Markets Rebound as Fed Signals December Rate Cut
Executive Summary Last week, the equity market staged a broad rebound, recovering a portion of November’s losses. The rally was sparked by commentary from the Federal Reserve suggesting a December rate cut is back on the table. Major equity indices rallied sharply, with gains spread across sectors and factors. Small-cap stocks were the standout performers, […]
Hawkish Fed, Weakening Labor Data, and Markets Pushing Cuts to 2026
Executive Summary The recent odds of a December cut have been going down to 44% and a 56% chance of a hold. With that said, there are now three cuts priced into 2026, so the bond market more or less is pushing out the rate cut into next year. Regardless, the Fed is becoming increasingly […]
CIO Stuart Katz on Money Life with Chuck Jaffe
Chief Investment Officer Stuart Katz joined Money Life with Chuck Jaffe to discuss why rate cuts could push investors off the sidelines, the bond sectors best positioned to benefit, and what may lead markets as growth slows. Stuart’s interview begins at the 17:10 minute mark.
Earnings Strength Anchors a Volatile Market
Executive Summary The stock market has stayed resilient with sporadic pullbacks and shots of volatility. We expect this choppiness to continue into year-end. The real story remains the same: The economy has been resilient, the consumer has been resilient, and the Fed has cut rates in an economic expansion due to an increased focus on […]
S&P Gains Mask Underlying Market Exhaustion
Executive Summary Last week, large-capitalization S&P 500 stocks advanced 0.7%, but small stocks lagged. The three material items for the week included broadly positive big tech earnings, the Fed meeting featuring an expected 25 basis point (bps) cut, and the end of quantitative tightening[1] as of 12/1/25, along with a warning that another cut in […]
Investment Commentary – October 27, 2025
Executive Summary Investors are gearing up for a pivotal week, as Big Tech earnings and an expected U.S. interest rate cut could set the country’s economic trajectory for the rest of the year. A cooler than expected inflation report on Friday sent stocks to fresh highs as traders bet the Federal Reserve will trim the cost of borrowing […]
Investment Commentary – October 20, 2025
Equities The S&P 500 returned 1.1% for the week amid continued optimism around AI, a strong start to the earnings season, from large banks, and increasing hopes for further rate cuts from the Fed. Markets looked past trade tensions with China and emerging credit issues at regional banks as Fed Chair Powell signaled that the […]
Should Advisors Ride the Foreign Stock Rally?
Chief Investment Officer, Stuart Katz, was featured in Investment News’ October issue discussing the foreign stock rally. He highlights Europe’s “game-changing” fiscal spending as a key driver of recent appreciation. Read the full article here.
Investment Commentary – October 13, 2025
Executive Summary Last week, stocks declined while bonds appreciated (price up / yield down). The MSCI Emerging Markets and MSCI EAFE indices outperformed the S&P 500. Across U.S. Russell style & market cap indices, mid-cap growth did the best, but the low volatility factor led more broadly. As for fixed income, the 10-year. treasury yield […]
Investment Commentary – October 6, 2025
Executive Summary Equity Markets Risk On Last week, global equity funds experienced the best week of inflows in nearly a year, led by U.S. technology and financial stocks. The third quarter was strong across both risk- and risk-control portfolios, with global equities gaining over 8%. In the U.S., small caps gained over 12% for the […]
Investment Commentary – September 29, 2025
Executive Summary The economy appears to remain resilient, and the Fed is cutting rates in the middle of an economy that is slowing but still expanding. Historically, such conditions have been bullish for risk assets. According to Franklin Templeton, in the last 50 years, there have been eight instances where the Fed resumed cutting interest […]
U.S. Government Shutdowns and Risk Markets
US Federal Government Shutdowns Some of the federal government’s activities are set to shut down if Congress cannot agree to fund them by October 1, 2025 What is a government shutdown? A shutdown occurs when non-essential federal government activities close temporarily because Congress has not approved funding to keep them open. There have been 10 […]