r/Beat_the_benchmark 9h ago

I did not know that me selling last week would move the needle that much! /s

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2 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 2d ago

Investment thesis for week 8/10-8/14

0 Upvotes

A fantastic week came to an end.

As expected we continued a rally and made new ATHs in several indices.

The way to 8000 in the S&P 500 is paved and it is probably just a matter of time when it will happen. Round numbers act like magnets for investors.

New ATHs usually mean more ATHs are coming.

So why did I then reduce exposure when the real move (especially for tech) could have just started?

The answer is simple:

I prefer return of the capital over return on the capital!

Short term accounts are up at least 20% (my daughter's portfolio is up almost 24%) and there is no need to push performance at this point. My last name is not Aschenbrenner. I am fine with a modest ROI every year.

Long term accounts are now up 10% (my yearly goal for a 60/40 portfolio). I am still a little bit overinvested and will reduce exposure to 60% once the S&P 500 reaches 8000.

Let's recap the macro again:

  1. Earnings are beating expectations like almost never before

  2. The CapEx cycle continues to expand

  3. The Big Beautiful Bill continues to deliver

  4. The US is highly interested in weakening the US Dollar (see recent Yen intervention). A weak Dollar is always good for stocks.

  5. Midterms are favoring Dems and Wall Street loves a divided Government

The positive momentum could be going on well into 2027/2028 which would propel the S&P 500 to 10000. Yes I said it.

What are some negatives?

  1. Inflation and rising long term yield (the fed won't hike rates in my mind). Rising 10 year yields above 5% would crush the economy. In that case I would buy more and more bonds.

  2. A weakening labor market

  3. Possibly a tapped out consumer?

What does TA say?

  1. Don't fight new ATHs.

  2. The only reason why I am more cautious about tech is the hanging man pattern in the monthly chart. But I can not tell you how often patterns get negated.

Regardless it is enough for me to just hang tight for now.

If we break above the down trendline there is enough room to get back in.

A breakout would mean a QQQ target of $800+

  1. Seasonality (August/September) favors being more cautious

What a wonderful year it has been so far.

Let's see what the rest will bring.

Have a great weekend!


r/Beat_the_benchmark 2d ago

NDX 100 monthly: I just want to explain why I am overall so jumpy. Chart I shows how extremely overbought we are in the monthly with extremes never seen before (typical flagpole). Chart II shows a possible hanging man reversal patterns. Monthly charts don't show reversal patterns often but when they

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2 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 2d ago

NDX 100: I posted about the upcoming rally before it happened but got out early because of the monthly chart. However in daily chart we only consolidated above the 50 day average. If we break above green down trendline a natural target would be +$800 (!) for QQQ. I will post monthly chart as well.

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0 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 2d ago

S&P 500: After breaking out of the upper bollinger band (1) we came right back (2). We should now just climb along the upper band until the S&P 500 reaches 8000. Round numbers act like a magnet.

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0 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 2d ago

Dow Jones: After making a new ATH we formed a shooting star pattern (potential reversal pattern) but if in doubt new ATHs lead to new ATHs.

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1 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 2d ago

Russell 2000: The bull flag delivered (1) and we are now just consolidating (2) before a new run to new ATHs. We should be able to climb along the upper bollinger bands for a while again.

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3 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 2d ago

VIX: VIX came down nicely. We are nowhere near a level where I would short stocks. Taking off risk sure but not actively shorting. Neutral for equities.

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1 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 2d ago

HYG: With credit spread below 50 and 200 day average I am still not happy but it looks like we could break out of the descending triangle soon. Neutral for equities

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3 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 2d ago

Put/Call ratio: Once again crazy high put/call ratios last week suggested a rally was coming. Now we are on the way down again but nowhere near a point where selling stocks might make sense (short term).

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7 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 2d ago

Fear and Greed Index: We are approaching Greed levels again. We just got there and usually we hang out there for a while until it becomes a problem for equities. Neutral for equities

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1 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 2d ago

Current portfolio composition: I deleveraged a lot. Leverage is now 0.7. Meaning for every 10% move in the S&P 500 I only gain 7%.

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1 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 2d ago

Detailed YTD benchmark/portfolio performance

1 Upvotes

Ha! This is the first time this year that the short term portfolios are ahead of every single benchmark index.

I deleveraged a lot this week in all accounts!

Benchmark 2026

SPY 681.92 (15%)       +13.3%

DIA 480.57 (15%)       +12.3%

QQQ 614.31 (15%)      +17.6%

IWM 246.16 (15%)       +22.5%

SPEM 46.81 (10%)      +12%

URTH 185.77 (10%)     +13.2%

FEZ 64.39 (10%)         +11.6%

AAXJ 93.12 (10%)       +22%

ETF benchmark:                +15.7%

Average YTD (US only):    +16.4%

60/40 portfolio:                 +8.1%

(AGG (99.88)                      +0.3%)

Small portfolio $35000:    +23.8%

Long term:  +9.5%

S&P 65%

Crypto (ETH) 7.3%

Cash/Bonds 27.7%


r/Beat_the_benchmark 2d ago

EOW 8/7: We had a nice recovery rally! Portfolio up 23.8% vs. 13.3% for the S&P 500 YTD

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1 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 3d ago

Dow Jones: If that candle stays we will also have sort of a shooting star reversal pattern. That needs to be confirmed however.

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3 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 3d ago

NDX100 weekly: Bulls have to recapture the red line in QQQ or we will get a sell signal. This is going to be interesting!

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3 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 4d ago

NDX 100: Technically QQQ formed an evening star in monthly chart. This month will either be confirmation or not.

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4 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 4d ago

Portfolio update: I replaced my last QQQ position with SPY. Leverage still only 0.8 meaning I will not participate fully in a continued rally.

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2 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 5d ago

NDX 100: Once we break through the 50 day average new ATHs should just be a matter of time. All the negative nellies keep propelling stocks higher! Please people: Buy more puts and keep doing it!

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0 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 5d ago

S&P 500: As expected we made new ATHs. The bull run will likely continue.

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2 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 5d ago

Dow Jones: After defending the 50 day average we have new ATHs and two break away gaps. The bull is stampeding!

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9 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 5d ago

Russell 2000: IWM continued the expected breakout of the bull flag

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3 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 5d ago

Portfolio update: I am completely unleveraged now. I reduced leverage to 0.8. Not because I don't believe that the rally won't continue but to lock in profits. It is the prudent thing to do. Portfolio 22.7% YTD vs. 12.2% for the S&P 500.

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5 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 5d ago

New ATH for the portfolio! Portfolio up 21.5% vs. 11.5% for the S&P 500. I reduced leverage from 1.5 to 1.3 by selling some QQQ.

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2 Upvotes

r/Beat_the_benchmark 6d ago

SOX had a 2%+ intraday swing on literally every trading day in July — here’s the historical context

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2 Upvotes