Blog

Special Report on the Energy Industry December 14, 2017

By Steven Vannelli, CFA in Economy, Markets, Portfolio Management

We expect momentum in the energy sector and resource-related currencies to continue into 2018. In this mid-quarter update to investors, we analyze what this means for the market. In summary: Oil prices are testing resistance, and if they can break out, there is significant upside. Oil…

Earnings Don’t Matter! December 06, 2017

By Knowledge Leaders Team in Knowledge Leaders

Our long-time readers are familiar with the work of Professor Baruch Lev of the NYU Stern School of Business, whose research forms the basis for the Knowledge Leaders investment strategy. In his decades-long study of financial records, Lev first discovered a link between a firm’s…

Cash is an Asset Class Again! November 30, 2017

By Steven Vannelli, CFA in Economy, Markets, Portfolio Management

In a US Dollar bull market with interest rates at zero, cash is rightfully dismissed as a non-asset class. But, when the US Dollar is in a bear cycle, things change, irrespective of what US interest rates are. There are a handful of indicators we…

Geopolitics Q&A with Peter Zeihan: Mexico’s New Drug War, North Korea, Russian Expansion November 02, 2017

By Knowledge Leaders Team in Economy, News

We recently met with Geopolitical Strategist Peter Zeihan to discuss three geopolitical shifts for US financial advisors to watch in the coming months. In this Q&A, we discuss: How the Mexican drug war fueled the U.S. opioid crisis; The chances of a pre-emptive strike on…

Keeping a Close Eye On Momentum in the North American Equity Market October 26, 2017

By Steven Vannelli, CFA in Markets

Over the last 20 days, the US equity market is showing early signs of exhaustion, and momentum is beginning to weaken. In the following charts, we’ll highlight the various technical measures we calculate each day to illustrate the early turn in momentum. Our KLSU DM…

Quarterly Strategy Update: Dynamic Undercurrents October 19, 2017

By Knowledge Leaders Team in Economy, Knowledge Leaders, Markets

Since the start of this year, the US Treasury market is signaling a scenario of rising growth expectations and falling inflation expectations, as reflected by the various components that comprise interest rates. In this quarter’s strategy update, Portfolio Manager Steven Vannelli, CFA, explores the following:…

Threats for Small Caps October 11, 2017

By Steven Vannelli, CFA in Economy, Markets

With some exceptions, smaller-cap stocks in the US tend to pay higher taxes than their larger-cap peers. As such, speculation that corporate tax rates may be cut has stoked the performance of US small caps recently. In addition to the concern that tax reform and/or…

Shifting Currents in the US Treasury Market October 03, 2017

By Steven Vannelli, CFA in Markets, Portfolio Management

Employing basic bond math, we can decompose the US Treasury bond into two pieces: real rates and break-even inflation expectations. Because real rates (TIPS) and nominal rates (US Treasuries) are directly observable, break-even inflation is relatively easy to determine. Taking this logic one step further,…

The Impossible Math of the Federal Reserve September 21, 2017

By Steven Vannelli, CFA in Economy

Yesterday the Federal Reserve officially signaled the beginning of its balance sheet run-off. At this point, that’s old news. But, today the Fed released the Z.1 Flow of Funds, which adds to the intrigue of the balance sheet run-off. Why? Instead of getting wrapped up…

Back to the Future: A US Dollar Bear Market? September 08, 2017

By Steven Vannelli, CFA in Economy, Markets, Portfolio Management

This slide package is our Knowledge Leaders Strategy mid-quarter update and can be downloaded at the link below. The discussion is broken into three sections: SECTION 1: History does not support the view that the USD is propped up by a monetary tightening cycle. The…

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Any reference to Index performance does not represent the performance of any investment product offered by Knowledge Leaders Capital, LLC. An investor cannot invest directly in an index. The performance of client account may vary from the Index performance. Index returns shown are not reflective of actual investor performance nor do they reflect fees and expenses applicable to investing.

Companies are selected for “Spotlights” based on high levels of innovation activities in their respective industries and illustrate innovation being employed across all sectors and geographies. Spotlight selection is separate from stock selection by the investment team. Spotlights are not necessarily representative of investment opportunities and can be selected regardless of investment performance or inclusion as a KLC holding.