Merck & Co., Inc. (MRK)

I am staying away from this name for now, despite the Alexion acquisition and vaccine promise.

Equity markets have run wild since Oct. 30, and it is the more economically sensitive indices that have really taken flight.

What happens when everyone hunkers down, creating their own de facto stay-in-place lockdown?

Right now, the market is furiously trying to price in a Blue Wave, and the health care sector is getting clobbered. But here's how I think things play out.

This is a major earnings week, electoral risk is real, the virus is already slowing velocity, and the cavalry (fiscal policy) is not coming. Sometimes, circling the wagons is not the worst idea.

Investors are not positioned for an upside move.

BMY's announced acquisition of MyoKardia for $13B comes less than a year after its purchase of Celgene.

I see no reason to flee this name, therefore, I am not.

RedHill Biopharma has adopted 'Veeva Vault CDMS', Veeva's modern cloud platform.

The recent market leaders appear to be running out of steam, while stalwart stocks are grinding higher, with Verizon notable among them.

The euphoria in biotech stocks Monday was a nice change of pace. It also brought to the forefront some lessons about M&A in this industry.

Electoral risk remains the monster under the bed, and it only grows as our legislators intentionally choose the blame game over honest cooperation.

Stocks are reasonable. Or even cheap. There will be more sell-offs ahead but remember this day and do not get too negative.

I am long Merck, not Seattle Genetics, though the one to own now is obviously SGEN.

We've become accustomed lately to gap-up opens on Mondays, but some fresh acquisition agreements are helping drive this Monday's action.

After reviewing the rally, let's zero in on one biotech name, Genprex, and where it appears to be going.

Here are three names among the Dow 30 that are setting up nicely.

Let's look at the Dow Jones' swapping of Exxon for Salesforce, Pfizer for Amgen and Raytheon for Honeywell.

The buyers have decided that the researchers and doctors are going to beat the virus, so you better get on board or miss the move.

It is going to take successful vaccines and therapies and much lower unemployment to revive most of Walt Disney Co.'s businesses.

The whole group has run and the guidance from Clorox does show, more than anything, that nobody knows.

Plus, it could be quite a while before the labor market can absorb all those people who are out of jobs.

Our fate is in the hands of a few dozen companies with a dizzying array of clinical trials, and whoever gets there first is gonna make a fortune.

The smallish clinical-stage vaccine company looks like a trade, not an investment, and might be approached as an option play.

I would wait until the next down day, and there will be one.

Many quality companies that fit into the socially responsible investing camp offer direct-purchase plans, allowing investors an easy way to build an SRI portfolio.

I plan to add some additional exposure to each on the next 'hiccup' in the market using my usual covered call strategy.

Do you know what a company does, does it do it well, and is there anything going on that could change the trajectory?