Welcome back to another edition of the Smart Wealth Newsletter, where our family shares what we are seeing in the financial markets, the stocks we are following, and the investing principles we believe can help create long-term wealth.

Chris brings decades of experience in real estate investing, entrepreneurship and the stock market. His approach remains centered on owning high-quality businesses for the long term while looking for opportunities created by market volatility.

Trip is a senior at Tulane University’s Freeman School of Business, where he continues developing his knowledge of finance, economics and investing while managing his own portfolio. This week, we are taking a closer look at one of Trip’s holdings—Micron Technology—which has become increasingly important to the artificial-intelligence infrastructure story.

Frankie is a freshman at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business. He continues building his investment knowledge while managing his Schwab portfolio, which combines established companies with several higher-growth businesses tied to AI, semiconductors, software and autonomous transportation.

This was a fascinating week in the markets. The Federal Reserve, rising Treasury yields, oil prices, inflation concerns and artificial intelligence all competed for investors’ attention. Despite all that uncertainty, technology and semiconductor stocks showed considerable resilience.

The week ending Friday, September 18, 2026 provided investors with another lesson in why trying to predict short-term movements in the stock market can be so difficult.

Investors entered the week worried about inflation, oil prices, artificial-intelligence valuations and interest rates. By Friday afternoon, the market had absorbed a Federal Reserve rate increase, a 10-year Treasury yield around 5%, crude oil above $100 per barrel and considerable geopolitical uncertainty.

Yet the Nasdaq still finished the week higher.

Let's begin with the numbers.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed Friday at 51,682.64, falling 95.40 points, or approximately 0.18%, during Friday's session. For the full week, the Dow declined approximately 1.7%.

The S&P 500 closed at 7,650.50, gaining 12.74 points, or approximately 0.17%, Friday. For the week, the S&P 500 declined approximately 0.1%, essentially finishing flat.

The Nasdaq Composite closed at 26,522.55, gaining 104.25 points, or approximately 0.40%, Friday. The technology-heavy Nasdaq finished the week 0.7% higher.

The Russell 2000 finished Friday at 2,860.40 and declined approximately 1.5% for the week.

For 2026 through September 18, the S&P 500 was up approximately 11.8%, the Dow 7.5%, the Nasdaq 14.1%, and the Russell 2000 approximately 15.2%.

Those numbers tell us something important. Despite an extraordinary collection of worries, the major stock indexes remain substantially higher for the year.

The biggest event of the week was the Federal Reserve's decision to increase its benchmark interest rate.

The Fed raised its target rate by 25 basis points, continuing its effort to prevent inflation from becoming entrenched.

The decision itself was important, but investors were even more interested in what comes next.

The Fed faces a difficult balancing act. Policymakers want to control inflation without unnecessarily damaging economic growth or employment. That job has become considerably more complicated because oil prices and transportation costs have added another inflationary force to the economy.

By Friday, investors were assigning roughly a 55% probability of another Fed increase at the October meeting, according to CME FedWatch data cited by Reuters.

That is a major change from where expectations stood only weeks earlier.

Higher rates affect virtually every part of the economy. Businesses pay more to borrow. Consumers face higher financing costs. Mortgage rates can remain elevated. Credit-card and automobile financing become more expensive.

Higher rates also affect stock valuations.

When Treasury securities provide investors with yields near 5%, stocks have to compete with a much more attractive risk-free alternative. That is particularly important for growth companies whose valuations depend heavily on profits expected many years into the future.

Perhaps the most important number outside the stock market was the 10-year Treasury yield, which moved above the psychologically important 5% level during the week.

That was the highest territory seen since 2023.

The 10-year Treasury influences borrowing costs throughout the economy and is also an important reference point for equity valuations.

A 5% Treasury yield does not mean stocks cannot rise. It does mean investors can demand more from companies.

Businesses producing strong earnings growth and cash flow can still perform well. Companies trading primarily on distant expectations may face greater scrutiny.

This environment could therefore produce a more selective market.

Rather than every AI or technology company moving together, investors may increasingly distinguish between companies generating real earnings and those relying mostly on future promises.

Oil remained another major source of uncertainty.

Brent crude stayed above $100 per barrel even after easing Friday. Earlier in the week, Brent approached $110.

The ongoing conflict involving Iran and the broader Middle East continues creating concerns about energy supplies and transportation routes.

This matters far beyond what consumers pay at the gasoline pump.

Diesel powers trucks, construction equipment, agricultural machinery and much of the commercial transportation network. When diesel becomes substantially more expensive, businesses eventually face higher costs for transporting goods.

Those expenses can ultimately reach consumers.

That creates exactly the kind of inflationary pressure the Federal Reserve is trying to control.

Any genuine improvement in Middle East tensions that pushes oil prices meaningfully lower could therefore become a significant positive catalyst for financial markets. The opposite is also true: additional disruptions to oil production or shipping could place renewed upward pressure on inflation and interest rates.

