Slow Ride

by Brad Houle, CFA Executive Vice President

I had a terrible first car - a 1978 Honda Wagon. It came equipped with vinyl seats, a manual choke, AM Radio and was a shade of brown that resembled a very well-worn Buster Brown shoe from that time. Growing up in Montana, the 1978 Honda wagon also did not like to start in below zero weather. It required stomping on the gas several times and pulling out the manual choke as far as it would go. The Wagon had all of 60 horsepower which made driving up a hill or passing another car a tenuous endeavor and frequently required putting the gas pedal all the way to the floor. There was no difference in the Honda's power if the pedal was depressed completely to the floor versus let off a little. The same could be said for the Federal funds rate being effectively zero or .25 percent. There is not much difference in the impact on economic growth.

On Thursday, the Federal Reserve left the Fed funds rate unchanged, citing global growth concerns. Ultimately, this move seems to be more about the messaging to the markets rather than actually being impactful to economic growth. The Fed does not want to further upset the applecart given recent volatility in world markets by appearing too hawkish and therefore causing financial market participants to fear the Fed will tighten too aggressively.

The Fed funds rate is important as it is one of the tools the Federal Reserve has to stimulate or slow down the economy. Should there be an external shock that requires intervention, with short term interest rates at or near zero, the Federal Reserve has no "dry powder" to stimulate the economy. As such, the Federal Reserve is highly motivated to normalize interest rate policy to allow more flexibility should a crisis arise that requires them coming to the rescue.

With all the hand wringing around when the first rate hike since 2006 will occur, it is also important to remember that a rate increase is good news. It means that the economy is strong enough that the Federal Reserve wants to make certain that it does not get overheated. The labor market has finally healed from the financial crisis and our economy continues to grow.

Our Takeaways for the Week:

• Domestically our consumption driven economy is doing well with a strong labor market and inflation that is well in hand.
• Internationally, the economic uncertainty in China and resulting turbulence in emerging markets has caused the Fed to remain on hold

Disclosures

Waiting is the Hardest Part

by Shawn Narancich, CFAExecutive Vice President of Research

Seeing the Forest through the Trees

The nexus of anxiety surrounding China and its slowing rate of growth eased this week as both the Red Giant and its neighbor Japan signaled tax cuts and infrastructure spending, the kind of expansionary fiscal policy many market watchers have been anticipating. Chinese leaders have been vocal in attempting to reassure markets about their economy but the latest evidence of declining exports and imports reported earlier this week continues to point to an economy struggling to make the transition away from investment-led growth. Though slower growth in China and recessions in Brazil and Russia are dampening the earnings of U.S. multinational companies operating in these countries, we see nothing more systematic in the latest stock market correction. As they say, this too shall pass.

All Over but the Yellen

All of which brings us to next week’s Federal Reserve meetings, at which time FOMC policymakers will convene to decide whether the U.S. central bank will finally lift short-term interest rates, which have been targeted to zero percent for nearly seven years. Arguably, the Fed has achieved its employment objective as measured by an unemployment rate approaching 5 percent and a job base that has joined GDP in record territory. What hasn’t been achieved is the Fed’s price objective of 2 percent inflation, and though Chairwoman Janet Yellen has signaled her belief that low oil prices and the inflation dampening effect of a strong dollar are transitory, some pundits question the sagacity of moving on rates with inflation so far from the target.

Will Tighter Labor Markets Hold Sway?

We agree with Yellen’s view on both points – our belief is that oil prices have bottomed and will rise from here, and that the best gains of the trade-weighted dollar have already been achieved. What’s driving Fed hawks to be pro-active in raising rates ahead of any visible inflation is the labor market which, according to this week’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS), now sports the highest level of unfilled jobs in 15 years. High demand for jobs relative to the supply of labor could draw disaffected workers off the sidelines but tighter labor markets might also begin to force employers to raise wages and salaries to attract and retain talent. So while investors have yet to see the evidence of a tightening labor market in key statistics, like wage growth and rising unit labor costs, we would argue that the Fed is best served to be anticipatory in setting monetary policy.

Our Takeaways from the Week

• Equities remain volatile as investors grapple with a slowing Chinese economy and uncertainty about Fed rate hikes

• We believe the U.S. economy is healthy enough for the Fed to achieve lift-off from zero interest rate policy

Disclosures

Never Can Say Goodbye

by Ralph Cole, CFAExecutive Vice President of Research

Never Can Say Goodbye

Market volatility has historically increased before and around Fed tightenings and 2015 is apparently no exception. The Federal Reserve has now held short-term interest rates at essentially 0 percent for nearly 7 years. This policy was deemed necessary to faster recovery from the Great Recession, the biggest financial crisis since the Great Depression. The good news is that the medicine has worked and the “patient”, the U.S. economy, has been out of intensive care for a number of years.

While the U.S. economy is doing fine to varying degrees, the rest of the world appears to be struggling, especially emerging markets. Higher U.S. interest rates will hurt countries that have dollar denominated debt. Slow growth and heavy debt loads have sent emerging market stocks plunging to 5 year lows. Furthermore, if an economy outside of the U.S. has debt that is denominated in U.S. dollars, a stronger dollar hampers their ability to pay back that debt.

All of these factors are now weighing on the Fed’s decision to embark on a tightening cycle. Many believe that a delay is in order because of recent market volatility. On the other hand, Fed governors have signaled that market volatility is not reason enough to delay. Today’s jobs report did not bring much clarity to the situation. Unemployment fell to a new cycle low of 5.1 percent, and jobs grew 173,000 in August. Revisions to the prior 2 months employment growth added another 44,000 jobs than previously estimated. The market sold off today because those numbers might be strong enough to justify tightening in September. The jury is still out on these decisions and we will simply have to wait and see what the data dependent Fed decides when they meet in two weeks. We continue to believe that modestly higher rates would be a “good” thing and are confident that the U.S. economy can handle slightly higher interest rates in the coming year.

