Outlook and Positioning

SUMMARY The global economic and corporate environment has remained resilient since my June 8th Outlook & Positioning piece. Strong investor sentiment drove equity markets higher, propelling the S&P 500 to a record peak above 7800 in August and extending its year-to-date gains to over 13% through the end of August. S&P 500 Index Corporate earnings […]

SUMMARY Since my last Outlook and Positioning piece on March 10th, global equity markets have experienced a strong rally, which has been driven primarily by significant momentum in artificial intelligence-related stocks. Investors have been flocking to these companies due to the potential for strong fundamental earnings growth tied to AI. This secular growth theme has

SUMMARY The current geopolitical friction involving the U.S., Israel, and Iran serves as a stark reminder that external shocks are a permanent fixture of the investing landscape. While the Trump administration has stated that these targeted strikes will conclude within a month or two, seasoned investors know that actions always carry more weight than verbal

SUMMARY Since my last Outlook & Positioning piece on September 12th, global equity and bond markets have continued to grind higher overall. This year has been defined by resilience, where a combination of international market strength, the transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI), a persistent move to gold, and investors chasing speculation.  Although financial markets

SUMMARY Since my last Outlook & Positioning piece on June 9th, the global equity markets continued to move higher and bond prices have rallied in addition to generating attractive income.  As you can see in the chart below, volatility as measured by the S&P 500 Volatility Index (VIX) has declined from its spike in March

SUMMARY It’s been an interesting last few months. I hope you were prepared for the volatility. In the midst of the market decline in March, I provided my updated views in my Outlook & Positioning piece. You can read it here… Outlook & Positioning March 17, 2025 Since my March Outlook & Positioning piece, President

SUMMARY Remember volatility? Here we are again. Following the Republican sweep in the November elections, investors were optimistic about the potential for a strong business environment under Republican leadership. I’m not going to rehash my commentary on and concerns with the potential issues surrounding tariffs, government spending cuts, immigration/deportation, inflation pressures, etc., but these are

SUMMARY Volatility finally picked up in the equity markets over the last couple of months. Patient investors waiting for a better opportunity and looking to add risk may have been rewarded if they “bought the dip”. In August we finally had the correction in artificial intelligence-related stocks, which I had been waiting for. Prior to

SUMMARY Just choppin’ around, except for AI.  Equity and bond markets continue to chop around, with continued strength in artificial intelligence-related technology/semiconductor stocks.  Even stocks in the utilities sector rallied strongly for a bit under the narrative that artificial intelligence support will require significant energy needs.  Energy stocks also rallied strongly until OPEC+ announced no

Equity markets continue to chug higher and bonds remain choppy, but there are some potential opportunities to consider for longer-term investors.