Displaying items by tag: S&P 500

Markets are flummoxed as to the variety of risks right now, and it is just unclear how aggressively if at all the Fed and Biden are going to respond to the economic threats. There are two ways to capitalize on the current dip that is hitting your portfolio. The first is tax-loss harvesting; these risks are ones that are more than a month long which could give you the opportunity to repurchase the drops you made in the upcoming months. For those investors who feel adequately equipped in the tax-loss harvesting space, rebalancing is the main tool. That is if your portfolio has lost 10% value inequities with the drops, then up your share to meet the ratios you were at pre-dip. Once stocks have rebounded you can capitalize and re-tool in the opposite direction to maintain the portfolio balance you want in order to serve your risk preferences.

Finsum: Don’t sit during the volatility, but don’t sell off unless you are going to capitalize on the tax efficiency in your portfolio.

In their latest strategy release Morgan Stanley is pulling no punches about its projections for 2022, warning investors to unload and underweight U.S. Stocks, Bonds and Treasuries. They see tightening monetary policy, high inflation, and higher valuations all scaring them from a more bullish U.S. stance. They see the S&P dropping to almost 6% below its current levels. In order to find the gains they need they suggest investors look to Euro-area and Japanese companies, where they are bullish on equity prices. They also see commodities providing some portfolio relief. However, Morgan Stanley’s economists aren’t predicting a rate rise until 2023, and they see the Fed being more dovish than the broader market expects.

FINSUM: Conflicting messages inside Morgan Stanley. If Monetary Policy doesn’t over tighten then don’t expect a sluggish year in the U.S.

(New York)

Wall Street is about to start posting 3rd quarter earnings and market participants are expecting another big round of postings. Driving most of those earnings is robust growth in the overall economy, which drove the same blockbuster Q2 reports. Some of the highest expectations are in the banking sector as JPMorgan Chase & Co., Bank of America Corp., PNC Financial Services Group Inc., and U.S. Bancorp are looking to lead the pack. This is driven by micro factors in their companies but also macro factors that benefit financials as interest rates look to rise and the Fed begins tapering. Outside financials, large caps like UnitedHealth Group Inc. are also looking to post very high earnings with solid financials and its valuable brand Optum is driving earnings. The delta variant may have hamstrung some companies from the great Q2, but large-cap companies could be robust enough to withstand the covid resurgence.

FINSUM: Additionally, look to energy companies to post solid Q3 numbers as high prices helped bottom lines for these large-cap juggernauts.

Whether the US’ current bout of inflation is caused by transitory supply-side factors, or trillions of dollars poured into the economy by policymakers, is irrelevant because investors are now tasked with finding a way through the stock market jitters. As inflation rises it eats at yields and the value of fixed coupons falls. To avoid the pitfalls of rising prices look to dividend stocks, whose yields are pushed higher by inflation. Of course not all dividend stocks are created equal and some will outperform in an inflationary environment. The best income stocks are in the financial sector because they benefit from rising interest rates, as their interest rate margins expand in such environments. Energy is next, at least currently. Higher demand boosts prices of oil and gas, which benefits energy sector investors as it is one of the highest dividend payers. These sectors are the most likely to boost their dividends in the rising price environment.

FINSUM: Dividend stocks have no doubt outperformed just about every segment of the bond market, and expanding your dividend holdings may be a good idea as inflation comes in at 20-year highs. 

September saw the Vix creep to a 4-month high as the S&P 500 blew off 4.8% of its value. Most investors were hoping for a bounce-back month in October, chalking up September’s poor performance to a checkered history for the opening of autumn. However, they are likely to be remiss as volatility indexes are still climbing. The pullback in September was the largest since March of 2020, when the pandemic began.BofA said that while October is generally a well-performing month when it trails a struggling September, October can drag as well. Debt ceiling negotiations, oil price spikes, and Fed tapering are just a few of the onslaught of headlines which are giving the market fits.

FINSUM: While volatility has yet to hit the peaks of September it is already consistently above its 200-day moving average, which could be a sign of even more volatility to come.