Welcome back to Wall Street Unplugged. This week, my guest is Mike Alkin, editor of Moneyflow Trader and host of the Talking Stocks Over a Beer podcast. Even though Mike writes his newsletter for Curzio Research, he and I often have differing views on the markets. (Mike is bearish and I’m more of a bull.) Even so, we generally find common ground. I have a lot of respect for his knowledge and opinions. Today, Mike reviews how he analyzes stock news and what helps him decide whether a company is going to have success in the future. Then in my educational segment [50:15], I talk market risk factors. The media is hyping three main risks right now: rising inflation, rising interest rates, and a potential trade war. All of these things have investors running for the hills. But the truth is, they’re not the negative market forces the headlines are making them out to be. Listen to find out why... SHOWNOTES: 0:33 –  I share my broken water heater horror story 9:20 - Michael Alkin, editor of Moneyflow Trader and host of the Talking Stocks Over a Beer podcast, is my guest this week 12:56 - Mike talks about how much fun he’s having doing the new podcast 14:27 - Mike and I debate our views on the market; Michael is bearish and I am more bullish 20:17 - What Mike observed about the market at the 2009 bottom 23:10 - Impact on stocks now that the Federal Reserve is backing off its quantitative easing programs 27:02 - Stocks are dropping for companies even after positive earnings 32:30 - Concerns Mike is seeing within the consumer staples sector 36:59 - Some of Mike’s stock picks 45:33 - There are always pockets of stocks that buck market trends 50:57 - My thesis on the markets and the three major risks I’m seeing 52:49 - Why China blinked during trade talks 59:56 - Rising inflation is not that detrimental to the market because it’s not unexpected 1:00:22 - Why the the Federal Reserve is raising interest rates and what that means for the markets and economy 1:03:46 - What does this all mean? 1:07:16 - If you look carefully, you can find plenty of stocks that are undervalued and have potential for growth 1:10:38 - Still not convinced that there are opportunities in the market? Look at all of the mergers and acquisitions taking place