Small- and mid-cap stocks (SMID) have underperformed large-caps over the past 12 months, but may be in a better position to generate market-beating returns going forward. SMID companies tend to focus on domestic markets, so their businesses could be less disrupted by the fallout from global events. As well, the prices of SMID stocks generally are lower than the prices of large-caps. As well, there are long stretches in the record books when SMID stocks have outperformed large-caps. That said, SMID stocks can be risky. The standard deviation for monthly returns was 5.7% for SMID stocks over a 2003-2021 test period, versus 4.3% for large-caps. Still, despite the risks, diversified investors look to have exposure to small- and mid-caps based on the long-term performance record.

Badger Meter Inc. offers water meters and related radio and software technologies and services to municipal water utilities. The company also provides flow instrumentation products, including meters, valves, and other sensing instruments to measure and control fluids going through a pipe or pipeline. Its products are in use in over 50 countries. The company is based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and has about 1,800 employees.

At midday, U.S. stocks are treading water as investors seemingly await big earnings news that is due out after the close, with Microsft and Alphabet both reporting. Also keeping a lid on trading is pending news from the Federal Reserve that will come on Wednesday afternoon, though it is deemed almost a certainty that interst rates will not be changed. In intraday news, GM shares are solidly higher after the company easily beat expectatiosn for both sales and revenue. As of this writing, the S&P 500 is essentially unchanged, the Dow is slightly higher, and the Nasdaq and Rusell 2000 are both slightly lower. Crude oil and gold are both up, at about 1.2% and 0.35%, respectively.

Dividend income is often overlooked amid gyrations in the stock market. But dividends are an important element of return. Dividend income accounted for 42% of the total return of the S&P 500 between 1930 and 2012, according to Hartford Funds. And that's just the average. In some of those decades, dividends accounted for more than 50% of total returns and even 100% of returns. More recently, dividends have accounted for a smaller portion of returns, at around 15%-20%. Not all dividends are created equal, though, and it is important to understand the difference between the two main categories: high-yield stocks and dividend-growth stocks. High-yield stocks typically have dividends that pay out in the 5%-8% range. Though the income appears attractive, the share prices of high-yield stocks may be at risk. Dividend-growth stocks typically have lower yields, often in the 1.0%-2.5% range. But the lower-yielding dividends are not likely to be a huge component of cash flow, leaving management teams with other value-additive options for deploying cash. Further, while the yields are not as high, management teams may be more likely to boost the payouts over time, as earnings grow.