Wall Street mounted a relief rally Tuesday, following three straight sessions dominated by the woes of now-collapsed Silicon Valley Bank. Confronted with the ensuing spike in market volatility, we sought to be discerning with our Club portfolio and, eventually, opportunistic in stocks that we felt unreasonably sank. The S & P 500 climbed roughly 1% in afternoon Tuesday trading, clawing back only some of its 3.4% decline between Thursday and Monday’s close. Regional bank stocks — pummeled in recent days on SVB contagion fears — led the rebound. Some saw double-digit percentage gains like First Republic Bank (FRC), up around 30% Tuesday after cratering 73% in the previous three trading days. Tuesday’s market bounce could also prove short-lived, particularly if the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) cannot find a firm to buy Silicon Valley Bank. But when emotion rules the day on Wall Street, and broadly drives stocks down, favorable situations for diligent investors can arise. Here’s a recap of this week’s trades and how we view the market landscape. We spent Monday morning looking for things to buy in what our trusted S & P Oscillator signaled was an oversold market. As Jim often says, no one ever made a dime by panicking ; it’s not an investment strategy. Neither is indiscriminately buying every stock in our portfolio in a situation like this. Around noon ET, we alerted members, keeping with Jim’s Sunday night commentary , that we were putting some of our large cash position to work and buying Estee Lauder (EL) and Pioneer Natural Resources (PXD). In the three sessions Thursday through Monday, both stocks underperformed the S & P 500 as they fell 5.4% and 4.4%, respectively. But our conviction in both companies didn’t dry up. If anything, in the case of Pioneer, the oil-and-gas producer’s robust annual dividend yield of roughly 11% increased in attractiveness following the recent slide in bond yields. Estee Lauder and Pioneer were both taking part of Tuesday’s rally, climbing more than 2% and 1%. Monday evening, we recommended further patience on Wells Fargo (WFC), citing elevated uncertainty around the banking sector. By contrast, we felt a bit more confident in Morgan Stanley (MS) because it’s a different kind of financial firm. It’s less reliant on deposits and loans as it pivots toward asset management, which provides stability to earnings and decreases its reliance on volatile investment banking revenues. Wells Fargo rose about 3.5% Tuesday, while Morgan Stanley gained roughly 2% CAT YTD mountain Caterpillar (CAT) YTD performance Before Tuesday’s market open, we announced another purchase of a beaten-down stock, adding to our position in Caterpillar (CAT). The manufacturing giant was one of the worst-performing Club names over the past three sessions, sinking nearly 10% as of Monday’s close. Only Wells Fargo, down 12.4%, and Halliburton (HAL), down 10.2%, saw bigger declines over that stretch. While some analyst downgrades have soured sentiment around Caterpillar lately, our investment case rests on the multiyear cycle of infrastructure investments. This allows us to see through some of the near-term concerns and use the stock’s weakness to bolster our position in this new Club holding, which joined the portfolio in January. Caterpillar fell modestly Tuesday. PANW YTD mountain Palo Alto Networks (PANW) YTD performance The banking collapses, which included crypto-focused Signature Bank as well as SVB, also created a window to buy more Palo Alto Networks (PANW) on Monday afternoon. Shares of the cybersecurity firm, which recently became eligible for the S & P 500, actually held up fairly well in recent days, declining about 1.3% between Thursday and Monday’s close. However, the regulatory takeovers of SVB and Signature opened up two spots in the S & P 500, sweetening the case for adding to Palo Alto on Monday. Although we knew at the time that one slot is going to medical-device maker Insulet (PODD), we learned later learned Monday night that agriculture firm Bunge (BG) got the other. Palo Alto didn’t get either nod, but we think it’s only a matter of time before its added to the index. Following last month’s blowout earnings report, Palo Alto Networks became GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) profitable over the past 12 months, making it eligible to join the widely tracked equity index. Knowing stocks usually pop upon their inclusion to the S & P 500 because funds that track the index need to buy shares, we thought it