>>> Four Italian 'good banks' attract three offers

Four Italian 'good banks' attract three offers
Four Italian 'good banks' being sold off following a restructuring in a government-sponsored bailout have attracted three offers, according to Italian-language daily Il Sole 24 Ore. The report cited a statement by the National Resolution Authority, part of the Bank of Italy, that said the offers would now be examined.

The report, without citing sources, said that two of the offers were from private equity firms Apollo and Lonestar. These offers were for all four banks; Banca Marche, Banca Etruria, CariChieti and Carife. The item said that the total value of the bids was EUR 500m - EUR 600m. This valuation was well below the below the target of EUR 1.4bn being sought by the vendors, the report said.

PE firm Apax is believed to have made a separate offer for BAP, the insurance arm of Banca Etruria. The report added that Apollo is being advised by McKinsey and Lone Star by Bain.

Sourced from print copy: page 8


Source Il Sole 24 Ore

Barron's : The Evidence Against a Recession—For Now

The Evidence Against a Recession—For Now

The economy is not crashing, despite the Federal Reserve unconventional stimulus. In fact, a number of metrics suggests 2016 may be better than 2015.

Is the U.S. economy headed for another recession? Of course it is. As soon as one recession ends, the economy is always headed for another. Especially in this cycle, the ultralow interest rates maintained by the Federal Reserve have virtually ensured the buildup of financial excesses that, once corrected, will likely cause a contraction in overall output.

Those were my introductory remarks (repeating my lead in a May 28 Barron’s cover story about the inevitability of market crashes), as part of a panel on the economic outlook at a conference held each July in Las Vegas called “Freedom Fest.” While there is always plenty to be festive about at this four-day event, prognostication sessions are often punctuated with talk of “economic Armageddon”—the very words of one my colleagues on the panel.

Free-market economists who are sensitive to the heavy hand of government tend to err on the side of pessimism. So I began by speaking of the inevitability of recession in order to establish my bona fides in this company. I share the view that the government does far more to destabilize the economy than to stabilize it.

With all that said, however, I outlined my reasons for believing that Armageddon is not about to happen. In fact, economic growth in 2016 could even show a pickup from 2015’s dismal rate.

IRONICALLY, IT MAY BE that the very sluggishness of this expansion—the slowest on record—has been a key reason why excesses have not yet become apparent. In the housing market, for example, it was reported last week that the slow and steady rise in the purchase of existing homes continues, at an annualized rate in June of 5.6 million units—a nine-year high, although way down from the 7.1 million average of 2005, or the 6.5 million average of 2006. And back then, there were fewer households headed by someone 25 and older that might be in the market for a home.


Back then, however, there was also a housing bubble that was about to burst. But while the median price of an existing home rose to $247,700 in June, it was still lower, in today’s dollars, than the July 2006 peak of $275,000.

The stock market has also been remarkably free of irrational exuberance, based on a fairly solid indicator, the dividend yield. The yield on the WisdomTree Dividend Index, which covers the nearly 1,400 companies that pay cash dividends, is at 3%, even though the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond has plunged to 2.3%. Back in July 2007, the yield on the dividend index was 2.9%, against a 30-year T-bond yield of 5.1%. Based on any adjustment in the interest rate, then, stock prices today are at much more conservative levels.

Speaking of interest rates, one fairly reliable indicator of imminent recession is a flat or inverted yield curve. Normally, long-term rates are higher than short-term rates. But when the yield curve goes flat or inverts, short-term rates are equal to or greater than long-term, and a recession generally results. Right now, the difference between the 10-year Treasury note and the three-month Treasury bill is 125 basis points, or 1.25 percentage points, indicating a relatively normal yield curve.

Finally, there is the remarkable performance of new unemployment insurance claims (see chart). Virtually every recession is preceded by an increase in claims from the same month a year earlier. But not only have claims been running at historic lows, they keep falling to ever-lower lows, most recently at 7% below that of the same month a year ago.

On Friday, the Bureau of Economic Analysis will report the first estimate for gross-domestic-product growth in the second quarter. Look for growth at an annualized rate of 3% or greater.

Barron's : Time to Dump Utilities

Time to Dump Utilities

Investors looking for safety and income have driven utility stocks to pricey levels and low yields. The rally may not be quite over yet, but don’t play chicken—it’s time to take profits. Also: U.S. Silica’s smart acquisition.

