Do You Roku?, Owlet Socks & Virgin Sandals

Friday Feedback: The “Streaming Avatar Roku” Edition

With so much drama in the NYSE, it’s hard bein’ Mr. Great S-T-U-double-F. But I somehow, some way keep coming up with funky Great Stuff like every single day.

May … I … kick a little something for the G’s (Great Ones)? Yeah. And make a few ends as I breeze through. Two in the morning and the bull market’s still jumping, ‘cause the Fed ain’t home…

It’s Friday, Great Ones, and I’m sipping on a little Gin & Juice … laid back, with my mind on your money and your money on my mind. And if you needed any more proof of that, be sure to check out this week’s edition of “What’s the Deal With…” That’s tomorrow for all you non-regulars out there.

This week in “What’s The Deal With…” I’m giving you my magnificent market manifesto. The real-deal Holifield on the Fed, inflation, the stock market, the coming correction … and how this Wall Street implosion could be the biggest moneymaking opportunity of your lifetime!

(If you play your cards right, that is.)

If the anticipation is killing you, you can find out more by clicking here right now!

With the formalities out of the way, let’s snoop through the ol’ Great Stuff inbox and get right to Friday Feedback:

Welcome, John! I don’t know if you’re a longtime reader/first-time “caller,” or if I’ve just been lax in my Roku (Nasdaq: ROKU) coverage … probably the latter. So, let’s dive back into Roku one more time.

To put it simply, I love this company. No, I’m not going to marry it … weirdo.

Why do I love Roku? Let me count the ways:

• 1 million active users and growing.

• The most popular streaming platform in the world — by install base.

• App-agnostic platform — i.e., it allows everyone to play nice, unlike, say, Apple.

• Average revenue growth of more than 40% year over year.

• Ad revenue is just starting to gain momentum.

• Original streaming content is just starting to gain momentum.

Personally, I have three Roku devices in my home right now. I’ve tried the others — Apple TV, Fire TV, Chromecast, Nvidia Shield — they all seem to pale in comparison for one reason or another.

Apple TV? Apple’s (Nasdaq: AAPL) walled-garden approach just doesn’t work for me — not to mention the 30% Apple “tax.”

Fire TV? Amazon’s (Nasdaq: AMZN) Fire TV user interface is just hot garbage. There’s no other way to put it. Hot. Garbage.

Chromecast? No, thank you, Alphabet (Nasdaq: GOOG). Your history of killing products out of the blue is a nonstarter for me.

Nvidia Shield? Personally, I love Nvidia’s (Nasdaq: NVDA) streaming box. My less tech-inclined family? Not so much.

For me and millions of other streaming enthusiasts, Roku just checks off all the right boxes. And the more popular Roku gets, the more people hear about it, and the more users Roku acquires. The company has grown out of its Netflix (Nasdaq: NFLX) spinoff days and into a force to be reckoned with all on its own.

That’s why companies like Google are trying to strong-arm Roku into playing their game. If you haven’t heard, Google has yet to strike a deal with Roku for its YouTube and YouTube TV apps.

But the sticking point isn’t money like it was with AT&T and HBO. It’s a far more insidious demand.

According to Roku, Google wants the company to not only prioritize YouTube search results on the Roku platform, it wants Roku to break those results out in a dedicated display … across all Roku devices and smart TVs.

In an official blog post this week, Roku detailed its two main concerns with Google:

To which Google replied:

Good faith? Demanding that a company modify its software to favor your apps is good faith?

I know “Don’t Be Evil” hasn’t been Google’s motto for a while, but I didn’t expect it to go full on the opposite direction. This is why nobody likes you, Google! I’ve even started using DuckDuckGo for search results. But I digress…

Sorry, John, this response devolved into “why I hate Google” instead of “why I love Roku.”

My point is, all content streaming companies eventually realize they’re better off on Roku than not. Google will come around, one way or another. I mean, the U.S. Justice Department and more than 30 State Attorneys General are going after Google, you know.

If you’re looking for a definitive play on the future of the streaming market — and let’s face it, the streaming market is just hitting its stride — then look no further than Roku, the one streaming company to rule them all.

There’s a reason why ROKU stock is in the Great Stuff Picks portfolio. Right now, Great Ones who got in when I first recommended ROKU in May 2019 are up more than 250%! Those who waited until December 2019 are up 140%!

But it’s not too late. Due to the Google guffaw, ROKU is trading near price support at $300 … and any dip toward this price point is a solid buying opportunity!

Thanks again for writing in, John!

Welcome one and all to another edition of the no-filtered Friday Feedback y’all know and love (or at least pretend to love … so keep pretending).

Oh, and if any emails from your fellow Great Ones get you ready to ramble on and sing your song, write to us here in the inbox, so Gollum (and the evil one) can creep up and slip away with your email. Or something along those lines.

Hoot, Scootin’ Boogie

Oh, owl sock stocks … this will be a joy.

We’ve got a whole parliament of talon-ted pun-makers behind the scenes, lucky for you. Wait, you’re not talking about actual owl socks? Aww, that’s a shame.

What’s also a shame is, well, everything else to do with Owlet (NYSE: OWLT). Fingers crossed, but are you asking about Owlet because you’re interested in its baby-gadget tech … or because you were crushed by OWLT’s 60%-plus drop over the past few months?

If you’re hearing about Owlet out of nowhere this month, the 3 bajillion shareholder alerts from various law firms are probably the reason. What followed in the wake of OWLT’s de-feathering was a horde of ambulance chasers milking the sell-off further … we’re talking, like, OJ levels of chasing here.

