Equities
In this screener report, we explore opportunities in Japanese Non-TMT equities, El Niño hedges, and US consumer-facing equities.
The economy has shifted into Expansion, earnings growth is broader and stronger than we expected, and we are raising our 2026 S&P 500 target to 8100 on $330 of EPS. However, we are also cutting our year-end multiple to 24.5. From here, returns will need to come from earnings growth, not multiple expansion.
AI is transformative, yet tech stocks may not produce positive returns. Market cycles have not disappeared. Greed and fear will still produce large share price fluctuations. Meanwhile, US inflation is the key near-term risk. Global non-tech capex aspirations also look overstated.
South Africa’s ambitious reform agenda will take time to bear fruit. Meanwhile, the country faces a stagflationary squeeze as inflation rises while growth slows. South African stocks, bonds, and currency are all vulnerable.
We have long argued, on a case-by-case basis, that countries willing to play the superpowers against each other win in a multipolar world. The logic is intuitive, and in this report, we measure it systematically.
The June swoon looks like a rotation and rebalancing-driven air pocket, not a regime break. Economic growth, earnings revisions, and AI-driven capex demand remain firm, but rising yields, inflation concerns, Fed uncertainty, and a looming IPO wave are likely to constrain further multiple expansion. But progress toward a resolution of mid-east tensions, rallying bonds, and falling oil prices, have motivated us to add a tactical long consumer discretionary trade.