If a game of chicken sounds like your idea of a good time, then utility stocks might be your sector of choice.

Utilities, typically bought by income- seeking investors for their hefty dividends, have been racing ahead this year. The Utilities Select Sector SPDR exchange-traded fund (ticker: XLU) has gained 20% during the first 145 trading days of 2016, the type of performance you have to go back to 2009 to find. They’ve been driven higher by tumbling bond yields, which make their payouts look more attractive by comparison, and a demand for safety in a world that feels like it’s careening out of control. Safety-seeking investors appear to have found it.

That rally, however, has watered down the very characteristics that have made it the sector of choice for risk-averse investors—the Utilities Select Sector SPDR now yields just 3.1%, the lowest level since the middle of 2008—while valuations look extended. Utilities might not be heading off a cliff just yet, but they’re certainly getting closer to the edge.

On most valuation metrics, utilities look pricier than they’ve been in years. The S&P 500 Utilities Sector has been trading near 19 times 12-month forward operating earnings forecasts, its highest since the early years of the millennium. You have to go back even further, to the mid-1990s, to find a time when the sector traded higher than its current two times price/sales ratio. Of course, those valuation metrics don’t take into account ultralow Treasury yields that have helped buoy utilities—but even accounting for low interest rates, utilities look pricey. Citigroup analyst Praful Mehta looked at the correlation between the utility sector’s valuation and expectations for where the 10-year yield would be in one year, and found that utilities should be trading closer to 18 times 2017 earnings.

But no one’s buying utilities because they’re good value. With interest rates so low around the world—even negative in some cases—utilities have looked like an attractive place to stash cash thanks to their 3%-plus dividend yields. At the same time, concerns about the strength of the global economy, the impact of Brexit, and other macro factors have made utilities—the most defensive of the defensive sectors—a haven in a frightening world.

For that reason, Mehta isn’t ready to urge his clients to sell utilities just yet. While utilities probably won’t continue their strong performance, it would take something like a Federal Reserve rate hike or a stronger global economy to really force investors out of the sector. That “would suggest holding on if you think macro risks are here for a while,” Mehta says, noting that utilities could hang on until December and provide a nice yield in the meantime.

Cumberland Advisors’ chief investment officer, David Kotok, isn’t waiting around for such a clear signal. His firm started buying utilities for his clients starting in 2014—when the Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF, recently $52, was trading below $40 a share. Last week he exited the position. With the difference between short-term interest rates now near its lowest level since the financial crisis in 2008, Kotok says, the fuel for the utilities rally is running out. “We’ve had a marvelous run,” he says. “It’s time to take profits.”

We couldn’t agree more.

WHEN WE RAN THE Barron’s Energy Roundtable in April, Harlan Cherniak, co-head of Americas special situations at KKR’s credit division, touted the prospects of U.S. Silica Holdings (SLCA), which produces the sand used in hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. A central part of his thesis was consolidation in that part of the industry. It now appears that his prediction has come to pass.

Last week, U.S. Silica announced that it would buy NBR Sand from privately held New Birmingham for $210 million in cash and restricted stock. The acquisition wasn’t necessarily cheap, but should still pay dividends for U.S. Silica. These days, oil companies are using more sand to get the same amount of crude out of the ground. That means sand producers don’t need the number of oil rigs in operation to return to their peak levels—some 2,000 at the top of the market—but can still turn a hefty profit at 900 rigs in use, a level Halliburton (HAL), in its earnings call, suggested was a reasonable level in a recovery. U.S. Silica, for its part, expects the acquisition to add 20 cents to 30 cents to earnings per share in 2017.

Don’t expect the industry consolidation to end any time soon. U.S. Silica still has more than $500 million in cash remaining after the deal. At the same ratio of cash to stock it used in the NBR Sand deal, it has about $1 billion in purchasing power remaining. “Those that have a war chest of capital have a number of very attractive acquisitions in their crosshairs,” Cherniak says. U.S. Silica, recently at $36, could continue to rise.

WSJ : Europeans Question if Terrorism Is Becoming a Fact of Life

Europeans Question if Terrorism Is Becoming a Fact of Life

Intelligence collection, monitoring of people with mental-health issues seen as keys to improving safety

First the massacre by truck in Nice, France, then an ax attack on a German train and now a shooting spree in Munich: Over the past 10 days, Western Europe has seen the calm of everyday life shattered by high-profile acts of violence.