See, Owlet touts itself as the Hootdini of baby monitoring devices, with a simple sock-like device tracking your baby’s heart rate, oxygen levels and sleep trends. I’m told that babies don’t wear Apple Watches or Fitbits, so … if the socks fits.

The Smart Sock is one of those products that I personally don’t see as “revolutionary” in any fundamental way … but I also don’t see many other products like it on the market, outside of a pediatrician’s office or what-have-you.

Why didn’t I think of smart socks? I’m over here wearing dumb socks like a peasant… Anyway, the one thing that’s not smart about Owlet’s Smart Socks is the complete lack of product evaluation and testing from regulators.

Sure, more than 1 million babies have used Owlet’s tech, and the sock has been evaluated by third parties, but you missed one critical third party there, fellas — the FDA?

Apparently, Owlet’s marketing “renders the Smart Sock a medical device requiring premarket clearance or approval from the FDA,” according to the regulator’s warning letter on October 24. Owlet was ordered to stop commercial distribution while it works with the FDA for clearance.

Owl be seeing you … in our approval inbox. — the FDA, probably.

In the meantime, Owlet’s optimistic revenue outlook is dead in the water. OWLT shares are effectively the hazardous waste dumped from Alice’s Restaurant … and I’m not starting that singalong this time around.

Thanks for your question, José!

Not To Get All Analytical On You…

An analytical, invaluable opinion on Virgin Galactic (NYSE: SPCE)? And you reached out to me?

I kid, I kid, and I thank you for writing in. Lord knows I’m ready to sound off on the billionaire space race once more. So, Karla, consider the following.

I’ve belittled Virgin’s near-space experiences for some time now. If you’ve somehow missed all my rambling on this Kármán line chameleon, all you need to know is that there are two different definitions of where “space” starts … and Virgin barely makes it past the lower limits.

But let’s say that, for what it’s worth, Virgin eventually makes it to “real space” like it claims. Everybody down here on Earth wants to invest in the next space race. Virgin knows this. And it’s in a pretty, pretty good spot to milk Main Street investors’ futuristic space-faring dreaming for all it’s worth.

Will Virgin be one of the biggest (or only) names of space tourism way into the future? I mean … maybe … if Virgin doesn’t burn a hole through its wallet by then. That’s a pretty big “if,” but more on that in a second.

To invest right here, right now in SPCE shares, you must ensure that your investment timeline lines up with Virgin Galactic’s. While this is true for every stock you buy, it’s doubly so for a business like Virgin that has virtually no operations other than the occasional headline-grabbing launch.

For instance, how long do you want to be in this stock? For the next year? Or for the next three decades until we’re all taking weekend trips to Mars or whatever Branson & Co. envisions? That’s a nice rosy picture, but…

Virgin’s timeline of doing things goes like this: Development, delay, upgrade, test, failure, another delay, successful launch, stock comes back from the dead, more delays, more failures … you get the idea.

After a summer full of high-profile launches, Virgin’s headed back to dormancy. The latest delay? Guess what, it’s an “issue with some materials” — whatever that entails. SPCE saw a storm of downgrades and analyst backlash after it concluded that commercial spaceflights won’t begin again until late 2022.

If you had your own flight planned with Virgin, sorry … I guess. But what this means for you as a potential SPCE investor is a bunch of zero-revenue quarters to look forward to before rewarding investors.

Unfortunately, this is par for the course with Virgin. What Great Stuff pointed out back in May of this year is still true … give or take a few reservations:

Constant reliability concerns are not what you want when you’re sitting on the launch pad about to be blasted into orbit, nor when you’re investing.

For this reason, those of us here at Great Stuff HQ are giving Virgin a wide birth … at least until that path to profitability becomes clearer.

I hope that was analytical enough for you, Karla! Thanks again for writing in.

I’m Late For A Very Important Date

You almost beat me to it, AR!

Yes, the special event. Great Stuff’s special event. Our first-ever event, actually. It’s on October 26, at 8 p.m. Eastern time … so set your watches and mark your calendars, all ye who wish to attend.

And for those of you who want to attend but can’t make the event for one reason or another — I don’t need details — never fear!

By signing up for The Final Run Up today, you’ll gain access to everything TradeSmith’s Keith Kaplan and I have to say about the final move higher in the stock market … right before the bottom falls out and stock prices go on an epic Slip ‘N Slide.

But here’s the best part: As a Final Run Up VIP, you can catch up on all the details of this once-in-a-lifetime event after the party’s over. All you need to do is sign up, wait for your confirmation email … and my team will take care of the rest. Magic!

And if you’re still not convinced The Final Run Up is for you, well … let’s just see if you’re singing the same tune after tomorrow morning. As I said earlier, I’m laying it all on the line in tomorrow’s “What’s The Deal With…” market manifesto.

You’ll learn all about the two absolutely critical events surrounding the coming market correction … how to suck the marrow out of the market’s Final Run Up … and then when to buy hand over fist once the correction is over.

Don’t miss it!

And for all you other Great Ones wanting to chime in for Friday Feedback, make your voices heard: GreatStuffToday@BanyanHill.com. We don’t bite … except for that one time.

In the meantime, here’s where you can find our other junk — erm, I mean where you can check out some more Greatness:

• Get Stuff: Subscribe to Great Stuff right here!
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Until next time, stay Great!

Joseph Hargett

Editor, Great Stuff