Our Takeaways for the Week

• Market volatility always accompanies the onset of a Fed tightening cycle
• Despite higher rates, the U.S. economy and stock market can continue to prosper

Disclosures

A Light in the Black

by Jason Norris, CFAExecutive Vice President of Research

A Light in the Black

What a week! With concerns about growth in China, continued deterioration of the Chinese equity market and U.S. investors rushed to the sidelines by redeeming over $17 billion in equity mutual funds and ETFs. This, coupled with concern over when the Fed will raise rates, led U.S. equities to experience a 12 percent correction from recent highs on Tuesday (see last week’s blog for more detail). This was long overdue as it had been almost four years since the S&P 500 had corrected by at least 10 percent, which was the third longest period in history. However, after six consecutive days of selling, on Wednesday the near-term bottom was reached on the S&P at 1867, down from its all-time high of 2130 which was reached on May 21, 2015.

Understandably, rapid downward moves in equities can be disconcerting. We don’t know if we’ve seen the bottom; however, we believe there is a light at the end of this tunnel in the form of domestic market fundamentals. For example, U.S. GDP was revised higher on Thursday from 2.3 percent q/q annualized to 3.7 percent. This was driven by several factors - primarily capital spending and consumer spending. Earlier this month we also saw retail sales numbers revised higher. When this data was originally reported, we did view it with some skepticism since our bottoms-up analysis did show better strength than the broad government reports.

After analysis of the earnings reports for the companies we own, it revealed annual growth in earnings of 2 percent; however, excluding Energy, growth was close to 13 percent. Even when looking at the broad market, earnings growth (excluding Energy) was around 5 percent. This growth was driven by the U.S. consumer and healthcare. These fundamentals signal to us that the U.S. economy is healthy and improving.

Earnings Growth for the 10 Economic Sectors of the S&P 500

	Q2 y-o-y growth	2015e
Consumer Discretionary	9.2%	11.3%
Consumer Staples	2.5%	1.7%
Financials	6.8%	15.9%
Healthcare	14.4%	12.7%
Industrials	-4.5%	-1.0%
Info Tech	4.5%	4.9%
Basic Materials	6.0%	-1.0%
Telecom	8.5%	8.3%
Utilities	6.5%	1.6%
Total (ex. Energy)	5.3%	7.0%
Energy	-55.7%	-56.3%
Total	-0.7%	1.0%

Source: FactSet

The table above highlights the underlying sectors of the U.S. market, showing both the actual growth rate for the second quarter and an estimate for 2015. The key to focus on is that commodity prices are bringing down Energy and Basic Materials, and the strong U.S. dollar and China is hurting Industrials. However, when you lift up the hood of the market, corporate America is still exhibiting solid growth.

Our Takeaways for the Week

• Corporate earnings remain healthy
• While volatility may remain until the Fed tightens, we still like equities long-term

Disclosures

Keep Calm and Carry On

by Shawn Narancich, CFAExecutive Vice President of Research

Feeling Violated

Worries about competitive currency devaluations emanating from China’s small haircut to the yuan last week were supplanted this week by manufacturing related fears that the world’s second largest economy could be experiencing a hard landing. The result was a tough week for equity investors, as European stocks entered correction territory and U.S. stocks fell five percent.

Timing is Everything

As the sell-off accelerated into today’s close, we couldn’t help but wonder what market soothing policy moves the Chinese might institute next, nor could we ignore the palpable sense that the Fed’s lift-off from zero interest rate policy just got delayed again. Volatility in stocks will register with Yellen & Co. as they attempt to time this cycle’s first interest rate hike. However, more impactful will be the continued deflation in commodities that threatens to leave the price level far from the Fed’s stated goal of two percent inflation. As oil seeks out new cyclical lows and Treasuries benefit from a flight-to-quality bid, the trade-weighted dollar actually declined today. At a time of increased economic and market turmoil overseas, this hints of US monetary policy remaining easier for longer.

Reasons For Optimism

Low fuel prices and an increasingly healthy job market are combining to boost the collective spending power of U.S. consumers, helping drive the economy to what we believe will be a stronger second half of the year. Notwithstanding this week’s pullback in stocks, we look forward to a better second half of the year for corporate America, which should benefit from easier foreign currency comparisons and a turnaround in oil prices, two key factors that have helped keep earnings flat so far this year. As profit visibility improves, we expect stocks to make forward progress.

Ringin’ the Till

With all but a small number of companies having now reported, the sun is setting on a second quarter earnings season characterized again by companies under promising and over delivering. Retailers book-ended Q2 numbers this week by reporting a decidedly mixed bag of results. While America’s largest retailer struggles to grow, Wal-Mart’s rival Target came through with earnings just strong enough to make investors believe that this beleaguered retailer has put the worst of its merchandising and credit breech struggles behind it. Standing out to the upside was Home Depot, which reported another impressive quarter of sales driven by higher house prices and rising home improvement spending. While closing down for the week amidst market turmoil, Home Depot’s stock outperformed the broader market as management once again raised its profit forecast for the year.

Our Takeaways from the Week

• A sell-off in global equities pierced the veil of U.S. market tranquility

• Retailers concluded second quarter earnings season by reporting mixed results

Disclosures

All the Beer in China

by Brad Houle, CFA Executive Vice President

Currency markets are extremely difficult to grasp and most people’s experience with foreign currency is limited to travel. These experiences generally involve moments where someone realizes they just paid roughly six dollars for a Diet Coke at the Eiffel Tower or that they can buy a substantial amount of beer for the equivalent of a dollar in China. This week the news that China had devalued its currency the renminbi or (RMB) by two percent was headline financial news and drove market volatility around the world. Two percent is not a lot of anything so why does this matter so much? On the surface, having a strong economy and a strong currency should be the goal of every country. However, in times of economic weakness central governments only have a few leavers to pull to stimulate economic growth.

One of the obvious and favorite methods is to stimulate economic growth to lower interest rates. This has been done in the United States since the financial crisis and numerous other governments around the world have used this play from the economic rescue playbook. One of the other techniques is to have a weak currency. Having a weaker currency gives a country a potentially large economic tailwind because it makes goods that are exported from the country with a weak currency relatively less expensive when exported to a country with a stronger country. To use a beer analogy, Tsingtao beer from China is normally 8 dollars a six pack at the supermarket and Stella Artois from Belgium is also around the same price. If China devalues its currency, the beer distributor can then buy Tsingtao for a discount because the U.S. dollar buys more Chinese RMB and therefore more Tsingtao. The relative price of the Tsingtao is now less than the Stella Artois and consumers will substitute the less expensive good for the more expensive good. It can be broken down to an ECON 101 scenario of supply and demand and consumer preference. If you then multiply this effect by a billions of dollars of exports from China or another country devaluing its currency it becomes impactful.

