March 30, 2022

The Appetizer

“I hope I’m still invited to the wedding…I wish I could take those two points back.”

LeBron James after dunking on his good friend, Kevin Love.

Now, on to the numbers. Drum roll, please …

• 8: The number of rate hikes markets are pricing in between now and December.
• 6.2 mph: The speed limit reduction recommended by the IEA in order to help reduce oil demand.
• $2.4 million: The sales price of a copy of the first Marvel comic book, Marvel Comics No. 1 at an auction last week. The comic cost a dime when it was published in 1939.
• 45 races: The Ferrari F1 team’s win drought before winning the Bahrain Grand Prix to open the 2022 season.
• 195: The cumulative number of years that Netflix users save in a typical day by pressing the “Skip Intro” button.

Dig In
Rise of the Millennials

Millennials, those born between 1981 and 1996, have overtaken Baby Boomers as America’s largest generation. Their preferences and consumption behavior will shape the demand for goods and services for decades to come. That’s why shifting demographics is one of our major themes for investing.

But millennials often get a bad rap. So what if they like avocado toast? Millennials are also tech savvy, highly educated, family focused, and achievement oriented.

There have been several studies asking Are Millennials Different? Here are some observations:

Wealth. Lower income, greater debt, and less wealth for millennials compared to previous generations.

Marital status. Less likely to get married, and tend to marry later if they do. The average millennial man and woman first wed at age 30 and 28, respectively.

Spending. More on housing and food versus previous generations, but little evidence that millennials have different tastes.

Homeownership. 43% of millennials own a home, well below the national average of 65%. But nearly 90% of millennials want to own a home.

Learn more about our major investment themes in our annual outlook (Report | Video | Webinar)

Weekly Specials

The SEC proposed new climate change disclosure rules. Judging by some of the pushback, maybe all 506 pages are necessary. If adopted, the rule could directly impact individuals who buy company stock and corporate bonds.

That guy looks familiar. David Solomon, CEO of Goldman Sachs by day, DJ D-Sol by night, will perform at the Lollapalooza music festival this summer. He plans to donate his earnings from the concert to charity.

A new facility in Britain aims to turn electronic trash into gold. The Royal Mint announced plans to build a facility that can recover nearly 99% of the gold from the circuit boards of old cell phones and laptops. Next up may be copper, silver, and palladium…and hopefully a nice tax break.

Like record players and VHS tapes, landline phones appear to be the next popular trend among nostalgia buffs. Citing their non-scrollable nature, some fans find the retro technology to be the solution for screen fatigue. A 2003 CDC survey revealed more than 90% of respondents had landlines in their homes. Now? Only around 30%.

Corporate Lunch

Berkshire Hathaway dug into its $140 billion war chest and agreed to buy insurance conglomerate Alleghany for $11.6 billion in cash.

Apple is reportedly developing a subscription service where customers would be able to rent iPhones. It’s akin to leasing an iPhone rather than buying it.

Starlink has plans to revolutionize in-flight internet. If you thought people taking off their shoes was foul, just wait until they’re FaceTiming at full volume.

Tesla’s new Gigafactory in Berlin is now operational. Click here to see Elon Musk do his money dance.

Beyond Meat has partnered up with Pepsi with the goal of developing plant-based snacks and beverages. This raises the question, is Pepsi not vegan?

Nike kicked off the first quarter earnings season, beating revenue and earnings expectations. Adobe beat earnings estimates, but provided lower-than-expected guidance.