One of the week's most encouraging developments was the rebound in semiconductor stocks.

Technology had been under pressure as investors questioned AI valuations and the enormous amounts of capital being invested in data centers.

Then buyers returned.

On Thursday, semiconductor stocks staged an impressive rally. The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index gained approximately 3.1%, while the Nasdaq rose roughly 1.7%.

Several individual semiconductor companies made significant moves.

Intel jumped approximately 7.7% Thursday. AMD gained approximately 6.5%. Arm Holdings advanced roughly 8.6%. Micron Technology climbed approximately 5.5%, and Sandisk gained approximately 6.2%.

Micron then added another 3.92% Friday, closing the week at $1,015.80.

Over the full week, Micron gained approximately 12%, AMD approximately 15%, Intel approximately 13%, Sandisk roughly 18%, and Broadcom approximately 2%.

Those are substantial moves.

More importantly, they demonstrate that investors have not abandoned the artificial-intelligence infrastructure trade.

There were numerous winners during the week and throughout the recent month despite the volatility in the major averages.

The semiconductor group gave us several: Micron, AMD, Intel, Arm, Sandisk and Broadcom all demonstrated significant strength during portions of the recent period.

Cryptocurrency-related companies also rebounded dramatically late in the week.

Strategy gained approximately 15.1% for the week, Coinbase approximately 11.9%, Riot Platforms about 7.4%, and Robinhood approximately 5.3%.

Bitcoin itself rallied approximately 5.9% Friday, helping revive investor interest across cryptocurrency-related equities.

That gives us considerably more than seven companies showing meaningful upward momentum.

Another notable winner was Generac, which announced a major long-term agreement to provide backup generators for Amazon data centers. The initial deliveries are expected to total approximately $2.4 billion during 2027 and 2028.

Generac finished the week roughly 11% higher.

This deal illustrates something we continue emphasizing in Smart Wealth: the AI investment opportunity extends far beyond Nvidia and the obvious semiconductor companies.

AI requires data centers.

Data centers require electricity.

They require backup generators, cooling equipment, networking hardware, memory, power management, transformers, construction and enormous amounts of additional infrastructure.

The companies providing those products may become some of the less obvious beneficiaries of the AI boom.

Bitcoin's rebound late in the week was another encouraging sign for risk assets.

Cryptocurrency remains highly volatile, and we would never suggest interpreting one strong session as proof of a new long-term trend.

However, Bitcoin's strength is worth monitoring because cryptocurrency frequently reflects investor appetite for risk.

When Bitcoin, semiconductor companies and higher-growth technology stocks all strengthen simultaneously, it can indicate that investors remain willing to accept risk when they believe potential returns justify it.

That does not eliminate the macroeconomic risks. It simply tells us that buyers remain present.

Not everything underneath the surface was positive.

On Friday, declining stocks outnumbered advancing stocks by approximately 1.78 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange and roughly 1.42 to 1 on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 recorded only five new 52-week highs compared with 30 new lows. The Nasdaq recorded 45 new highs compared with 162 new lows.

That is not particularly strong market breadth.

In other words, investors should not look at strength in Micron, AMD, Intel, Bitcoin or Coinbase and conclude that everything is moving higher.

It isn't.

There is significant rotation occurring underneath the major averages.

That makes stock selection increasingly important.

AI continues to dominate many of the most interesting developments in the market.

The first stage of the AI boom focused heavily on GPUs and Nvidia.

The opportunity has now expanded.

Micron provides advanced memory. Broadcom develops networking and custom silicon. Lam Research provides semiconductor-manufacturing equipment. GE Vernova participates in electricity generation and grid infrastructure. Cisco supplies networking technology. Amazon, Microsoft and Alphabet are spending enormous sums building cloud and AI infrastructure.

The AI ecosystem is becoming enormous.

That does not mean every AI-related stock is automatically a good investment. Valuation matters. Competition matters. Earnings matter.

But it does mean investors should think about artificial intelligence as an infrastructure buildout rather than simply a software trend.

Heading into the final portion of September, several variables deserve close attention.

First is the 10-year Treasury yield. If yields remain above 5% or move materially higher, equity valuations could face additional pressure.

Second is oil. A decline toward more normal levels would help the inflation outlook, while another spike could complicate the Fed's job.

Third is Federal Reserve policy. Markets are now seriously considering another rate increase, so economic reports on inflation and employment could create substantial volatility.

Fourth is AI spending. Investors will continue looking for evidence that the enormous amounts being invested in data centers are translating into revenue and earnings.

Finally, we are watching market breadth. A healthy long-term bull market is generally stronger when gains expand beyond a relatively small collection of companies.

For now, the market continues giving investors reasons for both optimism and caution.

The S&P 500 remains up double digits for the year. The Nasdaq remains even stronger. Corporate earnings continue providing support in many areas, and the AI infrastructure cycle remains powerful.

At the same time, oil above $100, Treasury yields around 5%, persistent inflation and geopolitical uncertainty cannot simply be ignored.