Officially, most countries profess to maintain a strong currency policy as that is often associated with a strong economy. Zhang Xiaohui, an assistant governor of the central bank of China, was quoted in The New York Times stating that the RMB is a strong currency and there was "no basis for the continued depreciation of the renminbi." The decision to depreciate the RMB was characterized by the Chinese government as a move to make the currency more market-oriented.

The fear by investors is that this is a sign that China is struggling to keep its economy growing. While China's last GDP growth number was 7 percent year-over-year, there have been worries about the Chinese economy slowing and that the actual growth rate was materially lower than what was “officially” reported. Data has been mixed relative to economic growth in China with worries about a property market bubble and economic indicators such as auto sales being very weak.

Our Takeaways for the Week

• Currency devaluation can be positively impactful to economic growth as it creates a tailwind for an export economy
• The signal that the markets took from the Chinese currency devaluation this week was that the growth in China is possibly weaker than the government was officially reporting

Disclosures

Good News First

by Jason Norris, CFAExecutive Vice President of Research

Good News First

The jobs market continues to chug along adding 215,000 jobs in the month of July with upward revisions to June and May of 14,000. While this is a solid pace of gains, it hasn’t been strong enough to push wages higher.

Equity markets, on the other hand, have struggled the last several sessions, despite favorable earnings reports. We have seen the major declines in profits in the energy sector; however, the rest of the economy seems to doing well. With just under 90 percent of companies in the S&P 500 reporting second quarter earnings, year-over-year profit growth could very well be negative 1 percent. While nothing to write home about, the main culprit has been the energy sector. Energy earnings are going to be down close to 60 percent year-over-year. If you back out the energy sector, earnings for the rest of the market will be up 5 percent year-over-year. Healthcare, consumer discretionary and financials have led the way higher. We recommend that investors don’t get caught up in the headline numbers, especially now that one sector is having such a major impact on the overall number.

The price of oil won’t necessarily be helping out the energy sector in the third quarter. With WTI at $44, it is close to its March lows. We moved to an overweight in the energy sector six months ago with the belief that as prices fell, demand would increase and supply would decline. What surprised us was the supply side. While rig count has declined by 60 percent domestically, U.S. supply has been somewhat slow to respond to reduced drilling activity. Nevertheless, U.S. supply has peaked and should decline into the second half of the year. We contrast the ex-growth situation domestically with OPEC, where key producers Saudi Arabia and Iraq have combined to boost cartel volumes by 6 percent so far this year. Aside from flattened production domestically and OPEC’s production growth this year, the key to our call for higher oil prices is stronger than commonly perceived demand growth and production from non-U.S., non-OPEC regions around the world. Despite oil prices that reached $140/barrel in 2008, this key source of global supply has failed to deliver any additional production over the past eight years. Our bet is that if additional volumes weren’t forthcoming in more propitious times, this key source of approximately 54 million barrels/day of supply is likely declining at currently depressed prices. Therefore, it will increasingly help to balance the market. We still believe oil will be closer to $70 then $40 at year-end and are focusing on companies with strong balance sheets to weather this near-term storm.

Only a Matter of Time        

Recent economic data has not been conducive to a September Fed rate hike. While the unemployment rate at 5.3 percent is a positive sign, coupled with weekly jobless claims at historic lows, there is still a lot of slack in the labor market. There are currently over 5 million jobs that are available, which is an all-time high. While this data signals a tight labor market, the unemployment rate figure does not. Also, wages aren’t increasing at a rate that is a threat to inflation. Earlier this week, the Employment Cost Index showed only a 2 percent increase in labor costs, which comprised 2.1 percent in wages and 1.8 percent in benefits. Today’s jobs report confirmed this with hourly wages rising only 2.1 percent.

We believe a Fed rate hike will happen before the end of the year. Given current data trends, whether it is September or December is a toss-up. We have seen and read about indications that the Fed wants to start the process; however, we believe the data is still signaling uncertainty.

Our Takeaways for the Week

• The Fed will raise rates by the end of 2015
• Stocks continue to be weak, which could be seasonal, but we believe that fundamentals are still attractive

Disclosures

Summertime Blues (and Yoo-hoos)

by Ralph Cole, CFA Executive Vice President of Research

Summertime Blues (and Yoo-hoos)

Earnings season is a whirlwind period of companies reporting their most recent quarterly results. We believe that this tends to be a better indicator of what is going on in the than most aggregate economic statistics. Large U.S. corporations touch virtually every corner of the world, and then report back to Wall Street every three months. This real time data has proven to be more reliable than government economic statistics. What do we mean by that?

Let’s take first quarter GDP, for example. When the Bureau of Economic Analysis first reported U.S. GDP growth for the first quarter it was +.2 percent. While not robust, it was at least positive. The next month they updated their estimate, and decided that the U.S. economy actually contracted .7 percent in the first quarter of the year. Then, last month the BEA updated their numbers again and came back with -.2 percent. U.S. GDP is destined to be revised for years to come. As investors we have to rely on what the companies are telling us in order to anticipate the direction of the global economy.

Thus far, what we have learned from second quarter earnings reporting is that the consumer is in good shape, but they are discerning amongst brands and retailers. The oil and gas slowdown is for real and it is hurting not only energy companies, but industrial companies that sell into that market as well. Banks, technology and healthcare have all seen relatively healthy growth here in the U.S.

Globally companies are citing re-acceleration in Europe despite the headlines in Greece. Weakness is evident in commodity-dependent countries such as Canada, Australia, Brazil and Russia. The materials sector has fallen on weak prices, which is especially troublesome for companies with heavy debt loads.

A number of companies and industries have executed very well in this challenging environment. For example, Amazon is starting to show some profitability along with continued growth. Regional banks are reporting strong loan growth and record low default rates. Biotechnology remains a source of strength for the market with both Gilead and Amgen beating estimates. However, earnings season remains challenging because stocks that miss estimates are punished severely.

