Since last Friday, shares of D-Wave Quantum (NYSE: QBTS) fell nearly 15% as of the market close on Thursday. The stock also traded lower on Friday. While the quantum computing sector experienced some good news this week, D-Wave also announced an at-the-market (ATM) stock offering to potentially raise new capital.

A potentially dilutive event

D-Wave's ATM offering is with several brokerages and investment banks and will allow the company from time to time to conduct the "issuance and sale" of common stock for up to $400 million. The word issuance indicates that new shares could be offered to raise capital, which would be dilutive to existing shareholders.

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In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission( SEC), D-Wave also said that cash balances on hand as of March 31 are enough "to fund the company to profitability." D-Wave plans to use any potential proceeds for general corporate purposes, including funding capital expenditures (capex), acquiring new companies, or expanding the business, as well as for general working capital purposes.

The news is disappointing because it comes during a week when Nvidia's CEO Jensen Huang praised quantum computing. "We are within reach of being able to apply quantum computing in areas that can solve some interesting problems in the coming years," he said. Few CEOs can move the market, but Huang is one of them, being one of the most influential people in the artificial intelligence (AI) sector. Other quantum computing stocks jumped this week.

What a run it's been

Shareholders never like to see dilutive capital raises, but with D-Wave trading at an extremely high valuation, this is often when management will try and bring in additional capital to fund growth. Either way, it's been an incredible run. D-Wave's stock is up 1,268% over the last year and currently trades at 191 times forward sales.

While D-Wave appears to be making real progress toward eventually mass producing quantum computers, it's very difficult to buy stocks at these kinds of meteoric valuations. I wouldn't recommend anything more than a small, speculative position at this time.

Should you invest $1,000 in D-Wave Quantum right now?

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Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $655,255!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $888,780!*

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Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Social Security is a complex program. It doles out benefits to over 69 million Americans each month, so it's tough to accommodate that many people with a one-size-fits-all solution.

It is for perhaps this reason that retirees can claim benefits at different ages. Retirees can start claiming Social Security as early as age 62. They can also delay benefits until age 70. There are trade-offs to both options and certainly no one right answer, but here's the No. 1 reason to claim benefits early at age 62.

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Understanding the trade-offs

If retirees can start claiming benefits as early as 62, why wouldn't they? Well, the main reason is that the benefits received at this age will be a lot less than what retirees could be entitled to if they wait.

Retirees pay Social Security taxes for years and often decades before they can claim benefits. The Social Security Administration (SSA) determines a person's benefits largely based on how many years they worked and how much they paid in Social Security taxes, which is based on annual wages. So, the more a worker makes, the more they pay in Social Security taxes, and the more in benefits they are likely to qualify to receive. However, workers can only pay Social Security taxes on wages up to $176,100 in 2025.

Image source: Getty Images.

The maximum amount of benefits one can qualify for, determined from these criteria, is called the primary insurance amount (PIA). The PIA is the maximum amount of benefits a retiree is entitled to at their full retirement age (FRA), which is 67 for those born in 1960 or after. This is important because it essentially sets a baseline for a retiree's benefits. If retirees start taking benefits prior to turning 67, they will see their benefits reduced, while waiting until 70 will increase benefits.

Claiming benefits at 62 can reduce a retiree's benefits by as much as 30% -- the earlier one takes them prior to their FRA, the more they are reduced. Meanwhile, retirees who wait until age 70 could increase their benefits by 24%. The purpose of this is to provide flexibility for retirees who want or need to take benefits at different times in their 60s.

Assuming one lives to the average life expectancy in the U.S., the actuarial adjustments are intended to give a retiree an equivalent amount of benefits through their life, regardless of the age they claim.

The main reason to claim at 62

If retirees can get higher benefits by waiting, why take them early? Well, the most obvious answer in my mind is that they need the money. By the time retirees reach their 60s, they could be at very different stages of their lives. Some might have saved enough to the point where they don't really need Social Security, while others may still be constrained financially.

One factor is health. If a retiree's health is struggling, they may need the additional funds to help pay for care and treatment. Or if there are questions about their life expectancy due to significant health issues, then it makes sense to claim benefits sooner than later, in order to make use of their hard-earned funds.

Another consideration is lifestyle. Some retirees are happier with less and decide to wait, while others may want to travel or purchase vacation homes and need more now.

I'll reiterate that there is no right or wrong decision. If at 62 a retiree is healthy and financially stable, then it likely makes sense to wait to claim benefits. But if retirees need the money, they shouldn't hesitate to claim benefits as soon as possible at 62.

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Since last Friday, shares of the popular online brokerage Robinhood (NASDAQ: HOOD) had surged 13%, as of 12:36 p.m. ET Thursday. Investors believe the company will soon join the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC).

A big potential upcoming step

Bank of America analysts led by Craig Siegenthaler said in a report this week that Robinhood is a "prime candidate" to join the broader benchmark S&P 500 index, which includes 500 of the largest companies in the U.S. with an unadjusted market cap of at least $20.5 billion, as of January 2025. The rebalancing is expected to be announced after the market closes tomorrow. Inclusion into the S&P 500 tends to be bullish because funds that track the index will have to purchase Robinhood, likely leading to significant inflows.

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"The S&P 500 and Russell 1000 are the two major benchmarks for our large-cap long-only clients," the Bank of America analysts said in their note, according to Bloomberg. "When companies are added, we experience significantly higher interest from long-only portfolio managers, which are essentially now forced to cover them and make a call."

Robinhood pioneered commission-free trading, which is now common practice among almost all major brokerages, and expanded access to investing for smaller, retail investors. The platform has become the go-to trading post for retail traders. At the end of April, Robinhood had close to 26 million funded customers and $232 billion in platform assets.

Is the stock a buy?

In the first quarter of 2025, Robinhood grew earnings by 114%. I am also impressed by the company's ability to execute its product road map. Robinhood's Gold membership offers an impressive 3% cash back on its Gold card, the ability to earn competitive interest on deposit balances, and annual matches on individual retirement account contributions.

Robinhood has really become a compelling one-stop shop for many banking needs, all bundled together in a sleek and easy-to-use digital platform. Currently trading at 51 times forward earnings, the stock is undoubtedly expensive, so I'd start by dollar-cost averaging or buy on future dips.

Should you invest $1,000 in Robinhood Markets right now?

Before you buy stock in Robinhood Markets, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Robinhood Markets wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $668,538!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $869,841!*

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Bank of America is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bank of America. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Since last Friday, shares of the artificial intelligence (AI) data center company Nebius Group (NASDAQ: NBIS) had soared roughly 29%, as of 11:57 a.m. ET Thursday. The company successfully raised capital this week and received more positive sentiment from Wall Street.

Becoming a serious AI name

On Monday, Nebius announced that it had successfully raised $1 billion through two different tranches of unsecured convertible notes. Half is in the form of 2% convertible notes due 2029, while the other half is 3% convertible notes due 2031.

