The Market in Pictures, August 22

by | Aug 22, 2025 | Blog, Charts

Our team looks at a lot of research throughout the day. Here are a handful that we think are good summations of investor activity, from rate-cutting regimes to earnings season, inflation to consumer health, and stock buybacks. Have a great weekend!

 

Dave: Markets expect the Fed to cut rates on September 17; can it help bring long-term rates down?

 

Source: Strategas as of 08.18.2025

 

 

John Luke: and should we expect stocks to react differently than they have in past cut/pause/cut regimes?

 

 

 

Brad: Earnings have been beating expectations at a really high rate

 

Data as of 08.19.2025

 

 

Brad: with sales growth right there with it

 

Source: Strategas as of 08.18.2025

 

 

Brad: Another characteristic of Q2 earnings season was strength across all major sectors except energy and real estate

 

Source: Strategas as of 08.18.2025

 

 

Dave: and severe beatdowns for those companies that couldn’t deliver on expectations

 

 

 

John Luke: A key feature of the economic resilience has been strong spending by higher income consumers

 

Data as of 08.15.2025

 

 

Brad: and overall, supported by wage growth that has recently moved ahead of the pace of inflation

 

Source: Strategas as of 08.19.2025

 

 

Beckham: Younger workers have been mostly immune from recent layoffs

 


Source: Bespoke as of 08.21.2025

 

 

Brad: and despite a weaker quarter of employment, businesses are seemingly more confident of hiring in the months ahead

 

Source: Strategas as of 08.19.2025

 

 

Joseph: Homebuilding has played a consistently smaller role in the overall US economy for decades

 

Data as of July 2025

 

 

Arch: with nothing to suggest that this trend is about to reverse

 

Data as of 08.19.2025

 

 

Brian: Corporate bonds continue to offer little premium to government bonds

 

Data as of 08.21.2025

 

 

John Luke: perhaps a function of the continued improvement in business fundamentals

 

 

 

Brett: Markets are all-in on cutting rates, though we’ll want to see if the July spike in producer prices flows through to consumer prices

 

Source: JP Morgan as of 08.20.2025

 

 

Ten: as goods prices have stabilized after 2+ years of offsetting rising services prices

Source: Apollo as of 08.21.2025

 

 

Jake: We might have entered a quiet period for corporate buybacks, but stocks have been able to find buyers on each of the summer dips

 

Data as of 08.15.2025

 

 

 

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Advisory services offered through Aptus Capital Advisors, LLC, a Registered Investment Adviser registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Registration does not imply a certain level or skill or training. More information about the advisor, its investment strategies and objectives, is included in the firm’s Form ADV Part 2, which can be obtained, at no charge, by calling (251) 517-7198.

Aptus Capital Advisors, LLC is headquartered in Fairhope, Alabama.

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