Podcast · 382 episodes
Animal Spirits Podcast
by The Compound · English
Animal Spirits is a show about markets, life, and investing. Join Michael Batnick and Ben Carlson as they talk about what they're reading, writing, listening to and watching. Look for new episodes every Wednesday morning. See our disclosures here - https://ritholtzwealth.com/podcast-youtube-disclosures/
Latest episodes
Will Higher Rates Kill the Stock Market? (EP. 484)Whether higher interest rates will force a stock-market selloff, and why the market may be signaling “doubt but no fear.” The episode also covers bond positioning, household wealth/spending,…30 Sep 2026 · 1 h 1 min
Talk Your Book: The Next Generation of Income StrategiesMichael Batnick and Ben Carlson discuss why structured products—now increasingly packaged as ETFs—have surged, focusing on Janus Henderson’s structured-income ETFs.28 Sep 2026 · 42 min
The Wobbly House of Cards (EP. 483)The hosts debate whether AI-driven mega-cap “hyperscalers” form a fragile, interconnected “house of cards” (capex, free cash flow, valuations), and argue markets may already be pricing the risks.23 Sep 2026 · 1 h 16 min
All episodes
Will Higher Rates Kill the Stock Market? (EP. 484)Whether higher interest rates will force a stock-market selloff, and why the market may be signaling “doubt but no fear.” The episode also covers bond positioning, household wealth/spending,…30 Sep 2026 · 1 h 1 min · 38 chapters
Talk Your Book: The Next Generation of Income StrategiesMichael Batnick and Ben Carlson discuss why structured products—now increasingly packaged as ETFs—have surged, focusing on Janus Henderson’s structured-income ETFs.28 Sep 2026 · 42 min · 15 chapters
The Wobbly House of Cards (EP. 483)The hosts debate whether AI-driven mega-cap “hyperscalers” form a fragile, interconnected “house of cards” (capex, free cash flow, valuations), and argue markets may already be pricing the risks.23 Sep 2026 · 1 h 16 min · 34 chapters
Talk Your Book: Price Is the Ultimate FactorMomentum investing as a rules-based, price-driven factor; why long-term thinking matters amid faster cycles from chat rooms to social media to AI; how “NOAA principle” (build the ark before the…21 Sep 2026 · 29 min · 10 chapters
How to Talk To Your Clients About Ray Dalio (EP. 482)The episode debates how to discuss Ray Dalio’s macro warnings with clients, using fixed-income and interest-rate context. It argues U.S. government default is not the main risk; inflation is.17 Sep 2026 · 59 min · 29 chapters
Talk Your Book: Why Aren't There More IPOs?Why there aren’t more IPOs from the late-stage private growth market, and what that implies for valuations, exits, and secondaries.14 Sep 2026 · 33 min · 16 chapters
Everywhere Millionaires (EP. 481)The “everywhere millionaires” theme is used to argue the economy and markets are being reshaped by long-running bull-market wealth, AI-driven capex, and investor psychology—plus practical guidance…9 Sep 2026 · 1 h 6 min · 32 chapters
Talk Your Book: AI Winners & LosersAI “winners and losers” in a concentrated portfolio; how Alger’s team thinks about fundamentals, risk management, and valuation amid volatile AI sentiment.7 Sep 2026 · 35 min · 14 chapters
The Next Michael Burry (EP. 480)The “AI CapEx/debt binge” debate—whether massive AI-related capital spending funded by borrowing will cause a crash or instead keep the economy growing; “team middle/gray” outcomes rather than…2 Sep 2026 · 1 h 5 min · 28 chapters
Talk Your Book: Cash Was Easy… Now What?Income in today’s rate environment—why investors are staying too comfortable in cash/short duration, how the yield curve shapes income decisions, and how ETFs (including covered-call/derivative…31 Aug 2026 · 33 min · 8 chapters
Are Free Markets Dead? (EP. 479)The episode debates whether the bond market and “Treasury buybacks” (government actions to influence long-term yields) undermine free-market pricing, and whether the U.S.26 Aug 2026 · 1 h 10 min · 31 chapters
Talk Your Book: The Alternative to AlternativesHalo’s structured notes platform and its new AI-driven tool Aura, focused on making defined-outcome/derivative products easier for advisors to evaluate, integrate into portfolios, and explain to…24 Aug 2026 · 31 min · 15 chapters
The Best Bear Case on AI (EP. 478)The hosts debate whether the current stock bull market is among the greatest ever, discuss bond/fixed-income opportunities (especially TIPS), and argue about “AI as bubble vs real ROI.” They also…19 Aug 2026 · 1 h 12 min · 37 chapters
Talk Your Book: The Most Important Thing Nobody OwnsCritical materials as “picks-and-shovels” for AI, data centers, batteries, electrification, and energy security; how geopolitics (especially China) and supply deficits affect miners and ETFs.17 Aug 2026 · 28 min · 10 chapters
Depressed Day Traders (EP. 477)The episode argues the stock market’s resilience is driven mainly by the “AI trade” and hyperscaler capex, while warning that valuations and market structure could still produce a fast “air pocket.”…12 Aug 2026 · 1 h 24 min · 37 chapters
Talk Your Book: Why Momentum Investing WorksMomentum investing—why it works, why investors under-allocate to it, how to implement it with rules, and how it diversifies against value.10 Aug 2026 · 28 min · 13 chapters
When Genius Failed, Again (EP. 476)Market recap and investor behavior, centered on a hedge-fund blowup (“Situational Awareness”) and the broader lesson that leverage—not intelligence—kills funds; plus discussion of volatility, flows,…5 Aug 2026 · 1 h 21 min · 44 chapters
45 Million Rich Households (EP. 475)Market “debubbling” and late-cycle breadth; valuation/earnings revisions; IPO and private-market underperformance; bond sentiment vs higher yields; leveraged trading losses in South Korea;…29 Jul 2026 · 1 h 7 min · 32 chapters
Talk Your Book: Is Crypto Dead?Whether Bitcoin is “dead,” why crypto feels worse despite a strong stock market, and what infrastructure/crypto-adjacent developments (ETPs, decentralized perpetual futures, stablecoins, tokenized…27 Jul 2026 · 31 min · 13 chapters
Say Bubble One More Time. I Dare You! (EP. 474)Market “hiccup” vs bubble talk; stock dispersion in AI/semis and leveraged ETFs; retail and South Korea deleveraging; valuation compression in forward P/Es; macro “normalization” and fewer…22 Jul 2026 · 1 h 18 min · 38 chapters
Talk Your Book: Private Credit’s Next ActPrivate credit’s “next act,” focusing on why inflows surged, why redemptions are rising, and what that implies for credit risk and deal activity.20 Jul 2026 · 33 min · 9 chapters
Will the Fed Buy Stocks? (EP.473)Markets and investing roundup focused on whether the Fed would ever buy stocks, plus a debate on interest rates, AI-driven tech/hyperscaler cash flows, and recession risk.15 Jul 2026 · 1 h 12 min · 33 chapters
Talk Your Book: Do We Need the Federal Reserve?Whether the U.S. needs an independent Federal Reserve and how markets (especially bonds) price inflation, recession risk, and government-debt risk; plus discussion of ETF design and bond-market…13 Jul 2026 · 35 min · 19 chapters
10 Reasons to be Bullish (EP. 472)The hosts (Michael Batnick and Ben Carlson) review Chart Kid Matt’s “10 Reasons to be Bullish” and discuss market signals: rising earnings vs.8 Jul 2026 · 1 h 12 min · 34 chapters