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Nebius' founder and CEO Arkady Volozh said in a statement:

Since our $700 million equity financing in December 2024, we have been scaling rapidly and expanding our global AI infrastructure footprint. The fresh capital we are raising now gives us more firepower to go faster, paving the way for increased revenue opportunities in 2026 and further accelerating us toward our medium-term target of mid-single-digit billions of dollars in revenue as a high-margin business, with potential upside.

This morning, Arete Securities analyst Andrew Beale initiated coverage of Nebius with a buy rating and $84 price target, implying significant upside from current levels. Beale also said he prefers Nebius to another larger and similar company, CoreWeave, due to Nebius' more attractive valuation. While CoreWeave is more of a pure play on AI, Beale thinks Nebius' neo-cloud valuation is too low.

Still affordable in AI land

Nebius and CoreWeave are essentially in the business of running data centers for customers looking to build and run AI applications on, so if the AI industry continues to thrive, these two companies stand to benefit.

While I believe in AI's potential, I usually stay away from most AI stocks because of extremely high valuations. Nebius, however, actually came to the market last year at a very affordable valuation. The company had been delisted from the Nasdaq for close to three years due to being a Russian-owned company, although this is no longer the case.

After the stock's big run, the company trades at close to an $11 billion market cap, so it's more expensive than it once was. However, if management can hit its mid-single-digit billions revenue guidance over the next few years, the stock won't look expensive at today's value.

Should you invest $1,000 in Nebius Group right now?

Before you buy stock in Nebius Group, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Nebius Group wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $668,538!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $869,841!*

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Bram Berkowitz has positions in Nebius Group. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Nebius Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

With its robotaxi service debut just around the corner, shares of Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) traded nearly 4% lower, as of 11:12 a.m. ET today. There are a few potential reasons for the sell-off.

Possible concerns over robotaxi safety

It's been an eventful week for Tesla and CEO Elon Musk, who has been vocal in his opposition against President Trump's "one big beautiful" bill pending in Congress. But I think investors may be more focused on Tesla's upcoming limited robotaxi launch in Austin, Texas, which is reportedly starting next week.

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Image source: Getty Images.

Yesterday, Bloomberg reported on a fatal car accident in 2023 involving Tesla's assisted-driving technology. The business publication also said it was one of the most-read stories on the website. However, it's important to note that the accident occurred under different software than Tesla is using now, which previously relied on 100% driver supervision.

Furthermore, The Washington Post and Tesla have been in an ongoing legal battle because the Post is trying to obtain crash data related to Tesla's Autopilot and Full Self-Driving (ASAD) technology.

The data is submitted to the U.S. National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA), but most of the data is redacted due to confidentiality policies. In a filing related to the lawsuit, Tesla, according to the electric vehicle and Tesla news site Electrek, said the company "would suffer financial and economic harm if the requested information is disclosed."

Robotaxis drive the valuation

As I've now said many times, Tesla's extremely high valuation is not built on its core electric vehicle business, which is struggling, but on future initiatives like full self-driving (FSD) technology and the potential robotaxi service that Musk has talked about.

I don't necessarily doubt Tesla's ability to play a large role in the FSD wave, but there are still a lot of uncertainties about the new sector and the technology. There's also likely to be plenty of competition.

If FSD comes up short of expectations, I suspect Tesla's valuation would take a hit, which is why I don't love the risk-reward proposition right now.

Don’t miss this second chance at a potentially lucrative opportunity

Ever feel like you missed the boat in buying the most successful stocks? Then you’ll want to hear this.

On rare occasions, our expert team of analysts issues a “Double Down” stock recommendation for companies that they think are about to pop. If you’re worried you’ve already missed your chance to invest, now is the best time to buy before it’s too late. And the numbers speak for themselves:

• Nvidia: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2009, you’d have $368,035!*
• Apple: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2008, you’d have $38,503!*
• Netflix: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2004, you’d have $668,538!*

Right now, we’re issuing “Double Down” alerts for three incredible companies, available when you join Stock Advisor, and there may not be another chance like this anytime soon.

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*Stock Advisor returns as of June 2, 2025

Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Tesla. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

For the last couple of years, it's been easy to group the "Magnificent Seven" together. These massive companies have become the dominant tech players and have taken advantage of artificial intelligence (AI) like no other group of companies in the market.

But once President Donald Trump took office and enacted sweeping tariffs, the group began to diverge based on how tariffs impacted their supply chains and the types of products and services they sold.

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Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) has been one of the strongest, most resilient performers in the group. Is it time to double down on Microsoft stock today?

Riding Azure's momentum

While all the companies in the Magnificent Seven operate in the tech sector, most of them have been able to develop diversified revenue streams. Microsoft has many unique tech businesses, including cloud services, Microsoft Office 365 products, gaming, LinkedIn, search and advertising, and more.

Luckily for Microsoft, many of these businesses are services the company provides and therefore are less impacted by tariffs, which likely explains its strong performance in 2025 (as of June 3).

MSFT data by YCharts.

But a big reason for the company's strong performance is Azure, which falls under the company's cloud services and products category. Azure and other cloud services revenue in the company's third fiscal quarter of 2025 (quarter ended March 31, 2025) grew 35% year over year.

Azure is the foundation of Microsoft's artificial intelligence offerings and business. Launched in 2010, Azure started as a cloud computing network of data centers that companies could run their business on instead of maintaining their own infrastructure.

Since then, Azure has branched out to offer numerous other products, including in artificial intelligence. Through a partnership with OpenAI, Azure provides AI models that developers and businesses can leverage to build their own AI applications. Microsoft has also integrated AI tools from Azure into its own applications, such as Microsoft 365 Copilot, to automate repetitive tasks and improve efficiency.

Image source: Getty Images.

Many investors questioned Microsoft's significant capital expenditures (capex) on AI over the last two to three years, wondering when they would see a payoff, which has now started to play out. Interestingly, on the company's most recent earnings call, Microsoft CFO Amy Hood pointed out that it's getting harder to separate AI-related revenue from non-AI-related revenue, as the two are starting to feed off of one another.

Evercore analyst Kirk Materne raised his price target on Microsoft from $500 to $515 in late May and maintained a buy rating on the company. Materne said that not only is Microsoft all in on AI, but the more traditional cloud business also still has plenty of runway, considering only around 20% of information technology workloads run in the cloud today -- a number Materne thinks could eventually increase to 80%. And AI tools could be a way to bring more businesses onto the cloud. Materne estimates that Microsoft's AI revenue could reach upwards of $110 billion by fiscal year 2028.

Time to double down?

There are several reasons to double down on Microsoft. For one, it is arguably the company least impacted by tariffs in the Magnificent Seven. As Morningstar points out, the company "has minimal risk exposure to retail, advertising spending, cyclical hardware, or physical supply chains." This should make it more resilient as the trade war continues to play out.

