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☆ JPMorgan taps manager with solid track record to lead its first 'semi-transparent' ETF
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Jesse Pound | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The bank launches the JPMorgan Active Small Cap Value ETF (JPSV) on Wednesday with a goal to outperform the Russell 2000 index of small cap companies. Playford co-manages two other mutual funds — the JPMorgan Small Cap Blend Fund and the JPMorgan Mid Cap Value Fund — both of which sport four-star, silver ratings from Morningstar. Playford's small cap fund, for example, was in the top quartile of small cap growth funds in 2022, according to Morningstar. The new JPSV fund, with an expense ratio of 0.74%, will operate as a semi-transparent ETF. "Active small cap value can be a compelling addition to investor portfolios.

☆ Active vs. passive managers: 2022 was a surprisingly good year for active management
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Bob Pisani | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Active vs. passive managers: 2022 was a surprisingly good year for active management. On the plus side for active managers: for large-cap equity fund managers (the largest and most closely-watched category), 51% underperformed their benchmarks last year. Here's the bad news for active managers Active managers often say that while passive investing may often outperform, during periods of high volatility they will have a chance to shine. For example, S & P 500 Growth was down 29%, but S & P 500 Value was down only 5%. "A manager selecting a random stock would have had a 59% chance of beating the S & P 500 and a 30% chance of outperforming the S & P 500 by 20% or better," the authors wrote.

☆ This fund is trouncing the S&P 500 by focusing on international stocks
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-05 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

A fund once led by an investing great known for finding opportunities in distressed assets is beating the market — but with a somewhat different focus. The Third Avenue Value Fund (TVFVX) outperformed the S & P 500 in 2022, rising 11.2% while the broad-market index shed 19.4%. 'Go where the opportunities are' Fine said that can happen by looking at both country and industry trends. The fund had just over 40% and 30% of its holdings in small- and mid-cap companies, respectively, at the end of 2022. portfolio manager Matt Fine Fine was able to work under Whitman and eventually take over the value fund, which is one of the first the company created, in 2017, a year before Whitman died.

☆ A fund manager who's beaten 99% of his peers over the last decade shares 5 energy stocks he's betting on right now as 'oil and gas profits could become one of the only games in town' during a recessio
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( William Edwards | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Energy stocks still have more upside even after their big run, says Bill Smead. Energy stocks have soared since their pandemic lows, with the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) up 230% since March 2020 compared to the S&P 500's 71%. Further, Smead said an incoming recession could wipe out profits in other industries, leaving investors to flock to the oil industry. Nothing could be better than producing addictive fossil fuel energy at higher and higher prices for the next decade." 5 energy stocks to watchWhile Smead is bullish on energy broadly, he especially likes firms that aren't giants in the industry.

☆ This emerging markets fund outperforms by finding ideas in small- and mid-cap companies
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

A keen appreciation for ideas that fly under the radar helped one emerging markets fund outperform during the pandemic. Since starting at the Matthews Emerging Markets Small Companies (MSMLX) fund in 2020, Vivek Tanneeru said he has kept his focus on small- and mid-cap companies to generate alpha (returns above a benchmark). For example, his Matthews Emerging Markets Sustainable Future fund (MISFX) fund, which he founded in 2015, is also given five stars at Morningstar. One stock Tanneeru is particularly bullish on now is Legend Biotech . For Tanneeru, small caps are a more nimble way for investors to gain access to emerging markets and tap into consumer preferences there.

☆ Why AI stocks could return outsized performance in the next 18 months, and 7 leading names with direct exposure, according to an ETFs analyst
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Laila Maidan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

There are mature, large-cap companies that investors could stick to for exposure to the sector. A sudden interest in artificial intelligence has brought the more than decade-old technology to the forefront of investors' minds. It has additional ETFs focused on sectors that will be heavily impacted by AI including the Cloud Computing ETF (CLOU) and Cybersecurity ETF (BUG). They are broken down into innovators, early adopters, early majority, late majority, and finally, the laggards. Mature companies like Microsoft that are developing AI use cases could move AI into a mature stage rapidly.

☆ Small caps are on a tear this year. Here’s how investors are playing the rally.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Pia Singh | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

"A regime change, if you will, is taking place in the market, where small caps are going to do better," said Francis Gannon, co-chief investment officer at Royce Investment Partners, which focuses on small caps. Now investors are pointing to the recent rally as proof that small caps are on the verge of a prolonged period of outperformance. 'Massively outperform' Michael Sesser, equity portfolio manager of the $558-million DWS Small Cap Core fund, believes small caps will "massively outperform" large caps over the next five to 10 years. Cantaloupe , a retail service digital payments company with a $373 million market cap, and medical imaging provider RadNet ($1.2 billion market cap) are among Sesser's picks. DWS Small Cap also owns metallurgical coal producers serving the steel industry, namely Alpha Metallurgical Resources ($2.7 billion market cap), Arch Resources ($2.6 billion market cap) and Peabody Energy ($4.2 billion market cap).

