Highlights We believe the oil sell-off is overdone and expect the commodity to find a floor in the low $80s. We expect firming global growth to increase the market’s confidence in global oil demand despite weakness in Europe. Energy service stocks are particularly oversold and may be attractive as the services-intensive U.S. energy renaissance continues.…

Highlights: We see the recent increase in volatility as normal within the context of an ongoing bull market. We do not believe the age of the bull market, at more than 5.5 years old, means it should end. We maintain our positive outlook for stocks for the remainder of 2014 and into 2015. Pullback Perspective…

Highlights Earnings season is here and may counteract the negative headlines with another dose of positive fundamental news. We expect the third quarter of 2014 could produce another good earnings season, which we believe may positively impact stocks. While there are some headwinds, Europe in particular, the U.S. economic backdrop is supportive and profit margins…

Highlights: The yield curve has a perfect record in signaling recessions over the past 50 years. One of our “Five Forecasters,” the yield curve tells us that a recession and significant market downturn are likely a ways off. Grading on a Curve (the Yield Curve, That Is) Kids are back in school and have started…

Highlights: Last week we discussed why buying European stocks now, following the recent stimulus announced by the ECB, is very different from buying U.S. stocks during periods of Fed stimulus in recent years. This week we take a deeper dive into the investment opportunity in Europe and evaluate fundamentals, valuations, and technicals. We recommend that…

Highlights Buying stocks after the various QE programs were announced by the Federal Reserve was generally a profitable decision for investors. To answer the question about whether the ECB programs will have the same impact on European stock markets, we point out some key differences between the United States then and Europe now. Next week,…