Our Takeaways for the Week

• U.S. economic statistics are important, but have to be understood in context of other data because they are often revised multiple times and for several years
• In general, companies are managing well through a mixed macroeconomic environment

Disclosures

Earnings In Focus

by Shawn Narancich, CFAExecutive Vice President of Research

More Than Meets the Eye

While US stocks have remained in a trading range through the first third of earnings season, what lingers beneath the surface belies a market near recent highs. Set against a quiet week on the economic news front and at a time when the Greek melodrama is again fading from the headlines, investors put their full attention into discerning the health of corporate America. As measured by the market capitalization of reporting companies, this past week marked the most significant period of the second quarter earnings season. Though a plurality of those delivering numbers are beating bottom line estimates, revenues are coming in much more mixed given continued headwinds from the stronger dollar and weakening growth in China. Indeed, the Red Giant confirmed the latter earlier today by reporting surprisingly week manufacturing numbers that furthered the sell-off in commodities, rallied the dollar, and boosted bonds.

Not Sleepless in Seattle

In an earnings report that bore some resemblance to Google’s expense-driven earnings beat last week, internet commerce mainstay Amazon.com proved that even it can make money when it stops spending so much. Revenue growth has never been the problem for the folks headquartered in the Emerald City and, on that measure, Amazon continues to excel, reporting accelerating revenue growth that beat estimates.  What was somewhat surprising is that Jeff Bezos’s gang allowed some of the top-line largess to the bottom-line, reporting perhaps the most celebrated $92 million profit ever.  Once again, shorts betting against Amazon got hammered, as the stock surged 10 percent on the news in an otherwise down market. Although a resulting net profit margin of 0.4 percent is certainly not what most companies aspire to, it helped create $22 billion of wealth for Amazon’s shareholders today. For our part, we continue to avoid companies trading for 372x estimated earnings.

Not to be outdone by its Seattle neighbor, consumer darling Starbucks also delivered an upside earnings surprise, reporting that its new mobile ordering initiatives are helping drive traffic and boost same-store sales, which surged 7 percent. On the back of healthy top line growth that translated into a 24 percent earnings gain, Starbucks investors were greeted with further gains in the stock.

An Apple Bitten

In contrast to the wealth created by Seattle-based firms this week, Apple ceded some of its prodigious market value on reduced revenue guidance tied to moderating iPhone sales. While 33 percent quarterly sales growth for a company of Apple’s size is nothing short of extraordinary, when you get to be a company with annual sales approaching $230 billion, it’s only natural for investors to question what a company like this can do for an encore. For our part, we continue to view favorably the prospects of this reasonably valued technology titan.

Our Takeaways from the Week

• A heavy week of corporate earnings produced mixed results for investors

• Concerns about a slowing China continue to weigh on commodity prices

Disclosures

Smoke and Mirrors

by Brad Houle, CFA Executive Vice President

Gyrations in the Chinese A-share stock market have been a big topic in the financial press recently. The questions that we are getting from clients all center on what the broader implications might be for the Chinese economy and the impact on Western economies. Bottom line, the Chinese A-share market gyrations are a circus side show that will not have real impact on the actual economy of China or the economies of the U.S. or Western Europe.

In fact, the recent events in the Chinese stock market are an excellent primer on what NOT to do while trying to develop free price capital markets. Currently, the A-share market is more rigged than a game of Three-card Monte and the government in Beijing is determined to build the world’s biggest casino. There has been a dizzying array of strategies employed by the Chinese government to first inflate the value of the market and then attempt to control its inevitable decline. Most investors in the A-share markets are Chinese retail investors. The use of borrowed money or margin was encouraged and the A-share market became the most levered financial market of all time for a short while. Since the market started its downward slide, margin debt has now been restricted. In addition, if you are a greater than 5 percent holder of a stock, you are now not allowed to sell for six months. In addition, 200 companies listed on the Shanghai exchange have suspended trading. This is only a partial list of the heavy handed tactics utilized by the government in an attempt to control the stock market. Capital markets that are free from unnecessary regulation and are as transparent as possible are vital to build trust with global investors. While China has gotten it wrong in the short-term, eventually they will get it right as the country transforms to more of a free market economy.

The Chinese A-share market is a rounding error in international equity indexes and Chinese exposure for our clients is accomplished via exposure to Hong Kong and its stock market’s H-shares, as well as Chinese companies that trade on American exchanges. Unless you are a retail investor in China who is invested in the Chinese A-share market, it is not impactful. What is important, however, is what happens in the Chinese economy.

Chinese GDP was released this week at a 7 percent year-over-year growth rate. It is an old story that global investors look at Chinese economic data with skepticism. If you look deeper at other economic indicators in China, the data suggests that a number much lower than 7 percent GDP is probably closer to the truth. One of our research partners, Cornerstone Macro, points out that as business confidence is at the lowest level in 16 years, electricity consumption is up just 1.8 percent, auto sales are down 40 percent and bank loan demand is lower. As such, Cornerstone theorizes that actual GDP growth is likely closer to 5 percent. China is the number two economy in the world, and what happens with the trajectory of the Chinese economy is impactful to the world economy. Currently, the U.S. and European economies appear to be decoupled from the Chinese economy and are benefiting from lower commodity costs and strong domestic economies.

Our Takeaways for the Week

• The Greek parliament voted to enact reforms agreed upon with the European Union this past Thursday. Once again, the “can” of the Greek Financial Crisis is getting kicked down the road
• The Chinese A-share market is unimportant in the global economy. Performance of the broader economy in China is of vital importance to the world economy and the trajectory of growth or lack of growth is something we are monitoring closely

Disclosures

Patience

by Ralph Cole, CFA Executive Vice President of Research

Patience

It’s been a strange week in “Euroland.” After a resounding “no” vote on the Greek debt bailout referendum last Sunday, it appeared that Greece was on its way out of the Eurozone. Capital markets promptly sold off early in the week.

Today it appears that Greece has delivered a reasonable response. “The program they are presenting is serious and credible,” said French President François Hollande.

