The Prudent Speculator's Member Portal v3.23
Greetings!
Welcome to the Member Portal for The Prudent Speculator. Here, you will find all the premium content included in your upgraded membership, such as the monthly Newsletter, weekly Market Commentary, new Stock Picks, Target Prices and much more.

A bit of background: The authors of this content are a team of portfolio managers and research analysts led by John Buckingham (pictured) at Kovitz. In addition to writing and researching the stock market, we manage active stock portfolios—which include our newsletter stock picks.
The monthly newsletter, weekly commentaries and periodic special reports form the base with which we communicate to our subscribers and wealth management clients. Our goal is to keep our followers on the path to financial success as we like the Lao Tzu quotation, "If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading."
Our Newsletter section includes the latest edition of the monthly newsletter, as well as an archive of all historical editions for your reference.
The newsletter is published at the beginning of each month. It includes an overview of recent market activity, a section featuring charts, tables and infographics, a full list of our recommended stocks, expanded highlights for 10 of our Stock Picks and more.
Current Newsletter
Edition #701
Given that the major equity market averages were in the green over the first two months of the year, following double-digit percentage returns in 2023 and 2024, we can’t say it was a big surprise to see a sizable pullback as March began. No doubt, the catalyst for the retreat was the U.S. imposition of 25% tariffs ….
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Our Market Commentary section includes the latest edition for the week, as well as all historical versions for your reference.
This content includes broad economic and investment commentary, stock market insights, historical data and updates for a selection of stocks we currently hold (earnings updates, outlook changes and so forth).
Market Commentary
Monday, March 10, 2025
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY TPS Webinar – Replay and Slide Deck Available Newsletter Trades – 7 Buys for 4 Portfolios Week – Modest Rebound on Friday, But 365th Worst Five-Day Period Ever Volatility – Stocks Go Up and Down in the Short Term, But Have Provided Handsome Rewards in the Long-Term Econ Data – Atlanta ….
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In the Stock Picks section, you will find our ten stock highlights (formerly “Portfolio Builder”) for the month.
The Prudent Speculator follows an approach to investing that focuses on broadly diversified investments in undervalued stocks for their long-term appreciation potential. Does that mean we build portfolios of 20 stocks…30…? More like 50 and up. We like stocks. And we like a lot of ‘em. We don’t rely nearly as much on “how many” as we do “in which,” but we tend to invest in far more names than most.
This expansive diversification, we find, potentially serves us well in two ways: we can further minimize the risk of individual stock ownership, while maximizing the likelihood of finding the truly big winners among the undervalued masses.
As for the “in which” part, readers should know we discriminate among potential investments primarily by their relative valuation metrics and our assessments of stock-specific risk. We buy only those stocks we find to be undervalued along several lines relative to their own trading history, those of their peers or that of the market in general. Our Target Prices incorporate a range of fundamental risks (e.g. credit, customer and competitive dynamic) that we believe the companies may face over our normal three-to-five-year investing time horizon.
Each month in this column, we highlight 10 stocks with which readers might populate their portfolios. The list is not selected based on performance, as the following methodological hierarchy is utilized: 1) First time recommendations 2) Stocks that are unowned or under-owned in one of our four newsletter portfolios 3) Companies that have not been highlighted in the prior five monthly editions of The Prudent Speculator 4) Editor’s choice. Note that we are in no way suggesting that these stocks replace those featured in prior months as we will always issue a Sales Alert should we choose to exit a position.
Our Newsletter section includes the latest edition of the monthly newsletter, as well as an archive of all historical editions for your reference.
The newsletter is published at the beginning of each month. It includes an overview of recent market activity, a section featuring charts, tables and infographics, a full list of our recommended stocks, expanded highlights for 10 of our Stock Picks and more.
This Month’s 10 Stock Picks
Full text for each stock is available by clicking below
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Our Target Price section features a full list of current recommendations with up-to-date calculations of each stock’s fair value over our three-to-five year time horizon.
To formulate a Target Price, we consider classic value-oriented metrics (e.g. Price-to-Sales, Price-to-Book-Value and Price-to-Earnings ratios) as well as additional quantitative and qualitative factors. We frequently update our Target Price stock list and publish updates twice per month.
We offer our Target Price list below, inclusive of all The Prudent Speculator’s currently recommended stocks, accompanied by a series of useful individual company metrics such as Price to Sales, Dividend Yield and more. For definitions of these metrics, please visit our How-To Guide.
Download Target Prices
Last updated: March 3, 2025
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In the Buy and Sell Alerts section, you will find same-day transaction information from our Investment Team each time they decide to update positioning in one or more stocks in our portfolios.
Buy and Sell Alerts may feature trims or incremental additions, where we are not exiting an entire position or initiating a new one.
New additions are featured in the Portfolio Builder section of the monthly newsletter. We customarily wait two market days after the newsletter is published to transact in newsletter portfolios. Therefore, transaction details can be found in the Buy and Sell Alert section of the website or in the following Monday’s Market Commentary.
- Sell Alerts also feature trims, where we are not exiting an entire position.
- Buy Alerts also feature incremental additions, where we are not purchasing an entirely new position.
- All new stock purchases are published in the monthly newsletter.
- You may access historical sales in the Archives on the right of this page.
Our Newsletter section includes the latest edition of the monthly newsletter, as well as an archive of all historical editions for your reference.
The newsletter is published at the beginning of each month. It includes an overview of recent market activity, a section featuring charts, tables and infographics, a full list of our recommended stocks, expanded highlights for 10 of our Stock Picks and more.
Latest Buy & Sell Alert
Sales Alert Tuesday, March 11, 2025 (Swapped out of JWN & PNW)
We constantly state that every stock is fighting for its place in our broadly diversified portfolios and the markets often reward a handful of stocks while penalizing others. Happily, this affords opportunities for us to harvest some of our winnings on companies that traders have bid up, while replanting the ….