☆ The AI craze has sent some stocks soaring up to 300%. This list of over 74 stocks across 5 categories features the top picks from the sector's leading fund managers.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Laila Maidan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

These 74 stocks are picked by AI ETF managers. What she believes is unique about her fund is its heavy focus on quantum computing technology, making up 41.22% of the fund. While big data is used for different technologies, it enables AI to work with massive data sets in its machine-learning process. TipRanks, a financial technology website that uses AI to analyze financial data, created a stock list for what they deem are the best AI stocks based on popularity. TipRanks' list of nine of the best AI stocks have large market caps and are likely to remain relevant for a long time.

☆ AI stocks rally in latest Wall Street craze sparked by ChatGPT
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 6 (Reuters) - Shares of C3.ai Inc, BigBear.ai and SoundHound AI extended a rally on Monday as artificial intelligence becomes a new buzzword on Wall Street with the viral success of ChatGPT chatbot, attracting interest from retail punters. Software firm C3.ai (AI.N) rose 11%, analytics firm BigBear.ai (BBAI.N) jumped nearly 21% and conversation artificial intelligence company SoundHound (SOUN.O) surged 40%. "Any company that mentions ChatGPT or something about AI, sees this rally ... it's just the hot buzzword of the month," said Dennis Dick, a trader at Triple D Trading. The success of OpenAI's ChatGPT, which drew multi-billion dollar investment from Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O), has left investors scouring for companies that develop AI-related technologies. C3.ai and SoundHound have more than doubled in value this year while BigBear.ai has surged more than 700%.

☆ Nasdaq futures jump more than 1% on Meta surge, Fed relief
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SummarySummary Companies Futures: Nasdaq up 1.44%, S&P up 0.50%, Dow down 0.13%,Feb 2 (Reuters) - Nasdaq futures jumped on Thursday as Meta Platforms surged after announcing rigorous cost controls, while a dovish message from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell boosted bets of a softer landing for the U.S. economy. Shares of other growth companies including Apple Inc (AAPL.O), Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O) and Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) rose between 1.1% and 4.3%. The three companies are slated to report quarterly results after market close. ET, Dow e-minis were down 45 points, or 0.13%, S&P 500 e-minis were up 20.75 points, or 0.5%, and Nasdaq 100 e-minis were up 179 points, or 1.44%. A 0.2% decline in shares of drugmaker Merck & Co (MRK.N) ahead of its quarterly report weighed on Dow futures.

☆ U.S. oil & gas M&A hit 17-year low; big firms dominate deals-report
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Liz Hampton | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Oil companies are also grappling with less productive wells, with some viewing asset purchases as a way to keep oil and gas flowing. Larger companies with better inventories tend to have a premium built into their stock, giving them more buying power, Enverus wrote. "It's a market where the rich get richer," said Andrew Dittmar, a director at Enverus who focuses on mergers and acquisitions. Publicly traded U.S. shale firm Diamondback Energy (FANG.O) added some 500 drilling locations to its portfolio by spending $3 billion to purchase Lario Oil & Gas and Firebird Energy during the fourth quarter. Diamondback's added inventory was "more of a luxury than a necessity," Dittmar said of those deals.

☆ S&P 500 tries to break bear market downtrend, but earnings remain lackluster
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Michael Santoli | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The S & P 500 hovers at the downtrend line everyone's watching after back-to-back 1%+ gains. The S & P 500 popping above the famous trend line would be a positive but in itself not a game changer. S & P 500 as a whole at 17x next 12 months' consensus — not cheap. Slicing away the five largest S & P 500 names or using the equal-weight S & P renders the P/E nearer to 15x. Worth recalling the S & P had a 25%+ drawdown last year when earnings were still hitting record highs in aggregate, so softness in Q4 not entirely a shock to the tape.

