Fall 2024 Investment Commentary

U.S. equity markets saw broad gains in Q3, with all major indices posting positive returns. Notably, market leadership, which had been concentrated in large-cap tech, broadened as other sectors and asset classes joined the fun. This is reflected in the impressive performance of the equal-weighted S&P 500, up 9.1% for the quarter, surpassing the market-cap weighted S&P 500’s gain of 5.53%. Small cap companies also advanced, with the Russell 2000 rising 8.9%. The top-performing industries included asset managers, utilities, building products, REITs, property and casualty insurers, credit cards, and cruise lines. On the flip side, energy, semiconductors, software, money-center banks, department stores, steel, and autos lagged behind.