More where that came from!

Good morning!

The S&P 500 finished the year up 27% and, along the way, chalked up 70 record closing highs.

Can it continue?

Yes, but the clock’s ticking.

Here’s my playbook.

1 – The Fed’s on deck

Omicron will fade into the rearview mirror relatively quickly and the Fed will hike rates for the first time by March 2022. Meanwhile, the path of least resistance is higher.

The fabulous Stuart Varney asked me “why” earlier today ahead of the bell and here’s my take. (Watch)

Which brings up an important point …

2 – No reason to step away from big caps

I’ve been as consistent as I have emphatic … buy the best, ignore the rest.

Apple tacked on 34%, Microsoft 51% and Chevron put up 38% last year alone. Lesser companies got plowed under. Quality matters because the markets are going to get even narrower and more divided in 2022.

Earnings season is just around the corner and companies that put up good numbers will rock. Those that don’t will get obliterated with very few exceptions. (Read)

Speaking of which …

3 – Tesla crushed it again

Love him or hate him, I learned a long time ago that you don’t bet against CEO Elon Musk.

Tesla just crushed quarterly delivery estimates with a record 308k vehicles out the door. Last year team Musk put out 936,172 vehicles worldwide … despite global chip shortages, price hikes, and supply chain problems. (Read)

I hope I’m smart enough to buy more … shares that is.

4 – MCD: nice to have company (and fries with that)

Analysts at Piper Sandler just upgraded Uncle Ronald to “overweight” from “neutral” citing the restaurant chain’s ability to meet drive through preferences and increasing demand. Not coincidentally, analysts also apparently (finally) figured out that the chain can manage inflation better than most. (Read)

Gotta love the firm command of the obvious at this point. Still, I’ll take it.

Shares are up in the early going and close to taking out the $270 price target I put in place last June when I recommended it to the OBA Family and it was trading at $231.69. Not sure what my new target will be just yet but what I do know is that there’s still plenty of upside ahead as the world re-opens. Meanwhile, a 2.06% dividend isn’t too shabby.

Incidentally, I will be recommending another consumer-related stock poised for a re-opening run in the January One Bar Ahead™ issue which is only days away. (Click here to learn more)

5 – “Only 2 Chinese EV stocks worth buying”

Both are up in early going on big delivery numbers. I called your attention to ‘em in several recent interviews late last year noting that they could both give Tesla a run for its money.

Why not buy all three??!!: TSLA, NIO and XPEV (Watch)

Bottom Line

Buying great stocks is like buying great beer.

You scrape off the foam to get to the good stuff.

Let’s make 2022 a fabulous year!

You got this – and I will be with you every step of the way.


Keith

PS: Calling all members of the One Bar Ahead™ Family … the January issue will be out this week and I’m super excited to share it will you. I’ve got two new recommendations – including the one I’ve just mentioned – plus my 2022 Annual Outlook, a portfolio review and more. Keep an eye on your email!

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