MidSouth Week in Review
September 18, 2020

The S&P 500 was down 1.3% for the week.  The Nasdaq, since September 2, is down 10.4% led primarily by the FANG (Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, Google) + Apple stocks which are down 16.5%.  Bank of America said the Small Cap Russell 1000 Value index is currently on pace to outperform the Small Cap Russell Growth index by 10% for the month of September. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve signaled interest rates will continue near 0% through at least 2023 to help support the economic recovery.  Crude prices advanced around 10% this week as hurricane season continues to limit the supply from the Gulf of Mexico.  Have a great weekend!  Sources:  Wall Street Journal and New York Times

BuzzBits

Fall – was common in British English until the 17^th century when autumn, from French, took over.  Fall is short for “fall of the leaf,” just as spring is short for “spring of the leaf.” – Wall Street Journal

2020 – has included:  the fastest bear market, the highest percentage of down days, the fastest bull market, the shortest bull market, the highest percentage of up days, the best five month gain and the fastest correction –

Friday Wisdom – “He is richest who is content with the least, for content is the wealth of value.” – Socrates, Greek philosopher

Equity Returns – from 1928 to 2019: Large-cap 9.9%, Large-cap Value 11.1%, Small-cap Blended 12.0%, Small-cap Value 13.2%, S&P 500 9.9% - Dimensional Fund Advisors

Youth Math Training – One way to teach children modern math is to short them on their allowance.  It’s amazing how much even a slow one can learn in a short period of time – Buzz

Snowflake – The Data Storage Company went public Wednesday at $120, before surging to $319 and falling back to $215.  The company lost $171 million for the year ending July 31, on revenues of $349 million.  The current valuation is $70 billion.  Ouch! – Buzz

Opportunity Zones – which went into effect in 2018, identified 8,700 low income communities in the U.S. and offered significant tax breaks.  If an investment is held for five years, the cost basis is raised by 10%, after seven years it is raised by 15% and if it is held for 10 years, the tax obligation is wiped out – Barron’s

Stock Options Buyers – A record 62% of recent buyers were people buying 10 contracts or less and nearly all were inexperienced traders – Sundial Capital Research ….. “I have been in the brokerage business for 52 years and I have never seen anyone make money in the long term buying stock options” – Buzz

Restaurants – Nearly 100,000 have closed in six months (one in six) and nearly 3 million employees are still out of work.  Consumer spending at restaurants was down 34% in August – Consumer Affairs

The Oscars – In 2015, the Oscars announced a set of 20 all-white nominees.  Not today, when at least 30% of the cast must be actors from at least two of four underrepresented categories:  Women, L.G.T.B.Q., a racial or ethnic group or the disabled -  New York Times

Social Security Insolvency – and lower benefits could arrive sooner than expected.  The Social Security Trust Fund will begin sustaining annual deficits by next year and vanish by 2031 – Congressional Budget Office ….. Government auditors estimate that Medicare Part A, the program that pays out hospital status and certain other care, will go bust in FY 2024, triggering a 17% benefit cut – The Kiplinger Letter

Wow! – The Atlanta Braves scored 29 runs in eight innings in a 29 to 9 romp over the Marlins, a National League record – New York Times ….. Thursday, the Yankees tied a major league record by hitting five home runs in one inning.

1970 vs. 2019 – Top marginal tax rate was 72% vs. 37%, number of millionaires 120,000 vs. 18.6 million, CEO compensation vs. typical workers compensation 24 to 1 vs. 320 to 1 – New York Times

Ouch! – Fewer than 10% of New York City office workers had returned to work last week and just 25% say they will bring their people back by year-end and only 54% by July 2021.  New York City has more office space than London and San Francisco combined – Cushman & Wakefield

Chicago Homicides – have increased 52% vs. last year, which were 95% of people with color.  7,400 guns have been recovered and 55 police officers have been shot at and 10 have been shot – USA TODAY

The Greatest Dancing Dog - https://www.bitchute.com/video/5wl5NWGtDqLX/

buzz@msifund.com

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