Microsoft's cloud and AI business is also starting to thrive. The company is reaping benefits from all the capex spending and is well-positioned to further grow revenue as the digital transformation of the business world continues to progress. Finally, Microsoft is one of just a few companies in the world to hold the highest possible credit rating from both Moody's and S&P Global. This makes it a source of stability throughout the economic cycle.

Should you invest $1,000 in Microsoft right now?

Before you buy stock in Microsoft, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Microsoft wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $668,538!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $869,841!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 789% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 172% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

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*Stock Advisor returns as of June 2, 2025

John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Moody's, Nvidia, S&P Global, and Tesla. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

The real estate investment trust (REIT) Realty Income (NYSE: O) may not beat the broader market in terms of stock price appreciation, but that doesn't mean it's not a great stock to own. The company is known for its ability to generate passive income for shareholders through a hearty dividend.

REITs by their very nature receive special tax status, as long as they pay out at least 90% of their taxable income to shareholders, along with other requirements. Here are three reasons to buy Realty Income like there's no tomorrow.

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1. A high-yielding dividend

Although REITs have to pay out most of their earnings through dividends, some REITs pay higher dividends than others. Realty Income's dividend yield is roughly 5.75%, which compares favorably to the broader sector. According to data compiled by S&P Global this year, the average one-year dividend yield of publicly traded U.S. equity REITs was 3.91%.

Image source: Getty Images.

While that's nothing to sniff at, keep in mind that the U.S. economy has been in a high-interest-rate environment for the last couple of years, where Treasury yields exceeded 5%. As of May 31, the yield on the U.S. 10-year Treasury bill was nearly 4.4%, which means investors could get higher yields from super-safe U.S. Treasury yields over REITs. This gives Realty an advantage since its dividend yield is significantly higher.

2. The dividend looks safe

Sometimes, a high dividend yield can indicate that a company may be struggling. But Realty Income's dividend looks safe. The company refers to itself as "The Monthly Dividend Company," and for good reason.

Realty Income, which pays a monthly dividend, has paid 658 consecutive monthly dividends and increased its dividend for 110 consecutive quarters, meaning the company has increased its dividend for three decades. Throughout this period, Realty Income has grown its dividend at a compound annual growth rate of 4.3%.

Another way to evaluate a REIT's dividend is by looking at adjusted funds from operations (AFFO) and how much of AFFO the dividend consumes. AFFO is typically defined as net income to common stockholders plus depreciation and amortization of real estate assets, and impairments of depreciable real estate assets, all subtracted by gain on property sales. The adjustments remove nonrecurring items each quarter. AFFO is essentially free cash flow for a REIT. In 2024, Realty Income only distributed about 75% of AFFO to shareholders, which provides a good margin of safety.

3. Realty Income runs a solid business

Looking at the operations that fuel earnings and distributions, Realty Income runs a solid business with a portfolio of 15,600 properties in all 50 states of the U.S., the United Kingdom, and several countries in Europe. The company is what's considered a triple net lease operator. It rents out almost all of its properties, but in addition to rent, the tenants cover costs associated with maintenance, insurance, and property taxes.

For landlords, the arrangement is a no-brainer because it's less work and costs on their side. However, for taking on the associated burdens, tenants may be able to negotiate longer leases or lower rents. They also have more flexibility when arranging a space, which is helpful for businesses.

Realty Income's strategy involves focusing on businesses that are nondiscretionary, have lower price points, and are more service-oriented. Some of the larger sectors they lease to are convenience stores, grocery stores, dollar stores, home improvement stores, and quick-service restaurants. Some of their larger clients include 7-Eleven, Dollar General, and Walgreens.

Realty Income has also started to wade into new growth sectors and geographies that could power the company's future expansion such as U.S. data centers and gaming, which the company believes has a $900 billion total addressable market (TAM). Realty would also like to grow in Europe, where it believes there is an $8.5 trillion TAM.

Should you invest $1,000 in Realty Income right now?

Before you buy stock in Realty Income, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Realty Income wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $657,385!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $842,015!*

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*Stock Advisor returns as of June 2, 2025

Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Realty Income and S&P Global. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

President Donald Trump's election victory in November has turned into a sweet dream for crypto investors, none more so than for those who invest in the world's most-valuable cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC). Since Trump's win last November, Bitcoin is up almost to 60% (as of May 29) and has surpassed $111,000 on several occasions.

Trump has surrounded himself with pro-crypto advisors and installed the former head of a financial and crypto consulting firm to run the Securities and Exchange Commission. He's also announced the creation of a U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve to hold Bitcoin currently in the government's possession, and perhaps even purchase more. And Trump just delivered more great news to Bitcoin investors.

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Will Bitcoin soon be in your retirement account?

During former President Joe Biden's tenure, the Labor Department issued guidance to U.S. companies warning them to use "extreme care" before allowing employees to invest in cryptocurrencies through their 401(k) savings accounts:

At this stage in their development, cryptocurrencies have been subject to extreme price volatility, which may be due to the many uncertainties associated with valuing these assets, speculative conduct, the amount of fictitious trading reported, widely published incidents of theft and fraud, and other factors. Extreme volatility can have a devastating impact on participants, especially those approaching retirement and those with substantial allocations to cryptocurrency.

Guidance from federal agencies isn't the law of the land but it tends to have a sobering effect, as companies often get concerned that by acting against official guidance they may find themselves under scrutiny.

Official White House photo by Joyce N. Boghosian.

The Trump administration has now rescinded this guidance, which is more or less a green light for employers to consider offering crypto or crypto-related investments to their employees, if they so choose. However, the current Labor Department added that it is "neither endorsing, nor disapproving of" crypto investments in 401(k) accounts.

Another potential tailwind

In 2024, the U.S. Government Accountability Office found that while some 401(k) plans were offering workers the ability to invest in crypto, actual investment remained low.

Still, the new guidance and friendly approach toward crypto by the Trump administration is likely to change this, and it presents yet another tailwind for Bitcoin and the sector. Most crypto experts think that wider adoption by more mainstream financial institutions will help move crypto prices higher. Retirement savings in 401(k) plans totaled more than $8.9 trillion as of late 2024, so even a gradual increase in crypto purchases by this group could make a big difference.

Now, whether investors should consider adding crypto to their 401(k) accounts is another question. Last year, BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, published a report on whether Bitcoin should be included in a multi-asset portfolio. It ultimately concluded that Bitcoin could consume a similar allocation as the high-flying "Magnificent Seven" stocks. According to the report:

Those stocks [the Magnificent Seven] represent single portfolio holdings that account for a comparatively large share of portfolio risk as with bitcoin. In a traditional portfolio with a mix of 60% stocks and 40% bonds, those seven stocks each account for, on average, about the same share of overall portfolio risk as a 1-2% allocation to bitcoin. We think that's a reasonable range for a bitcoin exposure.

