Enlightenment - A Herold & Lantern Investments Podcast

Hosted by Keith Lanton

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Episodes

271

Latest episode

Jun 2026

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EN-US

About the show

Financial Podcast featuring Mr. Keith Lanton, President. Every week Keith enlightens his audience with intuitive insights, personal development, and current market commentary. Disclosures: https://www.heroldlantern.com/disclosure -Press interviews or commentaries, please contact Keith or Sal Favarolo at 631-454-2000 | CREDITS: Sophie Cohen - Disclaimer | Alan Eppers - Introduction - Closing | Sal Favarolo - Producer, Sound, Editing, Artwork **For informational and educational purposes only, not intended as investment advice. Views and opinions subject to change without notice. For full disclosures, ADVs, and CRS Forms, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/disclosure **

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June 8, 2026Episode 1842 min

Markets After The Nasdaq Shock

June 8, 2026 | Season 8 | Episode 18A single data point can flip the entire market narrative and Friday’s action proved it. We wake up to a rebound after a brutal Nasdaq drop, then zoom out to the real driver: a surprisingly hot May payrolls report that makes “no rate cuts” feel more plausible, even as Wall Street keeps trying to price a friendlier Federal Reserve path. We walk through what higher-for-longer yields mean for valuations, why global moves in the UK, Europe, and Japan matter for US rates and the dollar, and how that pressure lands hardest on the most crowded parts of the AI and chip-stock trade.From there, we dig into a more mechanical force that many investors overlook: supply. When mega companies raise equity and monster IPOs hit the calendar, portfolio managers often have to sell something else to participate. SpaceX’s IPO is the headline, but the bigger takeaway is how fast major indexes and ETFs may be forced to buy it, potentially giving you exposure through funds like VTI and QQQ whether you opt in or not. We also flag the warning signs that show up when speculation spreads, including small cap and micro cap bursts that can rhyme with past bubble periods.Then we layer in the catalysts that can reset expectations again, including CPI and PPI, earnings signals for AI data center demand, and geopolitics in the Middle East pushing oil prices and inflation fears higher. We close with the longer arc: reserve-currency confidence, foreign flows that shift away from Treasuries while staying in US equities, and why gold keeps showing up in the conversation. If this breakdown helps, subscribe, share it with a friend who watches markets, and leave a review. What do you think is the biggest risk from here: rates, liquidity, or geopolitics?** For informational and educational purposes only, not intended as investment advice. Views and opinions are subject to change without notice. For full disclosures, ADVs, and CRS Forms, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/disclosure **To learn about becoming a Herold & Lantern Investments valued client, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/wealth-advisory-contact-formFollow and Like Us on Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn | @HeroldLantern

June 1, 2026Episode 1742 min

What The Roaring 1920s Teach Us About Today’s AI Rush

June 1, 2026 | Season 8 | Episode 17AI is moving faster than most of us can comfortably process, and markets are pricing that speed in real time. We take a sober look at the artificial intelligence boom, the surge in chip stocks, and what happens when portfolios quietly tilt too far toward one story. Along the way, we anchor the excitement to something investors can actually use: historical perspective, market structure, and practical asset allocation decisions.We rewind a full century to the Roaring 1920s and the wave of disruption from cars, mass electrification, and radio. The lesson isn’t that change is painless, it’s that new technology tends to build entire ecosystems of jobs, businesses, and productivity, even while it wipes out older industries. That same push-pull is showing up today as AI tools rewrite workflows, data centers scale up, and regulators scramble to catch up.Then we zoom back into the present: why market leadership rotates, how narrow market breadth can be a warning sign, and why IPO hype can distort fundamentals. We dig into bubble talk with SpaceX-style valuation math, track key headlines around NVIDIA’s push toward the AI PC, and highlight an “AI adjacent” opportunity in energy through SLB’s digital strategy and its partnership with NVIDIA. We close with a global reality check: the UK bond market and rising gilt yields as a reminder that debt, confidence, and politics can move interest rates fast.If you want clearer thinking in noisy markets, listen now, then subscribe, share the show with a friend, and leave a review so more investors can find it.** For informational and educational purposes only, not intended as investment advice. Views and opinions are subject to change without notice. For full disclosures, ADVs, and CRS Forms, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/disclosure **To learn about becoming a Herold & Lantern Investments valued client, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/wealth-advisory-contact-formFollow and Like Us on Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn | @HeroldLantern

