How to Trade the Markets Right Now 8/15/25

Summary

Halftime Report: How to Trade the Markets Right Now (08/15/25)

Released on August 15, 2025

Host: Scott Wapner, CNBC

Guests:

• Josh Brown
• Jenny Harrington
• Brenda Vingello
• Rob Sechin
• Stephanie Link
• Mike Santola

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1. Introduction

Scott Wapner opens the Halftime Report by highlighting the Dow's achievement of a new high, joining the S&P and NASDAQ at record levels. He sets the agenda for the discussion, mentioning key topics such as UnitedHealth (UNH), retail sales, and the impending Jackson Hole economic symposium.

2. Market Momentum and UnitedHealth Analysis

Rob Sechin emphasizes the sustained upward momentum in the markets, drawing parallels to the late 1999 era. He cautions investors about high valuations despite strong earnings, suggesting a balanced investment approach is essential.

"Earnings have been revised up. There's a lot of good news that's happening, no doubt. However, you have to be mindful of valuations which are back at nearly all-time highs."
— Rob Sechin [02:13]

Brenda Vingello agrees, highlighting the strong corporate earnings but notes concerns about inflation and tariff uncertainties. She underscores the robust environment for technological innovation, particularly AI, which supports elevated valuations.

"We're still in that sweet spot where valuation can stay elevated. And to your point, Scott, and you know, it's being driven by really solid earnings."
— Brenda Vingello [04:28]

Josh Brown provides a counterpoint, arguing that the recent uptick in small-cap stocks, such as UNH, doesn't signify broad market euphoria. He points out that high-profile investors like Berkshire Hathaway hold a minimal position in UNH relative to their vast portfolios.

"It's $1.6 billion of a Berkshire Hathaway equity portfolio. That's $300 billion. It's not even half of 1%."
— Josh Brown [12:25]

Stephanie Link defends UNH, citing strong fundamentals and management changes as reasons for optimism. She emphasizes the return of CEO Steve Hemsley and the company's strategic initiatives aimed at long-term growth.

"They have 52 million members. They have size, they have scale. And even with their earnings problems and their margin problems, last quarter they were able to grow 13%."
— Stephanie Link [10:35]

Rob Sechin concludes by reaffirming confidence in UNH and similar value stocks, stressing the importance of a long-term investment perspective amidst current market volatility.

"The valuation today is at 18 times. It's a discount to its peers and its long-term average. I don't think we're sellers yet."
— Rob Sechin [14:17]

3. Berkshire Hathaway's Stock Moves

The discussion shifts to Berkshire Hathaway’s recent acquisitions, including Lamar Advertising and other health care names. Jenny Harrington explains Lamar's strong performance and consistent dividends, reinforcing its attractiveness despite Berkshire's modest investment size.

"They were fantastic. Let's say net income and earnings were up about 12% year over year. But they did reduce the guidance just a tiny bit. So they're still trading at 15 times FFO. They've got a 5% yield stock backed off about 6% last week, which is why it's up so much this week."
— Jenny Harrington [16:26]

Josh Brown adds that Berkshire’s investments signal confidence in sectors like housing and financials, anticipating a bull market once interest rates decline.

"Warren Buffett historically would go out of his way to say that he does not have macro forecasts as part of his process. But we've seen him make incredible macro calls."
— Josh Brown [18:16]

Rob Sechin emphasizes that Berkshire’s moves are strategic, targeting high-beta businesses poised for growth despite current headwinds.

"If you're a long-term investor, you can ride along these guys and you might want some proof points along the way."
— Rob Sechin [14:45]

4. Best Stocks in the Market

Josh Brown spotlights PTC (formerly Parametric), a leading CAD software company. He praises its transition to a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model, consistent revenue growth, and strong fundamentals, positioning it as a top stock pick.

"Operating margins are expanding and this transformation in the way that they're billing customers and working with customers on a software as a service basis is what's attracting new institutional shareholders."
— Josh Brown [34:46]

5. Sector-Specific Insights

Jenny Harrington and Brenda Vingello discuss various sectors, including real estate, health care, and technology. They highlight trends such as the potential resurgence in housing, the importance of strong data in companies like Salesforce, and the resilience of industries like real estate underpinned by robust dividends.

"We do think there is an opportunity here with the newness to turn the concept around. So we're sticking with it for now. The stock is inexpensive."
— Brenda Vingello [27:56]

6. Market Risks and Macroeconomic Factors

Mike Santola outlines the prevailing market sentiment, noting the expectation of Federal Reserve rate cuts despite stable economic indicators. He warns of potential mean reversions and emphasizes the importance of being prepared for varied economic outcomes.

"The market kind of refuses to come off its preferred storyline in a way. ... we are priced for the bright side of things to come through."
— Mike Santola [42:32]

Brenda Vingello adds that the Federal Reserve might avoid aggressive rate cuts, maintaining a cautious stance to avoid signaling overreach.

"I don't think they want to go into it with that presumption. It's almost like the threshold for doing it is you think you're going to do two or three."
— Mike Santola [43:32]

7. Stock of the Day: PTC

Josh Brown elaborates on why PTC deserves its position on the best stocks list. He highlights its essential role in product engineering across various industries, impressive earnings growth, and successful transformation to a subscription-based model.

"They can't really disrupt what they do with AI because they're going to be a user of AI. ... So long as the technicals are in your favor, you want to stay long here."
— Josh Brown [37:02]

8. Final Trades and Recommendations

The panel concludes with final stock picks:

• Josh Brown: Uber (up near record highs)
• Rob Sechin: IBM (trading at 21 times, diversified)
• Brenda Vingello: Alexandria Real Estate (7% dividend yield)
• Jenny Harrington: CarMax (beneficiary of tariffs)

These selections reflect a mix of growth, value, and defensive strategies aimed at capitalizing on current market trends and mitigating risks.

