Smart Investor: Inside the Market’s Wild Week, a New Shine for Apple Stock, and a Cheap Stock Boosting Its Dividend

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In this week’s newsletter:

• Weekly Market Update: Stocks End Week Flat as Consumer Defensives Rise and Consumer Cyclicals Fall
• Tech Stocks, Crypto, and Gold Whipsaw After a Volatile Week
• What to Know About the Software Stock Selloff
• Apple: Impressive Q4 Lifts Stock, but Is It a Long-Term Growth Play?
• US Stock Market Outlook: Where We See Investing Opportunities in February
• This Undervalued Stock Just Raised Its Dividend

It’s been a wild spell in the markets, with swings across stocks, commodities, and cryptocurrencies. The week started with a big bounce in precious metals prices after a sudden plunge in gold and silver during prior sessions. Then software stocks led tech names in their worst selloff in months. Bitcoin, not content to sit the party out, extended its monthslong slide, taking its losses to nearly 50% since October’s record highs. Then on Friday, markets gave investors whiplash with a reversal of the big drop in tech.

What the heck is going on? We took a closer look at the catalysts for this week’s big moves, which include fundamentals, such as worries about overspending on artificial intelligence, and the sometimes basic market dynamics around how what goes up fast often comes down faster. Check out the story here.

Amid all this volatility, what should investors do? Morningstar chief US strategist Dave Sekera has his monthly stock market outlook, and he notes that consumer defensives are starting to look pricey, while tech stocks are starting to look somewhat attractive.

Not all tech stocks have been having a tough run. After struggling for much of 2025, Apple is back in favor with investors. Fourth-quarter earnings were solid, and the stock is outperforming the broader market. While Apple has seen a rebound in its fortunes, are its longer-term prospects just as rosy? We drilled into the outlook for Apple stock with Morningstar senior equity analyst William Kerwin.

Lastly this week, we’ve updated our monthly screen for undervalued stocks that have just raised dividends. This month, only one name made it through.

As always, be sure to visit our Markets page for our latest coverage and live stock market updates, along with our full weekly calendar of key upcoming data and events.