Stock Picking with Fexingo: Individual Equities, Research, and Building a Concentrated Portfolio

In Episode 107 of Stock Picking with Fexingo, Lucas and Luna dive into a specific, under-discussed signal of management quality: how companies allocate capital between buybacks, dividends, debt repayment, and reinvestment. Using the contrasting approaches of Meta and Berkshire Hathaway as live case studies, Lucas walks through the three-question framework he uses to evaluate whether a management t...

With big pharma stocks languishing for years, two names have quietly broken out in 2026: Pfizer and Bristol Myers Squibb. Lucas walks through the specific pipeline catalysts, margin recovery levers, and management moves that separate these two from their peers. He explains how Pfizer's oncology pivot and Bristol Myers' cost restructuring are showing up in free cash flow and gross margin data. Luna...

Chevron has surged 2.9% in the past five days while Apple and Microsoft lagged. Lucas and Luna dive into why the energy giant is winning in July 2026—strong free cash flow, disciplined capital allocation, and a 4.5% dividend yield. They contrast Chevron's performance with big tech's recent struggles, explain why sector rotation is favoring value and energy, and discuss what this means for stock pi...

Lucas and Luna dive into JPMorgan's recent outperformance versus other megacap banks and big tech. With JPMorgan up 0.8% in a week where Microsoft fell 2.8% and Alphabet dropped 1.4%, the hosts examine what's driving the rotation into financials. Lucas breaks down JPMorgan's net interest income advantage, its growing market share in investment banking fees, and why CEO Jamie Dimon's cautious tone...

The S&P 500 is flat over the past week while Chevron jumps 6.2 percent and Exxon gains 3.6 percent. Lucas and Luna dig into why energy stocks are surging while megacap tech wobbles — and what that says about stock picking in a Fed-split environment. They examine the Strait of Hormuz disruption, the minutes showing Fed officials split on rate direction, and how oil majors' free cash flow yields now...

In this episode of Stock Picking with Fexingo, Lucas and Luna examine Apple's transformation from a hardware company into a cash-generating services powerhouse. With Apple shares up 6.3% over the past week to $312.91 while the Nasdaq slipped 1.1%, the hosts dig into the shift in earnings composition: Services now account for over 26% of revenue with gross margins above 70%, compared to iPhone's ro...

Episode 101 of Stock Picking with Fexingo. Lucas and Luna look at why JPMorgan and Bank of America are up 4 to 5 percent in the last week while the Nasdaq slipped 1.5 percent. They drill into the specific factor driving this rotation: net interest income sensitivity to a steepening yield curve. The hosts unpack how JPMorgan's $60 billion in excess deposits and BAC's rate-resilient consumer book cr...

For episode 100, Lucas and Luna examine three stocks that have held up remarkably well during the recent rotation away from megacap tech. They analyze Apple's services revenue surge, JPMorgan's net interest income resilience, and Chevron's free cash flow yield amid energy strength. Using live data from July 8, 2026, they show how Apple gained 7.4% in a week while the Nasdaq fell 1.5%, how JPMorgan...

In Episode 99 of Stock Picking with Fexingo, Lucas and Luna dig into insider buying as a practical signal for value investors. With the S&P 500 at 7,517 and small caps lagging, they examine why corporate officers buying their own stock can reveal hidden conviction—and when it might be a red flag. Using real examples from recent filings, they discuss how to interpret insider purchases, what the SEC...

With the S&P 500 near all-time highs and Berkshire Hathaway sitting on a record $325 billion in cash, Lucas and Luna explore what this means for stock pickers in mid-2026. They break down why Buffett's caution isn't a market-timing signal but a reflection of valuation discipline—and how investors can apply the same framework to their own concentrated portfolios. Using Apple's recent 11% surge and...

Apple's stock surged 11 percent in the five days to July 6, 2026, as investors recalibrated around its services margin potential. Lucas and Luna unpack why the market is finally pricing Apple as a high-margin platform business rather than a hardware cyclical. They walk through specific services gross margin history, how it compares to peers like Meta and Microsoft, and why the valuation argument n...

In this episode of Stock Picking with Fexingo, Lucas and Luna drill into a skill often overlooked by quantitative investors: evaluating management quality. Using live market data from July 6, 2026, they discuss how Apple's 8.8% weekly surge and Berkshire Hathaway's steady 1.8% gain reflect capital allocation decisions made years ago. Lucas explains how to read the language of earnings calls, track...

