thing imaginable, the life to live in genuine freedom and pursue this nation's enduring ideals. that's it for us this week. be sure to follow me on twitter, facebook and ins gram, and i'll be back next week with more in-depth interviews here on "the wall street journal at large." thank you for joining us. ♪ ♪ >> welcome to barron's round talking about where we get behind the headlines and prepare you for the week ahead. i'm jack howe in for jack otter. i'll try not to break anything important. coming up, how the presidential election could affect your portfolio. our predictions you don't want to miss. but we begin with what we think are the three most important things investors should be thinking about right now. the dollar is falling and gold is rising. what's behind those moves, will they continue and what should you do.

a new ceo at ford, what jim farley needs to do to get the stock out of the breakdown lane. and microsoft in talks to acquire tiktok. why the video-sharing app is so popular and what it means for microsoft investors. on the "barron's roundtable", ben levisohn, carlton english and al rupe. ben, before we get to the dollar and gold, i just want to ask you, we're most of the way through earnings season right now. we knew it wasn't going to be pretty, but is we learn -- have we learned anything new about the health of corporate america going forward? >> it's a lot better than people originally thought. 82.3% of companies beat, which is a really amazing number. the last four quarters was about 71%. and historically, the average is around 64%, and they beat by 22%, so these are huge beats. but there's also worries that these numbers can't be sustained, that they were

one-time factors that held to the fact that things were going to get tougher ahead. a lot of it is being explained away. jack: ben, you write in barron's about the negative real rates trade. what is it, will it continue, and should i just pile into gold at this point? >> i think of it like einstein's theory of everything. people want something to explain why the market keeps going up and why we have these other things happening like gold at all-time highs. and when you look at negative real rates, it can do that. negative real rates are simply the fact that when you buy a treasury. bond, inflation is higher, so you're going to lose money over the life of that bond. and in that situation, everything else looks a lot more attract the i e. gold, which doesn't bear interest, doesn't matter when rates are negative. so it's really helped to get the nasdaq over 11,000, to help apple do well, it helps small cap get a boost. the biggest problem if they

don't stay low, you could see a lot of reversals here. jack: okay. hey, al, we've seen a changing of the jims over at ford, jim hackett is out, jim farley is in. ford's stock is down 26% year to date, tesla is up 245% year to date. give me three things that the new jim has to do to get that stock moving. >> yeah. good question, jack. i would say three things, like you said, right? so, one, ford needs to protect their truck business. ford makes most of their money in north america, most of the money in north america comes from truck profits. so he's got to protect that franchise which also means investing in electrification. there's a lot of electric trucks coming including the cyber truck from tesla next year. so that's something he's got to take real good care of. second thing, probably do something with europe. europe has lost money for ford

six of the last ten years. gm sold its european operation a few years back. and number three, he's got to cut costs. margins are not at pure levels, and he's got to cut costs while managing the existing pension, labor legacies as well as investing in these electric truckings. it's not an easy task. >> do you think he'll be able to do it, al in or, you know, is this a time for investors to get in? >> well, carlton, the answer to that is probably twofold, right? you know, will he, you know, lap tesla, will he, you know, win the electric truck race or the electrification race, that's one question. the stock has been so beaten up over the past three years, just basic blocking and tackling in terms of cutting costs, getting margins up a little bit, successfully launching a popular electric vehicle or two, that would probably be enough for the stock over the next year or two

really. jack: hey, carlton, i want to move to tiktok. you've got to help me with my tiktok problem. look, my daughter asked if she could download it on her phone, and i said no. then i downloaded it to see what it was i didn't like about it, and now i can't stop flipping through those videos. the president saying he's going to shut it down in the u.s. unless its parent company sells its operation, and microsoft is the most likely buyer. give me your perspective. first off, why is tiktok such a big deal? >> well, jack, i think you're much cooler than i am right now for all your time on tiktok. [laughter] laugh this reason it's been a big deal, it was a popular app for the last two or three years, they make e these 15-second short video, you can set music to them, it's been a great way for new artists to showcase their talent. but now there is nothing else to do, so tiktok has seen this

surge in downloads because people are just filming videos of them dancing, others doing little pranks. there's nothing else to do at home, so also they're filming the videos and consuming them because what else are you going to watch. jack: why is it that all the other big tech companies are in the antitrust naughty corner right now, and everyone says microsoft has a clear path to buying tiktok? >> well, you have to look at microsoft. so, i mean, it had its own antitrust problems 20 years ago, but microsoft doesn't really have a product like tiktok. they do have linkedin, that is a social media app, of course, but they don't really is have something that kind of is going to get that ad revenue, that's so consumer-facing, that's going to get those 100 million or billion users actively using it. right now microsoft has a clearer path for something like that versus facebook which, you know, has instagram, has tried to compete with tiktok in a lot of ways. you know, microsoft is kind of the natural buyer for it among u.s. companies. jack: thanks, carlton.

i'm still working on my dance moves. i'm not ready to start posting videos just yet. [laughter] coming up, pets and the pandemic. working from home and spending more money on our furry friends. the ceo is here to talk about it, that's next. ♪

