Robertson Stephens Weekly Commentary – November 9, 2026

Many pollsters had predicted for months the “blue wave” that occurred in the US on Election Day; prediction markets, more recently, correctly identified the “blue tsunami.” Some economic policy advisors on both sides were no doubt quietly thinking about what to do if this occurred, but it seems that there was a general fear of planning for what became the inevitable. Stocks down and bonds up over the week. The MSCI EAFE outperformed the S&P 500 and the MSCI Emerging Markets indices. The S&P 500 returned -2.7% last week (+8.8% YTD) in a dramatic week. Post the election on Tuesday, stocks initially rose as oil traded lower on bets the Democratic sweep in Congress would speed an end to the Iran war. But stocks reversed sharply on Thursday amid fears that Congressional regulation of AI and local measures against data centers would slow the AI infrastructure buildout; the NASDAQ fell 5.5%, its worst performance in 19 months. On the wealth planning front, we discuss key Medicare and Marketplace changes for 2027 and strategies for managing healthcare costs and coverage decisions during open enrollment.