The reality of life at a quantitative research shop is that our work has less to do with developing algorithms to predict the future and more with finding new ways to use already proven concepts, especially those contrarian ones found in behavioral finance.

Crude oil might have hit the gas pedal, but equity investors have been left on the sidelines as energy stocks continue to struggle even as the price of crude rallies. Energy stocks seem like an easy way to play the recovery in crude prices, but the disappointing performance of most energy funds tells a different story.

Donald Trump managed to close out his first year in the White House with a major tax reform package that had something for everyone, except for homeowners in deep-blue states, but most especially for investors. Among the highlights that have them so excited is a tax holiday allowing for repatriation of overseas cash. Investors are hoping that cash is used for more dividends and buybacks, but a safer bet could be on another round of merger mania.

With volatility over the last two years at record lows traders have been itching to trade something that really moves. Bitcoin definitely fits that description. On the first day of 2017 bitcoin traded above $1,000 for the first time since January of 2014. The highest price for bitcoin at the time was 1,216.70 in 2013.

Eight years into arguably the second longest bull market ever, has made short selling seem less a “lonely” activity and more a “suicidal” one as tacking against the euphoria has been a career killer leaving only a handful of exchange-traded products (ETPs) to choose from.

Nothing has captivated investors like Amazon’s (AMZN) share price cresting at $1,000, generating annualized returns close to 29% during the last decade and briefly making Jeff Bezos the richest man in the world in the process.

Even with record inflows into exchange-traded funds and dozens of publicly traded names to choose from, there’s only one ETF devoted to the restaurant industry, the aptly tickered USCF Restaurant Leaders Fund.

Even with record inflows into exchange-traded funds and dozens of publicly traded names to choose from, there’s only one ETF devoted to the restaurant industry, the aptly tickered USCF Restaurant Leaders Fund (MENU). Not that there haven’t been other attempts in the past, although they had the same lifespan as a “gastropub” focusing on sprouts.