Bitcoin is now viewed by many as the equivalent of digital gold and therefore a hedge against inflation and a flight to safety as U.S. fiscal concerns mount. For this reason, I think it does make sense to have some small exposure to Bitcoin in your portfolio because it offers a form of diversification away from stocks and bonds. Bitcoin has shown resilience and some similar attributes to gold such as its finite supply of 21 million tokens.

In my opinion, Bitcoin is the only cryptocurrency right now that deserves a small allocation in a 401(k) account. Every other crypto has proven volatile and shows no real attributes that make a multi-asset portfolio any safer.

Should you invest $1,000 in Bitcoin right now?

Before you buy stock in Bitcoin, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Bitcoin wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $651,049!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $828,224!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 979% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 171% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

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*Stock Advisor returns as of June 2, 2025

Bram Berkowitz has positions in Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Electric carmaker Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) has had an eventful year, with its stock experiencing wild swings as investors try to factor in the struggles in the core EV business, the actions and comments of its controversial chief executive, and the excitement around future initiatives like robotaxis to determine a fair price for the stock.

Speaking of robotaxis, Bloomberg recently reported that Tesla plans to launch a small group of robotaxis in Austin, Texas, on June 12, the beginning of what Tesla asserts will eventually be a massive new business and stream of revenue. The event could also give investors information regarding how effective Tesla's self-driving technology is.

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Should investors buy Tesla now in anticipation of the June 12 announcement?

Image source: Getty Images.

What's the big deal with robotaxis?

Tesla's core EV business has struggled this year, with the company only reporting 337,000 deliveries in the first quarter of the year, the lowest level seen in over two years. Whether due to CEO Elon Musk's involvement with politics, which seems to have come to an end, or increased competition, sales have struggled. Recent reports don't indicate much improvement in the second quarter of the year. Further, Tesla stock still trades at an extremely high multiple.

Data by YCharts.

The stock has been propelled by the company's future initiatives, which include the upcoming launch of cheaper EVs, robotaxis, and the Optimus humanoid robots that will supposedly be able to complete household chores. Robotaxis are the most exciting on tap, with the Austin launch reportedly just days away. According to media reports and analyst research reports, the Austin robotaxi launch will feature 10 to 20 Tesla Model Ys with human supervisors, and the vehicles will be geofenced, meaning they will only operate in certain areas of Austin.

However, Musk has also said there could be 1,000 units on the road within a few months. There are varying reports and data about how well Tesla's unsupervised full self-driving (FSD) technology works. Users have now tested FSD over billions of miles, and Tesla's management team claims FSD is safer than human driving.

However, some have suggested that the FSD technology is not as strong as Musk claims. Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas recently told investors in a research note, "As is typical for highly anticipated Tesla events, we would keep expectations well contained for the (reported) June 12th Cybercab launch event in Austin."

If Tesla's FSD turns out to be a success, Musk has plans to eventually launch Tesla's own ride-hailing fleet. "We have millions of cars that will be able to operate autonomously," Musk told CNBC a few weeks ago. "And I should say that it's a combination of a Tesla-owned fleet and also enabling Tesla owners to be able to add or subtract their car to the fleet, so that existing Tesla owners will be able to earn money by adding their car to the fleet for autonomous use."

Should you buy the stock pre-Austin launch?

Investors will be watching the Austin debut closely to see if there are any mistakes by the FSD and how effective the technology is. I'm sure some analysts will soon have opportunities to try out the robotaxis. While the service could prove to be successful and generate tons of new revenue for the company, I still think investors are getting ahead of themselves. The technology may not be as strong as people think, and it remains unclear how quickly this business can scale.

With such a meteoric valuation, the market seems to already be baking in success of the robotaxis and other future initiatives like the Optimus robots. Long term, the odds of Tesla being a part of the robotaxi and autonomous driving wave remain high, but it is still early, and we don't know what the new autonomous driving sector will ultimately look like. For these reasons, I remain on the sidelines with investing in Tesla.

Whether you decide to go in on the stock before June 12, remember that a single event (in most cases) should not be the driving force behind any stock transaction. Foolish investing involves making buying and selling decisions based on the long-term thesis around a company rather than short-term events that could move a stock's price.

Don’t miss this second chance at a potentially lucrative opportunity

Ever feel like you missed the boat in buying the most successful stocks? Then you’ll want to hear this.

On rare occasions, our expert team of analysts issues a “Double Down” stock recommendation for companies that they think are about to pop. If you’re worried you’ve already missed your chance to invest, now is the best time to buy before it’s too late. And the numbers speak for themselves:

• Nvidia: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2009, you’d have $350,426!*
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*Stock Advisor returns as of June 2, 2025

Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Tesla. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Since last Friday, shares of D-Wave Quantum (NYSE: QBTS) have rocketed nearly 52%, as of 12:17 p.m. ET Thursday. Earlier this week, the company announced general availability of its sixth-generation Advantage2 quantum computing system.

High praise for D-Wave's latest system

Several companies have been working to bring quantum computing to the masses. Quantum computing, or super computers, use quantum mechanics to solve complex equations and problems much faster than a typical computer, and even surpass the skills of experts.

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Image source: Getty Images.

D-Wave CEO Dr. Alan Baratz called the company's new computer "... a system so powerful that it can solve hard problems outside the reach of one of the world's largest exascale GPU-based classical supercomputers." The new system is now available in 40 countries.

In a report on quantum computers, analysts at JPMorgan Chase praised the company's progress and technological innovation.

"Their newly announced Advantage2 prototype features over 1,200 qubits with 20-way connectivity, with a goal to reach 7,000 qubits in the full Advantage2 system," the report said. "This prototype claims significant speedups over classical supercomputers."

A qubit is the basic unit of data used in quantum computing. Regular computes only leverage bits, or the smallest unit of data that is used to build the foundations of a regular computer.

The best of the bunch?

Quantum computing is a tough industry for retail investors to wrap their heads around. But unlike many of its peers in the sector, D-Wave's technology appears ready to hit the ground running, and its super computers are already in use.

In its first-quarter earnings release, the company also announced a smaller loss than one year prior, and significant revenue growth, so there seems to be something there. Still, with the stock trading at close to a $5.5 billion market cap, I'd keep positions smaller and more speculative for now.

Should you invest $1,000 in D-Wave Quantum right now?

Before you buy stock in D-Wave Quantum, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and D-Wave Quantum wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $644,254!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $807,814!*

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JPMorgan Chase is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends JPMorgan Chase. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Surging U.S. Treasury yields may be pressuring the broader market, but they aren't slowing down the artificial intelligence (AI) data center company CoreWeave (NASDAQ: CRWV). Since last Friday, the stock has blasted roughly 39% higher, as of 11:41 a.m. ET Thursday.