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Investment Insights
We offer a consolidated source for our recent thought leadership, market insights and deep-dives.
Private Client Insights
We offer a series of content specifically tailored to the topic of wealth management.
Wealth Foundations
We offer a series of one-pagers covering a variety of topics.
Premium Special Reports
We offer a consolidated source for client-only thought leadership, market insights and deep-dives.
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Webinars & Presentations
Essential Personal Finance Tools
A foundation for your financial life.
In today’s complex financial landscape, managing your money effectively has never been more critical. Fortunately, a wide array of personal finance tools can help you take control of your financial future, from creating budgets to planning for retirement. This comprehensive guide will explore the most powerful tools that can transform your financial strategy and help you achieve your money goals.
Loan Calculators: Making Informed Borrowing Decisions
Before taking on any loan, savvy consumers will want to use loan calculators to understand the true cost of borrowing. These powerful tools help you:
- Compare Loan Options: Quickly calculate monthly payments, total interest and loan terms across different scenarios.
- Understand Long-Term Impacts: Different interest rates and loan durations may have a big impact on your total repayment amount.
- Loan-Specific Considerations: Different loans will have different inputs and considerations. Using a specialized calculator is important.
Whether you’re considering a mortgage, personal loan or other loan, these calculators provide crucial insights that can save you big money over time.
Basic Loan Calculator
This is a flexible loan calculator that you can adjust. In addition, we offer 9 key points to keep in mind.
Auto Loan Calculator
This auto loan calculator is adjustable and makes it easy to understand how loan terms can impact your payments.
Mortgage & Home Loan Calculator
This custom mortgage and home loan calculator allows you to analyze the impact of your rate, down payment, loan amount and term.
Retirement Projection Tools: Securing Your Financial Future
Retirement planning is more complex than ever, and projection tools have become invaluable for creating a robust financial strategy. These tools let you calculate your:
- Retirement Age: Sketch out a plan between now and retirement with different savings rates and investment returns.
- Nest Egg Estimate: Evaluate how your current savings will grow until retirement.
- Retirement Savings: Understand how much you need to retire and how much you can spend in retirement.
These retirement savings tools let you see if you’re on track to meet your goals, and demonstrate how changes in the variables (such as a monthly contribution rate) impact your trajectory.
Calculate Your Retirement Age
Quickly calculate out your retirement age based on current savings, rate of return and projected contributions.
Retirement Nest Egg
Discover how much you should invest monthly for retirement based on age, income goals, and timeline.
Retirement Savings - Do You Have Enough?
Is your retirement savings plan on track? We have a customizable calculator and actionable advice to help guide your financial future and retirement.
Budget Tracking Tools: Your Financial Foundation
Budgeting is the cornerstone of personal financial management. Though there are some detailed budget tracking tools out there, a simple spreadsheet often does the trick to help you understand your household spending:
- Clear Visibility: A budget spreadsheet provides unparalleled transparency into your financial life.
- Stress Reduction & Confidence: When you know exactly where your money is going, financial anxiety diminishes. You’re no longer wondering if you can afford something—you can see it clearly in your spreadsheet.
- Spending & Saving: It’s not about restricting yourself, but about making intentional choices that align with your values and long-term objectives.
A personal budget spreadsheet is more than a financial tool—it’s a pathway to financial empowerment. It transforms abstract numbers into a clear, actionable strategy for achieving your financial dreams.
Whether you’re trying to save for a major purchase, eliminate debt, or simply gain more control over your money, a budget spreadsheet is your key to financial clarity and confidence.
Get in Touch
For more than 47 years, we have collaborated with our clients in their investment decision making process as they pursue their long-term financial goals.
We are committed to keeping your goals, concerns and attitude about investing at the heart of your plan.
If you’re considering a large purchase, but want additional guidance and ready to experience our personalized investment approach and exceptional client service, contact Jason R. Clark, CFA at 949.424.1013 or jclark@kovitz.com.
Popular Posts on The Prudent Speculator’s Blog.
We frequently publish content our blog, covering everything from individual stocks to stock market commentary to financial calculators.
A refreshingly personal approach to wealth management
Talk to our experienced team of wealth advisors, investment research analysts and financial planners at Kovitz today.
Learn what we can do for you.
We provide high net worth individuals, institutions and financial professionals with asset management and advisory strategies.
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Our comprehensive Private Client Services include:
We implement our respected value stock investing strategies with a focus on The Prudent Speculator’s core tenets of Patience, Diversification and Selection.
We work with you to develop target allocations that include all your investments, not just those managed by Kovitz.
You define your retirement goals. Together, we create a custom plan that helps you reach them.
We understand the value of your legacy. Our team will analyze your current estate plans and propose enhancements that best suit your financial vision.
Smart financial planning is more than investment strategy. Together, we’ll assess your insurance needs and ensure you carry sufficient coverage.
Our comprehensive financial planning capabilities are extensive and touch on a wide range of areas, dependent on client-specific needs.
We manage our investment portfolios in-house and provide customized solutions that align you with your goals.
You may wish to enhance your legacy through philanthropy and charitable giving. Our team of advisors can help you maximize the impact of your gifts.
Working alongside your personal tax professional, our team will help analyze your savings opportunities and provide the clearest picture of how taxes may impact your financial future.
Our clients have access to a selection of proprietary investment offerings, which can be complementary to your existing investments and can improve diversification.
Schedule a free consultation today and start investing with confidence
As an independently managed advisor, we are beholden to our clients alone, for whom we manage and advise on more than $1 billion in assets in the Orange County office. We focus on long-term investment solutions, backed by our own stringent research.
A member of our team will gather some additional information in order for us to best serve you and your unique needs.