9. Closing Remarks

Scott Wapner wraps up the episode by previewing upcoming segments, including live coverage of the Trump-Putin summit and additional stock analysis. He encourages listeners to join the next episode for further insights.

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Notable Quotes:

• "Sometimes it takes an unexpected turn with detours, new possibilities..."
  — Edward Jones [00:00]

• "A great environment to be an investor in all sorts of different places."
  — Brenda Vingello [04:28]

• "It's still a sweet spot where valuation can stay elevated."
  — Brenda Vingello [04:28]

• "This is a name that I look, it's a trade."
  — Josh Brown [21:39]

• "They have some significant headwinds from China."
  — Rob Sechin [23:22]

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Conclusion

The August 15, 2025 episode of Halftime Report delves deep into the current market dynamics, focusing on the impressive performance of major indices and dissecting the movements of key stocks like UnitedHealth and PTC. The panel provides a balanced view, highlighting both the opportunities presented by strong earnings and technological advancements, while also cautioning about high valuations and potential macroeconomic shifts. Investors are encouraged to adopt a long-term perspective, remain nimble, and consider a diversified portfolio to navigate the evolving market landscape.

Transcript

[Edward Jones]

A rich life isn't a straight line to a destination on the horizon. Sometimes it takes an unexpected turn with detours, new possibilities and even another passenger or three. And with 100 years of navigating ups and downs, you can count on Edward Jones to help guide you through it all. Because life is a winding path made rich by the people you walk it with. Let's find your rich together. Edward Jones, Member, SIPC Our state has changed a lot in the last 140 years. We know because Multicare has been here guided by a single making our communities healthier. That comes from making courageous decisions, partnering with local communities to grow programs and services, and expanding healthcare access to those who need it most. Together, we're building a healthier future. Learn [e-mail].

[Scott Wapner]

I'm Scott Wapner, and you're listening to CNBC's Halftime Report, the podcast the most profitable hour of the trading day. We record this live weekdays at 12 Eastern. Listen in. Carl, thank you very much. Welcome to the Halftime Report. I'm Scott Wapner. Front and center this hour, a new high for the Dow, the index joining the S and P of the NASDAQ at record levels. We're trading the markets with the investment committee as always. Joining me for the hour this Friday, Josh Brown, Jenny Harrington, Brenda Vingello, Rob Sechin. We'll show you what's happening now. We do have the Dow in the green. I said it's a new record. We have a little bit of work to do today on the S and P and the nasdaq, UNH is obviously a big story today and we're going to get to that in a moment. Retail sales were pretty good and as you heard, Steve Liesman and Carl and Leslie talking about Jackson Hole is obviously looming large. So, Rob, I'll go to you first. Good to see you again.

[Rob Sechin]

Good to see you, Scott.

[Scott Wapner]

I love on Fridays to talk to you, the committee about what our takeaway from this week of information and trade trading, you know, information, the market price action. What do we take away, do you think, from this week in which we set some new records again?

[Rob Sechin]

I mean, it's clear that the momentum continues to be to the, to the upside. It seems that this market is almost, almost unstoppable. It's funny, Scott. I'm lying in Bend last night at 10:15 and my phone rings and it's Lee Cooperman calling me. And he's legend, the legend, perhaps one of the best, no, best, best investors of our time. He says, listen, I'm having One of the best years of my life. On a relative basis, stocks are doing great, easy to find, great things to do. However, this reminds me of late 99 and went on to read me something that he calls God's Plan from Warren Buffett that he wrote in November of 99. And what I would say is while we're in a great time now, we don't know what the pivot point out might be. Earnings have been revised up. There's a lot of good news that's happening, no doubt. However, you have to be mindful of valuations which, which are back at nearly all time highs. And so our message for investors has been want to balance, right? One of starting to think as he's thinking about some of the value names that we can buy in the pivots that you can make away from these what seem seemingly unstoppable growth names. We saw this week, some of those moves, some moves in the small cap, right. And so I think if you stay nimble on your feet, you'll be able to make the pivot when the time comes. But for now I think it's more of the same because of momentum and we'll see what happens as the year progress.

[Scott Wapner]

What I learned this week to put forth into the conversation was from Rick Reeder, who joined me on Closing Bell. And Brenda declared this to be an amazing investing environment, perhaps one of the best ever across a variety of different asset classes. He addressed the issue of valuation and said if you, you can have a problem with it, it's a little stretched in certain places, but if you look to where the earnings growth is really coming from and the most powerful transformative technology that we've seen in decades in terms of AI, that it's not so out of whack and this is in fact a great environment to be an investor in all sorts of different places. Do you agree with.

[Brenda Vingello]

I do think that, you know, at the margin we've gotten a lot of good news, as Rob mentioned, but particularly about corporate earnings. So Rick Raider I think is exactly right. Corporate earnings are incredibly strong. That's great news. Bond yields should be coming down at the margin, although maybe not as much as some are anticipating. But I do think there are some other things that are complicating the story that we learned this week, particularly about inflation and how that's being passed along or not. So I still think there are some question marks about how that works itself out over the longer term because I think we've been in an environment where there's been so much uncertainty about the level of tariffs, the timing of tariffs, that a lot of companies probably chose to absorb some of those initial costs if they were experiencing them. But as we get more certainty, I think we might see that passed along to the consumer at a later date when things become more solidified. But it doesn't take away from the overarching story, right, that we are in an incredible period of technological innovation for the time being. Everyone's going to assume it's amazing until proven otherwise. So I think we're still in that sweet spot where valuation can stay elevated. And to your point, Scott, and you know, it's being driven by really solid earnings.