That is why our strategy remains focused on businesses rather than headlines.

We want to own companies capable of increasing earnings, generating cash, maintaining competitive advantages and participating in durable long-term trends.

There will always be frightening headlines.

Successful long-term investing requires distinguishing between temporary market noise and genuine changes in the businesses we own.

This week's Stock Spotlight is Micron Technology (NASDAQ: MU), one of the most important—and increasingly valuable—companies participating in the artificial-intelligence infrastructure boom.

This stock has particular significance for our family because Trip owns Micron in his Schwab portfolio and is now up exactly 17.69% on the position.

Micron closed Friday, September 18, at $1,015.80, gaining $38.30, or 3.92%, during Friday's session.

The stock also had an impressive week, gaining approximately 12%.

But our interest in Micron goes well beyond a strong week in its stock price.

Micron is one of the world's major manufacturers of memory and storage semiconductors.

Its products include DRAM, NAND flash memory and high-bandwidth memory, commonly known as HBM.

Memory may sound less exciting than the GPUs used to train artificial-intelligence models, but it is absolutely essential.

Think of an AI system as an extraordinarily powerful brain that needs access to enormous amounts of information extremely quickly.

The processor performs the calculations, but the memory needs to keep supplying data rapidly enough that the processor can remain productive.

If memory cannot keep pace, the processor can become constrained.

That is where HBM becomes so important.

High-bandwidth memory is designed to move enormous quantities of data extremely quickly while operating close to sophisticated AI processors.

As AI models become larger and inference workloads expand, advanced memory becomes increasingly important.

That puts Micron directly in the middle of the AI infrastructure boom.

Trip's thesis is relatively straightforward: AI requires more memory, faster memory and increasingly sophisticated memory.

Micron is one of the relatively small number of companies capable of manufacturing advanced memory products at enormous scale.

Historically, the memory industry has been notoriously cyclical.

Manufacturers would increase capacity when prices were high. Eventually too much supply would enter the market. Prices would collapse, profits would fall and manufacturers would reduce investment.

Then the cycle would begin again.

That cyclicality has not disappeared.

But artificial intelligence may be changing the demand side of the equation.

AI servers can require dramatically greater amounts of memory than traditional computing systems. High-bandwidth memory is also more technically demanding to manufacture.

The result has been unusually strong demand.

Micron has indicated that its 2026 HBM supply is already covered by price-and-volume agreements, while management expects tight DRAM and NAND supply-demand conditions to persist beyond 2027.

That is precisely the type of industry environment Trip wants exposure to.

Another reason Trip likes Micron is diversification within the AI theme.

Trying to determine which individual AI application will dominate ten years from now is difficult.

Will one chatbot dominate?

Will one cloud provider win?

Will autonomous agents replace traditional software?

Nobody knows with certainty.

But we can identify infrastructure that many of those applications require.

They need processors.

They need memory.

They need networking.

They need electricity.

They need data centers.

Micron therefore represents a classic picks-and-shovels investment in the AI boom.

Rather than betting exclusively on a particular AI application, Trip owns a company supplying one of the critical components required to operate advanced computing systems.

Micron's recent financial performance helps explain the excitement.

For its fiscal third quarter reported June 24, Micron produced earnings per share of $25.11, well above the consensus estimate of $21.39.

Quarterly revenue reached approximately $41.46 billion, compared with analysts' expectations of approximately $35.91 billion.

Revenue increased an extraordinary 345.8% year over year.

Those numbers demonstrate the magnitude of the current memory cycle.

Analysts currently expect substantial additional earnings growth, although investors should recognize that semiconductor forecasts can change rapidly.

Micron is expected to report its next quarterly results around September 30, making the upcoming earnings report especially important.

Wall Street remains bullish overall.

As of September 20, 38 analysts tracked by MarketBeat gave Micron a consensus Buy rating.

The average 12-month analyst price target was approximately $1,295.63, compared with the September 18 closing price of $1,015.80.

But there is an enormous range of opinion.

Published targets span from approximately $249 to $2,000.

RBC Capital reiterated an Outperform rating on September 18 with a $1,500 price target.

That extraordinary spread in targets tells investors something important.

Micron is not an easy company to value.

Small changes in assumptions about HBM demand, memory pricing, manufacturing capacity and AI spending can produce enormous differences in projected earnings.

Micron is not standing still.

The company has outlined plans for approximately $250 billion of U.S. investment over ten years, including domestic manufacturing capacity and further development of HBM technology.

That is a massive commitment.

The semiconductor industry is becoming strategically important not only to technology companies but also to the United States and other governments.

Advanced semiconductors are essential for AI, defense, communications, automobiles and virtually every modern technology industry.

Micron therefore sits at the intersection of AI growth and the broader push to expand advanced semiconductor manufacturing capacity.

Despite the bullish long-term story, Micron comes with significant risks.

The first is cyclicality.

Memory has historically experienced severe boom-and-bust cycles. AI may reduce some cyclicality, but investors should not assume the industry has permanently changed.