Having a big week

CoreWeave is having a huge week, due to several big announcements. On Wednesday, shares surged after the Nvidia-backed company announced a $2 billion debt offering that matures in June 2023, with the notes yielding 9.25%. The raise came in half a billion dollars higher than expected and was reportedly five times oversubscribed, according to Barron's.

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Image source: Getty Images.

Also on Wednesday, Citigroup analyst Tyler Radke maintained a neutral, high-risk rating on the stock, but more than doubled his price target from $43 to $94. Radke cited the company's first-quarter earnings report last week, showing a continuation of strong AI demand.

Radke said in his research note:

Overall, we think the print reinforces CoreWeave's high-growth status, especially with recent $4B OpenAI expansion deal, and likely assuages investor concerns around AI capex/infrastructure slowing. Shares have gone vertical ... While we'd argue a portion of the rerating is justified, given strong Azure/hyperscaler numbers and capex... we'd like to see more progress on profitability and more customer diversification.

Keep an eye on valuation

Just a few months ago, many investors saw CoreWeave's highly anticipated IPO as a failure because it was priced much lower than management had hoped. Since then, the stock is up 176% and trades at over a $55 billion market cap.

While CoreWeave should be a big beneficiary of continued AI success, remember that the company is not yet profitable. For this reason, I'd recommend investors start small and then dollar-cost average into a position over time because the stock could be susceptible to big moves in both directions.

Should you invest $1,000 in CoreWeave right now?

Before you buy stock in CoreWeave, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and CoreWeave wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $644,254!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $807,814!*

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*Stock Advisor returns as of May 19, 2025

Citigroup is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Shares of Palantir Technologies (NASDAQ: PLTR) traded nearly 3% higher as of 10:55 a.m. ET today. The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) yesterday announced it has awarded Palantir a contract modification to increase potential spending on work Palantir is currently doing with the Army.

Increased spending from the Pentagon

The DoD said it awarded Palantir a $795 million modification for its Maven Smart System software licenses, with an expected completion data of May 28, 2029. According to SpaceNews, the contract for Palantir's Maven Smart System had a ceiling of $480 million one year ago. With the $795 million increase, the Pentagon may spend nearly $1.28 billion on artificial intelligence (AI) for the Army by 2029.

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Image source: Getty Images.

Palantir has been working with the DoD since 2017 to help the department improve the sharing of information between its various departments through AI-enabled awareness, global integration, logistics, and targeted workflows, among other solutions. The company can gather massive amounts of data from different sources, including satellites, drones, and various sensors, and then analyze the data and make suggestions in real time for how to approach various situations.

Palantir has impressed investors with its ability to keep securing government contracts and funding, despite much discussion about government spending cuts this year. However, it looks like the Trump administration will look to keep the defense base budget flat in fiscal year 2026.

Palantir continues to defy gravity

Palantir is now up 66% this year and has absolutely crushed the market. The stock seems to have no limit and now trades at 214 times forward earnings. Given the company's traction and how well the stock has performed in the face of many challenges this year, Palantir's technology appears to be very impressive and a leader in AI analytics and decision-making.

That said, I just don't buy stocks at these kinds of valuations.

Should you invest $1,000 in Palantir Technologies right now?

Before you buy stock in Palantir Technologies, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Palantir Technologies wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $644,254!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $807,814!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 962% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 169% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

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*Stock Advisor returns as of May 19, 2025

Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Palantir Technologies. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

On April 2, which President Donald Trump coined as "Liberation Day", Trump announced high tariff rates against nearly all major trading partners of the U.S., including China, India, Japan, and Vietnam, among many others. The news caught the market by surprise and sent stocks spiraling. From highs made in late February, the broader benchmark S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) fell close to 20%, essentially entering bear market territory.

However, later in April, Trump announced a 90-day pause on tariff rates, indicating that he was open to making trade deals, which sent the market into a furious rally. The S&P 500 is down about 4% this year (as of April 7).

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Many have wondered whether the greats -- like Warren Buffett and the investing team at Buffett's company, Berkshire Hathaway -- took advantage of the sell-off to buy the dip. While we still technically don't know, we just got a major clue.

Berkshire was a net seller of stocks in the first quarter

Berkshire recently reported its first-quarter earnings report. While we'll have to wait until May 15 to see what specific stocks Berkshire bought and sold in the first quarter of the year (which includes January, February, and March), we can see from Berkshire's cash-flow statement that the company was a net seller of stocks in the first quarter of the year.

The company sold over $4.6 billion of equities and purchased nearly $3.2 billion.

Image source: The Motley Fool.

Berkshire also continued to hoard cash in the first quarter, growing cash, cash equivalents, and short-term U.S. Treasury bills to over $342 billion. Remember, the first quarter doesn't include April, when tariff-induced volatility in stocks began. However, the market had begun to struggle in March, and Buffett and his team of investing lieutenants at Berkshire didn't appear to have viewed it as an opportunity.

Funds or investors who own more than 10% of a company's outstanding shares must file new transactions within two business days through a 13G filing. They also may need to file a 13D within 10 calendar days of first crossing 5% ownership in a publicly traded company.

Berkshire operates a massive equities portfolio and holds over a 10% position in nine of its holdings. But the company hasn't filed a 13D or 13G since mid-February, as of this writing, indicating that Berkshire hasn't yet increased any of its major holdings since then.

It doesn't sound like Buffett has been buying the dip

At Berkshire's annual meeting earlier this month, Buffett was asked about the company's large cash position and why it has been hoarding cash. If Buffett has been buying in April, he certainly didn't sound like it, based on his response, suggesting that opportunities don't come around too often:

And every now and then, you'd find something. And occasionally, very occasionally, but it will happen again. I don't know when. It could be next week. It could be five years off, but it won't be 50 years off. We will have -- we will be bombarded with offerings that we'll be glad we have the cash for. And it'd be a lot more fun if it would happen tomorrow, but it's very unlikely to happen tomorrow. Very, very unlikely to happen tomorrow. But it's not unlikely to happen in five years, and then it gets -- the probabilities get higher as you go along.

Based on that sentiment, I don't think that Buffett and the team at Berkshire bought the dip in April. While the company had plenty of dry powder, Berkshire focuses on long-term investments and doesn't like to trade based on the news cycle, which seems to be driving the market right now.

Of course, I could be wrong, but there are still lots of concerns about a potential economic downturn. Nobody can predict how the tariff situation will ultimately play out.

A key to Buffett and Berkshire's impressive performance is their timely withdrawal from the market before major crises. This may be one of those times where they see elevated risk in the market, and are choosing to play it safe for the time being.

Should you invest $1,000 in Berkshire Hathaway right now?

