The Santa Claus Rally continues…and may continue for 2020

In a quiet, pre-holiday trading week, the major indices continued to move higher on renewed optimism for stronger economic growth in 2020. The Nasdaq (2.18%) outperformed followed by Russell 2000® Index (2.07%), the S&P 500® Index (1.65%) and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (1.14%). The de-escalation of trade wars with the Phase One agreement between the U.S. and China provided this week’s catalyst despite the lack of details on the agreement’s terms. Presidents Trump and Xi spoke on Friday; President Xi stated that the agreement is good for both countries and he looks forward to a formal signing as soon as possible. Some economists doubt that China will be able to meet its commitment to buy $40 billion in agricultural products over the next two years; but China’s top agricultural consultancy stated that China could fulfill, and possibly exceed, its pledge. The major agricultural product of interest, pork, would enable China to rebuild its herds following the devastation caused by the swine flu.

We thought it would be good to share a thought from one of our research providers that usually has a good reading on the markets ahead and some of the research behind his thoughts.

Brian S. Wesbury - Chief Economist
Robert Stein, CFA – Deputy Chief Economist

First Trust Monday Morning Outlook 12/16/2019

S&P 3650, Dow 32500

A year ago, we projected the S&P 500 would hit 3100 at the end of 2019. In spite of the swoon in equities in the fourth quarter of last year, we didn’t see a recession coming and our model for estimating fair value for the stock market was screaming BUY.

At mid-year, seeing the economic and trade-policy stars aligning for further growth, and with our model for equities (more on that below!) still showing room for gains, we lifted our year-end forecast to 3250. At a Friday close of 3169, we were only 2.6% below that level with 16 days to go.

For 2020, we remain bullish. Our call is for the S&P 500 to end the year at 3650, which is about 15% higher than it finished on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrials’ average moving up to 32500.

The first consideration we make when forecasting the stock market is whether we see a near-term recession. This step is important because even if the stock market is undervalued relative to long-term norms, a recession would almost certainly send equities lower in the short term; stocks would go from undervalued to more undervalued.

Needless to say, we don’t see a recession anytime soon. The economy is still adapting to lower tax rates and monetary policy remains loose. In addition, home builders are still generating too few homes given our population growth and scrappage rates, while banks are sitting on ample capital.

The second step, and usually the most important one, is to use our Capitalized Profits Model. The model takes the government’s measure of profits from the GDP reports, divided by interest rates, to measure fair value for stocks. Our traditional measure, using a current 10-year Treasury yield of 1.85% suggests the S&P 500 is grossly undervalued.

However, we think long-term interest rates are headed higher and this change can have a large effect on the model’s assessment of fair value. We anticipate that the 10-year Treasury yield will finish the year at 2.5%. Using 2.5% (instead of 1.85%) suggests an S&P fair value of 3775. In other words, we should finish 2020 with more room for the bull market to keep running.

In addition, it’s important to notice that in recent years operating profits generated by the companies in the S&P 500 have risen much more than the government’s measure of corporate profits that we use in our model. In the prior business cycle, the one that ended in the Great Recession, profits peaked in the second quarter of 2007. Since then, S&P operating profits are up 55% while the GDP measure of profits is up only 31%. This divergence suggests using the GDP measure of profits in our models may be underestimating the fair value of equities.

The biggest risk to our forecast is that someone on the far left wins the White House in 2020 and the Democrats simultaneously get a majority in the US Senate. We think that’s very unlikely. Most likely, the outcome of the election ensures that the tax cuts remain in place without any radical new entitlements or expansions of the entitlements already in place.

Like we said last year, this will probably to be one of the most optimistic forecasts you’ll see, if not the most optimistic one of all. But, in the end, we do best by our readers when we tell them exactly what we think is going to happen, without altering our projections so we can run with the safety of the herd.

Last year we told investors to “grit your teeth” because “those who stay invested in the year ahead should earn substantial rewards.” Our advice remains the same. The bull market is not yet done.

Source: Pacific Global Investment Management Company

Chart reflects price changes, not total return. Because it does not include dividends or splits, it should not be used to benchmark performance of specific investments.

 

Happy Holidays from Fortem Financial!

Fortem Financial
760-206-8500
team@fortemfin.com

 


 

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Brian Amidei, along with Partners Joseph Romano and Brett D'Orlando have also been named *2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 Five Star Wealth Managers!

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The Five Star Wealth Manager award is based on 10 eligibility and evaluation criteria: 1) Credentialed as an investment advisory representative (IAR) or a registered investment advisor; 2) Actively employed as a credentialed professional in the financial services industry for a minimum of five years; 3) Favorable regulatory and complaint history review; 4) Fulfilled their firm review based on internal firm standards; 5) Accepting new clients; 6) One-year client retention rate; 7) Five-year client retention rate; 8) Non-institutionalized discretionary and/or non-discretionary client assets administered; 9) Number of client households served; and 10) Educational and professional designations. The inclusion of a wealth manager on the Five Star Wealth Manager list should not be construed as an endorsement of the wealth manager by Five Star Professional or the magazine. The award methodology does not evaluate the quality of services provided. Additional information about this award is available at: fivestarprofessional.com/2016FiveStarWealthManagerMethodology.pdf
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Data Sources: News items are based on reports from multiple commonly available international news sources (i.e. wire services) and are independently verified when necessary with secondary sources such as government agencies, corporate press releases, or trade organizations. Market Data: Based on reported data in WSJ Market Data Center (indexes); U.S. Treasury (Treasury Yields); U.S. Energy Information Administration/Bloomberg.com Market Data (oil spot price, WTI Cushing, OK); www.goldprice.org (spot gold/silver); Oanda/FX Street (currency exchange rates). All information is based on sources deemed reliable, but no warranty or guarantee is made as to its accuracy or completeness.

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The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) is a price-weighted index composed of 30 widely traded blue-chip U.S. common stocks. The S&P 500 is a market-cap weighted index composed of the common stocks of 500 leading companies in leading industries of the U.S. economy. The NASDAQ Composite Index is a market-value weighted index of all common stocks listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange. The Russell 2000 is a market-cap weighed index composed of 2,000 U.S. small-cap common stocks. The Global Dow is an equally weighted index of 150 widely traded blue-chip common stocks worldwide. Market indices listed are unmanaged and are not available for direct investment.

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