Episodes

On episode 422 of Animal Spirits, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ discuss: why stock market returns can't be 15% per year forever, putting the Mag 7 into context, small caps are cheap, retail runs the show now, Opendoor is the new meme stock, investing is easy, owning 50% of a single stock in your Roth IRA, explaining Bitcoin, the Midwest real estate boom, losing your iPhone and more! This episode is sponsored by Vanguard and YCharts Learn more about Van...

On this episode of Animal Spirits: Talk Your Book, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ are joined by Dave LaValle, Senior Managing Director, Global Head of ETFs at Grayscale Investments to discuss: how a bitcoin ETF was approved, what’s coming next in crypto, how to think about the volatility of investing in these assets, and more! Find complete show notes on our blogs... Ben Carlson’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠A Wealth of Common Sense⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Michael Batnick’...

On episode 421 of Animal Spirits, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ discuss a nervous stock market rally, U.S. corporate exceptionalism, how the stock market bottoms, the worst decade ever for bonds, rich people who don't feel rich, Apple vs. Meta, Bitcoin's market cap, the upper middle class is getting too crowded, private equity vs. youth sports and more. This episode is sponsored by YCharts and Flat Rock Global. Get 20% off your initial YCharts Professional...

On this episode of Animal Spirits: Talk Your Book, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ are joined by Garrett Paolella, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of NEOS Investments to discuss losing upside to cover downside, surviving bull markets, volatility across indices, fitting these strategies within a portfolio, and much more! Find complete show notes on our blogs... Ben Carlson’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠A Wealth of Common Sense⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Michael Batnick’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠T...

On this special episode of Animal Spirits at the Morningstar Investment Conference in Chicago, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ discuss best practices on starting a career in the modern world of finance, their own backgrounds on how they arrived at Ritholtz, how to navigate the current state of the industry, the importance of developing your niche, what jobs will (and won't) survive AI, and more! Sign up for The Compound newsletter and never miss out: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠thecom...

On episode 420 of Animal Spirits, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ discuss faster recoveries in the stock market, the potential for an even longer bull market, pros and cons of deregulation, zooming out on the dollar, why taxes never rise, a weak jobs market for college grads, life in 1776, making $250k a year and still not feeling rich, the worst housing market in America, $1,000 car payments and more. This episode is sponsored by Cache Financials and Fabric by G...

On this episode of Animal Spirits: Talk Your Book, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ are joined by Matt Kaufman, Senior Vice President and Head of ETFs at Calamos to discuss the Calamos Autocallable Income ETF (CAIE), a first-of-its-kind fund bringing institutional-style structured notes to the ETF world. They explore what makes CAIE structurally unique compared to traditional autocallable notes, including how its laddered structure offers investors a differ...

On this episode of Animal Spirits: Talk Your Book, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ are joined by Leif Abraham, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Public to discuss updates in fintech, the brokerage industry, and an evolving investor landscape. Find complete show notes on our blogs... Ben Carlson’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠A Wealth of Common Sense⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Michael Batnick’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Irrelevant Investor⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Feel free to shoot us an email at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠animalspirits@thecompoundne...

On episode 419 of Animal Spirits, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ discuss recession hypotheticals, all-time highs in the stock market, the death of the permabear, international outperformance, a crashing dollar, the automatic investing revolution, yield magicians, fast food price inflation, AI vs financial advisors, the potential for a housing market correction and more! This episode is sponsored by Vanguard. Learn more at: https://vgi.vg/3GbOsYM Sign up for The Com...

On this episode of Animal Spirits: Talk Your Book, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ are joined by Scott Litman, Portfolio Manager at GCM Grosvenor to discuss types of infrastructure investments, revenue drivers within infrastructure, the risk/return profile for infrastructure investments, thoughts around liquidity, and much more! Find complete show notes on our blogs... Ben Carlson’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠A Wealth of Common Sense⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Michael Batnick’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Ir...

On episode 418 of Animal Spirits, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ discuss why investors are ignoring scary headlines, war vs the stock market, a slowdown in the labor market, not every bad thing is a crisis, all stock markets are concentrated, it's getting more expensive to own a car, Mark Zuckerberg is desperate, the stablecoin opportunity set, baby boomers are never selling their houses and more! This episode is sponsored by CBOE and YCharts. To learn more about I...

On this episode of Animal Spirits: Talk Your Book, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ are joined by Sean O'Hara, Director at Pacer Financial and President at Pacer ETFs to discuss why free cash flow is important, how the index is constructed, how momentum works, valuations within growth stocks, and much more! Find complete show notes on our blogs... Ben Carlson’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠A Wealth of Common Sense⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Michael Batnick’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Irrelevant Investor⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Feel...

On episode 417 of Animal Spirits, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ discuss valuations not mattering, volatility is the new normal, all-time highs in rich people, bubble behavior in AI, gambling is off and running, limit orders on crypto trades, the housing market is not fair, the downside of illiquidity, Michael's email pet peeves and more. This episode is sponsored by Nuveen and Fabric by Gerber Life. Invest like the future is watching. Visit https://www.nuveen.com/futu...