Before you buy stock in Berkshire Hathaway, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Berkshire Hathaway wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $614,911!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $714,958!*

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*Stock Advisor returns as of May 5, 2025

Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Berkshire Hathaway. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

With the second quarter of 2025 now over a month old, many investment funds will soon begin disclosing what stocks they held at the end of the first quarter, essentially providing investors a glimpse of what they bought and sold. It's a particularly interesting time to see how large institutional funds invested early in the year, given all of the volatility.

First-quarter filings won't show what the market did in April, following President Donald Trump's "Liberation Day" announcement on April 2. But they offer an important glimpse of how investors were approaching tariffs, as well as high valuations in the broader market, particularly for the artificial intelligence (AI) giants.

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Another thing happened in the first quarter with a major institutional shareholder. The Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) -- the sixth-largest pension fund for teachers in the U.S. -- cut its stake in Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA), Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA), and Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL). But it piled into a popular pharmaceutical stock that's up 419% over the last five years.

Selling big tech and AI

While we don't know when the TRS fund sold during the quarter, we do know that the fund cut its stake in several of its largest holdings, some of the most popular stocks in the market:

• Its stake in Apple: cut by 12%
• Its stake in Nvidia: cut by 9%
• Its stake in Tesla: cut by 8%

It's not clear whether the portfolio managers were cutting the fund's tech exposure across the board, or specifically targeting these names. But they seemed to have made a timely call, given what happened to these three stocks in the first quarter of the year:

TSLA data by YCharts.

Nvidia and many other AI stocks ran into trouble earlier this year when the Chinese tech company DeepSeek managed to build a chatbot rivaling OpenAI's ChatGPT, reportedly using less advanced chips and spending much less than OpenAI. There's still much debate over the level of resources that went into DeepSeek's model, but investors nevertheless began to question overall AI demand as well as massive capital expenditure plans by the hyperscalers driving AI.

Tesla faltered as CEO Elon Musk got more involved in politics, specifically with his work on the initiative known as the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Reports of falling demand for Tesla vehicles globally made analysts question whether Musk's outspokenness had hurt the brand. Furthermore, given Tesla's high valuation, the company needs to execute on future initiatives, including autonomous driving and robotics.

Apple shares fell the least among these three in the first quarter, but perhaps investors should have been more concerned, given how much manufacturing the consumer tech giant does in China and Vietnam. Shares fell hard after April 2 but rebounded following Trump's 90-day pause on higher tariff rates. The Trump administration has temporarily exempted consumer electronics made in China from tariffs, although any renewal of those would not work in Apple's favor.

Image source: Getty Images.

Piling into this classic pharma play

While TRS cut a number of its top positions, it also increased its stake in the pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) by 11% in the quarter. Lilly, which first went public in 1951, has risen 395% (as of May 6) over the last five years, rivaling the strong performances of many tech and AI stocks.

Well-known as the first company to commercialize insulin, Eli Lilly has performed well in recent years. This is largely due to the performance of its GLP-1 drugs, which help people looking to manage diabetes type 2 and to lose weight. One of Eli Lilly's premier drugs, Mounjaro, which helps people with type 2 diabetes manage their blood sugar, had its revenue rocket 113% higher year over year in the first quarter of 2025. Zepbound, a drug that helps people manage their appetites and ultimately eat less, increased its sales 347% year over year.

The company also continues to make progress in new drug development. CEO David Ricks noted in an earnings statement that Lilly received regulatory approval for several oncology and immunology drugs, and continues to see success in later-stage studies for its drugs related to diabetes and obesity. It's investing further in development and planning to construct four new manufacturing facilities. Management also reaffirmed its full-year revenue guidance of $58 billion to $61 billion of revenue, and expects a performance margin in the range of 40.5% to 42.5%.

While tech has dominated the investing landscape for several years, it's always a good idea for investors to buy stocks in a variety of sectors to add diversity to their portfolios. Eli Lilly is a rare large-cap and stable pharmaceutical stock, whose returns have rivaled those of even some of the most headline-grabbing AI innovators.

Should you invest $1,000 in Eli Lilly right now?

Before you buy stock in Eli Lilly, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Eli Lilly wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $623,103!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $717,471!*

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*Stock Advisor returns as of May 5, 2025

Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Apple, Nvidia, and Tesla. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Needless to say, President Donald Trump's first 100 days in office have rattled the stock market. The broader benchmark S&P 500 index fell about 8% during Trump's first 100 days, marking the index's worst performance in this time period since the first 100 days of former President Gerald Ford's presidency in 1974. And truthfully, things could have been worse with the index falling close to 20% from highs made in the second half of February. Trump's sweeping tariffs caught the market off guard, and things only recovered after Trump announced a 90-day pause. The odds of a recession have increased, and Trump's tariff saga seems far from over. But if you're worried about your IRA savings, read this first.

Keeping your poise is paramount

It's easy to be an investor when the market is rising like it has over the last couple of years. It's the times of turbulence that will test investors. As Trump tries to transform global trade and bring back higher-paying jobs in sectors like manufacturing to America, while negotiating better trade agreements with other countries, investors are largely operating in the dark. Tariffs have never been this high, and Trump is trying to change decades of trade policy seemingly overnight.

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Image source: Getty Images.

It's easy to understand why investors may be panicking, but the reality is that we have been here before. No, I am not talking about tariffs or Trump's other policies. Rather, I am speaking about times of remarkable uncertainty when it seems like things may never be the same again. Other difficult periods like this include the Great Recession in 2008 when it looked like major banks might fail (in fact, a few did), or the COVID-19 pandemic when it looked like the economy could be shut down for months at a time. In both of those circumstances, many people thought the market wouldn't recover. They may have been right to think that things would never be the same, but the market has always found its footing.

^SPX data by YCharts

Historical data has shown that long-term investors who stay invested don't lose money. According to data from BlackRock, the U.S. stock market has never generated negative returns on a rolling 20-year basis between 1936 and 2024. Since 1972, that number hasn't been longer than 12 years. In fact, volatility has become the norm in the 21st century. BlackRock found that over the past 20 years up until 2024, the market had an average intra-year drop of almost 15% yet generated positive returns in 75% of those years.

Remember, if you haven't sold any of your positions in your retirement folder, you haven't lost anything yet. Data is also very clear that short-term trading is a bad strategy. Using 100 years of data, the British multinational asset manager Schroders found that if you invested for a month, investors would have lost money 40% of the time on an inflation-adjusted basis.

Furthermore, the data shows that the longer you hold investments, the smaller the chance you have of losing money. On a five-year horizon, the chance of losing money is nearly cut in half, while on a 10-year horizon the chances of losing money are 13%.

Think about where you are in your investing journey

Every investor is at a different place in their lives. Some are young and can be more aggressive or wait things out, while others need money sooner. If you can't wait it out and want to protect the current value of your portfolio, then I'd recommend diversifying into safer assets whether its gold, shorter-term Treasury bonds, or certificates of deposit. Of course, you may want to speak to a financial advisor to discuss your specific situation, but there are alternatives.