[Scott Wapner]

I wonder, I wonder, Josh, if we, if we also learned that maybe the, I don't know if it's a euphoric perspective, but this idea that now is finally a great moment for the broadening trade because if you looked at the activity in small caps as a barometer of that, they went nuts this week. They were up. The Russell is as in the day, the Russell was up 5%. Okay, it's only up three today in total for this week, but it shows you exactly what has happened, whereas some say it was a false breakout. Is that the takeaway?

[Josh Brown]

Not mine. Today is the risk off day. And I know like the layperson will open up their CNBC app or look at what the market did and they'll say, oh, the Dow is up. The Dow is up because UnitedHealth is a $300 stock and its price weighted index, which means the, the companies that have a nominally high price, like a multi hundred dollar stock price have a much larger effect on it than the companies that trade at $40 a share, $50 a share. I know professionals watching this, know this, but I'm sharing this for everyone else. But look at the top, look at the top three sectors today, health care, energy and real estate. Those have been risk off real estate because of the high dividends. Energy sort sort of as like a hedge just in case the inflation picture isn't getting better. And health care is health care tech is down and we had a major earnings warning which I know we'll get to a little bit later in the show from a bellwether in the chip sector. And I don't see euphoria, Judge, to answer your question directly and I would also say it's probably not the right word.

[Scott Wapner]

I'm going to interrupt you for a second. The clapping by the way you're hearing is because of the tradition on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange whenever Servicemen and women of our great country are here on the floor. Everybody sort of gathers and claps them around and gives a handshake to everybody and we salute everybody, of course, for their service to our country. But that's, I just want to let you know what you were listening to. Maybe euphoria, euphoric is the wrong word. But I'm trying to think of the switch in sentiment that seemed to happen, Jenny, almost overnight in this small cap broadening idea. And it was an excitable moment in time that I'm finding maybe questioned as we end the week.

[Jenny Harrington]

Maybe. So when I look at it, you know, I'm always honed in on the dividend index. So if we look at DV Y, which is an ETF that represents dividends that was up one and a half percent this week, then on the other hand, you have point two, two. So everything's still good. But there does seem to be a leadership, a leadership shift happening. And then when we think about that on a more granular level today and we juxtapose a mat with unh, which I know we'll get to later, I just think that's really representative of what's going on, which, which in a mat was up before today, what, like 15, 16, 17% on the year, having a perfectly good year, they miss a little on guidance and it's all erased. Whereas, unh, you had a terrible year. And one little thing, a couple people.

[Scott Wapner]

Saying, hey, yeah, just I think it.

[Jenny Harrington]

Is a little bit thing.

[Scott Wapner]

Yeah, okay.

[Jenny Harrington]

I think it is a little thing. And so a little thing and it drives the stock up 12%. And the reason I think it's a little thing is because obviously that was a value. Like, obviously some of the big guys have been quietly picking it up, but now that it's out there, the stock shoots up 12%. But the point being that to me is like the granular stock level example of what went on bigger in the bigger picture this week. I wouldn't, I wouldn't be surprised if that continues.

[Scott Wapner]

I mean, if you, you know, if you look at unhappy and the news that has driven this stock to look like it does today and for the Dow, for that matter to look like it does is because Berkshire Hathaway has been buying and revealed that they have a position in UnitedHealth. The stock has obviously not traded well over the last six months. Plus Appaloosa, according to the filings, has bought more of that. Michael Burry Scion bought that as well, with the disclosure, of course, too, that these are backward looking sometimes, but the Berkshire thing feels like it's significant. You need only really listen to Stephanie Link. Can you hang on?

[Josh Brown]

I don't see it that way.

[Scott Wapner]

That's great. I'll get you in a minute. But I want to bring in Stephanie Link because she has really been the biggest proponent of this name and she's come on this program on numerous occasions and said she was buying it and why she believed it. What do you make of this news, Steph?

[Stephanie Link]

Well, it's encouraging that several investors see value. That was one of the reasons I initially bought shares and it was higher for sure. So it's been kind of painful. But when you when you're trading at about 11 times EBITDA vs 14 times historical average or 17 times earnings vs 23 historical average for the number one managed care company in the industry that has definitely had a new stumble, there's no question. But they have 52 million members. They have size, they have scale. And even with their earnings problems and their margin problems, last quarter they were able to grow 13%. And then of course, you know, I am a big proponent of good CEOs, excellent CEOs. And they have a returning CEO, Steve Hemsley, who built Optum, the franchise from 2006 to 2017. And when he was at the company and what he did, the Stock actually rallied 346% under his leadership. And oh, by the way, when he rejoined, he immediately bought 25 million shares and he has a total of 300 million shares. That's confidence in my mind. He bought in, he brought In a new CFO, he made changes to leadership at UnitedHealth in Optum and I think he kitchen sink the quarter. Now, all this said, this is still a 2026 and 2027 story. So you're going to have to have patience because they have to reprice their Medicare Advantage business. They will and it will help and they're going to get there. They'll figure out utilization because they've been really high and that's hurt them too. It will eventually work, but it may not work between now and the end of the year. But I love that I have the support along the way. And if on any weakness, you know, bad people realize this is a longer term story, if there's any weakness associated with that, I will be buying more for sure.

[Scott Wapner]

Okay, Josh, what point did you want to make?