May 26, 2026Episode 1642 min

When Hype Meets History In Public Markets

May 26, 2026 | Season 8 | Episode 16SpaceX is finally nearing the public markets and the hype is already loud, but we’re not treating it like a fairy tale. We walk through what a SpaceX IPO could look like at an enormous valuation, why mega IPOs often behave differently than classic “ground floor” listings, and what history says about first-day pops versus the next three years. We also dig into the mechanics that can move the stock after the opening bell, including lockup expirations, insider supply, and the buying pressure that can come later when major indexes and index funds need to add shares.From there, we widen the lens to the daily drivers behind today’s tape: Middle East negotiations, oil sliding, Treasury yields easing, and why that combination can lift equity futures even when the geopolitical backdrop feels unstable. We preview key US economic releases like consumer confidence and the PCE inflation report, and we talk about how inflation expectations and deficits feed into the bond market and, ultimately, stock valuations.If bonds still make you uneasy after 2022, we offer a clearer way to think about risk now that starting yields are higher. We cover practical ideas like shorter-term bonds, preferred stocks, and TIPS, then discuss higher-yield options like business development companies (BDCs) with a frank look at the tradeoffs. We also share why Japan is back on the radar for global investors and wrap with a quick scan of a few “unloved” US stocks outside big tech.Subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, share this with a friend who’s watching SpaceX, and leave a review telling us: are you buying day one or waiting for volatility to settle?** For informational and educational purposes only, not intended as investment advice. Views and opinions are subject to change without notice. For full disclosures, ADVs, and CRS Forms, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/disclosure **To learn about becoming a Herold & Lantern Investments valued client, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/wealth-advisory-contact-formFollow and Like Us on Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn | @HeroldLantern

May 11, 2026Episode 1540 min

Oil Earnings And The New Fed

May 11, 2026 | Season 8 | Episode 15Oil is back near the center of everything, and it’s forcing investors to hold two ideas at once: geopolitical risk is rising while U.S. stocks keep notching record highs. We walk through the morning’s market setup, from strong earnings and nonstop AI demand to the way higher crude can sneak into inflation expectations, bond yields, and Fed decision-making.Then we go backward to go forward. John D. Rockefeller is often remembered as a monopolist, but the more useful investing lesson is how he built a system: rigorous bookkeeping, manufacturing-like refinery discipline, relentless waste reduction, and a supply chain he controlled end to end. That mindset helps us ask a better question about any company we own or want to own: what’s the durable process advantage that competitors can’t easily copy?From there we hit the week’s biggest narratives: Barron’s bullish case for the S&P 500 moving toward 8,000, the post-Spirit Airlines reality that “ultra-cheap” airfare is fading, and why Delta and United increasingly look like loyalty and credit card businesses that happen to operate airplanes. We also cover Moderna’s pop on hantavirus headlines, what to look for in private credit through Ares Capital’s portfolio choices and payment-in-kind income, and what a Kevin Warsh-led Federal Reserve could signal on rates, the balance sheet, and a steeper yield curve.If this helped you think more clearly about markets, share it with a friend, subscribe, and leave a review so more investors can find the show.** For informational and educational purposes only, not intended as investment advice. Views and opinions are subject to change without notice. For full disclosures, ADVs, and CRS Forms, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/disclosure **To learn about becoming a Herold & Lantern Investments valued client, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/wealth-advisory-contact-formFollow and Like Us on Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn | @HeroldLantern

May 4, 2026Episode 1440 min

What Happens To Portfolios When The World Rearms

May 4, 2026 | Season 8 | Episode 14The market is trying to do two hard things at once: price a flood of earnings season signals while also digesting real geopolitical risk in the Middle East. We start by zooming out on what actually moves portfolios when tensions rise between the United States and Iran, especially with the Straits of Hormuz sitting at the center of global energy flows. My north star for making sense of it is simple: incentives drive outcomes, and history leaves clues if we’re willing to look at it honestly.From nuclear deterrence to sanctions to uneasy alliances, we walk through why the Iran nuclear question is so hard to “solve” and why other countries are watching closely. That sets up a forward-looking investing conversation about the industries and technologies that may grow if proliferation pressures increase, and how investors can think about risk without getting trapped in the day’s headlines.Then we pivot to the economic knock-on effects you can measure: oil prices, energy insecurity, and the global push for energy independence. We talk about electric vehicles gaining traction well beyond the US, why China’s dominance in EV and solar components matters, and we highlight renewable energy stocks discussed in Barron’s, including Iberdrola, Enel, and Brookfield Renewable. We also hit the tape: the S&P 500’s strong April, the “sell in May” debate, a low VIX and complacency risk, Rick Rieder’s bullish AI productivity thesis, Bill Ackman’s PSUS IPO drop, and Alphabet earnings with Google Cloud profitability improvements.Subscribe for more market and investing analysis, share this with a friend who follows geopolitics and stocks, and leave a review with the one theme you think will matter most next: AI, energy, or security.** For informational and educational purposes only, not intended as investment advice. Views and opinions are subject to change without notice. For full disclosures, ADVs, and CRS Forms, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/disclosure **To learn about becoming a Herold & Lantern Investments valued client, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/wealth-advisory-contact-formFollow and Like Us on Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn | @HeroldLantern