The motives and circumstances of each attack were different but the string of violence has officials in the region asking if terrorism is becoming a fact of life that Europe must learn to accept.

The initial assessment by authorities is that Friday’s German attack was committed by Ali David Sonbody, a teenager who was believed to have been in psychiatric care and taken an interest in mass killers including Anders Behring Breivik, the right-wing terrorist who killed 77 people in Norway exactly five years before.

If the assessment holds, the Munich attack would be an exception in a year when Islamic State has either directed or inspired most of the terror attacks in Europe.

U.S. and European officials said they were proceeding cautiously because the assessment could change in the days to come. But security officials said the recent string of attacks in both Europe and America show the importance of improving intelligence collection, and improving services and monitoring of people with mental-health issues.

“We are living in fear whether it is from terrorists or [mentally ill] people,” said a U.S. official in Europe. “Whether they are self-radicalized or mentally ill they can terrorize and change peoples lives. We have two problems here, we have to focus on both.”

European security officials say that better intelligence is far more effective at finding a terror network than lone wolf attackers. There is no way, officials say, to foresee and prevent an attack on undefended targets by someone who isn't known to police or intelligence services.


Hardening the kinds of soft targets struck this month in Europe would require a far greater presence of armed guards, security checks and barriers—steps European officials have so far been reluctant to take.

There is little doubt that the ever-expanding number of threats, not just from jihadist groups but also right wing extremists, have stretched European intelligence agencies and police departments.

Europol, the law enforcement agency of the European Union, this week released a report that noted that last year saw not just a sharp spike in arrests of Islamist radicals, but also an increase in arrests of terrorism suspects tied to ethno-nationalist groups in Europe.

“The general trend is the radicalization of everybody,” said a European security official. “I don’t know how we’re going to stop this.”

U.S. officials say the one thing European intelligence and law-enforcement officials could do quickly is find a mechanism with which to share more intelligence and law enforcement information, and share it more widely.
American officials have been pushing Europe for more intelligence sharing with the U.S.—not simply providing information on terrorists or potential terrorists who are intent on attacking the U.S. but a far broader swath of information.

U.S. officials believe if European officials would share a much greater percentage of information on people they are tracking would allow them to find connections between potentially radicalized individuals or others that pose a threat of conducting mass casualty attacks.

Even attackers who act alone often rely on outside help or contact people about their planned attack.

Some European officials are concerned about depending on American intelligence that many officials believe is overly intrusive.

Jerry Hendrix, a Washington-based security analyst at the Center for a New American Security, said the terror threat in Europe has laid out a stark choice for the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization “if Europe is to avoid this being the new normal.”

“Europe, the EU, or NATO, either have to grow up, and grow together with more investment in intelligence and intelligence sharing amongst the member nations, or they are going to have to go back to an era of hard borders and low immigration,” Mr. Hendrix said.

>>> Hershey : Reportedly Hershey Trust, the controlling shareholder, agrees to g

Hershey (HSY) - Reportedly Hershey Trust, the controlling shareholder, agrees to governance changes - press 

Hershey Trust controls billions of dollars for a nonprofit school and holds a 30% stake in HSY with 81% of the voting rights. 

The Trust has agreed to a settlement with the Pennsylvania AG, agreeing to significant changes to the trust's governance after a probe of allegations about conflicts of interest and excessive compensation on the board. Some board members are expected to step down and a pay cap will be imposed.

>>> Liberty Global owner John Malone signals weakened pound increases prospects

Liberty Global owner John Malone signals weakened pound increases prospects of Vodafone takeover

Liberty Global (Nasdaq:LBTYA) owner John Malone has indicated that the weakened value of sterling following the UK’s Brexit vote increases the chances of the group attempting a takeover of Vodafone (LON:VOD), The Times reported. Malone travelled to London to meet employees of Liberty subsidiary Virgin Media this week; when asked privately at a gala dinner if a deal for Vodafone is more likely in the light of the falling value of the pound he said the weakened British currency “certainly” encouraged him to consider the situation and look at whether anything could be done, the item reported.