[Josh Brown]

2 points. A lot of people who are really excited about UNH today were equally excited at 600, 550, 500, 450. I think what we saw Buffett do or Berks or Berkshire do is important insofar as it probably puts an end to the credibility problem here. And I agree with Stephanie on the, on the CEO's return being important. Important as well. But the part I disagree with, all of the excitement around the name. It's $1.6 billion of a Berkshire Hathaway equity portfolio. That's $300 billion. It's not even half of 1%. If you tell me a quarter from now, hey look, the stock started rallying and Berkshire kept buying. Maybe I'm a little bit more interested but this is a rounding error for Berkshire relative to the rest of its stocks and relative to Berkshire's overall market cap. It's almost, it's almost not noticeable. So that, that to me is not the thing. The real thing is that they're expected to grow earnings by 10% next year. This year earnings fell off a cliff down 41%.

[Scott Wapner]

Sure.

[Josh Brown]

Probably doesn't get worse from here.

[Scott Wapner]

That, that, that's, that's all fine and good. I hear you. It makes sense. The context isn't important. But they're not in the business of buying what they think are going to be ongoing dumpster fires. And you know Rob Seachin, you're, you're here, you own the stock to do.

[Rob Sechin]

It trimmed it significantly in 23. Definitely more interesting when staff and I think Steve.

[Scott Wapner]

Yeah. Why is buying probably bought a few times.

[Rob Sechin]

This is really notable of the top 20 institutional holders, almost half are notable value investors are willing to accept a lot of volatility and take a lot more risk. That means something including Buffett with a long term view. The valuation today is at 18 times. It's a discount to its peers and its long term average. I don't think we're sellers yet. It's still a show me story. Small position doesn't mean we're in a hold of small position because we hate it. We think there's opportunity in this name and I think it pays to be cautiously optimistic. And if you're a long term investor, you can ride along these guys and you might want some proof points along the way but I think you're probably going to see them.

[Scott Wapner]

I mean Steph, I'll give you the last word before I let you run. You're not afraid to look at something that frankly looks like a dumpster fire, acts like a dumpster fire and at certain times is but if you believe there's a turnaround here and if you believe these other well known investors think that maybe the Worst is behind this name, then you take a shot on perceived value. Right.

[Stephanie Link]

For sure. Well, I think that Hensley. Absolutely. Kitchen sink. This year's earnings, this year's earnings doesn't even matter 16 bucks. But think about it, at the beginning of the year, but the old CEO, he was guiding 29 to 30 bucks. So that's a huge, huge change. Obviously it was not run well. This guy, this new CEO is going to fix it and he has the management team to do so. And whenever I get a chance, and you know this by now, this is the way I invest. Whenever you get a chance to own the number one company in any given industry that's down 39% year to date, that has management change, but also has a very, very strong franchise. I mentioned 52 million members. They have size and scale and Optum is a growth business for this company. They're going to get back to it. It's just going to take time.

[Scott Wapner]

Steph, thank you.

[Stephanie Link]

Thanks.

[Scott Wapner]

Great to have you join us. Thought of you immediately, of course. We'll talk to you soon. In fact, I'll see you on closing bell later today. Stephanie Link will join us as we we have the summit between the presidents Trump and Putin, of course, and we track the last hour of trade here. By the way, it was the Navy Seal foundation that you heard the applause for here on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Other moves today of note from Berkshire Newsteak in Lamar Advertising, you own that name. What do you think about that?

[Jenny Harrington]

So this is huge.

[Scott Wapner]

No, of course.

[Jenny Harrington]

Now I'm kidding, I'm kidding.

[Scott Wapner]

If that wasn't predictable, I don't know, joking, sarcastic.

[Jenny Harrington]

So it really like it, to Josh's point, you know, on the, on the UnitedHealth, it's 1.6 billion. I don't know what the exact number is, but it's not a huge part of their portfolio. But it is, it's reassuring and it's lovely to hear. So Lamar is an interesting company that I promise you every single person watching this show knows they do billboards. And in the world of marketing, that is, I think, the one place where you can market and have guaranteed eyeballs. So even in this hugely modern world of marketing, billboards are a really, really, really profitable, excellent place to be. So they reported earnings last week. They were fantastic. Let's say net income and earnings were up about 12% year over year. But they did reduce the guidance just a tiny bit. So they're still trading at 15 times FFO. They've got a 5% yield stock backed off about 6, 6% last week, which is why it's up so much this week. But it's a fabulous business. That just means cash flow, raises the dividend every year, trades at a fair valuation, you know, and it's easy to understand. It's something that I think kind of lasts forever. So I don't think it's that exciting that Berkshire added to it, but it.

[Scott Wapner]

Does make a lot to pick from and they have a mountain of money.

[Jenny Harrington]

Incredible company.

[Scott Wapner]

So I look at the other moves that they've made. Dr. Horton, a new stake, Lennar A shares. If you take that and you look at the continuation of the Apple trimming, the continuation of the bank of America trimming and the addition of other health care names. Part of me is like are, are these representative Josh of a view of a broadening story coming in the, in the market?

[Jenny Harrington]

Can I.

[Scott Wapner]

Because it smacks of that, does it not?

[Josh Brown]

I think that's such a great question. And Warren Buffett historically would go out of his way to say that he does not have macro forecasts as part of his process. He's just looking to buy great companies at a good price. But we've seen him make incredible macro calls. And the last time he got heavily involved in housing was as they were bringing rates down to fight off the recession of 2001 and 2002. And we saw him buying carpet companies and paint companies and making a big bet on the housing market. And that of course turned out to have been an incredible bet. I think he sees what the rest of us see. We don't have enough homes in this country. We have sluggish existing home sales. We do have some home building activity, but probably we need more demographically and rates are going to come down. And maybe Berkshire doesn't know like when is the next 25 basis point rate cut. But I think they do know that this is a pent up bull market waiting to happen. And if you, if you believe that Dr. Horton is exactly what you'd want to buy and I talked about buying Rocket myself and there are a lot of other trades in this space. So. Scott, I don't think that he would say he knows what the economy is going to do. It's not really the Berkshire style. But I do think they have a macro view. Ted and Todd definitely do. And this looks exactly like what you describe. It looks like a point of view. That point of view is that the economy is slowing and rates are too high.