However, the data clearly shows that if you can wait for multiple years, your money is likely to be safe and even potentially appreciate.

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Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Stocks have always been viewed as the more aggressive investment that carry more risk but generate higher returns compared to safer assets like bonds. A traditional portfolio calls for 60% of capital allocated toward equities and 40% toward bonds. Younger investors are now encouraged to be more aggressive toward stocks earlier in their lives due to longer life expectancies and the higher cost of living.

But as most investors know, things don't always go as planned, and sometimes even the most unlikely of assets can outperform. After a sizable run over the past few years, driven by a myriad of different factors, a historically boring asset in the form of an exchange-traded fund is now up 610% since 2000 and is crushing the broader S&P 500 index. Let's take a look.

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The ultimate flight to safety

Several years ago, if you had told many investors that SPDR Gold Shares (NYSEMKT: GLD) would surpass $315 and an ounce of gold would surpass $3,400, they might have laughed. But that's exactly what has happened, thanks in particular to an incredibly strong couple of years for the commodity. Gold is up some 26% this year, 43% over the past 12 months, and about 88% over the last five years. It's also crushed the broader stock market since 2000.

^SPX data by YCharts

How has this happened? Well, there are several reasons, but a big one has actually been building for a few decades -- and that is the U.S. budget. The U.S. has taken on a cascading amount of debt since the turn of the century, fueled by big events like the Sept. 11 attacks, the Great Recession, and the COVID-19 pandemic. In fiscal 2024, the government ran a roughly $1.8 trillion fiscal deficit, meaning it spent that much more than the revenue it collected. Total debt has now surpassed an astounding $36 trillion and interest payments consume an increasing amount of the budget each year, taking away funds that could otherwise be spent on government programs and initiatives.

Bond holders have taken notice and grown increasingly concerned about U.S. finances. S&P Global Ratings downgraded the long-term credit rating of the U.S. in 2011, and Fitch followed that up with a downgrade in 2023, both of which cited fiscal concerns. U.S. bonds are still considered extremely safe and regularly purchased in Treasury auctions, and the U.S. dollar is still considered the reserve currency of the world. However, there is more caution than there once was.

In fact, central banks are buying far fewer U.S. Treasury bonds than they used and instead piling into gold. According to The World Gold Council, central banks collectively purchased over $1 trillion worth of gold in 2024. It's the third year that demand has surpassed $1 trillion and the 15th straight year in which central banks have been net buyers of gold.

A report from State Street in 2024 noted that U.S. Treasury holdings among foreign official institutions fell from $4.2 trillion in early 2020 to $3.8 trillion in early 2024, partly due to foreign central banks diversifying their reserves. The U.S. Federal Reserve also started conducting quantitative tightening, which essentially involves selling bonds to take cash out of the economy. The private sector now holds the bulk of Treasuries in foreign markets, but these investors can be more temperamental and demand higher yield if they deem the U.S. government to be on shaky financial footing.

This seems to be the case amid President Donald Trump's tariff saga, which many believe could hurt growth if tariffs are left in place. Longer-term Treasury yields have shot higher and diverged from shorter-term notes and bills.

Some exposure to Gold is a good idea

Although gold is on a crazy run, I'm certainly not telling investors to sell all of their stocks and pile into gold. Between 1990 and 2020, the Dow Jones Industrial Average still widely outperformed gold and most still believe that equities will win out long term.

However, not only does gold perform well during stressed economic periods, it's also considered a hedge against inflation. Some investors like billionaire Paul Tudor Jones have previously said that the U.S. is essentially going to have to inflate its way out of this current debt situation, which is why "all roads lead to inflation." So, in this regard, it makes sense for a diversified portfolio to have some exposure to gold, perhaps in the form of SPDR Gold Shares.

Should you invest $1,000 in SPDR Gold Trust right now?

Before you buy stock in SPDR Gold Trust, consider this:

The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and SPDR Gold Trust wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $591,533!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $652,319!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 859% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 158% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

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Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends S&P Global. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

For a majority of American retirees, Social Security provides more than half of their income. Some live on the program's benefits alone. But most U.S. seniors supplement those benefits with their retirement savings.

Built into the program is a regulation that boosts the size of beneficiaries' payments every year via a cost-of-living-adjustment (COLA) that is intended to help Social Security benefits maintain their purchasing power in the face of inflation.

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However, many argue that the metric used to calculate how large those adjustments should be doesn't fully reflect how rising prices impact seniors, and that, as a result, those COLAs are not keeping pace with real-world inflation.

While I'm still far away from retirement, I'm not counting on Social Security to single-handedly support me once I get there, nor am I expecting its COLAs to fully cushion my finances against inflation. Here's what I'm doing to combat that future inflation instead.

The reality of Social Security COLAs

Each year's COLA is calculated based on the U.S. inflation rate during July, August, and September of the previous year -- so, for example, however much the Consumer Price Index rises in the third quarter of 2025, that's how much benefits will get boosted starting in January 2026. While that may sound straightforward, many experts say benefits are gradually losing their purchasing power.

A 2024 study conducted by the nonpartisan Senior Citizens League (SCL) found that the average retiree's Social Security benefits in 2024 had roughly 80% of their 2010 purchasing power, and asserted that the average benefit would need to be boosted by $4,443 per year to bring it back to 2010's level.

One reason for this is that, by law, the Social Security Administration (SSA) uses the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Wage Earners (CPI-W) to calculate COLAs. However, the SCL believes the basket of products and services that the CPI-W is based on doesn't align well with what retirees actually spend their money on. Instead, the SCL would like to see COLAs calculated using the Consumer Price Index for the Elderly (CPI-E).

The SCL also points out that COLAs lagged behind annual inflation rates in eight of the last 15 years, largely because they are based on price data from a single quarter. Even minor gaps between COLAs and the actual rate of inflation can compound over time into significant losses of purchasing power for beneficiaries.

Image source: Getty Images.

Keeping your finances ahead of inflation

All that said, there are actions that people of all ages can take to help cushion their retirement finances against the inevitable impacts of inflation. One thing I am doing is investing as much money as I can. This does not involve high-stakes day trading or a complex options strategy. Rather, I invest money each month through a tax-advantaged retirement account and a standard brokerage account.

The great Warren Buffett has said many times that over time, the impact of compound growth is so powerful that it can make mediocre investors rich. Investors should be sure to gradually adjust their asset allocations based on their age and how long they have until retirement, but steady and consistent investing should prove to be a winning strategy.

I'm planning on working for at least another 30 years, which allows me to comfortably load up more on stocks and be more aggressive with my choices. However, when my retirement approaches, I plan to dial that back and shift more of my portfolio into less volatile assets so that I'm less exposed to the short-term gyrations of the market during the period when I'll be regularly drawing down on those funds.