We must admit that we have a tad bit of Greek fatigue in recent weeks, but it is clear that Greece is on everyone’s mind these days. The country has presented a 3-year plan, which is better than some of the temporary schemes that have been floating around the past few months. If it is accepted over the weekend, markets should continue to move higher along with yields. The removal of this distraction will allow the ECB to continue focusing on the nascent European recovery.

We continue to have our doubts for the long-term sustainability of Greece within the Eurozone. It doesn’t appear to us that the Greek people are committed to the structural changes that need to take place in order to pay their debts and make their economy more competitive in the future. This will not be the last time we talk about Greece’s debt, economy and leadership.

Roller Coaster

Compounding the volatility induced by Greece was the roller coaster known as the Chinese A-share market. As China tries to open its capital markets, they also must learn how to govern them.  Much like holding water in your hands, the tighter you grip, the more water that slips through your fingers. Confidence in the system is the most important element to a successful exchange. The more China tries to prop up their market the less confidence investors have in their system.

We are more concerned with underlying growth in China’s economy than we are with the volatility in their A-share market. It is clear that China’s growth is slowing and it is nowhere near the 7 percent reported by the Chinese government. Growth around the world is challenged and China’s growth is needed until the stimulus by other countries gets their economies growing.

We will continue to monitor their real economy closely in the coming months. We expect growth to pick up around the world in the second half of the year, but that forecast has come into question in recent weeks.

Our Takeaways for the Week

• Proper investment patience kept prudent investors from overreacting in a week packed with news flow
• Growth in the second half of the year should propel markets modestly higher

Disclosures

Mind the Gap

by Jason Norris, CFAExecutive Vice President of Research

Volatility in the second quarter reigned in both equity and bond markets. Interest rates rose close to half-of-a–percent, resulting in negative returns for bonds. While U.S. equities were volatile, they ended the quarter relatively flat. International markets were roiled in June with China equities moving into bear market territory following a parabolic run and as for Greece…

In the face of this uncertainty, we are still constructive on equities for the back half of 2015. The U.S. economy is slowly improving. Excluding energy, corporate profits should still exhibit high single-digit growth and equities are still relatively inexpensive. Therefore, with the Fed set to raise interest rates later this year, bonds will continue to face a headwind, thus equities warrant an overweight versus fixed income.

While headlines reported a healthy increase of 223,000 new jobs in the month of June, analyst expectations were a bit higher. Also, previous reports were revised lower and the labor participation rate declined, which resulted in a lower unemployment rate of 5.3 percent, which is a seven year low.

One of the major disconnects in the job market is that there are close to 5.4 million job openings currently in the U.S. This is the highest level we’ve seen since January of 2001. We believe this will provide a tailwind throughout 2015 in the labor market.

There are a lot of mixed data in Thursday’s report that can help us assess if it’s too hot, too cold, or just right. Therefore we do believe that our call that the Fed will raise rates later this year has not changed.

Grexit, Greferendum, Grapituation and Gratigue

Frankie Valli sang it best in 1978, “Grease is the word.” After missing a payment to the IMF on June 30, Greece headlines have rattled markets in the last few weeks and that volatility are here to stay with the possibility of a pending referendum on July 5 and a debt payment due to the ECB July 20. The key issue we are focusing on include whether or not the Greek contagion will affect other nations in southern Europe. Whether we have yet to see if the Germans will let the Greeks leave the Eurozone or if they will be “hopelessly devoted.” What has changed since 2010 is that Greek debt is now held by government agencies, such as the IMF and ECB, not banks. In 2010, 140 billion euros of Greek debt was held by global banks, with over 100 billion of that amount being held by European banks. The amount held by banks has dropped by over 100 billion with the European banks, on the hook for less than 20 billion.*

We don’t want to handicap the pending referendum (on whether vote for or against austerity) by the Greek people and current polls show a dead heat. What we do believe is that volatility will continue in July, fueled by Greece and earnings season; however, by year-end this Greek drama will be in the rear-view mirror.

Our Takeaways for the Week

• U.S. economic growth is improving and corporate profits will follow suit
• Greek headlines are just that, more headline risk than fundamental risk to the global markets

*Euro to US Dollar exchange rate was +0.13367 percent at time of publication.

Disclosures

Supreme Summer

by Shawn Narancich, CFAExecutive Vice President of Research

While Chinese stocks endured more losses in a week that now puts the A-Shares Index into correction territory, U.S. investors continue to preside over a range-bound market domestically. With U.S. equity indices near record levels and late quarter news flow reduced to a trickle, all eyes were focused on the U.S. Supreme Court decision this week regarding the legality of federal tax subsidies for states not running their own insurance exchanges. A high court ruling upholding a key tenet of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was greeted with a sigh of relief by investors who own hospital stocks, while sending speculators short names such as HCA Holdings running for cover. While minor tweaks to the ACA are still possible, such as the repeal of the medical device tax, this week’s key ruling all but assures that the key structure of the national healthcare law will remain intact at least until the Obama administration leaves office.

Gathering Pace

As healthcare stocks reacted to the Supreme Court drama, investors with more cyclical leanings received the latest confirmation that moribund first quarter consumption and weak retail sales were transitory. U.S. consumption spending in May rose at the fastest month-to-month rate in nearly six years, and the 0.9 percent surge easily outpaced a smaller increase in consumer income. Indeed, the U.S. consumer has not forgotten how to spend! Coupled with a strong job market confirmed by a surge in May hiring and an upbeat retail sales reported for the same month, we are left to conclude that the U.S. economy has picked up considerable pace from the slight contraction it experienced during the first quarter. Our best guess is that the Federal Reserve will exit zero interest rate policy sometime later this year, and it will most likely be in September.

Greece Ad Nauseum

The melodrama of Greece failed to find a resolution this week, but European stocks seem to have found their footing nonetheless. Regardless of whether ongoing talks with Greece are successful in retaining the country as a solvent member of the Eurozone economy, the European Central Bank (ECB) has demonstrated its commitment to do, as chief Mario Draghi famously observed several year ago, “whatever it takes,” to keep the Eurozone and its currency viable. Exhibit A of this commitment is the ECB’s ongoing program to enhance the European monetary base by purchasing $60 billion of European bonds every month until at least the fall of next year. Exhibit B, key in the latest Greek crisis, is the central bank’s commitment to fund Greek banks with loans to accommodate ongoing deposit flight from these institutions. Our main observation here is that if no acceptable resolution is reached and Greece ends up leaving the common currency, then Europe and its central bank will do what is necessary to keep the region’s banking system and economies liquid, thus preventing any lasting type of contagion from Greece’s exit.