made sense Monday to add to our Palo Alto holdings. It’s still a relatively new name for us, joining the portfolio in mid-February. Since we always scale into new positions, we had room to own more shares. The stock dropped modestly Tuesday. Bottom line In moments of volatility and crisis, investors need to be thoughtful and patient in order to find the best opportunities. That’s what we tried to do during the stressful environment in recent days, looking for high-quality companies unfairly dragged down. In the case of Palo Alto, we had a chance to get ahead of what would have been a material development for the stock. While S & P 500 constituency wasn’t in the cards this time, we will continue to add to our position into weakness. To be clear, while sentiment improved Tuesday, we cannot definitively say we’re out of the woods with the SVB fallout. Regulators have fortunately done a great deal to shore up confidence in the U.S. financial system. However, no buyer for what remains of Silicon Valley Bank has been found yet. When negative headlines slam the whole market, Jim frequently quips, “What does [this] have to do with the price-to-earnings multiple of Bristol-Myers ?” (Not a Club name but one mentioned by Jim sometimes.) We extended that sort of thinking to the portfolio in recent days. What does SVB’s collapse have to do with Estee Lauder’s business continuing to recover in China as the world’s second-largest economy reopens after zero Covid lockdowns? The answer is pretty much nothing. (Jim Cramer’s Charitable Trust is long EL, PXD, WFC, MS, HAL, PANW. See here for a full list of the stocks.) As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust’s portfolio. If Jim has talked about a stock on CNBC TV, he waits 72 hours after issuing the trade alert before executing the trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB. NO SPECIFIC OUTCOME OR PROFIT IS GUARANTEED.
People queue up outside the headquarters of Silicon Valley Bank to withdraw their funds on March 13, 2023 in Santa Clara, California.
Liu Guanguan | China News Service | Getty Images
Wall Street mounted a relief rally Tuesday, following three straight sessions dominated by the woes of now-collapsed Silicon Valley Bank. Confronted with the ensuing spike in market volatility, we sought to be discerning with our Club portfolio and, eventually, opportunistic in stocks that we felt unreasonably sank.
Last week, we reported that the e-bike world had a new motor claiming to be the lightest and most efficient. Now, we’re already seeing TQ’s new TQHPR40 motor proliferate on more road and gravel e-bikes, including the recently announced E-ASTR from Ridely.
Ridley’s new E‑ASTR brings lightweight electric assistance to its already impressive ASTR gravel platform, powered by the cutting-edge TQ HPR40 mid-drive system. Unlike bulkier e‑bike setups, this system adds just 1.17 kg (2.6 lb) at the crank and a discreet 1.46 kg (3.2 lb) and 290 Wh battery hidden within the downtube, keeping the frame’s silhouette nearly identical to the non-electric version of the same bike. According to BikeRumor, riders looking closely might spot only a slightly fatter downtube, internal cable routing, and a handlebar-end LED indicator, giving visual clues without shouting “electric bike.”
What the E‑ASTR gives up in sheer power from the petite motor, it gains in ride feel. The HPR40 is said to deliver a modest 40 Nm of torque and up to 200W of assist, or enough to smooth out climbs or offer a tailwind on gravel without overpowering the rider. With support cut off at 25 km/h (15.5 mph), pedal responsiveness remains natural and fluid. Combined with the ASTR’s race-inspired geometry, the bike looks to offer sharp handling and comfort suited to the rigors of modern gravel routes.
Ridley is currently offering the E‑ASTR in three spec levels: a value SRAM Apex XPLR AXS build €7,199 (or approximately US $8,500), a mid-range SRAM Rival XPLR AXS 1×13 version for €8,199 (or approximately US $9,700), and a top-tier Shimano GRX 2×12 Di2 model for €8,899 (or approximately US $10,500). Each features high-end drivetrains, integrated cockpit options, carbon wheels, and industry-standard gravel brakes and tires. With its race-ready frame and stealthy, lightweight e‑assistance, the E‑ASTR is positioning itself as a high-performance gravel machine that stays true to its roots, delivering help when needed, without overshadowing the rider.
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Wait, you’re telling me that’s an electric bike?!