The second risk is competition.

SK Hynix and Samsung are formidable competitors, and Chinese memory manufacturers are also attempting to expand.

The third risk is capital spending.

Building advanced semiconductor manufacturing facilities costs enormous amounts of money. If Micron or its competitors build too much capacity, supply could eventually exceed demand.

The fourth risk is AI spending itself.

The world's largest technology companies are spending unprecedented amounts on data centers. If those companies eventually conclude that returns on AI infrastructure are lower than expected, capital spending could slow.

Finally, there is valuation risk.

Micron has already experienced an extraordinary stock-price advance. Even excellent companies can become temporarily overvalued when investor enthusiasm becomes extreme.

That means shareholders should expect volatility.

Trip's position is now up 17.69%, which is a strong start.

But that gain is not the reason he owns Micron.

If the investment thesis remains intact, Trip would rather participate in the potential multiyear expansion of AI memory than make a decision based on a relatively short-term percentage gain.

That is an important investing lesson.

Selling every stock after a 15% or 20% gain can prevent an investor from ever owning a 100%, 500% or 1,000% winner.

At the same time, refusing to sell simply because a stock has risen is not a strategy either.

The question should always be: What is the business worth today, and what could it become in the future?

Micron occupies a strategically important position within the artificial-intelligence ecosystem.

AI requires enormous computing power, but computing power alone is not enough.

Those processors need increasingly sophisticated memory.

HBM demand, data-center construction and the broader AI infrastructure boom provide Micron with a potentially powerful multiyear opportunity.

There will be corrections.

There will be memory cycles.

There will probably be quarters when Wall Street becomes overly pessimistic and others when investors become excessively optimistic.

But the underlying trend remains compelling.

AI systems are becoming larger. Data centers are becoming more powerful. Advanced processors require greater memory bandwidth. And Micron is one of the companies capable of supplying that technology at scale.

Smart Wealth Rating on Micron: BUY.

For Trip, the current 17.69% gain is encouraging, but it remains only the beginning of the story. The reason he continues owning Micron is his belief that advanced memory will become even more important as artificial intelligence expands throughout the global economy.

One of the principles we continue to emphasize in the Smart Wealth Newsletter is that wealth is generally built over years and decades, not weeks and months. Our portfolios contain everything from mature blue-chip companies to rapidly growing technology businesses and a handful of more speculative investments. Some positions have become enormous winners, while others are currently below our purchase prices. That is part of investing.

This week we look at Chris’s Morgan Stanley and Fidelity holdings, followed by Trip’s and Frankie’s Schwab portfolios. The performance percentages below represent the unrealized gains or losses shown in the portfolio information as of September 18.

Alphabet (GOOG) — $344.41 — Up 100.27%. Alphabet owns Google Search, YouTube, Google Cloud, Waymo and a growing collection of artificial-intelligence assets. Wall Street’s consensus rating is Buy, with an average 12-month target of about $415.55 and published targets ranging from $275 to $515. Chris’s Rating: Strong Buy. Chris owns Alphabet because he believes Google remains one of the world's most valuable digital franchises while AI and Google Cloud provide additional avenues for growth. Waymo also gives shareholders exposure to autonomous transportation without requiring a separate investment.

Amazon (AMZN) — $253.71 — Up 21.97%. Amazon combines its dominant e-commerce platform with AWS, advertising, logistics and an increasingly important AI infrastructure business. Analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus, with an average target around $321 and a $200-to-$400 range. Chris’s Rating: Strong Buy. Chris believes AWS and AI could ultimately become even more important to Amazon’s value than traditional retail. He also likes Amazon’s ability to leverage its enormous logistics network, Prime ecosystem and advertising operation.

Apple (AAPL) — $336.13 — Up 124.22%. Apple remains one of the world's most profitable consumer-technology companies, supported by the iPhone, Mac, iPad, wearables and its enormous services ecosystem. Analysts currently carry a Moderate Buy consensus, with an average target near $340 and targets ranging from $245 to $400. Chris’s Rating: Hold. Chris owns Apple because its installed customer base, brand loyalty and recurring services revenue create an extraordinary economic moat. After such a substantial gain, however, the current valuation makes Chris more comfortable holding than aggressively adding.

Deere (DE) — $683.99 — Up 94.38%. Deere is a global leader in agricultural, construction and forestry machinery and has increasingly incorporated automation and precision technology into its equipment. Analysts rate Deere Moderate Buy, with an average target around $681 and a range of approximately $500 to $813. Chris’s Rating: Hold. Chris likes Deere’s iconic brand, dealer network and long-term opportunity to make farming more productive through technology. The nearly 100% portfolio gain gives him the flexibility to remain patient through agricultural cycles.

GE Aerospace (GE) — $314.27 — Up 216.66%. GE Aerospace is one of the world's premier manufacturers and service providers for commercial and military aircraft engines. Analysts have a Moderate Buy consensus, with an average target near $388 and a range from $270 to $455. Chris’s Rating: Buy. Chris believes the enormous installed base of GE engines creates years of recurring, high-margin service revenue. Continued global aviation growth and defense demand provide additional long-term opportunities.