April 27, 2026Episode 1332 min

The Cost Of Playing Your Hand

April 27, 2026 | Season 8 | Episode 13The world can hand you the strongest leverage and still punish you for using it. We open with the latest shocks out of Washington and then zoom out to the bigger question driving the morning: what happens when the U.S. holds overwhelming power in the U.S.-Iran conflict, but the real cost of escalation makes that power expensive to deploy? That gap between “having the cards” and “playing the cards” becomes the lens for everything that follows, from diplomacy to decision-making under pressure. We connect the geopolitics to negotiation reality, including why risk tolerance can be its own weapon and why the side willing to go further can bend outcomes. To make it concrete, we tie the same logic to corporate deal dynamics, then trace historical parallels where superior force struggled against resilience and political constraints. We also explain why any new Iran nuclear agreement is complicated by the shadow of the 2015 JCPOA and the domestic politics of accepting a deal that looks familiar. Then we bring it home to financial markets and investing. We discuss why stocks can churn higher even as oil prices react and Middle East headlines keep coming, why AI stocks and semiconductor stocks are acting like the market’s anchor, and why consumer sentiment matters for companies tied to household spending. We preview a packed earnings season and central bank week, including the Federal Reserve decision and the PCE inflation print, and we share what professional investors are rotating into, from energy to small caps to international stocks. We close with a focused look at Berkshire Hathaway’s valuation debate after the Buffett premium fades. If you found this useful, follow the show, share it with someone who tracks markets, and leave a quick review. What’s the single biggest risk you’re watching right now?** For informational and educational purposes only, not intended as investment advice. Views and opinions are subject to change without notice. For full disclosures, ADVs, and CRS Forms, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/disclosure **To learn about becoming a Herold & Lantern Investments valued client, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/wealth-advisory-contact-formFollow and Like Us on Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn | @HeroldLantern

April 20, 2026Episode 1238 min

Think Forward In Turbulent Markets

April 20, 2026 | Season 8 |Episode 12Oil is ripping higher, the Strait of Hormuz is back in the headlines, and markets are doing what they always do during geopolitical stress: swinging between fear and relief. We step back from the noise and focus on the skill that actually improves results over time, thinking forward. If you build your decisions around what’s happening today, you’ll feel constantly behind; if you train yourself to look six to thirty-six months out, you start acting more like the market itself.We use financial history as a practical tool, drawing on ideas highlighted from historian Joseph S. Moore’s How to Get Rich in American History. The point is not nostalgia, it’s context: debtor’s prison shaped risk in the early 1800s, repeated banking panics punished complacency before the Fed, and 1970s inflation rewired how a generation thinks about stocks, bonds, and oil. That long view helps us spot recency bias in our own assumptions, including the belief that stocks “always” work and that what felt safe in the last few decades will remain safe forever. We also dig into how returns have shifted from dividend-heavy investing toward price appreciation and what that does to valuation and expectations.From there, we connect the macro to the personal. One of the most uncomfortable takeaways is that a huge wealth driver can be household stability, including who you marry and your ability to stay married, because daily money behavior can overwhelm even a great portfolio. We close by hitting the week ahead: earnings season, AI spending scrutiny, inflation and interest rates, and a noteworthy Barron’s-style bullish case on Intel’s turnaround and partnerships, with a reminder that volatility demands a plan.If you found this useful, subscribe, share it with a friend who’s stuck in headline mode, and leave a review with the one market story you want us to break down next.** For informational and educational purposes only, not intended as investment advice. Views and opinions are subject to change without notice. For full disclosures, ADVs, and CRS Forms, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/disclosure **To learn about becoming a Herold & Lantern Investments valued client, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/wealth-advisory-contact-formFollow and Like Us on Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn | @HeroldLantern