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♪ ♪ jack: pet adoptions have soared during the pandemic, so has time spent with pets. during the second quarter, tummy rubs for my dog ginger for up 30% from a year ago. true story.

this past week zoetis reported a strong second quarter and the stock jumped. the ceo, kristin peck, joins me now. kristin, i think of your company, i don't know if this is the right way to put it, but kind of half and half. it's the animals i like to pet, and it's the animals i hike to eat. the pet business, you had strong growth there. what has changed during the pandemic for spending on pet medicines? >> thanks so much, jack. yes, whether you are, you know, curled up with your dog on your couch or put mil in your coffee -- milk in your coffee this morning, we have products that impact your life. we saw great growth in our pet care business growing at 13. and i think -- 13%. and i think the 30% rise in the petting of yours is definitely part of it. people are spending more time at home with their pets, and they're noting more things about their pets, and they're investing in them. they're important parts of the

family and really the trend is the humanization of pets. it's definitely driving growth. we launched our biggest product ever for flea, tick and heart worm which led that group for us. jack: the other side livestock x their results weren't as strong during the corner. i understand that's related to the restaurants shut down and some change in eating patterns. what can you tell me about that? >> yeah. i mean, the big trends there were, you know, as we moved home, we went out less. those are very different supply chains, and it took a little while for that to adjust. we also saw some packing plant closures in the u.s. which significantly impacted our producers and our customers. because those are very efficient supply chains, and even if you're operating, you know, approximately at 95%, that's still backing up the animals. the good news for zoetis in the quarter was our livestock business outside of the u.s., which is 50% of our business,

did grow, which was great, at 4%. but there was some significant challenges in the u.s. which will likely take some time to work through. jack: until me about the lock term -- tell me about the long term after the pandemic is gone. i was looking at your stock, your company was spun out from pfizer about seven years ago. it's multiplied six e times. that's a wonderful trajectory, and i can see a growing middle class around the world spending more on protein and pets, but i also think about meatless burgers. what about that meatless burger craze here in the u.s.? is that a headwind for going forward? >> you know, the good news about the animal health industry overall is it is quite resilient. and particularly our portfolio is quite diverse. as you opened, you know, part pets, part livestock, half the u.s., half outside the u.s. so the trends you're talking about with regards to, you know, great growth and alternative

proteins, it's still a pretty small number. and if you look at the overall trend for animal health on both sides, it's been growing at 46% x. those macro e trends will still drive that. even if alternative proteins remain high, the growth in overall protein consumption giving, you know, a growing middle class will still be there. jack: you've been with the company since the spin-off, this is your first year as chief. what's it like being a new chief at a company at a time when the world is going nuts? >> sure. it's been a little crazy. it wasn't exactly my 100-day plan, but i have been with the company since the beginning, and we just have tremendously resilient colleagues and really creative customers. an industry that i am so proud of, and as i reflect back at my first six months on the job, i'm just incredibly proud of how our colleagues have, you know, worked through it. you know are, we have a lot of essential colleagues that are still making vaccines and

medicines in our manufacturing site and still discovering new drugs and customers who have been incredibly creative. my vet came to my house in my garage in the middle of the pandemic to take care of my dog and did an ugh that sound there the -- ultrasound there. so i think the creativity and resilience has just been so amazing. jack: final question, kristin. i want you to settle something once and for all for our viewers. is it true that dog people are cooler than cat people, and while you answer -- [laughter] i'm going to put up a picture of my dog ginger taken from before the show. go ahead. >> well, obviously, we really can't take sides in these dogs versus cats, we adore them back, but i see the sparkling personality, and people start to look like their dogs. jack: no way, my dog is lean and mean, and i've put on some pandemic pounds. kristin, thanks an awful lot for coming by to talk with us. thanks so much, jack. jack: coming up, are you on the

trump train or riding with biden? what different election outcomes could mean for your portfolio. the panel makes their predictions next. ♪ usaa is made for what's next we're helping members catch up by spreading any missed usaa insurance payments over the next twelve months so they can keep more cash in your pockets for when it matters most find out more at usaa.com for when it matters most

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♪ ♪ jack: now, i'm a little nervous about this next part of the show. i'm a allergic to talking about politics, but whether president trump is reelected or joe biden wins the white house, the outcome could have a major impact on your portfolio. and that's the subject of our cover story in barron's magazine this week. let's get into it. our panelists are going to

represent one particular outcome. al, all aboard the trump train. this is not necessarily e a reflection of anyone's politics or views but,al, if the president reelected, what happens financially, what's the agenda, and what should investors do if they expect that outcome? >> yeah. i should probably be wearing a red hat. i am on the trump train for this discussion. i think investors expect three thicks in a trump -- things in a trump second term; more deregulation, potential tax cuts. that's generally good for markets. i think they should expect defense companies to continue to perform well. take a look at a company like lockheed, it's doing well. it actually trades at a discount to the market. definitely the election plays into that. recent polling plays into that. that would bounce. and i think investors should expect trade tensions with china, and i think that means two things. i think a company like deere where president trump wants to see china buy more u.s. agricultural products, that's

