Paid Subscriber – Quant Portfolios finish lower – seven week win streak ends – Update 05/18/26

When a stock announces a stock split, is there a good way to profit from this?

• Quant Weekly – Up over 62% since June 2025

• Quant 30 – Up over 64% since June 2025

• Legacy – Up over 390% since April 2023

• Changes to the Quant Portfolios

• Top Quant Stocks – IT without semiconductors

• Bonus scan – 6 Stocks For The Mid-Term Year And Market Uncertainty

• Education – When a stock announces a stock split, is there a good way to profit from this?

• Quick Links – at the bottom of the Post

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USA Stock market week ending 05/15/26

Major Index Performance (Weekly)

• SPY (S&P 500 ETF) +0.2%

• The S&P 500 was relatively flat over the period, showing modest overall market resilience.

• DIA (Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF) -0.1%

• The Dow finished slightly lower, reflecting muted performance from large-cap industrial and value-oriented stocks.

• ^IXIC (Nasdaq Composite) -0.1%

• The Nasdaq was essentially unchanged, with technology and growth stocks consolidating after prior strength.

• IWM (Russell 2000 ETF) -2.3%

• Small-cap stocks materially underperformed large caps during the period, reflecting weaker relative momentum.

Takeaways

• Large-cap indexes remained relatively stable during the period despite mixed market performance underneath the surface.

• The Nasdaq and S&P 500 held near flat performance levels, suggesting continued resilience in major growth-oriented areas.

• Small caps lagged significantly, with the Russell 2000 posting the weakest performance among the major indexes.

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Market Drivers this Week (05/18/26 – 05/22/26)

Friday, May 16 — Moody’s downgrade rattles the market

• Treasury yields are already climbing heading into the week, putting pressure on rate-sensitive sectors like REITs, utilities, homebuilders, and high-growth tech stocks.

Monday, May 18 — Iran tensions and Baidu earnings take center stage

• Iran’s Strait of Hormuz toll announcement may push oil prices higher, boosting energy names while potentially pressuring airlines, cruise lines, and consumer stocks; meanwhile Baidu $BIDU earnings will provide a major read on Chinese AI demand and tech spending momentum.

Tuesday, May 19 — Housing and consumer strength get tested

• Home Depot $HD, Toll Brothers $TOL, and CAVA $CAVA report earnings alongside April housing starts and building permits data, giving investors a broad look at housing demand and consumer spending trends under elevated mortgage rates.

Wednesday, May 20 — NVIDIA and the Fed could move the entire market

• NVIDIA $NVDA reports after the close in what may be the most important earnings release of the year, while Fed minutes earlier in the day could shift expectations on interest rates; Lowe’s $LOW, TJX $TJX, Williams-Sonoma $WSM, and Intuit $INTU also report.

Thursday, May 21 — Walmart and Deere provide key economic reads

• Walmart $WMT earnings will offer one of the clearest signals on U.S. consumer health, while Deere $DE results will give insight into industrial, agricultural, and equipment demand trends.

Friday, May 22 — Options expiration could amplify volatility

• Weekly options expiration and post-earnings positioning after NVIDIA may increase market swings and profit-taking activity heading into the weekend.

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The CNN Fear and Greed Index ends the week at Greed 63. This is the fifth week in row at the Greed setting. This follows nine straight weeks at the Fear or Extreme Fear setting. Risk-on continues to be in the drivers seat and the market reflecting this over the last five weeks.

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The Quant 30, Quant Weekly and Quant Legacy Model Portfolios all finished lower this week. The momentum stocks lost a little sparkle and generally gave up some recent gains. This breaks the string of seven up weeks in row.