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The Degenerates Journal, Final Hour, Basic edition, Tuesday October 27, 2026, page 1 of 7: the cover: the story — tech led and oil slid; at the 4:00 PM ET close the Nasdaq-100 fund rose 1.27%, the S&P 500 fund 0.56% and the Dow fund 0.06%, all versus Monday's close; in 30 seconds: tech and chip stocks led a second up day, oil fell on hopes of talks to end the Iran war and refiners dropped hard; the S&P 500 answered yes to the Daily Question, closing up 0.60%; the Fed decides tomorrow at 2:00 PM ET; theme 2 of 3, whether the biggest AI spenders can justify their spending plans, two of the biggest tech companies report Wednesday after the close; decision block: VIX −4.73% on the day, 68% up and 32% down in our names, next catalyst the Fed decision Wednesday, October 28, 2:00 PM ET; markets: S&P 500 fund +0.56%, Nasdaq-100 fund +1.27%, Dow fund +0.06%, small caps fund +1.15%, VIX −4.73%, oil −1.5%, gold fund +1.21%, Bitcoin +0.94%; today's Engine List: ADBE, NVDA, ENB, AMZN, AAPL, PANW and NET.
Page 1 — The cover — the story: tech led and oil slid, and the Howard Marks quote of the day is on page 6.
The Degenerates Journal, Final Hour, Basic edition, Tuesday October 27, 2026, page 2 of 7: the story: tech leads as oil slides, at the 4:00 PM ET close the Nasdaq-100 fund rose 1.27%, the S&P 500 fund 0.56% and the Dow fund 0.06%, all versus Monday's close; the Daily Question, answered: this morning we asked, does the S&P 500 close above Monday's close today? Yes — the S&P 500 closed up 0.60% from Monday's close, answered yes at the 4:00 PM ET close; investors kept adding to tech a day before the Fed decision and the first of the big tech reports; the brief: a tech-led day, the Nasdaq-100 fund rose 1.27% and small caps 1.15% while the Dow fund barely moved; why: AI and chip names kept climbing, and oil fell for a second day on hopes of an end to the Iran war, which hit energy stocks; into tomorrow the Fed decision comes Wednesday, October 28, at 2:00 PM ET, and two of the biggest tech companies report after the close; the macro strip: S&P 500 fund +0.56%, Nasdaq-100 fund +1.27%, Dow fund +0.06%, small caps fund +1.15%, VIX −4.73%, oil −1.5%, gold fund +1.21%, Bitcoin +0.94%.
Page 2 — The Daily Question, answered — does the S&P 500 close above Monday's close today? Yes, the S&P 500 closed up 0.60%.
The Degenerates Journal, Final Hour, Basic edition, Tuesday October 27, 2026, page 3 of 7: the market story in plain words: tech did the lifting — AI and chip names led again, and the Nasdaq-100 fund more than doubled the S&P 500 fund's gain; oil and refiners fell — oil slid for a second day on hopes of talks to end the Iran war, and refiners were among the day's biggest losers; fear eased again — the VIX fell 4.73%, and about two thirds of our universe finished higher; what changed since the morning (comparison from midday): S&P 500 fund +0.52% at midday to +0.56% now, Nasdaq-100 fund +1.07% to +1.27%, Dow fund +0.09% to +0.06%, small caps fund +0.82% to +1.15%; since midday the tech-led gains held and grew a little, small caps added more, and the Dow stayed about flat; the midday column is the midday edition's strip (11:31 AM ET) — no morning edition was filed, so the comparison starts at midday.
Page 3 — The market story in plain words — tech did the lifting, oil and refiners fell, fear eased again — and what changed since the morning.
The Degenerates Journal, Final Hour, Basic edition, Tuesday October 27, 2026, page 4 of 7: Today's Standout: Valero Energy (VLO) down 9.24% as oil fell — it reported last Thursday: quarterly earnings of $23.89 a share, up from $3.53 a year earlier; the business: Valero turns crude oil into gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, so its earnings swing with fuel prices; today −9.24%, five days −10.63%, third-quarter sales growth +43.3%, full-year sales growth −5.5%, gross margin 4.4%.
Page 4 — Today's Standout — Valero Energy (VLO), down 9.24% as oil fell, after last Thursday's earnings report.
The Degenerates Journal, Final Hour, Basic edition, Tuesday October 27, 2026, page 5 of 7: the Engine List: today's Engine List — ADBE, NVDA, ENB, AMZN, AAPL, PANW and NET; today's change: Adobe −3.97%, Nvidia +0.90%, Enbridge +0.25%, Amazon +1.61%, Apple +0.93%, Palo Alto Networks +2.88%, Cloudflare −1.22%; these are the names our process flagged for research this morning, for study only — five of the seven finished higher; breadth in our universe: at the 4:00 PM ET close, 68% of the names in our universe rose today and 32% fell, 50% were above their 50-day average, and 11% hit new 20-session highs while 11% hit new 20-session lows; market health: VIX −4.73% on the day, fear eased; up vs down in our names 68% up and 32% down at the 4:00 PM ET close; next catalyst the Fed decision Wednesday, October 28, 2:00 PM ET.
Page 5 — The Engine List — ADBE, NVDA, ENB, AMZN, AAPL, PANW and NET with today's change for each — breadth in our universe and market health.
The Degenerates Journal, Final Hour, Basic edition, Tuesday October 27, 2026, page 6 of 7: what Pro members see: a full page for every Engine List name, with charts and setups; the names we keep an eye on this week, with what would change our view on each; the full earnings radar for the week's biggest reports; into tomorrow: the Fed decides — the rate decision comes Wednesday, October 28, at 2:00 PM ET, with the press conference after; earnings: two of the biggest tech companies report Wednesday after the close; oil: any news on the Iran talks can move oil and energy stocks again; print quote of the day — Howard Marks, You Can't Predict. You Can Prepare. memo (2001): Rule No. 1: Most things will prove to be cyclical; why it fits: a refiner can post a huge quarter and still fall more than 9% in a day when oil turns — the cycle still runs the show.
Page 6 — What Pro members see, into tomorrow — the Fed decides Wednesday — and the print quote of the day from Howard Marks.
The Degenerates Journal, Final Hour, Basic edition, Tuesday October 27, 2026, page 7 of 7: the membership page: LEAPS, PRO DEGENERATE ONLY; PRO DEGENERATE at $7.99 a month with the Pro edition of The Degenerates Journal every weekday morning, with a page for every Engine List name, and Ultimate Degen at $14.99 a month with everything in PRO DEGENERATE plus Discord.
Page 7 — The membership page — LEAPS, PRO DEGENERATE ONLY: PRO DEGENERATE at $7.99 a month and Ultimate Degen at $14.99 a month.

In this edition

  1. The story: Tech leads as oil slides
  2. The Daily Question, answered
  3. The brief
  4. Macro strip
  5. The market story in plain words
  6. What changed since the morning
  7. Today's Standout
  8. The Engine List
  9. Breadth in our universe
  10. Market health
  11. What Pro members see
  12. Into tomorrow
  13. Print quote of the day