GE Vernova (GEV) — $940.33 — Up 816.09%. GE Vernova operates across power generation, wind and electrification and has become one of the major beneficiaries of rapidly increasing electricity demand. Wall Street rates GEV Moderate Buy, with an average target around $1,146 and a wide $470-to-$1,450 range. Chris’s Rating: Buy. Chris believes AI data centers and electrification will require enormous investment in generation and grid infrastructure. Even after an extraordinary gain of more than 800%, he believes Vernova participates in a powerful multiyear energy-investment cycle.

Kroger (KR) — $60.00 — Up 21.95%. Kroger is one of America's largest grocery retailers, operating a broad collection of supermarket banners. Analyst sentiment is Moderate Buy, with published targets recently ranging from roughly $57 to $85. Chris’s Rating: Hold. Chris owns Kroger as a defensive consumer-staples business that can produce cash flow through a wide range of economic environments. Grocery demand is less economically sensitive than many discretionary categories.

Marvell Technology (MRVL) — $244.25 — Up 3.07%. Marvell designs semiconductor and data-infrastructure products used in cloud computing, networking and AI systems. Chris’s Rating: Buy. Chris views Marvell as another way to participate in the massive capital spending required to build AI infrastructure. The position also provides exposure to networking and custom silicon rather than concentrating every semiconductor investment in the same part of the AI ecosystem.

Meta Platforms (META) — $665.75 — Up 14.84%. Meta owns Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger and is investing heavily in artificial intelligence. Wall Street currently has a Moderate Buy consensus with an average target of approximately $789. Chris’s Rating: Buy. Chris believes AI can make Meta’s advertising platform even more effective while improving engagement across its enormous collection of social platforms. Meta’s scale and cash generation provide the resources to make huge investments that smaller competitors cannot easily match.

Micron Technology (MU) — $1,015.80 — Down 17.74%. Micron manufactures DRAM, NAND and high-bandwidth memory used throughout computing and increasingly in AI accelerators. Analysts rate Micron Buy, with an average target around $1,296 and an unusually wide $249-to-$2,000 target range. Chris’s Rating: Buy. Chris likes Micron because advanced memory has become essential to AI computing, especially through HBM. The position is extremely small, but the company provides another avenue for participating in long-term AI infrastructure growth.

Microsoft (MSFT) — $493.78 — Up 961.64%. Microsoft is Chris’s largest long-term winner, with the position approaching a tenfold gain. Analysts currently rate Microsoft Moderate Buy, with an average target around $564 and targets ranging from $400 to $870. Chris’s Rating: Strong Buy. Chris continues to believe Microsoft has one of the strongest collections of businesses in the world through Azure, Office, Windows, cybersecurity, enterprise software and AI. The nearly 962% gain demonstrates why Chris prefers allowing exceptional businesses to compound rather than automatically selling simply because a stock has risen substantially.

Procter & Gamble (PG) — $146.39 — Down 10.86%. P&G owns household brands across laundry, grooming, health, personal care and other everyday consumer categories. Analysts currently have a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target around $161. Chris’s Rating: Hold. Chris owns P&G as a defensive counterweight to the portfolio’s technology and growth exposure. Its brands, dividends and recurring consumer demand can provide stability during periods when higher-growth investments struggle.

Amazon (AMZN) — $253.71 — Up 123.32%. Analyst consensus remains Moderate Buy, with an average target near $321. Chris’s Rating: Strong Buy. This older Amazon position demonstrates the benefit of allowing a great business to compound. Chris continues to believe AWS, AI, advertising and Amazon’s retail ecosystem provide multiple independent growth engines.

American Express (AXP) — $311.56 — Up 86.92%. American Express operates a premium payments network and card franchise with particularly attractive exposure to affluent consumers and business spending. Analysts currently rate AXP Moderate Buy, with an average target around $373 and a $315-to-$415 range. Chris’s Rating: Buy. Chris likes the combination of a powerful global brand, affluent customer base and closed-loop payments network. He also believes long-term growth in electronic payments remains a durable secular trend.

Kinder Morgan (KMI) — $31.84 — Up 113.50%. Kinder Morgan owns a vast network of North American pipelines and energy infrastructure. Wall Street’s consensus is currently Hold, with an average target near $35 and a $32-to-$43 range. Chris’s Rating: Hold. Chris owns Kinder Morgan for infrastructure exposure, cash generation and income. Natural gas infrastructure may become increasingly important as electricity demand from data centers expands.

Verizon (VZ) — $48.09 — Down 4.66%. Verizon is one of America's largest wireless and communications providers. Analysts have a Hold consensus, with an average target near $51 and a range from $44 to $56. Chris’s Rating: Hold. Chris owns Verizon primarily for its recurring subscription revenue and income characteristics. It serves as a more defensive holding alongside higher-growth technology positions.