[Scott Wapner]

Right. Brian, Like I want to hear from Brenda. Hold on. Right. Health Care has been so bad, some say well maybe now it's good so you increase your positioning there. UNH is only one representation of that. And then housing been so bad, maybe now it's finally good. Small caps have been so bad, maybe now they're finally good. You have the iwm, correct?

[Brenda Vingello]

We do. And we also have the IJH is a mid cap which is more of an overweight in our portfolios. But I do think if you look in those small and mid cap sectors, they're really much more representative of industrials, of financials, of rates, a lot of these areas that have not performed quite as well but where there's still a decent story, particularly on industrials and financials and I think rates too, if we start to get rates coming down. So I do think that we could have more of a broadening even though there is certainly an argument that the earnings growth just hasn't been there. But I think if we do get signs that earnings growth is starting to get a little bit better and rates come down marginally, that could be the start of a better story holding unfolding.

[Scott Wapner]

What do you want to say, Jen?

[Jenny Harrington]

Oh, it could also like even if there's not a macro theme on it, it could also literally just be sell high, buy low.

[Scott Wapner]

It feels like it's more than that because it's so targeted in areas that I hear you would seemingly be on the better side of things. Coming up, I want to move and talk about a stock of the day for sure it's Applied Materials. They gave weak guidance. Stocks getting crushed. The chip equipment names are all lower on that. Some of the semis are as well. The SMH has been at a record high of late. It's notable for us today not only to bring you the move but to bring you that the move in the market. But to bring you the move of Josh Brown. Is this Lam Research new buy for you directly related to what's happening in the market today.

[Josh Brown]

Sometimes you just get lucky. I wrote the stock up. It's been on the best stocks I list in the market pretty much all year. It's just been absolutely on fire. And it's one of these names where you just look at it and say I can't buy it now, I can't buy it now. And then they report another earnings quarter and the stock keeps rallying. I got a chance to buy it under 100 today. So I pulled the trigger. And this is a name that I look, it's a trade. I'm looking at the 50 day moving average which is a rising 50 day. I'm looking at a stock that's now given back the entirety of its post earnings report gain. The last earnings report they affirmed guidance for the year. Guidance was amazing. The report was off the charts. Good. And then AMAT comes out today and is talking about export licensing issues with China. And I understand the way the market works. Stocks trade in baskets. There are ETFs people become for sellers of stocks that just get caught in the, in the crossfire. Everyone on the desk, myself included have experienced that all the time. So I look at Lam and I say wait a minute. Stock was 102 Monday, went up to 107. Now it's 99 and change. I'm pulling the trigger. So that's where I am with this. Just a very quick thing on, on Lam itself getting away from the AMAT stuff. The reason why it's one of the best stocks in the market quite frankly is the earnings and revenue results and the forward guidance. I highly doubt they would have given guidance 10 days ago and then make a material change to that. So I think the selling on the same thing is just misplaced and wrong.

[Scott Wapner]

Rob, you, you own some of these names too. You own Lamb and a mat or kla.

[Rob Sechin]

We own them all.

[Scott Wapner]

Oh, you want them all?

[Rob Sechin]

We own them all.

[Scott Wapner]

So what do you take from a mat and what do you take from.

[Rob Sechin]

So let me, let me, let me make a quick macro comment on them first. Number one, these are all great businesses but let's remember they're high beta businesses. Back in July we did a lot of trimming because we thought a lot of the, the price performance had been pulled forward in the names. You know, right now AMAD stands at a percent and a half position. We're comfortable with that. They face some significant headwinds from China, that's for sure. Lamb's a little different. It's been a great performer but let's remember it's still not cheap. It trades at a 30% premium due its 10 year average. We're still holding them and the demand is great. But it's, it's one of these companies that's going to get sucked into these rotations. And Josh is right. If you want to own it, this is the time to kind of be a buyer.

[Scott Wapner]

Let me note as well the banks having their best week since July 4th. And Rob, I'll just get back to you. I mean you have J.P. a lot of people on this program today have J.P. morgan, Brenda's got J.P. morgan, Josh is J.P. morgan. As do you. You also have wells. So since you have one more of the the big banks, why are they having their best week, do you think since July 4th?

[Rob Sechin]

I think it's obviously because of rate cut expectations is because the economic data has held up. I think animals are spirits may be expected to come back. Capital markets activity might be expected to reignite. Some of these banks trade at reasonably cheap levels. We own Comerica, for example, as a regional bank. Jefferies is cheap relative to what it's been in a while and has incredible embedded leverage to the capital markets activity we're going to see. So any time you get these notions of rate cuts right, you're going to get a match that, you know, kind of lights these up a little bit.

[Brenda Vingello]

Yeah. I think the other thing you can throw in there is especially with the regional banks is the hope of more deregulation, which would really be helpful for this group. On top of rate rate cuts, rates coming down. So I think that and certainly the capital market activity as Rob mentioned has also been relatively strong this week. So more signs that more could be coming there which would definitely be a positive for those larger banks.

[Josh Brown]

That's for sure.

[Rob Sechin]

That driven kind of small cap to not but small cap I think should pain trade. I don't think it's time yet. If you go back to 1998 and it wasn't till the third cut we had a major uptick after the Greenspan kind of perfect housing irrational variance. And you had yet four years. That's that's what I'm saying. So I think before you're going to see a rotation, you better pay attention not to get off this train too early, you know, and kind of chase that when it was probably a pain trade.

