Over the past 12 months, the S&P/ASX All Tech Index has soared more than 28%, while the tech-heavy NASDAQ has skyrocketed nearly 33%, with investors betting big on the revolutionary change promised by artificial intelligence. 

That's not to say there aren't risks - inflation remains stickier than we would have hoped, interest rates are likely to stay higher for longer (in Australia at least), and earnings need to deliver for companies to keep pushing higher. 

So in this episode, Livewire's Ally Selby was joined by two tech analysts in Wilson Asset Management's Sam Koch and Alphinity Investment Management's Andrey Mironenko. 

They analyse three of the market's tech darlings, including Life360 (ASX: 360), NEXTDC (ASX: NXT) and Data#3 (ASX: DTL), share how they are invested in artificial intelligence on the local bourse, and name some of the factors that will be key to investors success over the next 12 months. 

Plus, they each name their highest conviction tech stock for markets today. 

Note: This episode of Buy Hold Sell was recorded on Wednesday 3 July 2024. You can read an edited transcript below. 

https://www.livewiremarkets.com/wires/buy-hold-sell-2-high-conviction-tech-stocks-for-the-next-12-months/ 

Everyone loves a theme these days. Whether you’re an individual investor looking to capitalise on both short and long-term trends, or a product issuer looking to provide access to opportunities, themes are dominating the way we think and the way we invest.

And while themes will fall in and out of fashion (lithium, for example), it is important for us as investors to be aware of them and to understand how to access them, should we choose to participate.

In that vein, in this episode of Buy Hold Sell we’re unpacking three of the biggest themes from the first half of 2024 and asking if they still have legs.

To do that, Grady Wulff sat down with Steve Johnson from Forager Funds Management, and Luke Laretive from Seneca Financial Solutions.

And, for something a bit different, Luke and Steve each name a stock they like within each theme – that’s right, six hot buys to see out the rest of the year.

Note: This episode was recorded on Wednesday, 19 June 2024.

Boy oh boy, it has been a big first half. Interest rate expectations have whipped around, sticky inflation has confounded central banks, most commodities are surging - paticularly silver and gold - and AI has lit a fire under.... well, everything. 

Did we miss anything? That's right, the ASX 200, like many global markets, is trading at all time highs, at the same time many are calling for a recession in the next 12 months. 

By any stretch, that's a lot to unpack. To help untangle the market web, Grady Wulff sat down with Steve Johnson from Forager Funds Management, and Luke Laretive from Seneca Financial Solutions. 

In this episode, they work through what has and hasn't worked so far in 2024, share what they think will drive markets for the rest of the year, and highlight one thing investors could get wrong over the next six months. 

It wouldn't be an episode of Buy Hold Sell without talking stocks, so they each share their worst stock call so far in 2024, as well as one stock they would bet the house on (if they had to). 

Note: This episode was recorded on Wednesday 19 June 2024.

End of financial year can be a drag. With tax time upon us, we need to give up an evening, possibly a weekend, to get our affairs in order.

But EOFY also affords us the opportunity to look over our investment portfolios, pat ourselves on the back for what has gone well, and undertake the cathartic experience of culling the underperformers. 

It has been a surprisingly strong first half, despite high interest rates and inflation sticking around for longer than we would like, so hopefully it will be more of the former, and less of the latter.

With all that in mind, Grady Wulff sat down with Luke Laretive from Seneca Financial Solutions and Steve Johnson from Forager Funds Management for their analysis of three of the first half’s hottest stocks - all of which are trading near 52-week highs. 

Plus, they also each name a stock that is in the too-hard basket right now. 

Note: This episode was recorded on Wednesday 19 June 2024.

Franking credits are important for many investors, particularly those operating in a low or no-tax environment. A company paying a 5% fully franked yield, for example, gets grossed up to around 7% after franking. Juicy. 

More than half of the companies listed on the S&P/ASX200 either fully pay or partially pay franked dividends, and it is important to know the relevant franking level.  

With that in mind, Livewire's Ally Selby recently sat down with Peter Gardner from Plato, and Andrew Fraser from Merlon to discuss five stocks with sustainable and fully franked dividends. 

For those unfamiliar with franking, they also discuss why franking is important and how it factors into their respective investment processes. 

Note: This episode was recorded on Wednesday 5 June 2024. 

There are currently 10 stocks with double-digit yields on the ASX, exactly half the amount there was this time last year. 