John has more than 30 years of investment management experience and serves as Editor of The Prudent Speculator, which has been a trusted newsletter for over 45 years. He chairs the Value division’s Investment Committee, leading a team that performs comprehensive investment research and financial market analysis. You may recognize John from his contributions to Barron’s, The Wall Street Journal and Forbes, as well as frequent interviews on CNBC, Bloomberg and Fox Business News.

Jason is responsible for performing in-depth microeconomic research and fundamental analysis of individual stocks and industries. In addition, he works directly with clients to provide customized account management. After serving in the United States Navy, Jason earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in finance, summa cum laude, from the University of West Florida. Jason is a CFA charterholder and a member of the CFA Society of Orange County.

Chris joined AFAM Capital in August of 2011 and Kovitz in 2018, as part of the Kovitz acquisition of AFAM. As a member of the investment team, Chris conducts fundamental research and analysis. He is responsible for identifying new investment opportunities and maintains company, industry, and macroeconomic models. Chris earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from the University of Southern California. Chris is a CFA charterholder and a member of the CFA Society of Orange County.

Zack joined Kovitz in 2019, where he performs fundamental research for the firm’s equity strategies and works with clients to provide customized account management. He also contributes to the firm’s Market Commentary and Newsletter content. Prior to joining the firm, Zack was an analyst with a regional trust company and an independent wealth management practice. He is a veteran of the United States Navy with a Bachelor of Science in Ag Business Management from North Carolina State University and passed the Level I exam in the CFA Program.

Phil joined Kovitz in 2020 as a Business Development Analyst. Phil is responsible for the administration and execution of various tasks related to The Prudent Speculator, a Kovitz owned subscription-based newsletter. In addition, Phil is charged with analyzing and distributing content and various reports to key stakeholders. He is a graduate of Morehouse College in Atlanta, where he studied economics.

Alyssa joined Kovitz in 2024 as a Wealth Management Associate. In this role, Alyssa is responsible for supporting the lead advisors of the Orange County team by executing a broad range of technical, client management, and client service support tasks, while also contributes to The Prudent Speculator in the area of Wealth Management. Before joining Kovitz, Alyssa earned a bachelor’s degree in finance from San Diego State University. She then gained valuable experience at Edward Jones, where she honed her skills in finance and client management. Outside of the office, Alyssa enjoys cooking, exercising, and spending time with friends and family.

Michelle joined Kovitz in 2020 and brings with her over 23 years in the investment industry, having previously worked at Bel Air Investments, UBS, and Morgan Stanley. Michelle is responsible for overseeing the maintenance of client accounts alongside our operational support team. In addition, Michelle oversees the delivery of important client communications. When not in the office, Michelle enjoys exploring what California has to offer.
Our Unique Approach



Value Strategy
We have never wavered in our commitment to the time-tested value investing methodology we’ve implemented for 45+ years, with extensive experience on the investment team dating back to 1987.
Hands-On + Personal
Your advisor is a voting member of the investment team. This differentiates us from other firms, as our portfolio management decisions never get lost down the chain of command.
Advising with Integrity
We invest right alongside our clients. Each member of the investment team has the lion’s share of their personal net worth in the same strategies we implement for clients. We happily eat our own cooking.
Access our most popular Wealth Management resources.
We publish helpful articles, guides and reports to support your investing education and long-term financial goals. In addition to the Private Wealth posts below, our Blog has a wide array of content covering all things finance.
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We can be reached at (800) 258-7786 or info@theprudentspeculator.com.
Our mailing address is:
20 Enterprise
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Aliso Viejo, CA 92656