Our Takeaways from the Week

• The U.S. economy is perking up after a slow start to the year
• Global capital markets are unlikely to suffer any lasting repercussions from Greece, regardless of how the melodrama concludes

Multifamily Living Multiplies

by Brad Houle, CFA Executive Vice President

Demand for commercial real estate from investors has been robust for the past few years. In a world of low interest rates, the relative yield advantage of owning commercial real estate is attractive to investors. In addition, trophy commercial properties in gateway cities like New York and San Francisco are seen as a “store-of-value” to foreign investors. When international investors are faced with a volatile home currency or an unstable government, the thought of owning a landmark building in an American city is a relatively prudent investment. As a result, real estate transactions in coastal cities have occurred at price levels that imply a very meager return for the buyer.

While most categories of commercial real estate have performed well, one of the most robust has been apartment buildings. Home prices have rebounded sharply since the Great Recession, particularly in the “cool” cities that millennials prefer to call home. One would think that the millennial generation is the demographic driving new household formation and should be in their prime first-time home buying years. However, a cultural shift has taken place whereby millennials are waiting longer to get married, start families and often prefer to rent for a number of reasons.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, home ownership as a percentage of households has declined nationally from nearly 70 percent in 2004 and 2005 to 63.8 percent in 2015. A one-percentage-point change in home ownership rates equates to 1.3 million households, according to Bloomberg data. Lending requirements for first-time home building have been tightened dramatically since the financial crisis and the 20-percent down payment requirement disqualifies many millennial prospective homebuyers.

Home Ownership as a Percentage of Total Households

 Source: Bloomberg 

According to Bloomberg, apartment construction nationally has been rising since 2009. Apartment construction permits, a leading indicator of multifamily construction, was at an all-time high of 557,000 units in May. Permits last approached this level in June 2008.

Broadly speaking, real estate development moves in cycles. Whether it’s the unsold condos following the 2009 financial crisis or the now ubiquitous “selfie stick,” we have seen firsthand that whatever the hot trend happens to be is, it has the potential to … cool down.

Greekspeak

This week there continued to be directionless news flow regarding the continued debt crisis in Greece. While it is impossible to determine what the outcome may be, one thing is certain: The market has a high level of Greece fatigue. Investors are weary of the issue and it appears that even the correspondents on CNBC are tired of reporting on it. We are closely monitoring the debt of neighboring southern European nations for any sign of contagion and thus far, the crisis does not seem to be spreading. July 20 is now viewed as a critical day, according to Bloomberg, as Greece owes the European Central Bank (ECB) 3.5 billion euros on that day. If there is a failure to pay, this would put Greece on the way to getting the boot by the EU. Interestingly, Greece will possibly delay payment to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) this month with no real consequences as liquidity will not be cut off to Greek banks. Evidently, not paying back the IMF is something akin to not paying back your in-laws with the only consequence being an awkward Thanksgiving dinner. The impact of not paying back the ECB is similar to not paying back the guy you borrowed money from at the racetrack.

In addition, the Federal Open Market Committee minutes were released this week. Parsing every word of the Fed minutes revealed that interest rates may rise in September and December of this year. This quote possibly has been the most over-analyzed and highly anticipated Fed rate hike of all time. Ultimately, this is good news: The Fed thinks the economy is robust enough that they need to tap the brakes to keep it from getting overheated.

Our Takeaways for the Week

• Expect interest rates to make small movements upward in the fall
• The multifamily housing market is robust and is likely to peak this year

Disclosures

Stuck With You

by Ralph Cole, CFA Executive Vice President of Research

Stuck With You

We all know too much of a good thing is no longer a good thing: that has been the case with interest rates in recent years. Coming out of the financial crisis, banks needed lower interest rates so they could repair their battered balance sheets. Short-term rates came down even faster than long-term rates and allowed banks to pay virtually nothing on deposits and make loans at a substantial profit. As long-term rates have come down, banks have had to lower what they charge for loans, thus reducing their profit margins (otherwise known as net interest margins). For the last couple of years, banks have been hoping for higher rates. Thus far this quarter they have received their wish and we can see that regional bank stock prices have responded well.

Source: FactSet

The correlation between U.S. 10-year Treasury yields and the regional bank index has been remarkable. The theory is that as long-term rates rise banks will be able to charge more for the loans than they make. They will also get higher returns on bond investments that they offer. These improved profit margins will help bank earnings. Much like the relationship between oil and gasoline prices at the pump, banks will be slow to raise interest on deposits and much quicker to increase what they charge on loans. We expect rates to continue to move higher throughout the rest of the year.

Every Little Thing Is Going to be Alright

In a year when the Fed is expected to raise interest rates every piece of economic data is parsed and picked apart. This week it was retail sales and consumer comfort. Retail sales were strong, whereas consumer comfort came in weaker than expected … So let’s just step back for a moment.

Employment gains have resumed their 200,000+ trajectory from 2014. Wage growth is finally starting to flow through the economy. Consumers and corporations continue to benefit from generationally low interest rates. We believe the consumer and the economy are on solid footing and that bodes well for whenever the Fed starts raising rates - be it June, September or December. We caution all not to worry too much about the daily economic numbers or the daily movements in the stock market.

 Takeaways for the week:

• Banks are a beneficiary of higher long-term interest rates
• "Main Street" is finally feeling the positive effects of this economic expansion

Disclosures

You're Hired!

by Shawn Narancich, CFAExecutive Vice President of Research

Green Shoots

 A week chocked full of economic insight concluded with a bang, as a strong jobs report for the month of May provided more assurance to investors that a contraction in first quarter GDP is likely to be transitory. The U.S. economy created a net 280,000 nonfarm jobs last month, nearly a third better than what Wall Street was expecting. Good news on the jobs front was widespread among various industries and accompanied by more evidence that wage gains are firming. After being hamstrung by the West Coast ports strike, an exceedingly strong dollar and another harsh conclusion to winter, the U.S. economy now appears to be gathering speed.

