So many Americans are consuming by using their home equity. If you can’t afford a standard mortgage, you probably shouldn’t be buying a home.

I think investors should take a step back and look at the big picture. I think the (Fed) is doing its job and investors should do theirs — avoid those companies that do not have...

Technology is still the fastest growing segment of the US economy. Earnings are growing at 20-30 percent year over year, and US companies lead the world in almost every major category.

I am encouraged by the fundamentals.

I don’t see people making big commitments. It’s a holiday weekend and there’s just no catalyst to get things going.

We think it’s time for investors to be cautious about technology stocks.

Maybe investors are realizing there’s more to the economy than technology.

The Fed often overshoots and I think you have to prepare for that outcome.

Maybe it’s concern that the economy may have more of a hard landing. The economy grew a little faster than expected, so people might be thinking we’re not done as far as interest rate hikes...

The bond market was so weak all day that it pushed the broader market lower. Investors weren’t talking about if the Fed will raise rates, but how much.

Albertson’s is truly a value stock, the third-largest grocery chain, with a very stable predictable business with 29 years of higher earnings. The stock was really clobbered since they announced a merger last year that...

Investors took advantage of the sell-off Friday to add to their portfolio. There are some good values with the blue chips.

The economy is way too hot and is generating inflation pressure. And the Fed is going to have to address it with higher interest rates.

Investors are very concerned about the short-term prospects for the economy, and that’s why they are selling stocks.

I’m hopeful that we’re nearing the end of this series of tightening. I don’t think we have a serious inflation problem. With strong productivity, unit labor costs are under control.

We feel we can do a service to our customers if we just get the overall trend right. We don’t really practice technical analysis or try to guess the price points next week. But the...

Earnings have been fantastic. Any weakness in the market you’ve got to attribute to (the) rising interest-rate environment.

I think the market remains hypersensitive to these (economic) reports. You should stay focused on your long-term goals and not short-term economic reports, but the market continues to be dominated by fear, uncertainty and confusion.

The war phase in Iraq seems to be winding down. I think in the months ahead consumer confidence will improve. It’s a mistake to just look at the short term. I think it’s more important...

I think all these reports taken together are going to paint an economy that is too hot. Labor costs are rising and that is beginning to lead to some signs of inflation.

Our advice is that for a very small portion of your portfolio 5 percent it’s OK to own gold or a broader basket of commodities. But don’t do this because it’s popular or exciting. If...

The market is nervous. We’re in a transition period as we get through all the accounting issues.

It just reflects Wall Street’s manic-depressive mood. In the meantime, you have some selective cautious buying, but I think people are much more cautious and not just jumping in on any dip.

The rest of the market continues to struggle with reports that continue to show the economy is too strong.

I think politics are a sideshow right now. We think the best thing an investor can do is step up their buying gradually as prices move lower.

Individual investors have to separate the statistical noise of week to week numbers and focus on the big picture.

I don’t think we can read anything at all into it. It’s a lack of conviction and a lot of fence-sitting.

They already made an investment decision prior to the rule change being official.

Take IBM out and the market looks pretty much unchanged on the day.

We are not seeing the big slowdown but we are seeing some weakness around the edges showing the medicine is starting to take effect. And I don’t think it’s just psychological.

If you read the speech, he seems to imply that those hikes aren’t enough.

Over the last six years, we have experienced the largest drop in price/earnings ratios in the history of the U.S. stock market, going back to 1871. 2006 has the potential to be a great year...

The easiest thing is to be bullish when the market is rising and bearish when the market is falling. But as we all know, that’s not how to make money in the stock market.

It has nothing to do with the economy. It was in the private equity unit where they tried to help fledgling tech companies get started.

We think they do have a great pipeline in the areas of cardiovascular, cancer and AIDS. These are the fastest growing areas in the pharmaceutical industry.

The market has done well in the year following a recession. We think the recession has ended.

I think it was a very volatile and directionless week. Investors should tap on the brakes a few times and strap on their seat belts. (Last week) was very earnings driven, and now it’s shifting...

It’s the same story. Technology is hot, and everything else is not.

It’s a very unusual day for the Dow Jones because IBM and J.P. Morgan accounted for more than half the drop. We’ve got a lot of fear in the market place and that’s going to...

Clearly, Microsoft is the catalyst for today’s tech sell-off.

The next major event is Microsoft’s response, but I don’t think that’s significant. It’s significant but not to the technology sector as a whole.

Techs were hot and everything else was not on confusion about the future of interest rates. When the interest-rate picture is cloudy, the focus turns to earnings. And earnings in the tech sector have been...

If the economy is growing, companies’ earnings are growing and that moves the market.

Long-term investors know this (rate cut) is a green light to get back into the market.

There’s cautiousness about the interest-rate outlook — a bit of consolidation after very strong gains.

We think this bull has legs.

It’s just been a very quiet day. Nobody wants to make a big bet prior to tomorrow’s decision. People are pretty convinced that the Federal Reserve won’t make a change to rates but they want...

The signs of slowing are few and far between. I think it’s really the data between now and (the next meeting) that will determine whether it will be a quarter percentage or half percentage point...

The valuation gap between old economy stocks and new economy stocks is getting wider and wider. To me, it’s like a rubber band. You can only stretch it so far and eventually it’s going to...

Small business owners have a great stake not only in what’s going on in the stock market, but what’s happening in the overall economy as a result.