MidSouth Week in Review
June 2, 2023

Weekly Update from Fund Manager Buzz Heidtke, MidSouth Investment Fund

For the week the S&P was up 4.3% and was up 2.9% over the past two days.  The House approved Wednesday for the debt limit package which caused the stock market to go up yesterday and today.  Consumer confidence fell in May as Americans, particularly older ones, became more pessimistic about the labor market, on top of elevated anxiety over inflation.  Home prices fell in March for the second straight month.  Consumer confidence fell in May for the 4^th time in five months.  Wholesale gas fell from 2.76 in May to 2.44.  Home prices rose.  Sources:  Wall Street Journal and New York Times

Retailers – have finally worked through the piles of excess inventory that tripped them up a year ago.  Now, they are facing another problem: slowing demand for apparel and accessories.  Macy’s on Thursday cut its full-year outlook on sales and profits, citing challenges in the economic health of consumers.  More than half of Macy’s shoppers have household incomes of $75,000 or less and they continue to feel pressured – Wall Street Journal

The Rich – Why is it that when you’re married you’re good for nothing, but when you’re getting a divorce your wife will claim you’re worth at least a million or two more than you’ve got.

Ouch! – Elon Musk bought Twitter last year for $44 billion.  The valuation of the company is now only a third of that price – Fidelity

Crazy – In New York, it is now legal to buy marijuana and smoke it in public or bet on sports right from your cellphone.  However if you want to buy wine from a grocery store or a bottle of vodka on Sunday morning for an early Bloody Mary?  Sorry, no, that’s against the law.

Buybacks – U.S. corporations have already bought back $600 billion of their own stock.  Last year, companies completed $1.05 trillion in buybacks – Wall Street Journal

Student Loans – across the United States, 45 million people owe 1.6 trillion for federal student loans, more than Americans owe for any kind of consumer debt other than mortgages – New York Times

Horse Deaths – Seven horse deaths were reported at the Kentucky Derby and 12 horses have been fatally injured at the historic Churchill Downs racetrack in a matter of weeks.  Unfortunately no one knows the cause – New York Times

LA Real Estate – Only two  homes were sold for over $5 million in April vs. 126 in March.  Why?  Starting in April the city added a 5.5% charge on commercial and residential sales above $10 million and 4% on properties above $5 million – Victoria K. Hunt

Births – About 3.66 million babies were born in 2022, which was unchanged from 2021 and 15% below the peak hit in 2007.  For 2022, the U.S. saw only 385,000 more births than deaths.  The replacement rate for births is 2.1 children per woman vs. 1.664 in 2021 – Wall Street Journal

Employer Hiring – Seven months ago corporations projected they would boost hiring by 15% year-over-year.  That number has since dwindled to 4% - Wall Street Journal

Consumer Debt – U.S. consumers now owe $986 billion on their credit card charges, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.  That’s a 17% jump from a year ago and a record high – CBS News

The Elderly Homeless – People over 60 are now the fastest rising group within the homeless population.  A 2019 PBS prediction was that homeless seniors 65 and older would probably triple by 2030 and that was before the Covid-19 pandemic upended the lives of seniors living on their edge of poverty – THE WEEK

Babies – The number of babies born in the U.S. last year was 3.66 million, a 15% decline since 2007.  The economy and social obstacles have been intractable deterrents to having children.  To maintain population levels the average number of babies born over a lifetime must stay at a “replacement rate” of 2.1 children per mother vs. the 2021 rate of 1.66.  On reason for fewer babies is that the teen birth rate has declined 78% from the 1991 peak – Wall Street Journal

Used Cars – The average transaction price slid by 6.4% in the 1Q to $28,381, but is up 44% from the first quarter five years ago.  The share selling for less than $20,000 was 31% vs. 61% five years ago – Edmunds

Existing-Home Prices – dropped 1.7% in April to $388,800.  That’s the biggest annual drop in prices since January 2012.  Existing home sales are down 23% from a year ago – CNN.com

College Enrollment – The college enrollment rate for recent U.S. high-school grads, ages 16 to 24, fell to 62%  last year vs. 66% the previous year and 70% in 2009 – Wall Street Journal

U.S. Drug Deaths – hit a new high last year according to the DCD.  An estimated 110,000 American’s died of overdoses in 2022, more than two-thirds of them from fentanyl or other synthetic opioids – Associated Press

Hole In Ones - https://youtu.be/sa_0LnTpQUA

The Beegees - https://www.instagram.com/reel/CqHbN5tjESl/?igshid=NjZiM2M3MzIxNA==

Young Brazilian Dancer - https://www.instagram.com/reel/CrA4BotuToA/?igshid=NjZiM2M3MzIxNA==

Hungry Kid - https://www.instagram.com/reel/CsB0wYcg38v/?igshid=NjZiM2M3MzIxNA==

Faces - https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cr_fvUrowLU/?igshid=NjZiM2M3MzIxNA==

The material was prepared by MidSouth Investment Management LLC, and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party, nor their affiliates.  This information has been derived from sources believed to be accurate.  Please note – investing involves risk, and past performance is no guarantee of future results.  The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services.  If assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional.  This information should not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice and may not be relied on for the purpose of avoiding any Federal tax penalty.  This is neither a solicitation nor recommendation to purchase or sell any investment or insurance product or service, and should not be relied upon as such.  This material represents an assessment of the market environment at a specific point in time and is not intended to be a forecast of future events, or a guarantee of future results.  Investments will fluctuate and when redeemed may be worth more or less than when originally invested.  All economic and performance data is historical and not indicative of future results.  Market indices discussed are unmanaged.  Investors cannot invest in unmanaged indices.