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Gold Shines Brighter Than Ever | Weekly Market Commentary | March 11, 2024

Gold Shines Brighter Than Ever | Weekly Market Commentary | March 11, 2024

Bullion broke new ground last week after rallying to a record high. Growing investor confidence for a Federal Reserve (Fed) rate cut by this summer dragged down yields and the dollar, creating a tailwind for gold. The breakout above key resistance at $2,075 was also a major technical development, confirmed by bullish momentum that suggests the rally could continue. Global central bank demand has been another key catalyst and has shown no sign of slowing down, while a rebound in demand from gold-related exchange-traded funds (ETFs) could provide additional support for the yellow metal.

Super Six Drives Solid Earnings Season | Weekly Market Commentary | March 4, 2024

Super Six Drives Solid Earnings Season | Weekly Market Commentary | March 4, 2024

After a slow start mired by messy bank results early on, corporate America picked up the pace and ended up delivering results well ahead of expectations. The “Super Six” was part of the story — the Magnificent Seven minus Tesla (TSLA) — but resilient profit margins are also noteworthy. Here we review fourth quarter earnings season and share some thoughts on the earnings outlook for 2024.

Buybacks Are Back | Weekly Market Commentary | February 26, 2024

Buybacks Are Back | Weekly Market Commentary | February 26, 2024

After a brief lull in 2023, buyback activity appears to be back this year. A resilient U.S. economy, easing inflation pressures, and expectations for an eventual shift to interest rate cuts have given corporate America confidence to boost authorized share repurchases. These companies have a history of outperforming the broader market and tend to have more exposure to momentum, value, and growth factors. While buybacks also reduce share count and help support earnings growth and valuations, they can also help limit downside volatility during periods of selling pressure.

Treasuries: Who’s Buying and Why It Matters | Weekly Market Commentary | February 20, 2024

Treasuries: Who’s Buying and Why It Matters | Weekly Market Commentary | February 20, 2024

As the Federal Reserve (Fed) continues with its Quantitative Tightening (QT) program, questions abound regarding the Treasury Department’s expanding funding needs. The QT program is designed to reduce the Fed’s balance sheet — now $7.7 billion down from $9 billion — after Treasury notes (mostly) were bought after economic concerns intensified during the COVID-19-related pandemic. Households and, perhaps surprisingly, foreign investors have been buyers recently, and with the amount of Treasury supply coming to market, both will need to keep buying.

Outlook For U.S. Economy Continues To Brighten | Weekly Market Commentary | February 12, 2024

Outlook For U.S. Economy Continues To Brighten | Weekly Market Commentary | February 12, 2024

When we wrote the annual outlook last November, the data was mixed. Some metrics hinted at emerging cracks in the economy while others suggested the growth trajectory in capital markets and the economy had legs. So, the variety of the data produced the narrative that business activity in the New Year would grow on an annual basis but experience some bumps in the first half of the year. Now, enter the revisions.

Will The January Barometer Come Through? | Weekly Market Commentary | February 5, 2024

Will The January Barometer Come Through? | Weekly Market Commentary | February 5, 2024

Yale Hirsch, creator of the “Stock Trader’s Almanac”, first discovered this seasonal pattern back in 1972, which he called the January Barometer and coined its popular tagline of ‘As goes January, so goes this year.’ Here, we assess the likelihood that this popular stock market adage delivers more gains for investors this year. The weight of the evidence leans toward yes, as we explain.

Will Shipping Disruptions Alter Fed Plans? | Weekly Market Commentary | January 22, 2024

Will Shipping Disruptions Alter Fed Plans? | Weekly Market Commentary | January 22, 2024

Shipping disruptions in the Red Sea could temporarily impact goods prices but not at the same magnitude as during the pandemic. Tight financial conditions, slowing economic growth, and a disinflationary trend all support the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) pivot away from tightening monetary policy to easing in the new year. Despite these longer term trends, rates possibly got ahead of themselves in recent weeks, exhibiting higher volatility.

China 2024 Faces Demanding Challenges | Weekly Market Commentary | January 8, 2024

China 2024 Faces Demanding Challenges | Weekly Market Commentary | January 8, 2024

There were numerous reports suggesting the world’s second largest economy would ignite a bout of inflation as its industrial base would require vast quantities of commodities to power a newly energized China. Clearly that didn’t happen. Here we explore why and provide our updated thoughts on investing in China and emerging markets.

Lessons Learned In 2023 | Weekly Market Commentary | January 2, 2023

Lessons Learned In 2023 | Weekly Market Commentary | January 2, 2023

LPL Research had some wins and some losses as the market delivered its usual dose of humility to us and many market participants. In an effort to maintain accountability and learn from our mistakes (and hopefully not repeat them), we are starting the new year with our traditional lessons learned commentary.

Key Equity Themes For 2024 | Weekly Market Commentary | December 18, 2023

Key Equity Themes For 2024 | Weekly Market Commentary | December 18, 2023

Low and stable interest rates should help support stock valuations, while corporate profits are moving into a sweet spot. So even though stocks look fully valued, if rates ease as we expect, we could see upside to our year-end 2024 fair-value target range of 4,850 to 4,950. We highlight some key themes for stocks next year.

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The Secret Key: Lessons of the Masters

An Insider’s Guide To Wealth Management In A Rapidly Changing World

The purpose of this report, The Secret Key: Lessons from the Masters, is to introduce to you the Master’s Key to help preserve, invest, grow, and enjoy your wealth in this “New Normal” world.