Markus Andrews

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. 

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Here’s what CNBC TV’s producers were watching as stocks slipped in the final session before Election Day, and what’s on the radar for the next session.

China stimulus

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The iShares MSCI China ETF (MCHI) in 2024

Cannabis stocks ahead of ballot initiatives

On Tuesday, four states will vote on whether to legalize cannabis: Florida, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota.
In the last month, the cannabis complex has picked up a solid amount of good vibes from investors.
Canopy Growth is up 24% in a month.
Aurora is up 8.7% in a month.
Scotts Miracle-Gro, which some say benefits from the growth of cannabis, is up nearly 10% in a month.
Trulieve is up nearly 5% in a month.
GrowGeneration is up 6.3% in a month. 

Water

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Energy Recovery in the past three months

DuPont

The chemicals company reports Tuesday before the bell.
The stock is up 3.5% in the past three months.
DuPont is 9% from the late September high.

 Yum Brands

The fast-food company that operates Pizza Hut, KFC and Taco Bell is down 1.8% in the last three months.
Yum Brands is 7.3% from the April high.

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Yum Brands in 2024

Apollo Global Management

The investment firm reports in the morning before the bell.
The stock is up about 35% over the past three months.
Apollo is 5% from the high hit last week.

Super Micro Computer

Super Micro is under a microscope these days. The company was hit with a short seller report earlier this year, and most recently its auditor resigned. Shares fell about 45% last week.
The stock is down 78% from the March high when the price was nearly $123 a share. It ended Monday at $26.03. More

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission rejected a request to increase the amount of power the Susquehanna nuclear plant can dispatch to an Amazon data center campus.
The agreement is viewed as a first-of-its-kind deal that could serve as a model for other power and tech companies.
Talen Energy, Constellation Energy and Vistra Corp. fell on the news.

A power substation near the LC1 CloudHQ data center in Ashburn, Virginia, on March 27, 2024.
Nathan Howard | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Technology companies’ push to directly power artificial intelligence with nuclear plants hit a major roadblock, after a federal regulator rejected a request to increase power for an Amazon data center.
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Friday rejected a request to increase the amount of power the Susquehanna nuclear plant in Pennsylvania can dispatch to an Amazon data center campus.

Independent power producer Talen Energy in March sold the data center campus to Amazon for $650 million, which would be powered by the nuclear plant in a first-of-its-kind deal.
Talen’s stock closed more than 2% lower Monday in the wake of FERC’s denial order. Constellation Energy and Vistra Corp. tumbled more than 12% and about 3%, respectively, in sympathy as investors Investors expect the companies to announce similar deals at some point. Constellation posted its worst day since the company spun off from Exelon in February 2022.
The grid operator PJM Interconnection and the Susquehanna plant, which Talen owns, had filed a request to increase the amount of power dispatched to the Amazon data center from 300 megawatts currently to 480 megawatts.
The arrangement, called co-location by the power industry, “could have huge ramifications for both grid reliability and consumer costs,” said FERC Commissioner Mark Christie in his opinion backing the order.
Talen said FERC’s decision will have a “chilling effect on economic development in states such as Pennsylvania, Ohio, and New Jersey” in a statement Monday. The power company said it is evaluating its options with a “focus on commercial solutions.”

The Amazon data center campus can still use 300 megawatts of power from the Susquehanna nuclear plant, according to Talen. The company said the deal is “is just and reasonable and in the best interest of consumers.”
The FERC decision does not directly affect Constellation’s plans to restart the Three Mile Island nuclear plant in 2028 through a power purchase agreement with Microsoft. Three Mile Island will dispatch power to the electric grid, rather than directly power Microsoft’s data centers.
But Constellation and Vistra have expressed interest in striking deals with tech companies that are similar to the agreement between Talen and Amazon.
Data centers that power AI and cloud computing are consuming growing amounts of electricity. Utilities are scrambling to find ways to power the growing electric load. Tech companies are increasingly turning to nuclear power because it is reliable, fossil free and does not emit carbon dioxide.
Vistra and Constellation are two of the best-performing stocks in the S&P 500 this year, as investors bet on a potential windfall from the tech sector’s growing energy needs.
Vistra’s stock has more than tripled this year, outpacing even Nvidia to become the best-performing stock in the market. Constellation has more than doubled and is the fourth-best stock in the S&P 500 this year.

Don’t miss these energy insights from CNBC PRO: More

About 67% of polled Gen Zers and 62% of surveyed millennials are using artificial intelligence to help with personal finance tasks, according to a new report by Experian.
Most use generative AI for finances at least once a week, the report found.
While AI can be a useful starting point, there are a few things you need to consider, according to experts.

Karrastock | Moment | Getty Images

People are using artificial intelligence for tasks like writing and editing resumes and cover letters — and even to get personal finance advice. While some of those insights can be valuable, financial advisors caution that AI shouldn’t be your only resource.
A new report by Experian found that 67% of polled Gen Zers and 62% of surveyed millennials are using artificial intelligence to help with their personal finances. Users say that generative AI tools like ChatGPT have helped in areas including saving and budgeting (60%), investment planning (48%) and credit score improvement (48%).