☆ This small-cap fund has been killing it over the last 10 years. Here's how they do it
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

That approach aligns with the firm's Private Capital Management Value Fund (VFPIX), which focuses on holding and deeply understanding a handful of small-cap companies. Meanwhile, the broader S & P 500 lost 19.4% in 2022, while the small-cap focused Russell 2000 dropped about 21.6%, according to FactSet. About one-third of the fund's assets today are from the retirement plan assets of Private Capital Management employees. Though fund leadership understands small-caps can trade with more variability, they don't equate that with exposure to more risk. He said there are more companies to choose from, with many stocks' market caps slashed into small-cap territory in 2022's bear market.

☆ Wall St Week Ahead Tech stock rebound faces doubters with earnings season ahead
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Lewis Krauskopf | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 index (.NDX) has gained over 3% in 2023, double the rise for the S&P 500 (.SPX). The Nasdaq 100 fell 33% in 2022, while the S&P 500 lost 19.4%. Apple, the largest U.S. company by market value, and Google-parent Alphabet report the following week. Fourth-quarter earnings in the tech sector are expected to have declined 9.1% from a year ago, compared to a 2.8% decline for S&P 500 earnings overall, according to Refinitiv IBES. The S&P 500 tech sector still trades at a roughly 19% premium to the broader index, above its 7% average of the past 10 years, according to Refinitiv Datastream.

☆ Chinese companies set for biggest earnings growth in 5 years in 2023-Refinitiv data
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Gaurav Dogra | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 19 (Reuters) - Chinese companies are expected to report their highest earnings growth in five years, Refinitiv data shows, as economic reopening after COVID lockdowns and accommodative monetary policy raise hopes for higher profits. According to Refinitiv IBES data, China's large and mid-cap companies' profits are seen rising 16.2% in 2023, the fastest growth since 2017. The Reuters analysis showed utilities, consumer staples and consumer discretionary sectors are expected to lead growth with their estimated profit growth of 34.5%, 33.5% and 27.8%, respectively. Meanwhile, the tech sector is expected to see earnings growth of 27% compared with 9.4% in 2022 while the property sector would witness 9.4% higher profits after a 4.9% drop last year. read more"We expect China to outperform Asia ex-Japan due to its faster-than-anticipated reopening, continuing domestic policy support, and potential for stronger earnings growth," said Mark Haefele, chief investment officer at UBS Global Wealth Management, in a note this month.

☆ Global shareholder activism sees record number of European campaigns
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Amy-Jo Crowley | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Benoit TessierLONDON, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Activist shareholders stepped up pressure on corporate boardrooms last year by starting 235 campaigns to shake up companies, including a record number in Europe. Activists buy up stakes in companies to lobby for change that they hope will improve a target’s share price. Large-cap companies with a value $25 billion or more accounted for the biggest share of overall campaigns, while technology and industrial companies accounted for roughly four in ten campaigns. Lazard's report said that while the number of activist campaigns rose sharply last year, activist investors’ returns were hit by tumbling public market performance especially in the United States. Mergers and acquisitions-related campaigns, including "sell the company" demands, also made a come-back and represented 41% of all campaigns, despite global dealmaking suffering a fall last year.

☆ Citi's Chronert says a recession is near; shares his 'top conviction calls' to tough it out
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Weizhen Tan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Citi's Scott Chronert expects a mild recession in the first half of this year and revealed three strategy calls that could help investors trade the downturn. Earnings Earnings will likely come in better than expected, according to Chronert in his outlook for this year, published in December. Strength in some sectors Chronert likes both industrials and energy looking ahead. In the December note, Citi listed a number of "preferred" U.S. energy stocks including APA and EOG Resources . As such, he told CNBC Thursday that he's "steering somewhat clear of" mega-cap companies.

☆ The stock market's biggest risk in 2023 is a drop in corporate earnings, even if the economy avoids a recession
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The stock market's biggest risk in 2023 is a decline in corporate earnings, according to Ned Davis Research. "The direction of earnings revisions is likely to be down regardless of whether Powell can find some of Greenspan's 1994 soft-landing magic." In a non-recession scenario, NDR estimates that earnings revisions "in the ballpark of 8% would be a reasonable assumption." "If the economy falls into a recession, [earnings] revisions could be the biggest since 2020 COVID-19 shutdown and possibly larger than during the 2015 oil collapse," Clissold said. "Unless economic conditions improve quickly, earnings revisions could be severe."

☆ What's next after a brutal year for tech? Market watchers share their views — and top stock picks
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( Zavier Ong | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

If you invested in tech stocks in 2022, chances are you're sitting on a loss right now. As they head into 2023, investors could be forgiven for thinking that the worst of the tech rout is over. Big Tech is 'not dead' Michael Yoshikami, founder and CEO of Destination Wealth Management, said Big Tech is "not dead," though it will take time to recover. Goldman Sachs and Citi also see pockets of opportunities within Big Tech, with both naming Amazon and Meta Platforms as their top picks for 2023. The sector has traditionally been viewed as a growth sector, but some analysts say tech stocks are now value stocks instead.

