Recent News

• The S&P 500, reflecting large-cap firms, went up 2.38% in July. The Russell 2000 with its small-cap firms ended the month down 3.61%. 
• The healthcare and real estate sectors were July’s best performers, while energy and financials were its worst. 
• The S&P Growth Index rose 3.79%. The S&P Value Index rose only 0.79%.
• Gold rallied, gaining 2.6% while oil was up slightly with a 0.7% gain. 

Here are some other notable events and trends through July.

Earnings beat historical average fifth time running

Corporate earnings have continued to beat estimates at rates that have become common over the last 15 months. About 85% of companies had higher quarterly earnings than expected, above the 69% historical average and in line with the 83% average of the prior four quarters. Also, results are beating estimates by a very elevated 19% once again, compared to a 5% historical average.

Value proposition remains with investment-grade corporate debt

The theme of July for fixed-income investments is a lower, flatter yield curve, as the basis point difference between short- and long-term Treasurys contracted. Investment-grade corporate debt, however, saw a marginal widening of the spread (the yield differential between Treasurys and investment-grade corporate bonds). High-yield corporate bonds saw a greater widening.

But yields in general remain tight as demand for fixed-income funds remains strong and uncertainty surrounds the COVID-19 delta variant. Looking long term, concerns about the consumer habits of the aging (and wealth-holding) U.S. population and how that could affect a wide swath of sectors may also play into the trend. Compared to other fixed-income alternatives, investment-grade corporate debt in the three- to seven-year duration range continues to provide a good balance between yield and risk.

The thousand-day infrastructure week

A bipartisan deal on infrastructure reached the Senate with $550 billion in new funds for physical infrastructure, broadband and electric vehicles while avoiding new tax impacts, which could spur a wave of municipal spending and new debt for partial cost matching. Next up, expect to see attention turn to additional social and infrastructure spending and several potential “fiscal cliffs” – namely, the national debt ceiling limit and the expiration of pandemic-related programs.

Europe takes a pause and Asian markets falter

Though second-quarter pan-European corporate data has unsurprisingly shown significant year-on-year progress, stock markets across Europe generated little change during July. The U.K. relaxed its pandemic restrictions mid-month, priming August to beat expectations as spending and holiday travel rushes back.

In contrast, emerging markets struggled, especially in Asia-Pacific. Chinese and Hong Kong markets tallied significant losses throughout the month amid concerns about heightened levels of Chinese government intervention in certain sectors. Comments by many Chinese companies – which are mostly scheduled for August – will help provide further details. Nationwide economic restrictions resulting from the delta variant in Indonesia and Malaysia, and in some Australian cities, also caused headwinds.

The bottom line

How the COVID-19 delta variant may affect the economy has yet to be revealed even as hospitalizations increase to record levels in some places. Meanwhile, we continue to see positive economic data and tallied another high-performance quarter through July. In total, even with contrasting performances beneath the surface, July was another strong month.

If you have any questions about your investments, your financial plan, this letter – or anything else – please reach out at your convenience. We remain grateful for our relationship and your continued trust in us.

On a Personal and Helpful Note – Protecting your financial information from identity theft

We take the security of your personal and financial information very seriously. Still, the dangers of identity theft persist. A pleasant telephone voice requesting vital personal information or emails pretending to come from financial institutions you recognize asking for your passwords and PINs are still common, and unnerving, occurrences. Once thieves have enough information, they can do real damage.

While Raymond James and other financial firms employ the most up-to-date safeguards to protect client account numbers and other important profile information, you play a vital role in keeping your information secure. There is much you can do:

• Protect passwords, PINs and answers to any security questions by not sharing them with anyone you don’t want to have access to your accounts. Avoid easily guessed passwords (family members’ names, birthdates, Social Security numbers).
• Keep firewalls and security software up to date, and use encryption software on your laptops.
• Use your personal computer for financial transactions, avoiding public-use computers if at all possible.
• Do not give out vital information over the phone, by email or through in-person requests. Type in the URL of the site you want rather than clicking a link provided in an email.
• Check your financial accounts regularly to ensure no unauthorized activity is taking place. Contact your credit card company or financial account institution immediately if you notice anything suspicious.
• Only click on links or open attachments that you expect and are from sources you know and trust. Even if an email is from someone you know, if it looks suspicious, play it safe and confirm with the sender before opening.

Raymond James devotes considerable resources to keeping your information secure. Using technological and human resources, they:

• Secure access to our building and restrict access to critical areas using security personnel and constant video surveillance, among other measures.
• Employ and constantly upgrade information safeguard software, including firewalls, anti-virus programs and intrusion-detection tools. We monitor our data systems 24/7, looking for signs of any unauthorized activity.
• Use business continuity planning to ensure all data remains secure in the event of a natural disaster or other emergency.
• Maintain connections with other firms to share data security strategies and information.

We hope you find this information helpful in safeguarding your financial and personal information. Enjoy the rest of the summer!