InvestingWithBrandon

My watch list got a LOT longer over the last couple weeks
Why?
The businesses are still growing & the fundamentals are improving. The prices fell
& this is when most investors do the opposite of what they should. Stocks get cheaper, they panic & move to cash
Then when the list is short & everything’s expensive, they feel safe & buy
Classic buying high & selling low.
Please do not be like most that let their emotions control how they invest.
We like deals to capitalize on with stocks & options!
That window is now open.

Retail investor: I’m waiting for it to drop a little more before I buy
Me: How much more?
Retail investor: idk... 5%?
Me: & if it drops 5%, will you buy? Or wait for 5% more because it’s still falling?
Retail investor: ...probably wait
Me: That’s what happens to most people. They wait through the drop because they’re scared, then buy after it already ran
Me: Where do you think the best AI companies will be in 3-5 years?
Retail investor: a lot higher probably
Me: So is the difference between today’s price & 5% lower going to matter?
Retail investor: probably not
Me: That’s why I go 1-2 years ou

In June, Jensen Huang ( $NVDA CEO ) stood on stage at Computex & called Marvell “the next trillion dollar company”
$MRVL was worth about $191 billion at the time. The stock jumped about 25% the next morning
It ran all the way to about $330 a share
On Friday it closed at $141. That’s about a $124 billion company
Less than it was worth BEFORE Jensen said a word
The price ran way past fair value & now it’s coming back down. Everyone who bought the headline near the top is down over 50%
This is what happens when you buy hype instead of at a good valuation...
AGAIN... THE PRICE YOU PAY MATTERS
In o

Intel is down about 60% from its high
People keep asking me if it’s a buy now because it’s “so cheap”
Is it though?
Revenue growth around 12%. A forward P/E around 40
Meanwhile Nvidia trades around 15x forward earnings with WAY faster growth. TSM is under 20x
So why would I pay 40x for 12% growth when I can pay half that or less for better companies growing faster?
This is the trap. People look at how far a stock fell instead of what they’re paying for the earnings
A 60% drop just means it was really expensive before & to be honest... $INTC still is expensive.
VALUATIONS MATTER!

Here’s one big reason retail investors do so bad in the stock market
When the market falls, it usually gets cheaper & more compelling
& that’s exactly when people start panic buying protection. The put/call ratio jumps because everybody’s hedging.
You see this on the chart below where the line is trending up in recent months. That means more hedging is likely happening.
Then when everything’s green & everyone’s greedy, they finally feel safe enough to go all in on buying calls at the wrong time.
It’s backwards
The market pulled back toward its 125 day moving average, the Fear & Greed index wen

"The market is crashing why is this happening"
Number 1...
The market did not crash.
This is normal volatility.
Number 2...
All you had to do was look at this chart and your answer will be found.
PRICE MATTERS.

I don't day trade.
I don't sell covered calls.
I don't sell cash secured puts.
I don't buy weekly options.
I don't run spreads.
I don't watch screens all day.
I don't trade on the news.
I don't care what the market does day to day.
What I do:
$3M+ in $VOO + $Q + Elite companies that never gets sold.
1+ year portfolio secured puts on great companies below fair value, secured by that base.
Every premium goes back into the base.
Ratios in check so a 50% crash can't force my hand.
$25k+ a month. 10 minutes a day. Don't complicate it.

Retail investor: I'm 60 with $250k saved. I know I'm late. What's even the point now.
Me: You planning to die at 65?
Retail investor: ...no.
Me: Then you've got 25+ years of compounding left & $250k to start it with. That's not late.
Retail investor: But I can't afford to lose any of it.
Me: Look at that chart of $SPY. The SP500 has a 50+ year track record of averaging 10% ish per year on average. Yes... Some year will be up more and down more. But in the long run... it's hard to beat.
Retail investor: So just index & hold?
Me: That's step one. Step two is that $250k can secure puts on great c

