The market still looks about 10% pricey to us, and it eased a touch this week

Right now the market looks a little expensive. FPI puts it about 10% above what we think it's really worth — priced a bit richer than fair. That's basically where it sat last week, just a hair cheaper: the reading slipped from about 9.85% to 9.67%. In plain terms, nothing dramatic changed. And remember, FPI is a long-term read on value, not a scorecard for any single week — so don't expect it to swing around with the headlines.

The headlines themselves were bumpy, though. The trouble started in the bond market: long-term borrowing costs jumped, with the 30-year Treasury yield hitting its highest level in nearly two decades, and that pressure pulled stocks down from record highs. Tech took the worst of it — the tech group shed more than 3% over five days, dragging the S&P 500 into the red for the week. Walmart had its worst day in four years after earnings, which stung the retail crowd too. Prices did bounce back Friday — the Dow rose about 1% while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq each added about 0.4% — but the major indexes still finished the week lower after the bond sell-off weighed on riskier bets. Elsewhere, money went looking for cover: bitcoin climbed to around $77,000, its best week in two years, and gold pushed to a three-month high as the dollar softened.

The priciest corner right now is Basic Materials, where the typical stock trades about 40% above what FPI thinks it's worth — call it $1.40 for a dollar of value. Technology isn't far behind at roughly 30% over, and it had a rough week: information technology shed more than 3% over five days, with Amkor Technology and Credo Technology among the biggest laggards dragging down the sector. Industrials (about 24% over) round out the expensive end. Europe as a whole looks stretched too, around 15% above fair value versus roughly 10% for US stocks.

At the cheap end, Financial Services stands out — the typical bank or insurer trades about 30% below FPI's fair value, so you're paying roughly 70 cents for a dollar. That's despite a decent year for the group: the five largest US banks all reported earnings that beat expectations, largely driven by their investment banking units. Utilities (about 14% under) and, more modestly, Communication Services and Real Estate (each a couple percent under) are also trading below fair value. Those are the corners worth a spot on your watchlist — set a buy price in the FPI app and let the market come to you, rather than chasing the pricey sectors.

Two energy names swung hardest toward the cheap side. SM Energy flipped from looking about 52% expensive to roughly 53% below fair value — a huge reversal that followed a strong quarter: SM Energy reported second-quarter 2026 results showing revenue of about $2.5 billion and net income of $1.07 billion, with sharply higher oil, gas, and NGL production than a year earlier. The company also raised its production guidance, redeemed $417 million of 2027 senior notes using cash on hand, and bought back just over 3 million shares. AES made a similar jump from about 50% pricey to roughly 51% cheap, but for a different reason: it's being taken private. AES agreed to be acquired by a consortium led by Global Infrastructure Partners and the EQT Infrastructure VI fund in an all-cash deal worth about $33.4 billion including debt, after which AES stock will no longer trade on the New York Stock Exchange. With a fixed buyout price capping the upside, the shares now sit below where FPI pegs fair value.

It was a busy week for value showing up in general: 49 stocks slipped into undervalued territory (more than 10% below fair value), while 68 exited it. Worth a look on your watchlist if you like tracking where the cheap corner of the market is filling up.

Fellow investors added 20 new buy prices this week, bringing the total to 467 across 155 tickers. Most of the attention landed on the usual big names — Microsoft and Google each picked up two new buy prices, while Apple, AMD, and Amazon each added one. No new community buy zones opened up this week.

The most interesting shifts were in what people thought was a fair price to buy. Palantir saw its typical buy price nudge up about 3.5%, meaning folks got a touch more willing to pay up. Google went the other way, down about 2%, and Tesla slipped around 1.5% — a sign investors are holding out for lower prices there. Apple and Microsoft barely moved. The absolute prices live in the app if you want to compare your own targets.

Three things stand out. First, Nvidia reports after the bell on Wednesday. Nvidia earnings have become a broad risk-sentiment bellwether, so this one can nudge the mood for the whole AI corner of the market — and since fresh earnings feed FPI's models daily, a big result can shift fair values for the stocks on your watchlist. Second, the July PCE report — the inflation gauge the Fed watches most — lands the same week, with the yearly rate expected to ease to about 3.6% and core inflation forecast to hold steady around 3.3%. In plain terms, it tells us whether prices are cooling; that matters for interest rates, which flow into how much future company profits are worth today. Third, Fed chair Kevin Warsh gives a keynote at the Jackson Hole symposium on Friday, which may hint at where rates are headed into the fall.

A wave of retailers and software names also reports — think Salesforce, Autodesk, Best Buy, Dollar General, and Ulta — so consumer and tech corners could see plenty of value shuffling. If any of these are on your list, this is a good week to check your buy prices in the FPI app as the numbers update.