[Scott Wapner]

All right, we we'll take a quick break. We'll do our calls of the day. Our top ones next. Plus coming up later, Josh Brown Best stocks in the market Spotlight under one under the radar software Stock software that's right in the mix too of the conversation right now. We're back in two.

[Silvana]

Is it time to reimagine your future? The right business skills may make a difference in your career. At Capella University, we offer a relevant education that's designed to focus on what you need to know in the business world. We'll teach professional skills to help you pursue your goals like business management, strategic planning and effective communication. And you can apply these skills right away. A different future is closer than you think with Capella University. Learn more at capella. Edu.

[Josh Brown]

Cnbc make it online course how to build a standout personal brand. Three industry experts will show you how to create and grow your brand step by step.

[Scott Wapner]

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[Josh Brown]

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[Scott Wapner]

All right, since we were on the topic earlier of dumpster fires, let's take a look at Target. The stock got downgraded to underperform today at bank of America Stock that's down 24% year to date. They are losing out, according to this note from bank of America. Brenda, you own it. You still own it, right? Okay, take me through this feeling of why you still own it. Yep.

[Brenda Vingello]

So we bought it in March of this year after it was down a significant amount. Already knowing that this is a turnaround story and I think this past quarter was particularly tough when you have an Amazon prime day that lasts for four days, that sort of thing. Definitely more competition in the market. But we do think there is an opportunity here with the newness to turn the. To turn the concept around. So we're sticking with it for now. The stock is inexpensive. Expectations are very low going into this quarter. Company reports next Wednesday. So we're going to stick with it.

[Scott Wapner]

Okay. Salesforce, throw that in the mix. It actually got upgraded today to neutral from underperformed. DA Davidson, the commentary here really interesting. Over the past few months, investor sentiment for Salesforce has declined sharply, which we believe is appropriate. There will be another round of investor activism and increased pressure on management to refocus on growth of the core business, additional margin expansion and hold off on dilutive M and A. So Starboard has increased their position here. Rob, you own the stock.

[Rob Sechin]

We do.

[Scott Wapner]

What's your feeling here?

[Rob Sechin]

Listen, we bought it a while ago. We've been patient with stocks like this and Adobe, you know, this is a stock that dominates this space. But then there's no doubt they're. They're a company that's going to have to deal with macro headwinds and restrained IT spend. And so hopefully we think that they're going to be. The price represents an attractive enough price.

[Scott Wapner]

I don't feel like this stock. I'm sorry to interrupt you, but I don't feel like this stock has done what it's done in any way because of either macro headwinds or IT spend. It's been about the perception that it's losing out in a. Yeah.

[Rob Sechin]

As no question.

[Scott Wapner]

As has Adobe. So let's go.

[Josh Brown]

Let's be real.

[Scott Wapner]

Let's get real.

[Rob Sechin]

When you have a companies like this that are ingrained in the fabric of corporate infrastructure. I know we, we use it. It's pretty important.

[Scott Wapner]

I know Josh Brown has talked about his. He, they use it too.

[Rob Sechin]

It'd be a pretty paramount shift to move away. So when they adopt, when they're able to figure it out, I think there's probably asymmetric upside at that point, which is one of the reasons why we've been, we've been patient. I don't think my point is I don't think that that time has arrived given that we're walking into some restrained IT spend. So pay attention to the name. They're everywhere. They're dominant and they're going to figure it out. It's only a matter of when they're not going to get eaten up.

[Scott Wapner]

How about you say so?

[Brenda Vingello]

Yeah, I'll just say that. I think with Salesforce in particular, if you look at the type of data that companies have in Salesforce, it's very important data and it's data that would be incredibly useful to use for AI for many companies. So I think that they're starting to get traction with Agent force. I think it's there. But to your earlier point, Scott, I think they've made a ton of acquisitions. They need to regroup, refocus on profit margins. And that's a big part of the story here and I think a real reason why it's underperformed. But I think the data they have is very important and sticky.

[Scott Wapner]

Let's, let's hit Cisco earnings this week. Stock got downgraded today to hold from buy target 69, just down a few bucks, four bucks from HSBC. Jenny on the stock.

[Jenny Harrington]

Yeah. So the reason they downgraded it was because they said that they didn't see any material tailwinds evolving. And we disagree with that. I think, I think, you know, they just delivered 14% earnings growth, seven and a half percent revenue growth. And I think this is really about managing expectations and having the right expectations for the right company. So the more technology that's out there, the more sophisticated technology that's out there, it's just good for Cisco. It'll help them drive consistent revenue growth. But it's not suddenly a rocket ship of AI that's going to drive their business. And so maybe there was a little bit of, you know, expectation that they were going to ride the AI boom in a really aggressive way. They're not. So what you have is a stock that trades at 17 times earnings, the huge discount to the tech sector, 6.6% free cash flow yield and very predictable mid to high single digit earnings growth. That works for us. We'd be a buyer here still.

[Scott Wapner]

All right. Let's get the headlines now with Silvana now. Hi, Silvana.

[I]

Hey, Scott. Good afternoon. President Trump can resume mass firings at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau while the case continues to play out in the courts. In a 2 to 1 decision today, a federal appeals court ruled a lower court did not have jurisdiction to pause firings at the agency in March. A district court judge blocked the firing, saying that the administration was likely to gut the agency before she had a chance to rule on the matter. The University of Michigan is facing a hefty fine today after the NCAA found, quote, overwhelming evidence that the school school illegally scouted at least 13 opposing teams between 2021 and 2023 to steal the team signals. On top of the fine, the NCAA ruled Michigan will forfeit postseason revenue for the next two seasons and its head coach, Sharon Moore will be suspended for three games. And Kellogg says its cereals will no longer have artificial dyes by the end of 2023. Seven, the company which makes Froot Loops and Frosted Flakes, that 85% of its cereals currently do not contain artificial dyes. The move comes as HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Has been pushing to remove synthetic food dyes. Scott, I'll send it back to you.

