Aptus Musings: Earnings Ahead

S&P 500 Earnings Preview – Q4 2023 It’s common knowledge that if the market endures two (2) consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth, it is considered a recession (most of the time, not every time—as we learned last year). Well, the market had been in an...

Rearview to Windshield, January 2024

December ’23 Market Recap: Investors enjoyed broad-based relief in the fourth quarter. After rising sharply in Q2 and Q3, rates peaked in the fourth quarter fueled by Powell’s pivot at the December FOMC meeting. Similarly, oil prices peaked in late September and...

Rearview to Windshield, December 2023

November ’23 Market Recap: After a 20% drawdown in many stocks between July and October, equities staged an impressive rebound in November thanks to the sharp reversal in interest rates. A good portion of this reversal was due to the pricing of a much more...

Magnificent Seven

Many came into 2023 expecting a recession, and accordingly, bearish on equities. While the economic data has been much better than expected (particularly employment), it hasn’t reflected the robust return profile seen in the S&P 500 year-to-date. At +20.8% through...

Rearview to Windshield, November 2023

October ’23 Market Recap: In a part of the year, in which the market tends to witness some seasonal weakness, the S&P notched its first negative three-month performance since 2020. The S&P 500 was down -2.10%. This has been a stressful few months for...