April 12, 2021

Markets:

Stock futures fell Monday morning as traders took a pause after the S&P 500 and Dow logged fresh record highs last week. 

For 2021 to date, the cyclical energy and financials sectors have handily outperformed the broader market, overtaking the technology-heavy sectors that led the market higher last year. However, this rotation has lost steam in April, with information technology, communication services and the consumer discretionary sectors outperforming for the month-to-date.

Investors over the past week have eagerly looked ahead to the start of earnings season, with big banks kicking off the first-quarter reporting season later this week. A slew of much stronger-than-expected economic data has suggested that corporate profits would jump tandem with the rebounding economy, especially in those sectors most deeply impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. 

Microsoft (MSFT) announced Monday morning that it agreed to purchase artificial intelligence speech recognition company Nuance Communications (NUAN) in an all-cash transaction valued at $19.7 billion, including Nuance's debt. 

Portfolio:

We begin a new week and look to keep the strong start of April to continue on.  This week begins one of the most highly anticipated earnings season in years.  This will drive additional opportunities and provide us added fuel into our queue.  We enter the new trading week holding positions in KOPN, TIGR, CCIV, and LLNW.  We will be looking to add to the portfolio this week, so please be ready. Great time in the market right now and great period we are entering.  Let's take full advantage of this over the next several months!