John Gibson, CFA

I hope all of you are well and made it through tax season in one piece. The wild news cycle in the first quarter (and the first few weeks of the 2nd quarter) has made this a tough market update to get out! Every time I was ready to hit “send” a significant update on the Iran War or Private Credit would cause me to hold back. The month is halfway over, so it is time to get this out whether I like it or not. Market Overview: A Modest and Expected Pullback The S&P 500 finished the first...

The past year was marked by robust S&P 500 earnings growth of around 12-14%. This growth helped propel markets higher for the 3 rd year in a row coming out of the 2022 bear market. However, it wasn't without headwinds. Since 2020, the economy and markets have weathered several ominous events: the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain disruptions, surging inflation, aggressive Fed rate hikes, tariff uncertainties, geopolitical uncertainties, and global war. Is there anything new under the sun?...

We closed the books on the third quarter of 2025, and what a year we’ve had so far. Markets were down sharply to start the year during the “tariff-tantrum” but recovered just as swift as trade tensions eased and market fundamentals came into focus. As of September 30 th , the S&P 500 is up 13.72% and the Nasdaq 100 is up 17.46% year-to-date. Interest rates are lower so far this year, even as the global governments added to deficits and debt. The 10-year Treasury started out the year at 4.5%...