“It’s free. It’s more accessible. It simplifies complex tasks like creating a budget,” said Christina Roman, consumer education and advocacy manager at Experian.
The survey polled 2,011 U.S. adults from August 30 to Sept. 3. The Gen Z respondents were ages 18 to 27 while millennials were ages 28 to 43.
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To compare, about 41% of Gen Xers surveyed, or adults ages 44 to 59, have used or considered using generative AI as a financial tool. The share is smaller for baby boomers surveyed (ages 60 to 78) at 28%. 
According to data Experian provided to CNBC, 98% of Gen Z adults and 98% of millennials had a positive experience with the software.

While using generative AI can help as a first step to drawing up a budget or figuring out how to increase your credit score, always verify the information through external resources, experts say.

“We see misinformation on financial matters all the time,” said Dawn C. Abernathy, a certified financial planner at Core Planning in Chesterfield, Missouri. She also has a background in engineering and software management.
“From working in technology for a number of years and having to solve some very difficult problems … I’m going to vet any answer that comes out of any tool,” Abernathy said.

Pros and cons of using AI for financial advice

Artificial intelligence can be useful or beneficial for “very simple answers,” said Abernathy.
For instance, you can input what your monthly bills roughly come up to and ask the AI to create a budget that helps you save a particular amount of cash, Roman said. 
However, artificial intelligence tools may fall short when it comes to more complicated areas like investment advice and tax optimization. With those topics, AI could offer a starting point, but you’d benefit from a financial advisor to help you navigate specific questions and offer personalized advice, Roman said.
“When it comes to creating a solution for a client,” Abernathy said, “I would not at this point trust an AI tool to really generate the final solution. I would absolutely have to check and vet that very carefully.”

If you do plan to use AI tools, be careful about putting specific personal and financial details into the software. Otherwise, you put your privacy at risk.
“Make sure that you’re being safe with the information that you’re putting into AI,” Roman said.

Vet answers from AI

If you plan to use AI for your finances, make sure to check the answers you get against other verified sources, experts say.
“The risk is leaning too heavily on something that you haven’t researched,” said Brenton Harrison, a CFP and founder of New Money, New Problems in Nashville, Tennessee. 
While the information provided by AI tools can be a great starting point, make sure to follow up with reputable sources and acquire personalized advice from experts like financial advisors and accountants. More

ETF Strategist

Regardless of the outcome of the U.S. presidential election, there could be some clear winners for exchange-traded funds, experts say. 
However, most advisors caution against making hasty changes to your investment portfolio depending on who wins the presidency.

Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Regardless of the outcome of the U.S. presidential election, there could be some clear winners for exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, experts say. 
Whoever becomes president next — former President Donald Trump or Democratic nominee Kamala Harris — will leave their mark on U.S. policy, and that poses challenges to the status quo going forward, particularly when it comes to taxes, regulation and trade.

“They are risks today, but they turn out to be opportunities once we get there,” Kim Wallace, senior managing director and head of Washington policy research at market research firm 22V, said during a webinar hosted by ETF.com in late October.

More from ETF Strategist

Here’s a look at other stories offering insight on ETFs for investors.

The panel also included Anu Ganti, U.S. head of index investment strategy at S&P Dow Jones Indices, and Kristina Hooper, chief global market strategist at Invesco.

Potential winners and losers

In the months ahead, some ETFs or funds could outperform depending on the election outlook. For example, those related to Big Tech and digital coin ecosystems could benefit in the case of a second Trump presidency, while funds focused on residential construction, defense manufacturing and elder care may see a boost if Harris wins in 2024, the experts said.
How the battle for Congress plays out will help narrow the considerations, according to Invesco’s Hooper. “We need to distinguish between what can be accomplished in a divided government versus what can be accomplished in a sweep,” she said.
Exchange-traded funds have steadily gained popularity among investors, with ETF assets crossing the $10 trillion mark in September — a trend experts say is largely due to advantages like lower tax bills and fees relative to mutual funds.

Exchange-traded funds are generally known for passive strategies, but there has also been a surge in actively managed ETFs, with the goal of beating the performance of broader markets.

However, most financial advisors caution against making hasty changes to your investment portfolio based on the outcome of this election.
If history is a guide, there have been times when the results on the sector level were “counterintuitive,” Hooper said.
For example, during the first Trump administration there was support for traditional energy as the country leaned toward ramping up U.S. oil production, but “interestingly, during that period we saw energy stocks underperform,” Hooper said.
Alternatively, under the Biden administration, energy stocks performed better. “Sometimes what we think might happen isn’t actually what happens,” Hooper said.

