Consumer Nerds and Capital Pigs

Show from 2026-07-24 Host Jeremy Schwartz and Professor Siegel discuss the pullback in mega-cap technology stocks, the market’s growing concern around massive capital expenditures and the pressure rising bond yields are putting on equity valuations. The Prof also weighs in on oil prices and renewed inflation risks, the importance of distinguishing real yields from nominal yields when evaluating the equity risk premium, the upcoming Fed meeting and the potential market impact of tariffs and tighter financial conditions. (19:29) Jeremy continues with Sam Rines, Chris Gannatti and Jeff Weniger to break down the latest tech earnings and the market’s increasingly skeptical reaction to AI-related spending, with a focus on whether higher CapEx, shareholder dilution and a more asset-heavy business model could change how investors value the largest technology companies. The group compares spending and buyback trends across large technology companies and financials while discussing Intel, Alphabet, Apple, Tesla, Nvidia, AMD and the broader semiconductor complex, along with the rapid growth of firms such as Anthropic and what that could mean for continued AI infrastructure investment. They also examine consumer spending and financial resilience data, the contrast between pessimistic economic surveys and still-healthy consumer activity, and close with a discussion of oil, interest rates, gold and bonds as potential portfolio hedges as markets watch for further geopolitical and inflation developments. WisdomTree: https://www.wisdomtree.com/investments