Clear market notes built around the JSE, the rand, and what matters locally.

2026-10-14 23:23 • The Motley Fool Positive Axe Cap view: Selective

The Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ), which tracks the Nasdaq-100 index, excludes all financial companies and any stocks not primarily listed on Nasdaq. This means major banks like JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo, as well as NYSE-listed companies like Berkshire Hathaway, Visa, and Oracle, are absent from the fund. Despite missing the entire financial sector (11.5% of the S&P 500), QQQ has delivered superior long-term returns of 21% annually over 10 years compared to 13% for financial sector funds, though it underperformed in certain years like 2022 and 2024.

Axe note: The Nasdaq-100 excludes all banks and NYSE companies, skewing exposure away from finance and beyond.

2026-10-14 22:45 • The Motley Fool Negative Axe Cap view: Selective

Tesla has shifted strategy in China, pivoting from domestic sales to exports from Giga Shanghai as the Chinese EV market faces a brutal price war. While exports have more than doubled to nearly match domestic sales, Tesla's actual domestic retail sales hit a 4-year low. A looming challenge: Beijing will cut EV export tax rebates from 13% to 9% in April 2027, forcing Tesla to either absorb margin losses, raise prices, or reduce production capacity.

Axe note: Tesla’s pivot to exports from China masks a struggling domestic market and looming margin pressure.

2026-10-14 22:30 • The Motley Fool Positive Axe Cap view: Selective

SpaceX trades at a high valuation with a forward P/S multiple of 49x, but could appear undervalued if it achieves Elon Musk's ambitious $1 trillion revenue target by 2030. The bull case hinges on growth from AI infrastructure, Starlink, and mobile market expansion, while the bear case emphasizes the company's massive capital requirements and Musk's history of missed timelines.

Axe note: SpaceX’s sky-high valuation hinges on hitting big delivery targets amid heavy spending and execution risks.