[Scott Wapner]

All right, Silvana, thanks so much, Silvana. Now coming up next, Josh Brown's best stocks in the market. He focuses on one name. It's up 15% since he added it to the list. So is it still one of the best stocks? We'll tell you next.

[Silvana]

Is it time to reimagine your future? The right business skills may make a difference in your career. At Capella University, we offer a relevant education that's designed to focus on what you need to know in the business world. We'll teach professional skills to help you pursue your goals like business management, strategic planning and effective communication. And you can apply these skills right away. A different future is closer than you think with Capella University. Learn more at capella. Edu.

[Josh Brown]

CNBC make it's online course how to build a Standout Personal Brand. Three industry experts will show you how to create and grow your brand step by step.

[Scott Wapner]

There's no time like now to start building your personal brand.

[Josh Brown]

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[Scott Wapner]

Best Stocks in the Market list of Josh Brown has the spotlight on a name today. And Josh, it is what?

[Josh Brown]

It's ptc. A lot of people who have been in the market for a long time. Probably, probably. Remember when we used to call this company Parametric? But PTC is in the same business that Autodesk is in. Autodesk is larger. This one is right on the border of mid cap, large cap, about a $25 billion market cap. It's computer aided design to software business effectively. But anything in the physical world that is designed, developed, engineered, manufactured has to be built with cad. And this company is everywhere. They like to say you can't go a single day without encountering a product engineered manufacturer serviced with PTC software. So for example, they design audio devices for Bose John Deere tractors. Their software helps Philips manage their MRI machines. And the fundamentals here are fantastic because of this transformation, transformation they've been undergoing where they're selling software as a service and they've moved to an ar, excuse me, an AR model. And this is what Wall street wants. They want subscription revenue, they want predictable cash flows. And that's what PTC has been doing. And the results are self evident. 14% ARR growth year over year in the last quarter, 24% revenue growth, 14% growth in free cash flow flow. All of those numbers exceeding prior guidance. And they guided higher into the rest of the year. Earnings per share more than doubled. So that's how this stock lands on the best stocks in the market list. How does it stay there? Operating margins are expanding and this, this, this transformation in the way that they're billing customers and working with customers on a software as a service basis I think is what's attracting new eyeballs to the stock, new institutional shareholders.

[Scott Wapner]

Let me ask you a question. It sounds, I mean the price action in the stock over, you know, certainly for almost any metric you want to look year to date, month, whatever. Is that because. And it's been, it's been good. Is that because the market thinks that this is complemented by AI rather than disrupted by it?

[Josh Brown]

I think this is probably more, I think they use AI. You can't really disrupt what they do with AI because they're going to be a user of AI. I think what this one feeds more into, Scott, is the re industrialization, the reshoring all of the building out of new manufacturing as a result of the tariffs. I really think that that's a big, bigger driver behind the story. And even still they killed this thing after Liberation Day along with all the other software companies. But you look at how fast it recovered and then they put up the best earnings quarter I think they've ever reported. So you got a little bit of a tight consolidation after that earnings report. It was a little bit blow off, but it's hanging in there. And I think so long as the technicals are in your favor, you want to stay long here. I pointed in the piece I did for Pro, I pointed to that $188 level as a line in the sand for short term traders. Maybe that's where the momentum goes negative. But for longer term investors, this is not too far above its 200 day and it's being discovered now. A lot of people just don't know the story because it's only 25 billion bucks. So this is the type of name that I try to write up for best stocks in the market. Just trying to introduce people to news stories.

[Scott Wapner]

All right, good stuff. Thank you for that. Up next, what's working? We'll debate some of the committee's biggest winners when we get back from this break. Got some big committee movers this week. JetBlue having its best week since May 2nd. It is up 20% week to date. Jenny, you own it. I feel like this has more to do with spirit than it does with anything that JetBlue is doing. Am I, am I right or wrong?

[Jenny Harrington]

Well, 20% up week to date or whatever it is, and down 34% year to date. This is what this for us is. It's a tough one because if they ever do just get back to what half of what they were earning prior to Covid and they earn a dollar a share, you have a stock that's trading at five times. So that seems achievable. Right? So we kind of keep holding on, waiting for that. It's a tiny percent of the, of the portfolio. But at the same time, it just seems unable to get out of its own way. So we're sitting with it. But it's when I say, you know, when I said on Cisco, I'm like, I'd be a buyer of. But here, this is one where we're just kind of letting it sit there because it seems stupid to sell here. But I would not rush out to buy more.

[Scott Wapner]

Josh, what about Rocket? You good? What about Rocket companies? Best week since May 16th. Up 11% week to date.

[Josh Brown]

Yeah, it's weird. This is like quietly becoming one of my, one of my better holdings. Stock up huge year to date. Varun Krishna is the CEO. I think he's making a very aggressive bet with the housing market and the doldrums that there will be a recovery, two major acquisitions. And then you look at what they reported on July 31, beat on the top line beat on the bottom line. Adjusted revenue up 9% year over year, 18% higher loan originations, 75 million in adjusted net income and mortgage loan origination volume, 29.1 billion, which is a substantial jump over the same period in the prior year. So I'm hanging on to this thing. I think it trades higher. I wish I owned more of it. And this is a great bet on housing making a comeback. I don't know when it starts. Maybe the stock is already anticipating it.

