Top Pros' Top Picks 8/3/26

Market Minute ⏱️ 8/3/26: Markets Rally on (Another) Peace Push

Mike Larson | Editor-in-Chief

Stocks are jumping and oil is slumping after yet another peach push in the Middle East. Gold and silver are mixed, Treasuries are up a bit, and the dollar is modestly lower.

After threatening aggressive strikes against Iran, President Trump backed down over the weekend to give diplomacy another chance. The US and Iran reportedly may hold another round of talks focused on opening up the Strait of Hormuz, news that sent US WTI crude oil futures back below $80 an ounce – for now.

USO, FXY, AZN, BMY (YTD % Change)

In the forex arena, the US and Japan joined forces to prop up the Japanese yen. That was the first coordinated intervention by the two countries in a decade-and-a-half, and it reportedly involved the US and Japan spending more than $53 billion.

Previous interventions by Japan alone failed to stop the yen’s slide. The decline has been putting upward pressure on Japanese inflation and raising fears that Japanese investors would sell more US Treasuries. The Invesco CurrencyShares Japanese Yen Trust (FXY) was down 1.7% year-to-date through Friday.

Could a Transatlantic Big Pharma deal be pending? The Financial Times reported that AstraZeneca PLC (AZN) of the UK and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (BMY) held merger talks recently. If the two drugmakers were to combine, it would create a behemoth with a market value of more than $400 billion. Antitrust concerns and other obstacles might prevent the transaction from happening, though. AstraZeneca stock was down 6.7% YTD heading into today’s session, while Bristol stock was up 25.1%..

MoneyShow Roundtable: Top Stock Ideas for the Second Half of 2026

• GH: Amid Growth Stock Struggles, Stick with this Health Care Play
  👉️ TICKER: GH
  July was a dreadful month for growth stocks and indexes, with things like the IBD 50 Index and the iShares MSCI USA Momentum Fund (MTUM) off well over 10%. But I still like Guardant Health Inc. (GH), which has only retreated to its 50-day line on modest volume, notes Mike Cintolo, editor of Cabot Growth Investor.

• BWET: A Unique ETF to Buy Amid Oil Shipping Worries
  👉️ TICKER: BWET
  The Middle East conflict is leading to longer shipments for crude oil. Longer voyages mean more costs and longer wait times, which can boost prices by increasing overhead and prompting “spot buying.” That’s why I like the Breakwave Tanker Shipping ETF (BWET), writes Jim Woods, editor of Forecasts & Strategies.

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