Episode 1394: Tuesday - August 18, 2026

Brian Szytel recaps a modest down day in markets with the Dow down 116 points, S&P 500 down 0.7%, and Nasdaq down 1.3%, noting S&P advancers outnumbered decliners and equal-weight outperformed cap-weighted in a rotation toward value; the 10-year Treasury closed near 4.71%. Economic data was mixed: pending home sales fell 2.3% versus an expected 0.6% gain, housing starts missed at 1.2 million versus 1.3 million expected, import prices fell 0.4% versus an expected 0.1% rise, and industrial production came in at 0.2% versus 0.4% expected. He argues media “doomsdayism” about higher long-end yields overlooks longer-term context, with 30-year yields around 5.3% being normal historically, while acknowledging deficit and debt risks and linking higher growth to higher yields. He also cautions that CEO insider buying is only one data point and not a standalone investment thesis, emphasizing bottom-up fundamental analysis.

00:00 Market Wrap Intro

01:04 Housing Data Misses

01:41 Inflation and Production

02:12 Bond Yields Perspective

02:49 Debt Fears and Growth

04:21 Insider Buying Reality

05:11 Fundamentals Over Tips

05:26 Closing and Sign Off

Links mentioned in this episode: DividendCafe.com

TheBahnsenGroup.com