In its attempt to determine the right time to begin raising interest rates, the Fed will triangulate today’s bullish job report with additional evidence of gathering momentum in manufacturing released earlier this week, that coming in the form of an ISM report showing that activity has picked up for the first time since last fall. As well, construction spending perked up in April and previous months’ activity was revised upward. Finally, Yellen & Co. would observe that U.S. light vehicle sales posted another strong number in May, rising to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 17.8 million vehicles sold, a 10-year high. The plurality of this week’s data reveals an economy no longer in need of unconventional monetary policy and leads us to believe that the Fed will achieve lift-off from zero interest rate policy this fall, most likely in September.

Raise Rates in 2015 … Mais Non?

As investors were digesting the good news domestically, the International Monetary Fund was busy revising down its estimate of how fast the U.S. economy will grow this year. In an unusual move, Managing Director Christine Lagarde urged the Fed to hold off on raising rates this year, arguing that doing so would lead to an even stronger dollar and threaten the rate of expansion globally. The French may be opinionated, but even her admonition is likely to fall on deaf ears. We have said repeatedly that when the Fed raises rates, it will be for the right reasons, and the data we are beginning to see affirm for us that the U.S. economy is rebounding in the second quarter. Like last year, we see a second quarter reversal carrying through with strength into the second half of 2015.

Markets on the Move

Although the IMF might not be convinced, bond investors have responded in dramatic fashion, selling longer dated issues in mass and sending benchmark U.S. rates to their highest levels of the year. Equities in the financial sector are doing the opposite, rallying in anticipating of higher rates boosting banks’ net interest margins. In anticipation of rising rates, we recently increased our weighting to financials, while further trimming our exposure to a consumer discretionary sector that appears closer to full value.

Our Takeaways from the Week

•  The U.S. economy appears to be perking up, solidifying expectations for Fed action later this year
•  The bond market is responding, with rates rising to their highest levels of the year

Disclosures

Wired and Connected

by Jason Norris, CFAExecutive Vice President of Research

For technology junkies, the Re/code conference in Southern California is one of the highlights of the year. It is a broad mix of public and private companies speaking on innovation today and what the future holds -- from automobiles and wireless to media and culture.

One of the most popular segments of the conference is Mary Meeker’s annual presentation of internet trends. Meeker is a partner at venture firm Kleiner Perkins; however, her thrust into the spotlight came about 20 years ago when she was an internet analyst for Morgan Stanley. The key point to her 190+ page slide deck was that the internet is still in its very early stages and mobile is becoming more of a dominant aspect of the web. While the consumer and businesses have been pushing the internet, there are several other areas of the economy where opportunities are still great. Government, education and healthcare are just a few examples of sectors that have not yet fully leveraged the internet.

As users, traffic, and transactions increase online – security becomes more of a focus. What has been a common news event of late, there are breaches at various institutions that can put both individuals and those entities at risk. The IRS unfortunately is the most recent institution to be significantly impacted. As more people connect to mobile devices, security and encryption are even more essentials. The chart below highlights time spent with digital media on different devices.

Accessing digital media continues to grow at a double-digit rates and the growth is primary coming from mobile. This growth in connectivity globally continues to benefit companies such as Apple, Samsung and Avago.

Increased transactions as well as a growth in private information shared digitally, specifically wirelessly, does increase the need for better security, as well as the opportunity for companies to analyze consumer behavior and offer personalized deals. These trends have resulted in chief information officers (CIOs) to forecast security and analytics spending to continue to increase as a percentage of information technology (IT) spending. Morgan Stanley released a survey earlier this week highlighting a 210 bps increase in the growth of network security spending in 2015 (12.8 percent up from 10.7 percent). To put in perspective, overall IT spending usually grows in the low-to-mid-single digits. Some beneficiaries of this trend would be Cisco, Checkpoint and Palo Alto Networks.

Watch What You Do

As consumer utilize more wireless devices and with the most recent launch of the Apple Watch, some legal issues become a bit fuzzy. In several states, it is against the law to use your wireless handset while driving. What if you are using your watch? This was the case in Quebec earlier this month where a watch owner was fined $120 for operating his watch while driving. As devices become more integrated, especially in cars, safety regulators are going to have a tough time keeping up.

Our Takeaways for the Week

• Mobile is becoming the dominant means of interent access
• Cybersecurity will be a theme for years to come

Disclosures

Changing Liquidity in the Fixed Income Markets

by Brad Houle, CFA Executive Vice President

The bond market is a dealer market with no central exchange. This means that all bond trades are over-the-counter trades whereby market participants trade amongst themselves. By contrast, stocks are traded in a continuous auction market where an investor can get the market price of a stock instantly by seeing where it is trading on the various electronic and physical exchanges. Bond pricing can be more esoteric, particularly for more exotic securities such as some mortgage-backed bonds or high-yield bonds.

The 2008 financial crisis was sparked by speculative mortgage-backed securities which started to fail when homeowners stopped paying their mortgages. Part of the issue was the fact that it was difficult to nearly impossible to value these securities and there was no liquidity for these bonds. The government often regulates in response to the last crisis and this situation is an example of backward looking regulation. As part of the reactive financial market regulation that came out of the financial crisis was that banks are now required to have greater regulatory capital. On the surface this seems like a good idea: banks are required to hold more "safe" assets on their balance sheets like U.S. Treasury bonds to cushion for inevitable bumps in the road. The unintended consequence of this change has made it difficult for large banks to effectively trade fixed income securities. It used to be good business for Wall Street banks to trade bonds with customers. Banks would make a market in bonds and would use their balance sheet to provide liquidity to customers. With onerous capital requirements this business has become difficult and unprofitable for participants. The bond market has gotten much bigger since the financial crisis and much less liquid.

According to the Wall Street Journal, since the 2008 financial crisis the U.S. Corporate bond market has doubled in size to $4.5 trillion dollars. In addition, outstanding U.S. Treasury Bonds trading volumes have fallen 10 percent since 2005 while the size of the market has tripled.

