# Why Consensus is Failing — A Contrarian Approach to Today’s Market

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/in-the-money-with-amber-kanwar-7168627/why-consensus-is-failing-a-contrarian-approach-to-today-s-market
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/in-the-money-with-amber-kanwar-7168627/why-consensus-is-failing-a-contrarian-approach-to-today-s-market.md
Podcast: [In the Money with Amber Kanwar](https://stenobird.com/podcast/in-the-money-with-amber-kanwar-7168627)
Published: 2026-04-14T10:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://share.transistor.fm/s/85e30eb5
Audio file: https://media.transistor.fm/85e30eb5/72723599.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/in-the-money-with-amber-kanwar-7168627/episodes/why-consensus-is-failing-a-contrarian-approach-to-today-s-market
Duration seconds: 3935

## Resource

John Zechner has seen this movie before — and when everyone’s on the same side of the trade, he starts looking the other way. The Chairman & Founder of J. Zechner Associates joins Amber Kanwar to break down how he’s positioning his portfolio in a market driven by noise, geopolitics, and crowded trades. From calling the recent energy shock a potential “9/11-type” shift in investor psychology to arguing that markets are still mispricing long-term risks, Zechner lays out why being contrarian today could pay off tomorrow. He explains why he’s adding selectively to oil while staying disciplined on position sizing, why gold still has a strong long-term case despite recent volatility, and why Canada could benefit from a renewed focus on energy security. At the same time, he’s taking the other side of the AI trade—rotating out of semiconductors and into beaten-down software names like Adobe (ADBE), Salesforce (CRM), and Shopify (SHOP), where valuations have reset and expectations are low. He also shares why he’s avoiding private equity and bank stocks for now, pointing to lingering risks that the market may be underestimating. In the mailbag, Zechner weighs in on Fairfax Financial (FFH.TO), Cameco (CCJ), the Canadian telecom sector, his favourite Canadian utilities, and WSP Global (WSP.TO). He cautions against paying a premium for Fairfax’s investment track record, says Cameco remains a strong uranium franchise but an expensive one, and argues there is emerging value in parts of telecom even as he warns Telus (T.TO) may need to cut its dividend. He also highlights select Canadian utilities for their defensive appeal and discusses how to think about WSP Global as a quality name in a market where investors may need to look beyond the obvious winners. In Pro Picks, Zechner fi…

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## Transcript

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