Retail investor: I’m going to cash until all this is over... This volatility is too much.
Me: Until what’s over?
Retail investor: idk... the Fed, the Ai stuff, Iran, bubble fears.
Me: What happens when all of that is behind us?
Retail investor: then I buy back in
Me: At what price? The market hates uncertainty more than anything. The second those things clear up, it usually moves before you’ve decided it’s safe
Retail investor: so you’re just riding it out
Me: Riding it out with my ratios in check. My portfolio secured puts & bought calls expire in 2028. None of those events change what the co

POV: you sell weekly puts for "income" doing the wheel strategy
Stock is at $100. You sell 5 of the $97 puts every week.
Week 1: +$300. This is easy.
Week 2: +$280. Why doesn't everyone do this?
Week 3: +$310. Telling your coworkers about it.
Week 4: +$290. Looking up how to quit your job.
Week 5: +$300... then the stock drops 12% on earnings. Assigned 500 shares at $97. Stock's at $88.
Week 6: Selling covered calls at $92 to "get it back." +$150.
Week 7: +$150.
Week 8: +$150.
Week 9: Stock rips to $102. Shares called away at $92.
Final score after 9 weeks:
Premium collected: $1,930
Loss on th

I retired at 31 doing this.
Step 1 = Build your base.
35% $VOO
35% $Q
20% high conviction companies near intrinsic value.
10% Bonds or leap calls if compelling
This is your foundation & your collateral.
Step 2 = Sell 1+ year portfolio secured puts.
Quality companies only.
Moat.
Pricing power.
Good valuation.
Collect the premium.
Pay zero margin interest.
Step 3 = Redeploy every dollar of premium.
More shares.
LEAPS on your highest conviction names.
Never let it sit as cash.
Step 4 = Keep ratios in check.
Always know your 7-day liquidity.
A 40% crash should not keep you up at night.
That is it.

Some perspective after yesterday...
The S&P 500 is about 6% off its all-time high
It’s still UP about 7% this year
Since 1980, the S&P has dropped more than 14% on average at some point during the year... & still averaged about 10.7% a year
So right now we’re not even at an average year’s drop yet
Does it feel worse than 6%? Absolutely for many investors. The Nasdaq is in a correction & chip stocks got destroyed
But also understand this... Many of the stocks that got hit the hardest were the ones that had the most expensive valuations... PRICE MATTERS

On Wednesday the Dow had its best day after a midterm election since 1982. Up about 3%
Yesterday it fell 1,833 points & erased all of it
Same companies. Same earnings. 48 hours apart
What changed? Emotions. Positioning. Hedge funds locking in their 2026 gains before year end. Fears about AI data center regulation after the election
That’s the stock market in the short term. It’s a emotional mood swings...
In the long term it’s earnings. & earnings didn’t change in 48 hours
This is why I don’t make decisions on days like Wednesday OR days like Thursday. I focus on finding elite companies at goo

Retail investors sold more stock yesterday than on any single day since March 2020
Think about that for a second
March 2020 was within days of the COVID bottom. The S&P is up more than 3x since then
I’m not saying yesterday was the bottom. Nobody knows that
But the biggest selling days usually come from the most scared people... at the moments that look the worst
The S&P fell 4.4% yesterday. Its worst day since April 2025. The Nasdaq fell 5.5% & is officially in a correction
& the people who sold in April 2025? They watched the S&P climb about 57% from that low to the record
I get it. Days lik

Retail investor: I take profits every time I'm up 25%. Lock it in, never go broke taking gains.
Me: Look at that 5 year chart. How many "25% moves" are on it?
Retail investor: A few... but they kept going after.
Me: Right. So every time you locked in 25%, the thing kept running & you were out. Then you paid taxes on the gain, so you need your next pick to work just to catch back up to taxes paid.
Retail investor: I mean I have to sell sometime.
Me: Do you? Here's what the wealthy actually do. They don't sell their best shares. Ever. They get their cash a different way.
Retail investor: Which i