The element of surprise

Further, in 2016, the S&P 500 rose 4% in November but there was a “whopping 19% spread among sectors,” according to Ganti. “There was a huge element of surprise there,” she said. “None of us really knows what is going to happen in the future.”
“Surprise is always an element of politics and policy,” said 22V’s Wallace, “so too are expectations rooted in what you can see and price now.”

Despite the likelihood of “very significant volatility” in the near term — or at least until the election is certified in January — there are other drivers like the Federal Reserve’s anticipated interest rate cuts that will impact investors more over the longer term, Hooper said.
“Once we get beyond electoral risk in the U.S., both companies and macroeconomic fundamentals will dominate,” Wallace also said.

Buffer ETFs can protect from losses

In the meantime, “investors should be thinking about a variety of different tools to offer diversification and dampen volatility in portfolios,” said Hooper.
In this case, so-called buffer exchange-traded funds could provide some downside protection.
Buffer ETFs, also known as defined-outcome ETFs, use options contracts to offer investors a predefined range of outcomes over a set period. The funds are tied to an underlying index, such as the S&P 500.
But these ETFs also come with higher fees than traditional ETFs and typically need to be held for a year to get the full benefit. More

Current and prospective retirees want the most income possible.
For some, that may prompt the question as to whether or not paying off a mortgage makes sense.
The answers to that and other big money questions are not one-size-fits-all, a new retirement book finds.

milan2099 | E+ | Getty Images

Older Americans have significant equity

As current and prospective retirees consider how to handle their assets, their homes are one area where they may have a lot of equity tied up, prompting the question, “Should I pay off my mortgage?”

Homeowners ages 65 and over had a median home equity of $250,000 as of 2022, up 47% from 2019, according to the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University.
As some retirees relocate, they are turning to that equity in lieu of taking on a new mortgage.
“We are seeing more all-cash buyers,” said Jessica Lautz, deputy chief economist at the National Association of Realtors.
In its 2023 annual report on home buyers and sellers, the trade association found about a third of younger baby boomers ages 59 to 68 who had recently purchased homes with all cash. For older baby boomers ages 69 to 77, that goes up to 43%, and for the silent generation, that rises to about half.

Legacy homeowners may also benefit from knocking down their mortgage debt balances, which can free up more monthly income, some experts argue.
“If you can reduce your ongoing spending, that can provide a lot of peace of mind and give you a lot more wiggle room to be flexible with your portfolio withdrawals,” Benz said.

Mortgage rates may affect payoff calculus

The mortgage payoff calculus may change based on whether people can outearn their mortgage rates with safe, guaranteed investments, Benz said.
Benz and her husband paid off their mortgage more than a decade ago. But what was the right answer then might not be today, she said.
Whether or not to pay off your own mortgage — if you’re retired or not — comes down to both whether it makes sense financially and how it feels emotionally, JL Collins, a financial blogger and bestselling author, tells Benz in her book.
For mortgages that are 3% or less, it doesn’t make sense to pay off, since better returns are available in the stock market, Collins said. For mortgage rates that are 6% or more, paying that balance off will provide a guaranteed return. And for rates between 3% and 6%, it depends on what makes borrowers most comfortable, he said.
Benz said she recently saw the other side of the debate when she suggested a friend use their inheritance to pay off her mortgage. Her friend was completely averse to the idea, she said.
“It’s like, ‘Well, why not get rid of this regular monthly bill?'” Benz said. “And her point was, ‘No, seeing my portfolio shrink by that much would feel terrible.”

Robert Daly | Getty Images

Ted Jenkin, a certified financial planner and the CEO and founder of oXYGen Financial, a financial advisory and wealth management firm based in Atlanta, tells CNBC that he typically recommends clients pay off their mortgages when it makes sense, even if they are not retired.
“There are a lot of people that I help pay off mortgages that say, ‘It’s so great to drive home and to know that I own that property; nobody can take it away from me,'” said Jenkin, who is also a member of the CNBC FA Council.
Getting rid of mortgage debt can also provide career flexibility to start a business or pursue other goals, he said.
Admittedly, the argument over whether to pay off mortgages is “much more emotional and psychological than it is financial,” Jenkin said.
In other words, there is no one right answer. The same goes for other topics Benz touches on in her book.

Emotional questions to prepare for retirement

Notably, the book’s content is split about evenly between financial and non-financial content. The big money questions people ask themselves to prepare for retirement are just as important as the emotional ones.
What brought you joy while you were working may change in retirement, Michael Finke, a professor of wealth management at The American College of Financial Services, tells Benz. As such, you shouldn’t just think of retirement as relaxation, because you need something to relax from.

While goals such as playing golf or visiting your children may take up a few days, ask yourself what the whole 365 days of a year in retirement will look like, Jamie Hopkins, chief wealth officer at WSFS Bank, tells Benz.
Ultimately, retirement offers individuals a new chance at reinvention.
It’s a chance to ask yourself, “What would I regret?” Often, it’s the chances we don’t take that end up haunting us on our death beds, Jordan Grumet, a hospice doctor, author and podcast host, tells Benz. More