On this episode of Animal Spirits: Talk Your Book, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ are joined by Steve Hlavin, Portfolio Manager at Nuveen to discuss the muni market structure, the best states for muni bonds, risks around deficits and liquidity, and much more! Find complete show notes on our blogs... Ben Carlson’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠A Wealth of Common Sense⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Michael Batnick’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Irrelevant Investor⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Feel free to shoot us an email at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠animalspirits@thec...

On episode 416 of Animal Spirits, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ discuss the stock market bet of the century, the most interesting market environment ever, positive trends in retirement saving, Europe is outperforming, downturns might be different now, the Fed should cut rates, how to invest in AI, crypto is Tradfi now, private market scrutiny, the most 1990s movie ever and much more! This episode is sponsored by T. Rowe Price. Learn more at: ⁠https://www.troweprice.com/exp...

On this episode of Animal Spirits: Talk Your Book, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ are joined by Todd Mathias, Head of U.S. Product Strategy & Development at Franklin Templeton to discuss US outperformance vs international, currency headwinds, macro uncertainty in the US, the value factor overseas, and much more! Find complete show notes on our blogs... Ben Carlson’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠A Wealth of Common Sense⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Michael Batnick’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Irrelevant Investor⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Feel free to ...

On this episode of Animal Spirits: Talk Your Book, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ speak with Daniel Crosby about his book, The Soul of Wealth. Find complete show notes on our blogs... Ben Carlson’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠A Wealth of Common Sense⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Michael Batnick’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Irrelevant Investor⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Feel free to shoot us an email at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠animalspirits@thecompoundnews.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ with any feedback, questions, recommendations, or ideas for future topics of conversation. Check out the latest ...

On episode 415 of Animal Spirits, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ discuss why technical analysis matters in a downturn, why stockpicking is so hard, do we need a recession, Jamie Dimon is worried about government bonds, how many millionaires there are, AI deflation vs. government spending inflation, when to worry about government debt, the bull market is self-driving cars, it's finally a buyer's market for housing and much more. This episode is sponsored by YCharts. Get 20%...

On this episode of Animal Spirits: Talk Your Book, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ are joined by Scott Blasdell, Portfolio Manager and Don San Jose, Chief Investment Officer of the U.S. Value Team at J.P. Morgan to discuss what value means today, looking for quality within value, why valuation still matters, why the wine business is in trouble, and much more! Find complete show notes on our blogs... Ben Carlson’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠A Wealth of Common Sense⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Michael Batnick’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The...

On episode 414 of Animal Spirits, ⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠ discuss long-term bond yields rising, why government debt won't fall, where all the dry powder is coming from, how often you should expect bear markets, a weird time to be rich, $97 salads, why starter homes died, retail bagholders, why everyone takes Social Security early, Tom Cruise and much more! This episode is sponsored by Betterment Advisor Solutions and KraneShares Grow your RIA Your way by visiting: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠...

On this episode of Animal Spirits: Talk Your Book, ⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠ are joined by Imaru Casanova, Portfolio Manager for the active gold and Precious Metals Strategy at VanEck to discuss gold hitting all time highs, gold miners vs gold performance, macro factors investing in gold, demand from central banks, and much more! Learn more at: https://www.vaneck.com/us/en/investments/international-investors-gold-fund-inivx/overview/ Find complete show notes & VanEck's dis...

On this episode of Animal Spirits: Talk Your Book, ⁠⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠⁠ are joined by Samir Kerbage, CIO of Hashdex to discuss price action in 2025, narratives around price action, how the index is constructed, Bitcoin's investment thesis, and much more! Find complete show notes on our blogs... Ben Carlson’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠A Wealth of Common Sense⁠⁠⁠⁠ Michael Batnick’s ⁠⁠⁠⁠The Irrelevant Investor⁠⁠⁠⁠ Feel free to shoot us an email at ⁠⁠⁠⁠animalspirits@thecompoundnews.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ wi...

On episode 413 of Animal Spirits, ⁠⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠⁠ discuss: how retail became the smart money, why long-term investing caught on, where the money is coming from to buy the dips, chances of re-testing the lows, the Moody's downgrade, millionaires next door, takeout food culture, the broken housing market and much more! This episode is sponsored by Nuveen and YCharts. Invest like the future is watching. Visit: https://www.nuveen.com/future to learn more. Learn why 9 o...

On episode 412 of Animal Spirits, ⁠⁠Michael Batnick⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠Ben Carlson⁠⁠ discuss the China trade deal, retail was right, Wall Street was wrong, price vs. sentiment, markets saved us from a recession, record stock buybacks, 4-to-1 leverage and private equity in your 401k, Michael's real estate deals and more! This episode is sponsored by STF Management. Visit: https://stfm.com/ to learn more. Sign up for The Compound newsletter and never miss out: ⁠⁠thecompoundnews.com/subscribe⁠⁠ Find comple...