Published June 2, 2023
As the megacap stocks fueling the rise of the Nasdaq 100 (QQQ) continue to rocket upward, investors can easily believe the bear market beginning sometime late 2021/early 2022 is over. The fly in the ointment here is that the vast majority of stocks in the market are not participating in the uptrend. Below, the team at Schwab provides good information around this topic. (more…)
Published September 2, 2022
Since Fed Chair Powell’s comments a week ago markets have been off-kilter. The notion of a Fed shift to lowering interest rates in the first half of next year has been squashed, replaced by expectations that rates will remain flat at an elevated level for most of 2023. The bearish narrative is that come October corporate earnings reports will deal further evidence of a notable slowdown in the U.S. economy. Slowing economic growth combined with stubborn interest rate policy makes for an unhappy stock market. The bullish case points to very solid employment numbers and generally good consumer financial health with expectations that any recession will be brief and shallow. (more…)
Published August 6, 2021
Below is an article from Schwab on the connection between earnings and the stock market.
“In what shaped up to be a very impressive first half of the year for both the economy and stock market, stellar earnings growth has been a key ingredient. Coming off stronger-than-expected S&P 500 earnings growth of 53% (year over year) in the first quarter, second-quarter earnings are currently anticipated to grow by 78%, the highest since 2009. That is well higher than the initial consensus estimate of 65%. (more…)
Published June 15, 2018
Our favored Nasdaq 100 (QQQ) has been marching strongly upward, along with the small-cap Russell 2000, breaking to new highs and continuing to find buyers. Unlike 2017, however, this market strength is not so broad-based. International stocks have been flat, with the rising U.S. dollar keeping the pressure on those indexes.