Folks, it might feel like things aren't off to the best start this year... The S&P 500 Index kicked off its first trading day of 2025 with a decline. Stocks clawed back gains on Friday.

2025 Started With a 'Triple Yellow' Power Gauge Signal By Vic Lederman, editorial director, Chaikin Analytics Folks, it might feel like things aren't off to the best start this year... The S&P 500 Index kicked off its first trading day of 2025 with a decline. Stocks clawed back gains on Friday. But the last few trading days of 2024 saw the market fall nearly 2%. After their big run higher into December, it looks like stocks are taking a bit of a breather. But there's more than just that... I'm sure you saw the tragic news about the New Year's violence. In New Orleans, a man intentionally drove a rented truck into a celebrating crowd. Fifteen people died in that incident – including the attacker. And many more people were hurt. And in Las Vegas, someone parked a rented Tesla Cybertruck in front of the Trump International Hotel. Then, the vehicle exploded. The driver died. And the explosion injured seven bystanders.  Police are still piecing together all the details. But there's no question that Americans are feeling uneasy right now. With all of this uncertainty, it might not surprise you to know that the Power Gauge is cautious, too. In fact, our system has flashed a "triple yellow" signal. Today, let's take a closer look at what that means – and why it matters for stocks in 2025... Recommended Links: You're Invited to 'Beta Test' TradeSmith's NEWEST Strategy TradeSmith is announcing one of the biggest investment breakthroughs in our industry. It's a new way to potentially double your portfolio by predicting the biggest jumps on 5,000 stocks – to the day – with back-tested 83% accuracy. It works by using a secret pioneered by a hedge fund that has turned every $100 stake since inception into $2.1 million. Click here to learn more. Claim Marc Chaikin's Top 10 Stocks for 2025 When this 50-year Wall Street legend releases his "Top Stock" list for the year ahead, experienced readers drop what they're doing and go grab a pen and paper. Marc Chaikin's stock system would've helped you identify 45 of the top 50 stocks last year. In 2023, it flashed "bullish" on 44 of the top 50. Today, he wants to hand you two tickers for free. Click here to claim them. Now, regular readers know that Marc Chaikin and I both expect to see a lot of opportunity with stocks in 2025. But as the year starts, the "triple yellow" warning is something we need to take seriously. Specifically, three major index exchange-traded funds ("ETFs") kicked off 2025 in "neutral" territory in the Power Gauge. And you can probably guess what they are... The first "yellow warning" was on the SPDR S&P 500 Fund (SPY). Millions of investors track the performance of this broad-market ETF. We also saw a "yellow warning" on the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ). As regular readers know, this ETF tracks the Nasdaq 100. And it's often described as "tech heavy" when compared with the S&P 500. Lastly, the iShares Russell 2000 Fund (IWM) also received a "yellow warning" from the Power Gauge. This ETF tracks the small-cap Russell 2000 Index. That means it tracks the performance of smaller U.S.-listed equities. And when we look deeper, combining the three ETFs, 654 of their holdings are rated "bearish" or worse right now. And 469 stocks currently earn a "bullish" or "very bullish" rating. In other words, today you're more likely to pick a stock in "bearish" territory than one in "bullish" territory. Or more simply, you can't just "throw a dart" and hope to win in this market right now. This should get your attention. It will take some effort to sort out the winners from the losers. Of course, there's still plenty of opportunity out there. As I said, the Power Gauge has identified 469 "bullish" or better stocks within those three ETFs. Here at Chaikin Analytics, it's our job to act on those opportunities... find the ones that best fit our strategies... and use the Power Gauge to help us get the timing right. As Marc said on Friday, we need to keep up with a changing market. We can't just sit back and expect the market to hand out free money in 2025. The Power Gauge's "triple yellow" warning is clear... This is a stock-picker's market right now. Good investing, Vic Lederman Market View Major Indexes and Notable Sectors     # Hld:     Bullish     Neutral     Bearish Dow 30 +0.79% 9 12 9 S&P 500 +1.22% 70 253 173 Nasdaq +1.61% 20 54 26 Small Caps +1.49% 379 1066 455 Bonds -0.32% Consumer Discretionary +2.02% 14 29 7 — According to the Chaikin Power Bar, Large Cap stocks are more Bearish than Small Cap stocks. Major indexes are mixed. *  *  *  * Sector Tracker Sector movement over the last 5 days Energy +3.44% Utilities +1.31% Real Estate +0.74% Health Care +0.01% Communication -0.31% Financial -0.31% Industrials -0.41% Information Technology -0.74% Staples -1.22% Discretionary -1.68% Materials -2.04% *  *  *  * Industry Focus Biotech Services 16 84 39 Over the past 6 months, the Biotech subsector (XBI) has underperformed the S&P 500 by -5.65%. Its Power Bar ratio, which measures future potential, is Weak, with more Bearish than Bullish stocks. It is currently ranked #11 of 21 subsectors and has moved down 4 slots over the past week. Indicative Stocks VERA Vera Therapeutics, I ALT Altimmune, Inc. ARWR Arrowhead Pharmaceut *  *  *  * Top Movers Gainers SMCI +10.92% VST +8.49% TSLA +8.29% PLTR +6.25% NRG +6.2% Losers DLTR -4.07% TAP -3.37% CE -3.35% BBY -2.96% CCL -2.52% *  *  *  * Earnings Report Reporting Today Rating Before Open After Close No earnings reporting today. Earnings Surprises No significant Earnings Surprises in the Russell 3000. *  *  *  * You have received this e-mail as part of your subscription to PowerFeed. If you no longer want to receive e-mails from PowerFeed, click here. You're receiving this e-mail at indra21poetra@gmail.com. For questions about your account or to speak with customer service, call +1 (877) 697-6783 (U.S.), 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Eastern time or e-mail info@chaikinanalytics.com. Please note: The law prohibits us from giving personalized investment advice. © 2025 Chaikin Analytics, LLC. All rights reserved. Any reproduction, copying, or redistribution, in whole or in part, is prohibited without written permission from Chaikin Analytics, LLC. 201 King Of Prussia Rd., Suite 650, Radnor, PA 19087. www.chaikinanalytics.com. Any brokers mentioned constitute a partial list of available brokers and is for your information only. Chaikin Analytics, LLC, does not recommend or endorse any brokers, dealers, or investment advisors. 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