Another good strategy is to try and manage your expenses and cut when you can. One thing I do each month is budget out my salary and how much I think I am going to spend. I also carefully track my progress because unexpected expenses arise.

I try and save discretionary purchases closer to the end of my credit card cycle, so I know exactly where I am at and how much I have left to work with. Coming in below my monthly budget for even three to six months of the year goes a long way because it's extra money to either invest or adds a cushion for unexpected expenses later in the year.

Finally, it can be good to practice some austerity each year. What subscriptions can you cancel? Can you go out to lunch or dinner a few times less each month? Are there material items you can live without? Can you buy certain household items in bulk? It may not seem like it at the time, but all of these little items can go a long way over a few years.

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Things have gone from bad to worse this year for the artificial intelligence (AI) chip king Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA). It all started with the emergence of DeepSeek, a Chinese start-up that used less advanced Nvidia chips to build a chatbot that could rival OpenAI's ChatGPT, supposedly at a fraction of the cost. This made some investors question what AI infrastructure spending might ultimately look like at a time when valuations across the industry were sky high.

Then, Nvidia had to deal with the threat of tariffs since the company sources a lot of its chips from Taiwan. Although Trump has excluded semiconductors from his tariffs, the administration just dealt another blow to Nvidia stock.

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Nvidia's latest roadblock

On April 15 after the market close, Nvidia disclosed in a filing that the U.S. government had informed the company it would need to obtain a license to export its H20 chips to China, including Hong Kong and Macao. The government told Nvidia the purpose of this restriction is to prevent China from obtaining parts it could use to build a supercomputer. As a result, Nvidia said it expects to take a $5.5 billion charge in its fiscal 2026 first quarter due to H20 chip inventory, purchase commitments, and associated reserves.

Nvidia has been dealing with increased export restrictions to China since the Biden administration. In fact, the company created the H20 chip, which trains AI models less quickly than some of the company's most advanced chips, in order to comply with previous restrictions. Trump's latest order is likely tied to the tense relations between the U.S. and China, but considering these actions have now been building through multiple administrations, it's also possible this export restriction may outlast the current trade war. Nvidia stock is down roughly 24% year to date.

During an appearance on CNBC, Wedbush analyst Dan Ives referred to the new restrictions as a "blockade" by the U.S. government and the "first shot across the bow." He said the near-term effect is that Wall Street analysts are likely to model zero revenue from China for Nvidia this year and take earnings projections down 10%. In fiscal 2025, Nvidia generated about $17.1 billion in revenue from China, or about 13% of its top line.

Can Nvidia recover?

The export restrictions and continued uncertainty stemming from the trade war will have negative near-term impacts on the company from a margin and earnings perspective. That said, much of the sell-off this year already reflects this headwind. However, analysts largely remain bullish on Nvidia as the best-in-class artificial intelligence chipmaker in an AI industry that is still in the early innings of its growth.

Sure, the total addressable market might be smaller right now, but other chip players like AMD are facing similar challenges. Meanwhile, Nvidia's latest-generation Blackwell chip generated $11.0 billion in revenue last quarter, "the fastest product ramp in [the] company's history."

CEO Jensen Huang is already talking about the company's next chip, the Vera Rubin, which will be faster than Blackwell and could be ready by 2026. After that, Nvidia has plans for even better offerings in 2028.

The stock now trades at 23 times forward earnings estimates, near its lowest level in two years. It could be rough sledding for the industry this year, but if you can take a long-term view, this is the time to start accumulating shares. Nvidia can eventually reclaim its previous high of $153 per share, implying significant upside from current levels.

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Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Advanced Micro Devices and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Shares of the large lender Capital One (NYSE: COF) were trading nearly 5% higher at noon today. The company reported its first-quarter earnings results after the market closed yesterday, delivering an earnings beat but a slight miss on revenue.

Solid earnings and merger approval

Capital One reported adjusted earnings per share of $4.06, well ahead of analyst estimates. However, revenue of $10 billion came up slightly short of estimates. Meanwhile, credit metrics held up well, with expected loan losses and 30-plus-day delinquencies falling from the previous quarter.

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Furthermore, Capital One recently received regulatory approval for its pending acquisition of Discover Financial Services. The acquisition will add a highly coveted payments arm to Capital One's repertoire while also bringing over a large consumer lending portfolio that will pair nicely with Capital One's current business.

On the earnings call, Capital One's CEO Richard Fairbank said the company expects to achieve the $2.7 billion of network and cost synergies it laid out when initially announcing the acquisition, which is now expected to close on May 18.

Gaining a significant moat

Overall, Capital One's earnings came in solid. While the company is certainly vulnerable to an economic downturn, management is experienced and knows how to navigate choppy waters.

Closing the Discover deal and adding a global payments network is a significant achievement for Capital One. It also makes the company that much more of a compelling buy because there aren't that many companies that can run a payments business at global scale, and this performance won't be easy for competitors to replicate.

Should you invest $1,000 in Capital One Financial right now?

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Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $561,046!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $606,106!*

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Discover Financial Services is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Discover Financial Services. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Shares of artificial intelligence infrastructure company CoreWeave (NASDAQ: CRWV) were trading roughly 7% higher, as of 11:05 a.m. ET today. The stock rose along with the broader market, which surged due to positive macro and tariff-related news. It also comes after numerous analysts recently issued bullish ratings on the company.

Wall Street likes what they see

At least a dozen analysts kicked off coverage of CoreWeave yesterday, with seven assigning buy or equivalent ratings and five saying hold. The company runs data centers with Nvidia's graphics processing units, specifically for companies looking to run AI applications without having to build out the infrastructure themselves.

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CoreWeave had arguably been the most hyped initial public offering of the year, but disappointed in its debut, pricing below its target of $40 per share. AI stocks have largely disappointed this year and CoreWeave's stock has been volatile since going public. Still, many analysts see a lot of runway ahead.

"We believe we're still in the very early innings of this build-out for AI, and CoreWeave being one of the few who has been able to scale and host AI compute reliably, is positioned well to capture this opportunity," Jefferies analyst Jeffrey Thill said in his initiation report. "While there are concerns over the durability of CRWV's business model, we believe that the unrelenting appetite for AI compute minimizes the downside risks."

An interesting way to play AI

CoreWeave offers an interesting way to play the AI trade because it makes it easier for companies to delve into AI. Right now, Coreweave's customer base is heavily concentrated, which does present a risk.

But if you believe AI is the future, then CoreWeave should be a part of that future. However, the company already has a high market cap and there could be several bumps along the way in the AI journey. For this reason, I'd recommend keeping positions in CoreWeave smaller for now.

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The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and CoreWeave wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.

Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $561,046!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $606,106!*

Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 811% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 153% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.

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*Stock Advisor returns as of April 21, 2025

Bram Berkowitz has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Jefferies Financial Group and Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.