Exxon Mobil (XOM) — $163.54 — Up 94.90%. Exxon is one of the world's largest integrated energy companies. Analyst consensus is Hold, with an average target around $167 and a range of approximately $123 to $185. Chris’s Rating: Hold. Chris owns Exxon as both an energy investment and a hedge against periods of elevated oil prices and geopolitical instability. The company’s scale, integrated operations and cash generation have helped turn the position into a major winner.

LightPath Technologies (LPTH) — $9.90 — Down 9.76%. LightPath develops optical and infrared technologies used across defense, industrial, telecommunications and other specialized markets. Chris’s Rating: Speculative Buy. Chris bought LightPath after a sharp selloff because he believed the decline offered an opportunity to enter a potentially important defense and infrared-technology company at a more attractive price. This remains a higher-risk position, and the recent loss is a reminder that speculative investments require patience and disciplined position sizing.

Tesla (TSLA) — $364.27 — Up 14.54%. Tesla combines electric vehicles and energy storage with ambitious investments in autonomy, robotics and AI. Analysts currently have a Hold consensus, with an average target around $412 and an exceptionally wide $25-to-$840 range that illustrates how divided Wall Street remains on the company. Chris’s Rating: Strong Buy. Chris believes Tesla should increasingly be evaluated as an AI, autonomy, robotics and energy company rather than solely as an automobile manufacturer. The potential upside is substantial if those businesses develop successfully, although the risks and valuation remain significant.

Apple (AAPL) — $336.13 — Up 201.07%. Analyst consensus is Moderate Buy, with an average target near $340. Chris’s Rating: Hold. This position demonstrates the power of holding an elite company for a long period, with Chris now up more than 200%. He continues to appreciate Apple’s ecosystem and services business while recognizing that the valuation leaves less room for disappointment.

Nvidia (NVDA) — $222.27 — Up 125.12%. Nvidia has become the dominant provider of accelerated-computing hardware and software powering much of the modern AI revolution. Wall Street rates Nvidia Buy, with an average target around $324 and a $218-to-$515 range. Chris’s Rating: Strong Buy. Chris believes Nvidia remains one of the clearest direct beneficiaries of worldwide AI infrastructure spending. CUDA, its hardware ecosystem and relentless pace of innovation give the company competitive advantages that remain difficult to replicate.

SpaceX (SPCX) — $152.71 — Up 13.11%. SpaceX combines launch services, Starlink satellite communications and other space-based infrastructure opportunities. Now publicly traded, SPCX carries a Moderate Buy analyst consensus, with an average target around $221 and a very wide $75-to-$800 range. Chris’s Rating: Strong Buy. Chris believes SpaceX has created capabilities in reusable rockets and satellite communications that would be extraordinarily difficult for competitors to duplicate quickly. Starlink, launch services and future space infrastructure give the company several potential long-term growth engines.

Apple (AAPL) — $336.13 — Up 6.72%. Wall Street consensus is Moderate Buy. Chris’s Rating: Hold. Chris likes Apple’s extraordinary ecosystem and customer loyalty. At today's valuation, however, he views the stock primarily as a long-term hold rather than an aggressive new purchase.

Costco (COST) — $895.31 — Down 7.60%. Costco operates its highly successful membership warehouse model in the United States and internationally. Analysts rate Costco Moderate Buy, with an average target around $1,056. Chris’s Rating: Buy. Chris believes Costco has one of retail’s strongest customer-loyalty models, with recurring membership fees and exceptional renewal rates. The recent decline does not change his view of the underlying business.

Cisco (CSCO) — $109.51 — Up 5.94%. Cisco supplies networking, security and infrastructure technology that connects enterprises and data centers. Analysts rate Cisco Moderate Buy, with an average target around $130 and an $88-to-$165 range. Chris’s Rating: Buy. Chris believes AI infrastructure will require enormous investments not only in chips but also in networking. Cisco also provides cash flow and diversification within the technology portion of the portfolio.

GE Aerospace (GE) — $314.27 — Down 2.40%. Analyst consensus is Moderate Buy, with an average target near $388. Chris’s Rating: Buy. Chris believes aviation demand and GE’s enormous installed engine base create a long runway for service revenue. A small short-term loss does not alter that longer-term thesis.

Coca-Cola (KO) — $88.25 — Up 12.02%. Coca-Cola owns one of the world's most valuable consumer brands and a global beverage distribution system. Analysts rate Coca-Cola Moderate Buy, with an average target around $96 and a range from $86 to $104. Chris’s Rating: Hold. Chris owns Coke for brand strength, dividend income and defensive characteristics. It provides balance against the portfolio’s technology and AI exposure.

Lam Research (LRCX) — $288.11 — Up 4.14%. Lam supplies wafer-fabrication equipment used by semiconductor manufacturers. Analysts rate Lam Moderate Buy, with an average target around $362. Chris’s Rating: Strong Buy. Chris believes the AI boom ultimately requires enormous semiconductor manufacturing capacity, and Lam sells critical equipment needed to build it. He views Lam as a picks-and-shovels investment in long-term semiconductor growth.