good for them. and then on the tech side, a lot of these supply chains that originate in asia, it'll continue to be a story for the next four years. jack: thanks, al. now to blue sweep ben. if biden wins the white house and the democrats take the senate, what happens financially, what goes on in the stock market, where should i position my money if i think that's going to be the outcome? >> well, it really means higher or or taxes. higher taxes both on corporations, you're likely to see the tax rate go from 21% to 28%. and you're also likely to see taxes, especially on the wealthy, go up. there's talks of making the capital gains tax equal to what the income tax is. but, and that could cause about an 8% hit to earnings on the corporate side if that would go through. the part that would offset that would be the spending that you would expect the democrats, spending on infrastructure and on different areas of the

economy to really get things moving. when we think about what will do well, it's really going to be a few things, green stocks. those are going to do well. things like tesla and first solar, because people are going to be incentivized to buy electric cars and to put solar panels on their homes. you also see infrastructure plays like vulcan materials and martin marietta do well. and you probably want to avoid companies that have a lot of low wage workers like mcdonald's and uber because you could expect a push to raise the minimum wage across the country. jack: it would be good for tesla, that's only up 245%. i think we can get to 690% by the end of the year. carlton, there's another outcome here x that is that joe biden wins the white house and republicans keep the senate, what would that mean for markets, and what should i do if i expect that? >> sure. so historically, there's a ton of caveats, small samples. historically democrat as

president and, you know, a republican-led senate, that's been the goldilocks scenario. a little bit of gridlock is good. so, you know, on taxes, there might be a push to increase taxes, but that will be curbed a little bit. the things you want to look at, you know, for pharmaceuticals there's been a push for lower drug prices. you might get some of that, but you're not going to get these big, sweeping regulatory changes that the market has feared because there's going to be pushback in congress. so you know, facing some controversy on both sides of the aisle, but the antitrust concerns probably wouldn't be able to go through if you still have a republican congress and also financials always under some regulatory pressure. but, again, they're not going to be able to get some of the agenda through when you have a democrat leading and then also a republican senate. jack: okay. to good for tech, good for health care, good for banks, and i made it through our political discussion. i haven't even broken out in a rash yet. up next, round table members

give their investment ideas for the coming week. today right there. ♪ my name is janelle hendrickson, and i'm an area manager here at amazon. when you walk into an amazon fulfillment center, it's like walking into the chocolate factory and you won a golden ticket. it's an amazing feeling. my three-year-old, when we get a box delivered, he gets excited. he screams, "mommy's work!" when the pandemic started, we started shipping out all the safety stuff that would keep the associates safe to all the other amazons. all of these are face masks, we've sent well over 10 million gloves. and this may look like a bottle of vodka. when we first got these, we were like whoa! [laughing] with this pandemic, safety is even more important

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♪ ♪ jack: let's end with some actionabling investment ideas. ben, my notes say something about taking profits in apple. who takes profits in apple? >> apple's been an incredible stock. this thing just keeps going up. but recently those gains are accelerated to the point where the stock is now more than 20% above its 50-day moving average, that's a technical point that

traders watch, and that hasn't been a great place for the stock. there's nothing wrong with the company, it still makes great phones, still makes products that people want, but the stock is overheated, so this is a good time. if you've been long for a long time the, it's a good time to -- jack: what about all this stuff i keep hearing about the super cycle, the phone, 5g, two at a time, what about the super cycle? >> have you ever heard the maxim buy the rumor sell the news? i think a lot of that's going on. we're starting to price that stuff in. jack: okay, so now we've got to buy something. we need a good buy. maybe even, carlton, a best buy. what do you like about the company? >> very good there. so, you know, by buying into best buy, you may also get some indirect exposure to apple. i'm looking at this one because it's kind of stay at home 2.0. the stock has had a runup as people were stocking up to outfit home offices and take care of schooling, but out looks like we're going to be in this

for long, you know? schools moving online, people working from home looker, so that -- longer, so that stuff that you bought in april to make do, you might want to upgrade it. the headphoneses, the laptopses, the cameras, our home a appliances are getting more wear and tear, so i'm really interested in looking at best buy now. jack: for stay at home makeover, buy some shares of best buy. al, what do you like? >> i like fedex. we picked it last year. i still like it. what happened friday was steven's analyst jack atkins called it his best idea. he listed a host of reasons, gave ten reasons, but basically it comes down to this is the best setup he's seep for the stock since 2017. and he sees it going to 215. jack: sounds good. thanks, al, carlton, ben, for those great ideas. to read america check out this week' edition at barron's.com, and don't forget to follow us on

twitter. that's all for us. see you next week on "barron's s roundtable." ♪ (announcer) the following is a sponsored program for prostagenix, furnished by prostatereport.com. (upbeat music) ♪ hi, this is larry king. over 30 million men in america have prostrate problems. i know, i was one of them. and all these natural prostate supplements like the ones i have here in front of me are everywhere. drugstores, health food stores, on the internet, and all over tv, selling millions of bottles every year.