at a forward P/E of 22, which is elevated by historical standards. On one hand, valuation isn’t highly predictive of returns over a one-year horizon. On the other hand, elevated P/E ratios lead to lower returns...

The darker meaning of the Hindenburg Omen

Preface: Explaining our market timing models We maintain several market timing models, each with differing time horizons. The "Ultimate Market Timing Model" is a long-term market timing model based on the research outlined in our post, Building the ultimate market timing model. This model tends to generate only a handful of signals each decade.   The Trend...

Asset return expectations under an alien invasion

Publication note:  There will be no mid-week update next week. The regular publication schedule will resume next weekend.     Is ET here? The holidays are a great time to decompress and think about big picture topics. This year, I focus on the limitations of modeling techniques for long-term asset returns and the risk of...

A Hindenburg Omen in an oversold market

Mid-week market update: What happens when an ominously sounding Hindenburg Omen occurs when the market is oversold? David Keller described the three components of the Hindenburg Omen in an article: The market has to be in an established uptrend; Market breadth becomes highly bifurcated, as measured by the expansion of new highs and new lows;...

Could a hawkish rate cut rattle markets?

Preface: Explaining our market timing models We maintain several market timing models, each with differing time horizons. The "Ultimate Market Timing Model" is a long-term market timing model based on the research outlined in our post, Building the ultimate market timing model. This model tends to generate only a handful of signals each decade.   The Trend...