According to a recent article in The Wall Street Journal, JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon had some harsh words regarding the proxy voting duopoly of Glass Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services.  These two organizations, with an estimated 90% market share, provide recommendations to asset managers on how to vote their shares on proxy ballots.  Mr. Dimon’s … Continued

Week of March 17, 2025 Equity market indexes have approached, or broached, correction territory.  After back-to-back years of double-digit gains, this is not unusual.  Pundits are forced to attribute equity market weakness to some concurrent force, but the reality is that market psychology shifts often and the reasons are seldom clear.  The long-term outlook, led … Continued

American businesses and consumers have demonstrated an ability to adjust to changes in administrations and policies.  However, in order to do that, some clarity is important.  Obviously, it is difficult, if not impossible, to formulate strategies in a universe of rapidly moving targets. Understanding what the rules are is essential for investors when making decisions … Continued

Week of March 10, 2025 This past week, the news cycle has centered on Musk‘s DOGE initiatives and the potential crises they might spark. Much of the debate questions whether his cost cutting measures are both legal and necessary. Meanwhile, the ongoing U.S. federal fiscal deficit and debt impasse can be construed as a critical … Continued

This is generally viewed as an acronym for, keep it simple stupid.  This concept represents a significant challenge to managements, who seek to optimize revenues, sometimes by attempting to offer everything to everyone, while maintaining an efficient business model.  Two opposite approaches are reflected by a comment attributed to Henry Ford, “Any color the customer … Continued

Week of March 3, 2025 Deepseek-R1, a Chinese AI model that allegedly has comparable performance to existing AI models at a fraction of the cost (in dollars AND electricity), was released a little over one month ago. Despite Deepseek’s success, US tech companies continue to invest billions in AI infrastructure. Why? Because as AI progresses … Continued

We are almost certain to continue to suffer from major natural disasters such as fires, floods and a variety of windstorms, including hurricanes and tornadoes. Politically driven debates over the causes and expensive proposals that are unproven may, in the end, do little to alter the course of these natural phenomena.  Investors should recognize that … Continued

Week of February 24, 2025 In the 1980’s, Ronald Reagan mid-wifed “Supply Side Economics”, a theory espoused by Art Laffer. The concept suggested that, unlike Keynesian “demand side” economic policy, government policy to stimulate the production of goods and services via tax reduction/reduced regulation, would unleash said results.  It clearly worked as the late 1980s … Continued

Some of us are labor, some of us are managers, some of us are professionals and some of us are homeless, but all of us are consumers. Any time one segment of society gains a special advantage, all of us pay.  The consumer, in a consumer driven economy, is king.  Smart managements understand this. Smart … Continued

Week of February 17, 2025 We’ve taken several calls in the past few days from clients concerned about the Trump administration’s myriad policy changes. The concerns focus on the potential for economic instability. Democratic party leaders have suggested a “constitutional crisis” is in the offing. However, this does not jibe with capital markets where broad … Continued

Week of February 10, 2025 In our February 3, 2025 Sigma Signals, we noted that the European Union was taking action to spur economic growth on the continent. On Friday, the Wall Street Journal posted a headline reading “Europe is Looking to Roll Back Climate Accounting Rules” lending further evidence that Europe recognizes the disproportionate damage … Continued