While double-digit yields certainly sound enticing, investors should be aware that they could indicate that the market believes a company has limited growth prospects, a falling share price, or a one-off dividend. 

For those not in the know, dividend yield is calculated by adding up all the dividends (both special and normal) paid over the last 12 months and then dividing that value by a stock's current share price.

So, are any of these double-digit yields sustainable? 

To find out, Livewire's Ally Selby was joined by Plato Investment Management's Peter Gardner and Merlon Capital's Andrew Fraser. 

They share at what point alarm bells should start ringing on the sustainability of these yields, and where they are seeing growing yields over the short and long term. They also each name a stock they are backing - which surprisingly, are both incredibly similar - for attractive income over the next few years. 

Note: This episode was recorded on Wednesday 5 June 2024. 

With interest rates up 4.25% in the space of two years, investors have entered a Goldilocks era for income. But while many retirees live happily off the income generated by some of the market’s dividend stalwarts, there are potential traps out there.

To help ensure you’re investing in companies with sustainable dividend yields, Livewire's Ally Selby was joined by Plato Investment Management’s Peter Gardner and Merlon Capital’s Andrew Fraser for their analysis of three widely owned dividend stalwarts (and for something different, none of these are iron ore miners).

Plus, they also call out two dividend darlings they now regard as traps.

Note: This episode was recorded on Wednesday 5 June 2024. You can read an edited transcript below: 

https://www.livewiremarkets.com/wires/buy-hold-sell-3-dividend-darlings-and-2-traps/

Do you spend your days searching for the next spicy mining stock headed for the moon, a biotech promising revolutionary health advances, or a tech company changing the status quo? 

If that sounds like you, you've come to the right place. 

While Buy Hold Sell typically focuses on companies at the larger end of the market cap spectrum, this week, we're digging deeper in search of speculative stocks with upside potential. 

This includes punter favourite Brainchip (ASX: BRN) - which we repeatedly receive requests to cover, as well uranium up-and-comer Nexgen Energy (ASX: NXG), and buy-now-pay-later company Zip Co (ASX: Z1P) - which have already soared 36%, 14% and 85% since the beginning of the year, respectively. 

So are these stocks actually worthy of investors' attention? To find out, Livewire's Ally Selby was joined by IML's Daniel Moore and Tribeca Investment Partners' Jun Bei Liu. 

Plus, they also each name a speculative stock in their portfolios that they would be buying at today's prices. 

Note: This episode was recorded on Wednesday 22 May 2024. You can read an edited transcript below. 

https://www.livewiremarkets.com/wires/buy-hold-sell-5-speculative-asx-listed-stocks-with-upside-potential 

From 1981 to 2022, the MSCI World Quality Index outperformed the MSCI World Index by 2.6% per year - while the growth and value styles generated returns that were pretty much identical to the broader market. 

So, is the trend your friend? 

In this episode, Livewire's Ally Selby was joined by IML's Daniel Moore and Tribeca Investment Partners' Jun Bei Liu for their thoughts on why investors should be taking a closer look at quality stocks right now - including the factors that investors should look out for when trying to identify the market's quality companies. 

They also each name one large cap and one small cap that they believe are the highest quality companies on the ASX. And, just because you all know I love a bit of drama, they also name one stock that the market shouldn't classify as high quality anymore. 

Note: This episode was recorded on Wednesday 22 May 2024. You can read an edited transcript below.

https://www.livewiremarkets.com/wires/4-of-the-highest-quality-companies-on-the-asx/ 

Time and time again, investment experts tell us punters the same thing - that earnings drive share prices. 

When earnings per share is positive and continues to grow in each reporting period, it means that your share in a company's profit pie is continuing to grow as well. Higher EPS can often translate to a company's share price trading higher, as investors are willing to pay more for a company generating elevated levels of profits - particularly if this growth has been consistent over the long term - or is estimated to continue to grow well into the future. 

So in this episode, Livewire's Ally Selby was joined by Tribeca Investment Partners' Jun Bei Liu and IML's Daniel Moore for their analysis of three stocks with EPS growth expectations higher than 25% over the next 12 months. 

Plus, they each name a stock that they believe has attractive and sustainable earnings growth over the years to come.  

Note: This episode was recorded on Wednesday 22 May 2024. You can read an edited transcript below. 

https://www.livewiremarkets.com/wires/buy-hold-sell-5-stocks-with-exceptional-earnings-growth/