April 13, 2026Episode 1137 min

Markets Under Fire

April 13, 2026 | Season 8 | Episode 11Oil jumps above $100, peace talks falter, and markets try to price a world where geopolitical risk refuses to stay contained. We walk through what’s moving stocks, bonds, and commodities right now and why “waiting for the all clear sign” can be a costly investing habit. We also drop a timely reminder on tax season deadlines and last-chance retirement contributions, because real-life money decisions don’t pause when headlines get loud.Then we zoom out and ask a bigger question: have we seen this movie before? The 1956 Suez Crisis delivers an uncanny rhyme with today’s oil chokepoints and alliance friction, and it highlights something investors often overlook: staying invested matters, but where you invest matters too when power and productivity shift. We break down how US leverage helped reshape the postwar order, and what that kind of hinge-point can mean for long-term portfolio strategy and global diversification.From there we come back to the market tape: inflation heat, higher Treasury yields, early earnings results, and the hope that tech and AI-driven growth can offset a negative news cycle. We also hit a few standout themes from Barron’s, including Elon Musk’s “convergence” idea around SpaceX, Starlink, Tesla, and AI infrastructure, before pivoting to an unglamorous but durable corner of the market with railroads like Canadian Pacific Kansas City. We close with the elephant in the room, the US deficit, rising debt projections, and policy scenarios investors quietly debate, from debt swaps to financial repression.If you found this useful, follow the show, share it with a friend who watches markets closely, and leave a review so more listeners can find us.** For informational and educational purposes only, not intended as investment advice. Views and opinions are subject to change without notice. For full disclosures, ADVs, and CRS Forms, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/disclosure **To learn about becoming a Herold & Lantern Investments valued client, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/wealth-advisory-contact-formFollow and Like Us on Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn | @HeroldLantern

April 6, 2026Episode 1038 min

Why Las Vegas Wants Semiconductors More Than Slots

April 6, 2026 | Season 8 | Episode 10Oil is hovering near $110, ceasefire rumors are colliding with strike reports, and markets are trying to price the unpriceable in real time. We sit down to sort signal from noise and connect geopolitics in the Middle East to the practical question every investor is asking: what changes next for inflation, interest rates, and portfolio risk?We walk through two big strategic lessons that nations tend to learn during conflict. The first is the uncomfortable incentive created around nuclear capability and deterrence. The second is the push for self-reliance: energy independence, control of rare earth minerals, and reshoring critical manufacturing like semiconductors and chip technology. Those themes are not abstract policy debates, they show up in sectors, supply chains, and long-term capital spending that can reshape markets for years.Then we zoom in on the data investors trade on: a stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs report, cooling wage growth, and the ongoing reality that healthcare hiring is a core engine of the economy. From there, we dig into stock valuation the way professionals do, including why price-to-earnings can look calmer while free cash flow tells a different story when AI and data center capex surges. We also explore consumer “wealth effect” risk, federal deficit spending as a tailwind that may not last forever, and why even a place like Las Vegas is trying to reinvent itself from casino floors to tech, logistics, and healthcare.If you care about investing, market volatility, geopolitical risk, energy security, and how to think several steps ahead, this conversation is built for you. Subscribe, share with a friend who follows markets closely, and leave a review with the one theme you think will matter most over the next year.** For informational and educational purposes only, not intended as investment advice. Views and opinions are subject to change without notice. For full disclosures, ADVs, and CRS Forms, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/disclosure **To learn about becoming a Herold & Lantern Investments valued client, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/wealth-advisory-contact-formFollow and Like Us on Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn | @HeroldLantern

March 30, 2026Episode 939 min

When Oil Hits $100 The Market Gets Moody

March 30, 2306 | Season 8 | Episode 9Oil shocks don’t stay in the oil market. They leak into inflation, interest rates, earnings expectations, and then straight into your portfolio. We open with the late-quarter pullback that has stocks down meaningfully year to date, and we explain why the Middle East conflict and the Strait of Hormuz matter even for investors who never touch an energy stock. When crude hovers around $100, the question is not just “will prices rise,” it’s “what breaks if they do.”We zoom out to the policy choices that shaped the modern energy map, including America’s mid-century dominance in oil and the Mandatory Oil Import Program that helped set the stage for OPEC. That history gives us a clearer lens on today’s push for energy independence, especially across Europe, India, China, and Japan, and why the scramble can accelerate renewables, LNG build-outs, and electric vehicles. We also talk through an uncomfortable but real geopolitical takeaway: nuclear deterrence incentives may be changing after the lessons of Ukraine, Iran, Libya, and North Korea, and that shift can influence long-run global stability and inflation expectations.From there, we bring it back to markets and decision-making. We break down why higher energy prices can be both inflationary and growth-slowing, how that shows up in Treasury yields, and what we’re watching in S&P 500 levels and volatility. We also cover private credit risks and why markdowns can be painful without necessarily becoming a 2008-style systemic event, then pivot to opportunities and watchlists in tech as AI spending pressures short-term free cash flow while enabling new enterprise software winners. We wrap with a contrarian value look at UPS and what could make the turnaround real.If this helped you think more clearly about oil, inflation, and the 2026 market outlook, subscribe on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, share the show with a friend, and leave a review so more investors can find it.** For informational and educational purposes only, not intended as investment advice. Views and opinions are subject to change without notice. For full disclosures, ADVs, and CRS Forms, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/disclosure **To learn about becoming a Herold & Lantern Investments valued client, please visit https://heroldlantern.com/wealth-advisory-contact-formFollow and Like Us on Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn | @HeroldLantern