Mastercard (MA) — $565.24 — Up 4.82%. Mastercard operates one of the world's dominant electronic-payment networks. Analysts rate Mastercard Buy, with an average target around $667 and a $597-to-$740 range. Chris’s Rating: Strong Buy. Chris believes the worldwide transition from cash to electronic payments has years of growth remaining. Mastercard participates in that growth without assuming the same credit risk as a traditional bank lender.

Merck (MRK) — $146.87 — Up 20.66%. Merck is a major global pharmaceutical company with a broad drug-development pipeline. Wall Street currently rates Merck Moderate Buy, with an average target around $154. Chris’s Rating: Buy. Chris owns Merck for healthcare diversification and exposure to pharmaceutical innovation. It also reduces the portfolio’s dependence on technology and economically sensitive companies.

Procter & Gamble (PG) — $146.39 — Down 2.00%. Analyst consensus is Moderate Buy, with an average target around $161. Chris’s Rating: Hold. Chris owns P&G because consumers continue buying household necessities regardless of the economic cycle. Its defensive qualities and dividend help stabilize a growth-oriented portfolio.

Palantir (PLTR) — $177.64 — Up 23.39%. Palantir develops data-analysis and artificial-intelligence software used by governments and commercial customers. Chris’s Rating: Strong Buy. Chris believes Palantir could become one of the defining enterprise AI software companies of the next decade. Its government relationships, expanding commercial business and AI platform make it one of the portfolio’s higher-growth investments, although its valuation warrants attention.

Visa (V) — $368.29 — Up 10.15%. Visa operates the world's largest electronic-payment network and benefits from increasing digital transactions globally. Analysts currently rate Visa Buy, with an average target around $417 and a $350-to-$466 range. Chris’s Rating: Strong Buy. Chris believes Visa owns one of the world's great toll-road businesses: every time more money moves electronically, Visa has another opportunity to participate. Its enormous network and global acceptance create a formidable competitive moat.

GE Vernova (GEV) — $940.33 — Up 833.83%. Analyst consensus is Moderate Buy, with an average target around $1,146. Smart Wealth Rating: Buy. This remains Trip’s extraordinary long-term winner, with a gain exceeding 800%. The growth of electricity demand, data centers and grid investment continues to support the long-term thesis.

Costco (COST) — $895.31 — Up 94.24%. Analyst consensus is Moderate Buy, with an average target around $1,056. Smart Wealth Rating: Buy. Trip owns Costco because its membership model, customer loyalty and consistent execution make it one of the highest-quality retailers in the world. His nearly 100% gain shows what can happen when a strong business is given time to compound.

Intel (INTC) — $108.60 — Down 15.05%. Intel designs processors and is investing heavily in manufacturing and foundry capabilities. Analysts currently have a Hold consensus with an average target around $108. Smart Wealth Rating: Hold. Trip views Intel as a turnaround investment with potentially significant upside if its manufacturing and foundry strategy succeeds. The 15% loss shows that the turnaround remains a work in progress.

Micron Technology (MU) — $1,015.80 — Up 17.69%. Analysts rate Micron Buy, with an average target near $1,296. Smart Wealth Rating: Buy. As discussed in this week’s Stock Spotlight, Trip believes high-bandwidth memory is becoming one of the critical components of AI infrastructure. His 17.69% gain is encouraging, but the reason for owning Micron remains the longer-term expansion of AI computing and advanced memory demand.

Navitas Semiconductor (NVTS) — $11.43 — Up 53.63%. Navitas develops next-generation gallium-nitride and silicon-carbide power semiconductors. Analyst consensus is currently Hold. Smart Wealth Rating: Speculative Buy. Frankie owns Navitas because advanced power semiconductors could become increasingly important in AI data centers, electric vehicles and high-efficiency power systems. The stock remains volatile, but Frankie is still up more than 53%.

Nebius Group (NBIS) — $223.54 — Up 163.70%. Nebius is building AI-focused cloud and computing infrastructure. Analysts rate NBIS Moderate Buy, with an average target around $243 and targets ranging from $129 to $410. Smart Wealth Rating: Buy. Frankie bought Nebius for direct exposure to rapidly expanding AI-compute demand. With the position up more than 163%, it has quickly become one of his strongest investments.

GE Vernova (GEV) — $940.33 — Up 833.83%. Analyst consensus remains Moderate Buy. Smart Wealth Rating: Buy. GEV is also Frankie’s largest percentage winner, up more than eightfold. He continues holding because electricity generation and grid modernization could remain major beneficiaries of the AI data-center buildout.

Costco (COST) — $895.31 — Up 93.58%. Analyst consensus is Moderate Buy. Smart Wealth Rating: Buy. Costco gives Frankie exposure to a proven consumer business rather than making the entire portfolio dependent on technology. Its recurring membership economics and exceptional customer loyalty remain the foundation of the thesis.