Lucas and Luna dive into the rising free cash flow yields across the S&P 500 and how to identify companies with durable competitive advantages. Using Apple's recent 8.8 percent weekly surge as a case study, they break down why free cash flow growth matters more than earnings in a concentrated portfolio. The hosts discuss the gap between value and growth free cash flow yields, why Apple's services...

In this episode of Stock Picking with Fexingo, Lucas and Luna dig into Apple's remarkable 8.8 percent surge over the past five days, even as other megacap tech stocks wavered. They examine Apple's unique position: its huge cash flow, aggressive buybacks, and pricing power in services. With the S&P 500 at 7,483 and Apple trading above $308, they explore how a concentrated portfolio built around suc...

The S&P 500 just hit 7,483, but the Russell 2000 actually slipped half a percent over the same five-day stretch. Lucas and Luna unpack why small caps are trading at a 30 percent discount to large caps relative to history, and how stock pickers can find the gems. They walk through a specific framework: looking for companies with net cash exceeding half their market cap, insider buying, and revenue...

Lucas and Luna dig into free cash flow yield as a stock-picking filter, using real examples from the current market. With Apple up 8.8% in five days and Microsoft up 4.7%, they explore whether these megacaps still offer attractive free cash flow yields or if the real value lies elsewhere. They walk through how to calculate free cash flow yield, why a double-digit yield can signal both opportunity...

In this episode, Lucas and Luna break down the concept of operating leverage and how it creates earnings surprises for public companies. Using recent market data and the example of a mid-cap industrial firm, they explain how fixed vs. variable cost structures amplify profit swings beyond simple revenue growth. They also discuss how to spot operating leverage in financial statements and why it matt...

In Episode 90 of Stock Picking with Fexingo, Lucas and Luna dig into operating leverage — the hidden multiplier that turns small revenue gains into outsized earnings. Using Apple’s 8.8 percent weekly surge as a case study, they explain how fixed costs amplify profit growth, why investors often miss it, and how to spot companies with high operating leverage before the market prices it in. They also...

In episode 89 of Stock Picking with Fexingo, Lucas and Luna dive into gross margin trends as a tool to identify pricing power. Using real examples from Apple's 8.5% weekly surge and Microsoft's consistent 68% margin, they explain how rising gross margins signal a company's ability to pass costs to customers. Lucas breaks down the numbers, including Apple's 44% gross margin and how to spot inflecti...

In this episode of Stock Picking with Fexingo, Lucas and Luna drill into one of the most durable competitive advantages a company can have: pricing power. They explain why gross margin trends matter more than earnings growth in an inflationary environment, using Coca-Cola and Sherwin-Williams as case studies. Lucas walks through how to calculate gross margin, what a sustained expansion versus comp...

Meta Platforms surged 13.8 percent in the last five days, pushing its year-to-date gain well past the broader tech giants. Lucas and Luna drill into what this move means for active stock pickers building concentrated portfolios. They contrast Meta's catalyst — a successful Open Source AI strategy and a recovering digital ad market — with Apple and Microsoft's slower growth. Using specific numbers...

Lucas and Luna dig into free cash flow yield as a stock-picking filter, explaining why a high dividend or low P/E ratio can be misleading. They examine JPMorgan and Chevron as contrasting examples in the current market, where JPM boasts a 12% free cash flow yield while Chevron's yield has turned negative due to rising capex. The hosts walk through how to calculate FCF yield, why it matters more th...

The S&P 500 sits at 7,499, small caps just had their best first half in 35 years, and Michael Burry just disclosed a short position in Caterpillar for the first time. Lucas and Luna break down why a legendary contrarian would bet against a stock that nearly doubled in the AI-driven rally. They examine Caterpillar's revenue exposure to China, the commodity cycle, and what the short says about where...

In this episode, Lucas and Luna dive into a fundamental metric often overlooked by retail investors: Cash Flow Return on Invested Capital, or CROIC. With the S&P 500 trading near 7,500 and small caps posting their best first half in 35 years, Lucas argues that CROIC is a powerful filter for identifying companies that generate real cash relative to the capital they tie up. They walk through how the...

The S&P 500 hit 7,440 and the Dow crossed 52,000 on June 30, 2026, but the action was in the divergence between two iconic stocks: Tesla soared nearly 8% in a week while Apple fell 4.3%. Lucas and Luna break down what's driving the split — from Tesla's energy-storage business finally getting recognized to Apple's iPhone cycle concerns and the broader rotation out of passive megacap darlings. They...