Malone last year said the two media and telecoms groups would be a “great fit” and they have already agreed to join forces on a Netherlands-based joint venture, the report noted.

Malone went on to say that Liberty would not necessarily wait to agree a deal with Vodafone and could instead opt to take over the Spanish-owned UK-based telecoms group O2. “Everything” is considered and evaluated, he said.

Vodafone Chief Executive Vittorio Colao stated yesterday, Friday 22 July, that he did not believe the prospects of a deal with Liberty to have been affected by the UK’s vote to leave the European Union, the item reported.

>>> Weekly Update

Weekly Market Update: Markets continue rally on solid data and corporate earnings

Political developments and quarterly earnings were the main focus this week, although incessant speculation surrounding foreign, Central Bank intervention swung investor risk sentiment. Thursday broke a string of record closing highs on the DJIA and S&P500, but by Friday the S&P was back at all-time highs. The Republican Party gathered in Cleveland to officially nominate Donald Trump as their presidential candidate, while in Turkey an attempted coup by the military was put down, adding to the endless turmoil in the Middle East. Crude prices retreated back below $45, marking six weeks of contraction after key benchmarks topped out above $50 in early June. About a fifth of the S&P500 have reported quarterly earnings, with average profits a bit lower y/y and revenue a shade higher. While tech and financials have been generally impressive, consumer discretionary stalwarts have hit a wall, and Starbucks CEO went as far as to cite deteriorating global conditions - terrorism, and Brexit included - as driving a cooling in consumer confidence. After another solid swath of US economic data, US Treasury prices moved marginally higher, but yields largely consolidated just below the recent one-month highs. For the week, the DJIA gained 0.3%, the S&P500 rose 0.6% and the Nasdaq added 1.4%.

Fresh off its big election win last week, the government of Japan PM Abe has been crafting yet another huge stimulus program to revive the domestic economy and slay deflation. Three years of Abenomics, promises of sweeping legislative reform and negative rates have failed to do the job, and this week press reports suggested Abe's people are designing a fiscal package valued up to ¥20-30 trillion ($186-280 billion) - well ahead of the ¥10T discussed in the immediate aftermath of the election, given that some of the government guarantees and other off-budget measures will run into 2017 and beyond. There has been plenty of talk that the Bank of Japan will also pursue additional measures, and Kuroda has repeatedly said the BoJ is prepared to push rates lower, although the most recent speculation has fixated on the possibility the bank might pursue direct financing of government fiscal measures, widely referred to under Bernanke's formulation as "helicopter money." Kuroda strongly pushed back against that idea again this week, reiterating that there is neither the need for or the possibility of helicopter money, having already emphasized several times that the approach would be illegal under Japanese law. The yen pushed out to six-week lows around 107.60 on speculative press reports about helicopter money, but Kuroda's denials pushed USD/JPY back toward the 105 handle on Friday.

Top Chinese planning agency NDRC forecasted China 2016 CPI to be around 2% - well below the 3% official target - and GDP in a range of 6.5-6.8%, compared to the official 6.5-7.0% forecast. The agency warned that China was still facing increasing difficulties in stabilizing growth with investment and the possibility of overheating home prices. Fitch released a report that cautioned measures by policymakers in Beijing to reduce debt-servicing costs were fueling the ongoing credit boom, warning that "risks of asset quality and liquidity shocks to the banking system will continue to grow the longer that total leverage grows." Fitch estimates that total loans to the private sector have almost doubled since the 2008 crisis, reaching 243% of GDP in 2015, likely to rise to 253% by the end of 2016.

An attempt by a faction of the Turkish armed forces to overthrow the government of President Erdogan late last Friday rattled investor sentiment coming into the week. The coup attempt saw violent confrontations in the Turkish capital of Ankara and in Istanbul and produced a sharp reversal in risk assets, but the uprising was contained and the market impact was fairly limited. Erdogan's government has detained thousands of military officers suspected of treason and dismissed tens of thousands of teachers and civil servants in a wide-ranging purge of those believed to be sympathetic to Fethullah Gulen, a US-based cleric and political oppositionist being blamed for the coup. Turkey declared a state of emergency for three months and tensions with the US are rising as the government demands the extradition of Gulen.

