Presented by American Alternative Assets: The national debt just crossed $40 trillion, and the dollar has lost roughly a quarter of its purchasing power since 2020 — your retirement statement may look the same while it quietly buys less. Get the Free 2026 Wealth Protection Guide and see why retirees are turning to physical gold and silver →

A buyout is doing the heavy lifting this morning. A battery maker more than doubled on a cash takeover offer, while a memory chipmaker and a coatings maker are climbing on record quarters.

On the other side, the market isn’t forgiving soft spots. A solar stock is tumbling as revenue moves backward, a peripherals maker is sliding on a mixed print, and a retail brokerage is feeling the chill of a slow crypto market.

The national debt has crossed $40 trillion.

When you started saving for retirement, you expected Social Security, Medicare, taxes, and the rules around your money to remain relatively predictable. But while you were working and building your nest egg, Washington was borrowing.

Now, the cost of that borrowing is growing...and retirees may feel it through a quieter threat: a dollar that buys less each year.

Since 2020, the dollar has lost roughly a quarter of its purchasing power. A retirement account can appear unchanged on a statement while the cost of groceries, insurance, property taxes, and healthcare continues to climb.

Meanwhile, central banks have bought more than 1,000 tonnes of gold per year for three years running. 

This Free 2026 Wealth Protection Guide explains why some retirees are paying attention, why stocks, bonds, funds, and cash can share the same dollar-based exposure, and how physical gold and silver differ from paper assets.

Get your free guide - delivered to your inbox in minutes. No fees. No obligations.

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Ultralife (ULBI): +145%

The battery maker more than doubled after EnerSys (ENS) agreed to buy it for $16 per share in cash, a deal valuing the company at roughly $320 million. EnerSys is up 2%, a sign the market isn’t penalizing the buyer for the premium it’s paying, which isn’t always the case in a takeover.

SK hynix (SKHY): +7%

The chipmaker posted record quarterly results on demand for AI memory products and paired them with a special dividend tied to gains on its Kioxia investment. The record shows the AI memory trade is still delivering, and the dividend hands shareholders a direct cut of the upside.

PPG Industries (PPG): +6%

The coatings maker posted a record quarter and raised the midpoint of its full-year earnings guidance. A record print paired with a higher bar for the rest of the year tells investors the strength isn’t a one-off.

Enphase Energy (ENPH): -20%

The solar stock is tumbling after quarterly revenue shrank sharply from a year ago. A top line moving backward is the hardest signal for a growth name to explain away, and the size of the drop shows how little patience the market has for it.

Logitech (LOGI): -11%

The computer peripherals maker beat on earnings, but operating income came in below expectations. The mixed print is a reminder that a headline earnings beat doesn’t carry much weight when the operating business itself comes in light.

Robinhood (HOOD): -6%

The brokerage’s quarterly profit missed expectations even as revenue grew, with cryptocurrency revenue falling by more than half. A prolonged crypto slowdown is weighing on trading activity, and the quarter shows how much of Robinhood’s earnings power still rides on crypto’s mood.

When you began saving, America's debt was nowhere near $40 trillion. 

But while Americans worked, saved, and planned for retirement, Washington continued borrowing...and the bill for that debt does not simply disappear.

For many retirees, the concern is purchasing power. Rising prices can make a retirement account feel smaller even when the balance has not changed.

The 2026 Wealth Protection Guide explains why dollar-based savings can lose buying power and why some investors consider holding a portion of their retirement in these physical assets.

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ServiceNow (NOW)

ServiceNow reports third-quarter results after the close tonight, and it’s been one of the busier names on StockTwits heading in, showing up on the platform’s most-active and most-watched lists. Bulls are pitching it as the control layer for enterprise AI agents and pointing to a string of price target hikes, while skeptics, including a fresh Strong Sell call making the rounds on the stream, question how much of the rebound is already priced in.

Wall Street expects revenue growth of about 20% for the quarter, and Bernstein recently lifted its price target to $266. The stock still sits roughly 20% below its 52-week high after an AI-disruption selloff earlier this year, so tonight could be the moment that either extends the software comeback or reminds traders why they sold it.

✌️That’s it for today.