A failed Santa rally, now what?

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...

Contrarian bargains among Santa’s discards

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...

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...