The implication for this change is volatility in the bond market will probably be higher going forward. We have yet to have a real test of bond market liquidity since financial crisis. When interest rates start to climb we will see how resilient the market is when short-term investors in bonds all try to squeeze out the same small door at the same time.

The good news for Ferguson Wellman clients is we largely use individual bonds for clients. This is important because an investor that owns an individual bond can wait out the pricing volatility because at maturity you will get your money back. Participating in panic selling into a volatile or potentially illiquid market is completely voluntary. In the past, we have been able to be opportunistic buyers of bonds sold into illiquid markets. One case in point was the mini-crisis in the municipal bond market when an analyst named Meredith Whitney unwisely used her fifteen minutes of fame on the television program 60 Minutes to incorrectly predict massive defaults in the municipal bond market.

Another silver lining to this potential situation is an advance in technology that could improve liquidity in the fixed income markets. The leading edge of fixed income trading is an electronic bond trading platform that has the potential to revolutionize bond trading. Rather than use a bond dealer intermediary to trade bonds, this platform allows firms like Ferguson Wellman to trade directly with other investment management firms. This concept is in its infancy and Ferguson Wellman is adopting this technology where it can benefit our clients’ portfolios. We are optimistic that wide adoption of this technology can benefit all fixed income investors.

Our Takeaway for the Week

• A lack of liquidity in the bond market may cause volatility in bond prices to be elevated in the future. Owning individual bonds can allow an investor to ride out any potential storms. Also, we think that an eventual broader adoption of electronic bond trading technology will eventually make markets function more smoothly.

Disclosures

Spinning Wheel

by Ralph Cole, CFA Executive Vice President of Research

Spinning Wheel

The strong dollar has been a headwind for S&P earnings so far this year. However, that headwind appears to be dissipating. Having traded at $1.40 less than a year ago, by last month the Euro had plunged to $1.05. The Euro's 25 percent devaluation has been a positive development for European economies. Paired with quantitative easing, this has led to a rally in European equity markets.

As confidence has started to build in the Eurozone, we have seen economic growth starting to accelerate. In fact, first quarter GDP in the Eurozone was 1.6 percent, which compares favorably to the meager .2 percent reported  in the U.S. for the first quarter. This change at the margin, with Euro growth outpacing U.S. growth, has led to a strengthening of the Euro relative to the U.S. dollar. As Shawn Narancich stated in our March 13 blog, "the dollar was due for a break after such a parabolic run." Since mid-March, the Euro has strengthened 8.5 percent relative to its U.S. counterpart. We view this moderation in dollar strength as a positive for U.S. multi-national companies, and we also see it as a healthy indicator for the capital markets. We still believe that the dollar will strengthen against the Euro as the year moves along, but it will be gradual.

Finally

Along with a rally in the Euro, we have seen a rally in interest rates since the end of January. The U.S. 10-year bond yield bottomed at 1.64 percent in January; today it stands at 2.23 percent. Not only have U.S. bond yields risen over that time period, but so have yields in Europe. After bottoming at .08 percent, the German 10-year bund now stands at a .70 percent yield. We have long maintained that higher global yields would result in higher rates here in the U.S. and we believe yields are finally starting to discount expectations of stronger global growth in coming quarters.

 Takeaways for the week:

• The dollar has taken a pause against the Euro, and we view this as healthy for the global economy
• Higher yields are reflecting higher growth prospects in the second half of 2015

Disclosures

Belaboring Labor

by Shawn Narancich, CFAExecutive Vice President of Research

Working for a Living

Investors unnerved by disappointing economic data of late breathed a sigh of relief with the April jobs report, which showed that nonfarm payrolls rebounded to a monthly rate of 223,000 last month. Unemployment dropped again and now stands at 5.4 percent, a rate not too far from the Fed’s definition of the full employment rate of unemployment (somewhere just north of 5 percent.) A “goldilocks” report of sorts that’s neither too hot nor too cold, the April payroll release supports the notion that the Yellen & Co. will likely begin the rate tightening process this fall. As policymakers and investors debate how tight labor markets actually are against a backdrop where the labor force participation rate hovers near its lowest level since the late 1970s, we are increasingly attuned to reported wage rates and the broader employment cost index (ECI). While wage gains remain muted at 2.2 percent in April, the ECI of 2.6 percent released last week demonstrated a notable uptick. When juxtaposed against anecdotal evidence of wage gains at fast food restaurants and retailers, our best guess is that the worm has turned with regard to employment costs this cycle. Because labor accounts for the predominant cost of doing business, the near-zero inflation rates we’ve seen of late appear likely to begin rising. When combined with the recent rebound in oil prices, headline inflation probably rises closer to the Fed’s 2 percent target by year-end.

Spring Forward

In contrast to the encouraging labor report, investors were greeted by a report showing that productivity of the U.S. labor force declined for the second consecutive quarter. While somewhat obscure, the statistic shines a light on the U.S. economy’s weak start to the year. By marrying employment and output statistics, the report tells us that the U.S. economy produced less per each hour worked in the first quarter. The reason productivity is such an important statistic is because when it’s combined with employment costs, it generates what we call unit labor costs. As alluded to above, sustained increases in the cost of labor are a key signpost for inflation, particularly when they translate into rising costs of production on a per unit basis. Just as importantly, unit labor costs determine how profitable companies are and the overall standard of living enjoyed by workers. Another tough winter combined with disruptions from the west coast ports strike put a damper on the U.S. economy in the first quarter, but we believe that an improving labor market, rising disposable incomes, and higher capital spending will engender a rebound of sorts in the second quarter. Commensurately, we would expect productivity to return to positive territory.

Exceeding Expectations

First quarter earnings season is just about finished and, once again, U.S. companies have done a remarkable job of under promising and over delivering.  Compared with expectations of a low single-digit decline in first quarter profits, corporate America is instead delivering earnings that should end up being marginally above levels of a year ago. In particular, while dramatically lower oil prices caused red ink to flow on the income statements of many energy companies, the damage was ameliorated by better downstream refining and marketing results and the quick pace with which oil and gas producers have right-sized their cost structure.

Our Takeaways from the Week

• A solid April employment report bodes well for better economic times ahead
• Another encouraging earnings season is just about finished