Ultra-lightweight motors like the TQHPR40 are quietly reshaping the e-bike industry by making electric assistance almost invisible, both in looks and in feel. As systems shrink and integrate more seamlessly into traditional bike frames, they’re opening the door to new categories of performance-oriented e-bikes that preserve the ride dynamics of analog bikes while offering just enough support when it counts.
For riders who value a natural pedaling experience but still want a little help on climbs or longer days, and especially for aging riders who want to maintain their riding habits despite father time taking an impact on joints and muscles, these minimalist systems are proving that you don’t need a bulky battery or a massive motor to get the benefits of going electric. The result is a wave of stealthy, high-performance e-bikes that are less about replacing effort and more about enhancing the ride.
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After a month off trying to wrap our heads around all the chaos surrounding EVs, solar, and everything else in Washington, we’re back with the biggest EV news stories of the day from Tesla, Ford, Volvo, and everyone else on today’s hiatus-busting episode of Quick Charge!
It just gets worse and worse for the Tesla true believers – especially those willing to put their money where Elon’s mouth is! One believer is set to lose nearly $50,000 betting on Tesla’s ability to deliver a Robotaxi service by the end of June (didn’t happen), and the controversial CEO’s most recent spat with President Trump had TSLA down nearly 5% in pre-morning trading.
New episodes of Quick Charge are recorded, usually, Monday through Thursday (and sometimes Sunday). We’ll be posting bonus audio content from time to time as well, so be sure to follow and subscribe so you don’t miss a minute of Electrek’s high-voltage daily news.
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Got news? Let us know! Drop us a line at tips@electrek.co. You can also rate us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show.
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Hyundai is getting ready to shake things up. A new electric crossover SUV, likely the Hyundai IONIQ 2, is set to debut in the coming months. It will sit below the Kona Electric as Hyundai expands its entry-level EV lineup.
Is Hyundai launching the IONIQ 2 in 2026?
After launching the Inster late last year, Hyundai is already preparing to introduce a new entry-level EV in Europe.
Xavier Martinet, President and CEO of Hyundai Europe, confirmed that the new EV will be revealed “in the next few months.” It will be built in Europe and scheduled to go on sale in mid-2026.
Hyundai’s new electric crossover is expected to be a twin to the Kia EV2, which will likely arrive just ahead of it next year.
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It will be underpinned by the same E-GMP platform, which powers all IONIQ and Kia EV models (EV3, EV4, EV5, EV6, and EV9).
Like the Kia EV3, it will likely be available with either a 58.3 kWh or 81.4 kWh battery pack option. The former provides a WLTP range of 267 miles while the latter is rated with up to 372 miles. All trims are powered by a single electric motor at the front, producing 201 hp and 209 lb-ft of torque.
Kia EV2 Concept (Source: Kia)
Although it may share the same underpinnings as the EV2, Hyundai’s new entry-level EV will feature an advanced new software and infotainment system.
According to Autocar, the interior will represent a “step change” in terms of usability and features. The new system enables new functions, such as ambient lighting and sounds that adjust depending on the drive mode.
Hyundai E&E tech platform powered by Pleos (Source: Hyundai)
It’s expected to showcase Hyundai’s powerful new Pleos software and infotainment system. As an end-to-end software platform, Pleos connects everything from the infotainment system (Pleos Connect) to the Vehicle Operating System (OS) and the cloud.
Pleos is set to power Hyundai’s upcoming software-defined vehicles (SDVs) with new features like autonomous driving and real-time data analysis.
Hyundai’s next-gen infotainment system powered by Pleos (Source: Hyundai)
As an Android-based system, Pleos Connect features a “smartphone-like UI” with new functions including multi-window viewing and an AI voice assistant.
The new electric crossover is expected to start at around €30,000 ($35,400), or slightly less than the Kia EV3, priced from €35,990 ($42,500). It will sit between the Inster and Kona Electric in Hyundai’s lineup.
Hyundai said that it would launch the first EV with its next-gen infotainment system in Q2 2026. Will it be the IONIQ 2? Hyundai is expected to unveil the new entry-level EV at IAA Mobility in September. Stay tuned for more info. We’ll keep you updated with the latest.
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