ServiceNow (NOW) — $135.47 — Up 48.69%. ServiceNow provides enterprise workflow software and increasingly integrates AI throughout its platform. Analysts currently rate NOW Moderate Buy, with an average target around $146. Smart Wealth Rating: Buy. Frankie believes ServiceNow can become an important enterprise AI platform as companies automate increasingly complex workflows. His gain approaching 50% provides a strong cushion while the company continues executing its strategy.

Corpay (CPAY) — $397.76 — Down 3.12%. Corpay provides corporate payments and expense-management solutions. Analysts rate Corpay Moderate Buy, with an average target around $439 and a $300-to-$536 range. Smart Wealth Rating: Buy. Frankie owns Corpay because corporate payments continue shifting toward digital platforms that can automate expenses and reduce administrative friction. A small short-term loss does not materially change the long-term investment thesis.

Aurora Innovation (AUR) — $6.31 — Up 61.79%. Aurora develops autonomous-driving technology with a major focus on self-driving trucks. Analyst consensus is currently Hold, with an average target around $12.67 and a $5-to-$18 range. Smart Wealth Rating: Speculative Buy. Frankie believes autonomous trucking could eventually transform freight transportation by improving utilization and addressing driver shortages. Aurora remains speculative, but his position is already up more than 61%.

AppLovin (APP) — $308.06 — Down 2.69%. AppLovin operates an AI-driven advertising and software platform. Analysts currently rate APP Moderate Buy, with an average target around $529 and a $325-to-$790 range. Smart Wealth Rating: Buy. Frankie owns AppLovin because artificial intelligence can improve advertising targeting and monetization across mobile and digital platforms. The small current loss is less important than whether the company can continue converting its technology advantage into earnings and cash flow.

PTC (PTC) — $135.89 — Down 0.26%. PTC provides industrial software for computer-aided design, product lifecycle management and connected manufacturing. Analysts currently have a Hold consensus, with an average target around $170 and a $130-to-$200 range. Smart Wealth Rating: Buy. Frankie owns PTC because industrial companies are digitizing engineering, manufacturing and product-development processes. AI could make those software platforms even more valuable over time.

Microsoft (MSFT) — $493.78 — Up 183.91%. Wall Street’s consensus remains Moderate Buy, with an average target around $564. Smart Wealth Rating: Strong Buy. Microsoft has become one of Frankie’s great long-term winners, with a gain approaching 184%. Azure, enterprise software, cybersecurity and AI provide multiple reasons to continue owning the company rather than selling solely because the stock has already appreciated substantially.

This week’s portfolios reinforce one of the most important lessons we can share with Smart Wealth readers: great wealth is usually created by owning productive assets for long periods of time and allowing compounding to do the heavy lifting.

Chris’s Microsoft position is up more than 961%, his GE Vernova position is up more than 816%, and his GE Aerospace position is up more than 216%. Trip and Frankie are each up more than 833% on GE Vernova. Those gains did not happen because every stock moved higher every week. They happened while individual companies experienced corrections, frightening headlines, economic uncertainty and periods when the market questioned their futures.

At the same time, the losing positions matter. Intel, LightPath, Procter & Gamble, Costco in the SIMPLE IRA, and several of Frankie’s newer holdings remind us that not every investment works immediately—or ultimately. Diversification, position sizing and continual evaluation of the underlying business remain essential.

Our approach remains straightforward: find businesses we believe have durable competitive advantages, participate in powerful long-term trends, avoid allowing short-term market volatility to dictate long-term decisions, and remain willing to change our minds when the facts change.

Artificial intelligence remains one of the dominant investment themes running through all three portfolios, but we are increasingly looking beyond the obvious AI companies. Memory from Micron, semiconductor equipment from Lam Research, networking from Cisco, electricity infrastructure from GE Vernova, cloud computing from Microsoft and Amazon, AI infrastructure from Nebius, and power semiconductors from Navitas demonstrate how broad the AI investment ecosystem has become.

We will continue following these companies every week—celebrating the winners, learning from the losers and, most importantly, focusing on the long-term process of building wealth.

The Smart Wealth Newsletter is provided solely for educational and informational purposes and should not be considered investment, financial, tax, accounting or legal advice. Chris, Trip and Frankie are sharing their personal investments, opinions and experiences, which may change at any time without notice. References to Strong Buy, Buy, Hold, Underperform, Sell or Speculative Buy represent personal opinions for discussion purposes and are not recommendations that any reader purchase, hold or sell a security.

All investments involve risk, including the possible loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results, and large historical gains should not be interpreted as an indication that similar returns will occur in the future. Analyst ratings and price targets are estimates, can change at any time, differ substantially among firms and should never be relied upon as guarantees of future performance. Readers should conduct their own research and consider their financial circumstances, investment objectives, time horizon and risk tolerance before making an investment decision. When appropriate, consult a qualified financial, tax or legal professional.