Happy Thanksgiving!

Enjoy your quality time with family and friends this weekend.

If your holidays are anything like mine, you’ll find yourself in a conversation or two about financial markets.

He’s a quick (and easy) rundown to help you sound a bit more informed.

Let’s start with the overall stock market.

The S&P 500, which tracks the 500 largest stocks, is slightly off its highs but still up 14.5% this year alone.

The tech-heavy NASDAQ is up 18.11%.

Despite a Pullback – 2025 Has Been Great for Stocks

Both indexes have pulled back over the last month as the AI hype has unwound.

The S&P 500 is still expensive compared to historical valuations, however.

Below is this Price-to-Earnings ratio for the index.

You can think of this like cost-per-ounce labels on packaged goods at grocery stores.

The higher the ratio, the more expensive the S&P 500.

Price-to-Earnings Ratio Highest Since 2021

The P/E ratio currently sits above 30-times earnings.

This is its highest level since 2021 yet still well below levels seen during the dot-com or 2008 financial crisis.

Speaking of the dot-com bubble…

Are we in an AI bubble?

Here are the trailing and forward P/E ratios of top AI stocks:

All this information is available for free on Yahoo! Finance.

While sentiment around these names has taken a dive lower, valuations are still reasonable for most.

The top 5 companies above trade for <30x forward earnings.

Not bad for high growth tech names!

So why are AI stocks currently so out of favor?

Big Tech’s aggressive AI build-out is increasingly financed with record debt issuance, raising concerns about leverage, weaker balance sheets, and growing systemic risk.

Now let’s turn our attention to crypto.

Bitcoin peaked in early October at $126,210 but now sits around $88,000 as I type this.

Year-to-Date Bitcoin Price

November has been the worst month for Bitcoin since hedge fund Three Arrows blew up in 2022.

It hasn’t just been Bitcoin pulling back either.

Ethereum, XRP, and Solana have pulled back recently too.

Year-to-Date Crypto Prices

I recommend you use this volatility to your advantage by scooping up long-term investments at depressed prices.

Now before I log off for Thanksgiving…

Here are a few more interesting charts you might enjoy.

While you’re celebrating Thanksgiving, ask the single folks in your life how they plan on meeting a significant other.

Odds are it’s online.

Talk to you soon.

Enjoy the holiday.