The first big batch of post-Brexit European economic data showed minimal impact on the Continent from the UK vote. France and Germany preliminary July Markit composite PMIs beat expectations. Meanwhile, the UK July Markit composite PMI sank into contraction and saw its lowest reading in seven years. The new UK government has gotten to work with minimal snafus, although given his gaffe-filled record the appointment of Boris Johnson as foreign secretary has raised some eyebrows. Prime Minister Teresa May reiterated her government would not invoke Article 50 to leave EU before the end of 2016. Cable remained in a fairly tight range after the volatility of the prior two weeks, with GBP/USD bouncing around between 1.3315 and 1.3065.

The overall tone of the June quarter earnings reports has been lukewarm, with banks and tech showing real pockets of strength and revenue levels seeing very modest growth. Bank of America, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley managed to beat expectations, but all three had some problems in the quarter, with lower ROE levels on falling interest rates. Both GS and MS saw lower y/y revenues. In tech, Microsoft is seeing very strong growth in its cloud business, offsetting the declines in the Windows unit. IBM's revenue and earnings declined less than expected (although IBM's revenue has now fallen for 17 straight quarters). Qualcomm saw very good gains on strong outperformance.

Airlines got hit by problems in Southwest's earnings. Higher fuel prices are looming on the horizon for the industry, and while Southwest's quarterly numbers were good, the firm's outlook for Q3 anticipates fuel costs rising back above $2/gallon for the first time in a while and RASM in contraction. Results from American and United Continental beat expectations, although both firms said RASM levels would be lower in the second half of the year. Germany's Lufthansa also had a mixed earnings report, and predicted weakness in Q3 unit revenues.

Industrial firms Honeywell and General Electric had mixed results. GE reported lower quarterly profits and revenue in its core industrial business, weighed down by its underperforming oil equipment division. Honeywell cut its 2016 sales forecast amid sluggish global growth and lower demand for energy-related products. Meanwhile, General Motors raised its FY outlook and posted record second-quarter earnings, beating analysts' estimates by a wide margin as truck sales increased in North America and its European business managed a small profit.

The Department of Justice sued to block the Anthem-Cigna and Aetna-Humana mega mergers. US Attorney General Lynch warned that US consumers would suffer if the Big Five health insurance names became the Big Three and said her department would vigorously enforce anti-trust laws. Press reports early in the week hinted about the development, forcing shares of all four firms lower, although the confirmation of the DoJ's suit and statements issued by the firms promising to vigorously defend the deals helped the stocks regain all their losses. In other M&A news, after years of takeover speculation and a 70% decline in its stock price over the last half a decade, Joy Global agreed to be acquired by Japan's Komatsu for $28.30/share in cash, in a total deal valued at $3.70 billion. Japan's Softbank reached a deal to acquire UK technology company ARM Holdings for £17/share in a £24B deal, as the Japanese telco conglomerate aims to capture opportunities in the IoT market.

>>> US Close Dow +0.29% S&P +0.46% Nasdaq +0.52% Russell +0.75%


Closing Market Summary: Low Volume Affair Extends Recent Bull Run

The stock market ended an upbeat week on a higher note as the major averages soared to new all-time highs. The broader market maintained its bullish posture as investors examined a hodgepodge of quarterly earnings reports. Other focal points impacting today's trade included strengthening in the dollar, weakness from the oil pit, and key sector leadership from the technology (+0.5%), consumer discretionary (+0.5%), and financial (+0.6%) sectors. The Nasdaq Composite (+0.5%) finished in-line with the S&P 500 (+0.5%) and ahead of the Dow Jones Industrial Average (+0.3%).

Equity indices began the day on a choppy note as participants eyed a relatively flat finish in global bourses. Across the pond, the first batch of post-Brexit regional PMI readings came in on a mixed note as the United Kingdom's July Manufacturing PMI (49.1; last: 52.1) and July Services PMI (47.4; expected last: 52.3) each showed noticeable contractions. On the flipside, eurozone PMI fared better, but July Manufacturing PMI (51.9; last: 52.8) and July Services PMI (52.7; last: 52.8) both declined from their June readings.

The benchmark index slipped during the first hour of trade, finding its bearings after the preliminary reading of U.S. Markit Manufacturing PMI (52.9; last: 51.3) for July came in better than expected. The major averages rallied off their opening low as heavily-weighted industrials (+0.1%) and technology (+0.5%) erased their opening losses. All ten sectors finished in the green as financials (+0.6%), telecom services (+1.3%), and utilities (+1.3%) led the pack. The remaining gainers ended with upticks between 0.1% (industrials) and 0.5% (consumer discretionary).

