Jillian and I took a moment to pause and reflect on this incredible year with you. Almost one year ago we launched the podcast and today we have crossed 1 million downloads and views. I can not thank you enough for every single minute you spent with me and my guests. We are having so much fun and can’t wait to do it all again next year. On this episode we share the best and worst stock picks and name the best fund manager of 2025! The guest will also reveal his next big ideas for 2026! So get cozy, put on some bubbly, and join us.
ICYMI: OUR LOOK AT ALL THE PRO PICKS OF THE PAST YEAR AND HOW THEY HAVE PERFORMED.
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I’m down to my last brain cell in 2025 as you can tell by how tardy the note is this morning. It will be my last for the year, but we will still be putting out great programming with our alternatives special guest hosted by Paige Ellis. As for me, I’ll be heads down in my other job: making Christmas possible while giving all the credit to a man we’ve never met but definitely exists.
Here are five things to know:
Dashing through the snow: Canadian and US stocks snapped a four-session losing streak to finish in the green yesterday. Futures are indicating a less enthusiastic open, but still slightly positive. I’m not the only one down to my last bit of effort, expect volumes to be light ahead of Christmas next week. The Bank of Japan is in focus after raising rates as expected and signaling further rate hikes could happen. Oddly, Japanese markets surged with the Nikkei rallying 1%. We just got a read of retail sales in Canada that showed a rebound in sales in November.
Taking the plunge: Nike is falling 11% after warning sales will decline because of weakness in China and its Converse brands. Chinese sales fell 17% this quarter while Converse sales plunged 30%. CEO Elliot Hill said the turnaround isn’t a straight line and will take time. That’s not what investors want to hear as the stock gets ready to put in its fourth annual decline. Bright spots in the quarter include better profit and sales than expected as well as a resurgence in North American sales (+9%). But without brighter days ahead, investors are sour. “While (Nike) once again beat a low bar, we remain neutral with a Market Perform as we look for better visibility across revenue and margins,” wrote Rick Patel of Raymond James, “We don’t have high-confidence in upside potential to expectations.”
Needed a win: TikTok is being bought by a group of investors led by Oracle according to multiple reports and shares are popping 4.5%. The parent company of TikTok, Chinese-owned ByteDance, is forming a joint venture for the ownership of the social media video platform in which the group of American investors would own a majority. This is a win for Oracle which has been trying for years to have some form of ownership. “Finally some holiday cheer for Oracle,” wrote Kirk Materne of Evercore, ” While we expect Oracle’s financing needs related to the build out of its AI infrastructure will remain the key point of debate in the near-term, this is a nice win for Oracle with some upside optionality over the long-term. We continue to believe the recent pullback represents an interesting entry point with investors that can take a 6-12 month view.”
Past due: BlackBerry is down 6% after results despite beating sales and profit expectations. Investors appear disappointed with the forecast which is only in line with expectations. Their vehicle software platform, QNX, was a source of disappointment according to RBC’s Paul Treiber. “While it appeared QNX was seeing increasing momentum last quarter, QNX missed our Q3 revenue estimates and Q4 guidance implies QNX’s double-stacked Y/Y growth decelerates,” wrote Treiber.
Buck up: Shares of FedEx are under pressure down 4% despite a decent set of quarterly results. Profit and sales came in higher than expected but the outlook bakes in some higher than expected costs which is keeping enthusiasm at bay. The stock has also had a nice run, up 45% from the April lows and trading at a one-year high. Still, there are signs the turnaround effort at FedEx is bearing fruit. Margins expanded and, despite rising costs, the company raised its sales forecast. The Freight business, which is plans to spin out next year, continued to struggle.
Don’t miss our special three-part series on Alternative Investing with guest host Paige Ellis!
First episode comes out Tuesday morning!
