Over the last week, the tariff rhetoric hit a heightened level with the threat of 25% tariffs on products coming in from Mexico and Canada, as well as 10% on China.
Tariff Tantrum
Outlook 2025
We present our Outlook 2025 publication titled “Lessons Learned,” in which we discuss the resilience of the U.S. economy in 2024, highlighting the significant contributions of major technology companies to profit growth and providing insights on asset allocation strategies for 2025. Additionally, our team of analysts provide a look-back on each of the firm’s strategies and a primer on the environment for each in the year ahead.
Trees Don’t Grow to the Sky
When my family gathers around the holidays, we enjoy catching up on Jeopardy episodes with our two daughters. As they are both educators, it can be difficult for my wife and me to keep up, but it can also get pretty competitive. In one episode, I had the upper hand as the category was the “Magnificent Seven.” Luckily, this didn’t refer to the movies but to the seven stocks dominating the stock market. In investing circles, the term “Magnificent Seven,” or Mag-7, is well known, and I was surprised it had become recognizable enough to be a Jeopardy category. Unfortunately, while I was the first to “buzz in” and answer correctly in this category, I wasn’t as fortunate the rest of the game.
Two Steps Forward, One Step Back
The first three weeks of the second quarter have been tough for both equity and bond investors. After a great start to the year, there hasn't been any place for investors to hide in April. The chart below highlights that the three major equity classes, as well as bonds, have all posted negative returns, with Small Caps now down close to 4% for the year.
Market Letter Second Quarter 2024: So Far, So Good
We present Market Letter publication for the second quarter 2024 titled “So Far, So Good” in which Chief Investment Officer George Hosfield, CFA, outlines our belief the Fed remains on course to deliver an ever-so-rare soft landing to this inflationary cycle. Dean Dordevic writes about the Japanese economy and Warren Buffett’s investment there in recent years since the introduction of the “Corporate Governance Code” and Jason Norris, CFA, provides an update on equity market valuations and how investors expect the market to grow for the remainder of the year.
Ferguson Wellman Shareholders Elect Frankel and Norris to the Board
Josh Frankel, CFP®, and Jason Norris, CFA, were selected at Ferguson Wellman’s recent shareholder meeting to serve on the board of directors.
Panic Attack
Twelve months ago, investors were in a state of sheer panic as they were witnessing stocks freefall by over 30 percent.
Outlook 2021: Back to the Future
Market Letter Fourth Quarter 2020
Despite the technology-led gains of U.S. equities so far this year, uneasiness abounds as the world adjusts to life with COVID-19. While roughly half the jobs lost to this year’s steep and short recession have already been recouped, many investors fear the day when the bill for massive stimulus comes due.
Investment Strategy Webinar Recording: Post-COVID Sector Outlook
On Wednesday, June 10, our Chief Investment Officer, George Hosfield, CFA, and our investment team analysts Ralph Cole, CFA, Brad Houle, CFA, Peter Jones, CFA, Shawn Narancich, CFA, and Jason Norris, CFA, gave a webinar where they discussed our sector-specific outlook in a post-COVID world.
Show Me the Money
While the U.S. consumer remains resilient, CEO confidence has been deteriorating as economic uncertainty has been increasing.
The Present We Didn’t Ask For
While expectations were for the Fed to raise the federal funds rate by 0.25 percent, there was a small glimmer of hope that they may hold pat.
Not So Fast, My Friend
It had been four years since ESPN College GameDay had been to Eugene. While the game last week between University of Oregon and Stanford was entertaining, Lee Corso’s pick of Ducks proved to be on the wrong side. In the spirit of the former coach and broadcaster, we use his infamous line, “Not so fast my friend,” when describing third quarter returns.
One More Time
Stocks finished the last week of December relatively flat resulting in a 20+ percent total return for the S&P 500 for 2017. Interest rates were steady with the yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury ending the year at 2.41 percent, down slightly from a year ago.
Show Me the Money
The Friday job report was slightly on the light side with December payrolls coming in at 156,000, 19,000 below economist’s estimates. Positively, the previous two months showed 19,000 in upward revisions. However, wages grew at their highest rate since June 2009, coming in at 2.9 percent year-over-year growth.