The financial sector (+0.6%) extended its weekly gain to 0.7%, compared to a gain of 0.6% in the benchmark index. In the group, asset management companies outperformed as they rebounded alongside Bank of New York Mellon (BK 39.19, +0.59). Additionally, Dow component American Express (AXP 64.28, +0.85) outperformed as it rebounded in sympathy with Visa (V 79.91, +1.12). The credit service name beat bottom-line estimates for the quarter and announced an additional $5 billion in share buybacks. Separately, E*TRADE (ETFC 25.81, +0.59) climbed 2.3% as investors responded to a 10.5% increase in revenue year-over-year.

The consumer discretionary space (+0.5%) outperformed as restaurant names gained alongside Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG 442.48, +24.41). The stock rallied 5.8% after reporting better-than-feared quarterly results. Elsewhere, Panera Bread (PNRA 215.54, +5.59) and Buffalo Wild Wings (BWLD 140.77, +6.12) gained 2.7% and 4.6%, respectively. The two names are slated to report earnings next Tuesday. On the flipside, 21st Century Fox (FOXA 27.11, -0.07) underperformed after Fox News CEO Roger Ailes resigned from his position.

In the technology space (+0.5%), Dow component Microsoft (MSFT 56.57, +0.77) outperformed, extending its weekly advance to 5.3%. The high-beta chipmakers ended the day in-line with the broader sector as the group moved higher in sympathy with Advanced Micro (AMD 5.84, +0.62). The stock spiked 11.9% after beating estimates for the quarter and raising its third-quarter outlook. On the flipside, Skyworks (SWKS 64.81, -6.11) underperformed as inventory fears outweighed positive quarterly results.

The heavily-weighted industrial sector (+0.1%) finished above its flat line as rail names and airlines rebounded. Union Pacific (UNP 92.85, +1.92) jumped 2.1% after falling 3.4% yesterday. Dow component General Electric (GE 32.06, -0.53) rounded out the price-weighted index after reporting a 16.0% loss in organic orders. Elsewhere, Honeywell (HON 115.61, -3.05) finished lower by 2.6% after its top line failed to impress investors.

The U.S. Dollar Index (97.36, +0.36) settled higher as the yen, euro, and pound each slipped against the greenback. The dollar/yen pair finished higher by 0.2% (106.07) while the single currency ticked lower by 0.4% against the buck (1.0978). Separately, sterling fell 1.0% against the dollar (1.3098).

The Treasury complex finished on a mixed note with the yield on the 10-yr note rising one basis point to 1.56%.

Today's trading volume was below the recent average as fewer than 733 million shares changed hands on the NYSE floor.

There was no economic data of note released today. Monday's economic calendar will also be empty, but data will pick up later in the week with a Wednesday release of the FOMC's July Policy Statement. 

Week in Review: Stocks Climb to Record(er) Highs

The stock market flirted with its first weekly decline in four weeks, but steady buying interest on Friday helped equities secure yet another round of weekly gains. The S&P 500 added 0.6% while the Nasdaq Composite (+1.4%) outperformed.

Quarterly earnings were in focus throughout the week, but more results will be released in coming weeks with 75.4% of S&P 500 members still due to report their earnings. So far, blended earnings for the second quarter are down 3.6% with energy (-78.2%) and materials (-10.1%) showing the largest blended declines while sectors like telecom services (+6.1%) and consumer discretionary (+8.5%) have shown blended earnings growth.

Next week will feature more quarterly reports, but central banks will be back in the spotlight, starting with a Wednesday policy statement from the Federal Reserve. The Fed will be followed by the Bank of Japan, which will announce the results of its meeting on Friday.

Investors have not shown much concern about the upcoming Fed meeting, considering the fed funds futures market implies just a 2.4% chance of a rate hike being announced on Wednesday. Rate hike expectations for the next two meetings remain subdued while the implied probability of a rate hike in December sits at 47.8%.

  • Russell 2000 +6.8% YTD
  • Dow Jones +6.6% YTD
  • S&P 500 +6.4 YTD
  • Nasdaq Composite +1.9%