[Scott Wapner]

Lilly is having its best week since April 18th, up 10% week to date. Brenda?

[Brenda Vingello]

Yeah, it's having a great week. The year has not been great.

[Scott Wapner]

Right.

[Jenny Harrington]

Category take the win.

[Brenda Vingello]

But I'll say, you know, signs that they are picking up market share versus Novo Nordisk. They recently had a price hike in the UK on Manjaro. And if you look past the GOP one story, they also have a great pipeline of other drugs in cancer, Alzheimer's, etc. So they're really not in the camp of having a lot of patent expirations coming up. So I think overall it's still a really a strong story, strong fundamental story. But the stock has just been a terrible performer this year. But hopefully that's turning up also a lot of insider buying more recently, which is good news.

[Rob Sechin]

This is a company that was expensive a year ago. We trimmed it a year ago. It's now at 26 times. It has grown into its valuation, which shows you how remarkably successful it has been from an earnings standpoint. And I think this is a bright spot in the healthcare space. This is one that I think you can own.

[Scott Wapner]

All right, Santoli is next with his midday work. Senior markets commentator Mike Santola here post 9 midday word. I'll ask you how I started our program today. The big takeaway from this week to you in this market is what that.

[J]

The market kind of refuses to come off its preferred storyline in a way. Right. You have the absolute absorb all these suboptimal inflation readings didn't get a great consumer sentiment number. And it's riding on still the predominant expectation we get a Fed rate cut, even though you don't necessarily need it. So to me, that's the takeaway. And then there's obviously room for a lot of mean reversion throughout the market. Are you seeing that, you know, in the, in the small cap trade coming back a little bit for a few days you had the average stock outperforming the NASDAQ 100. And then the rotation remains in place and then this reversion with health care, you know, maybe it's going to start to wake up parts of the market that have been been asleep for now. I still think in general we're priced for the bright side of things to come through. But it doesn't mean that that's the wrong way to look at it.

[Scott Wapner]

As we march towards Jackson Hole.

[J]

Yeah.

[Scott Wapner]

Do you feel like a hawkish cut is the biggest risk at this point?

[Brenda Vingello]

Point?

[J]

I think before we get to the actual September meeting, probably the biggest risk is that they is that Powell really tries to remove some of that expectation of two or three cuts for the rest of the year. I don't think they want to do a hawkish cut. I don't think they want to reinitiate rate cuts and have it seem like a one and done or have it seem like a one and we'll wait and see. They might, but I don't think they want to go into it with that presumption. It's almost like the threshold for doing it is you think you're going to do two or three.

[Scott Wapner]

Yeah. Because one becomes like gratuitous, like okay, great. Like what? Yeah. What is the point other than to signal. Yeah, okay, we hear you.

[J]

We all just be prepared for the possibility that Powell just talks big picture stuff about long term inflation targeting and it's not really that specific.

[Scott Wapner]

I always go back to the eight minute speech at the beginning of the hiking cycle, right. We're all sitting there like what's he going to say? What's he going to say? And it was eight minutes of pain and then we moved off in the.

[Rob Sechin]

Well, that's when he felt you had.

[J]

To take the market by the lapels as they get ready.

[Scott Wapner]

All right, I'll see you on closing bell. Finals are next. I'll see you at 3 o' clock on the closing bell. Apollo's Torsten Slok is going to be with us. He has a hot take on the market. I want you to hear Stephanie Link back with us as well. And we could have a flurry of activity around the summit between President Trump and President Putin will bring all of that live as well as we count down to the actual sit down later this afternoon. Let's do some final trades. Josh Brown, you start us off.

[Josh Brown]

Yeah. Uber within a couple of points of an all time record high. I still think this name wants 100.

[Scott Wapner]

Okay, thank you. Good weekend to you. See what you got.

[Rob Sechin]

IBM, 20% off its recent highs and trades at a reasonable 21 times. And it's diversified across everything that's important now.

[Brenda Vingello]

Okay, Brent Alexandria Real Estate Life Sciences Real estate finally starting to bottom and you get a 7% dividend yield while you wait for more.

[Scott Wapner]

Nice winner today. And Carmax must be Jenny.

[Jenny Harrington]

Yes, it was named a top tariff picket. Oppenheimer trades at 4/14 times earnings, 7.5% free cash flow yield and 20% earnings growth ahead.

[Rob Sechin]

Beneficiary tariffs, too.

[Jenny Harrington]

Yeah, that's what I said.

[Scott Wapner]

All right, good stuff. I'll see you on the Bell. You've been listening to CNBC's Halftime Report, the podcast you can always catch us live weekdays at 12 Eastern only on CNBC.

[Edward Jones]

All opinions expressed by the Halftime Report participants are solely their opinions and do not reflect the opinions of CNBC, NBCUniversal, their parent company or affiliates, and may have been previously disseminated by them on television, radio, Internet or another medium. You should not treat any opinion expressed on this podcast as a specific inducement to make a particular investment or follow a particular strategy, but only as an expression of an opinion. Such opinions are based upon information the Halftime Report participants consider reliable, but neither CNBC nor its affiliates and or subsidiaries warrant its completeness or accuracy, and it should not be relied upon as such. To view the full Halftime Report disclaimer, please visit cnbc.com halftimereportdisclaimer Is it time.

[Silvana]

To reimagine your future? The right business skills may make a difference in your career. At Capella University, we offer a relevant education that's designed to focus on what you need to know in the business world. We'll teach professional skills to help you pursue your goals like business management, strategic planning and effective communication, and you can apply these skills right away. A different future is closer than you think with Capella University. Learn [e-mail].