Ukraine has shared a list with European countries of some 10,000 items it urgently needs to maintain power. Since early October, Russian forces have targeted Ukraine's energy infrastructure, causing blackouts and forcing millions of people to endure sub-zero temperatures with little or no heating. As stockpiles of state-owned European power grids dwindle, Lorkowski expected the private sector to become more important in meeting Ukraine's energy infrastructure needs. A first tranche of U.S. power equipment worth $13 million has been shipped to Ukraine, officials said, and two more planeloads were due to leave shortly. Olena Osmolovska, director of the reform support team at Ukraine's energy ministry, said it would cost tens of billions of dollars to fully restore the energy system.

[1/2] A trader works on the trading floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., December 14, 2022. "When people adjust their expectations after the Fed meeting, higher rates typically imply more compressed multiples for growth stocks." Further, hawkish messages delivered by three Fed officials including New York Fed President John Williams last week underscored the U.S. central bank's determination to do what it takes to ease price pressures. Still, money market participants are pricing in 61% chance of a 25 basis points rate hike in February to 4.5%-4.75%, with a terminal rate of 4.84% in May 2023. The S&P index recorded five new 52-week highs and 15 new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 42 new highs and 335 new lows.

The U.S. central bank hiked rates by 50 basis points (bps) on Wednesday, slowing down from four back-to-back 75 bps hikes, although Fed Chair Jerome Powell said recent signs of slowing inflation have not brought any confidence yet that the fight had been won. The Fed's policy-setting committee projected it would continue raising rates to above 5% in 2023, a level not seen since a steep economic downturn in 2007. Money market participants currently expect at least two 25 bps rate hikes next year and borrowing costs to peak at 4.9% by May next year, before falling to around 4.4% by year-end. Wall Street's main indexes have staged a strong recovery since hitting 2022 lows in October on hopes of a less aggressive Fed, but the rally stalled in December due to mixed economic data and worrying corporate forecasts. Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) fell 2.9% after CEO Elon Musk disclosed another $3.6 billion in stock sales, taking his total near $40 billion this year and frustrating investors as the company's shares wallow at two-year lows.

☆ Futures slide as hawkish Fed quashes policy pivot hopes
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Sruthi Shankar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Investors currently expect at least two 25 bps rate hikes next year and borrowing costs to peak at 4.9% by May next year, before falling to around 4.4% by year-end. Both central banks are expected to hike borrowing costs by 50 bps. Shares of megacap companies, including Apple (AAPL.O), Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O), Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) and Nvidia Corp , fell between 1.1% and 2.1% in premarket trading. Trade Desk Inc (TTD.O) slipped 4.1% after Jefferies downgraded its rating for the adtech firm to "hold" from "buy". Reporting by Sruthi Shankar and Ankika Biswas in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza and Vinay DwivediOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/2] A worker shelters from the rain under a Union Flag umbrella as he passes the London Stock Exchange in London, Britain, October 1, 2008. An investor in Wood Group (WG.L), an oilfield services company, urged the company to buy back some of its own shares to avoid being a target. The domestically-focused FTSE 250 (.FTMC) is down by almost a fifth this year while the internationally-focused blue-chip FTSE 100 (.FTSE) is up 0.8% thanks to a drop in the pound. A currency advantage alone does not necessarily kick-start deals though, according to Owain Evans, co-head of UK M&A for Goldman Sachs. "Large corporates continue to look at 'bolt-ons', where they can draw on existing facilities to do those deals, that's why the mid-cap space is attractive to the strategics in this environment," said Celia Murray, head of UK M&A at JPMorgan.

The Fed's policy-setting committee projected it would continue raising rates to above 5% in 2023, a level not seen since a steep economic downturn in 2007. Money market participants currently expect at least two 25 bps rate hikes next year and borrowing costs to peak at 4.9% in the first half, before falling to around 4.4% by the year end. Wall Street's main indexes have staged a strong recovery since hitting 2022 lows in October on hopes of a less aggressive Fed, but the rally stalled in December on the back of mixed economic data and worrying corporate forecasts. Investors also digested economic data on Thursday that showed a steeper-than-expected decline in retail sales in November and the number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits falling last week, indicating a tight labor market. The S&P index recorded no new 52-week highs and four new lows, while the Nasdaq recorded 24 new highs and 120 new lows.

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