The United States economy is full of innovation. It has to be. Manufacturing industries that dominated the economy decades ago - textiles, televisions, even automobiles to a large degree - have moved overseas, where labor and materials costs are lower. Yet the U.S. economy, even during the pandemic and the current period of high inflation, has expanded to record levels. If U.S. corporations weren't innovating, creating new products (such as vaccines and AI) and services (such as Zoom calls) and moving into new markets, the domestic economy would not be growing, and capital would not be flooding into the country. The current high level of the U.S. dollar relative to currencies around the world attests to the confidence that global investors have in the durable and innovative U.S. economy.

Overnight events in the Middle East notwithstanding, WTI closed yesterday at $82.05/barrel, down slightly and below its recent high on April 5 and April 12 near $88. Crude oil traced out a bearish throwback, as its breakout over the top of the bullish channel that has been in place for about four months failed miserably. Generally, failed breakouts and failed breakdowns lead to decent-sized moves in the other direction. Almost the entire rally from the high $60s was labored and failed to generate much enthusiasm among market participants.

It was another week of all-time highs, with the weekly winning streak for the S&P 500 (SPX) continuing. The SPX has moved higher in 17 out of 21 weeks, with a 27% gain during that period. The Nasdaq 100 (QQQ) and the Nasdaq are also 17 out of 21, soaring 30%. The S&P 400 prints the same story, with a 29% pop. Index price volatility is almost undetectable, although there has been some decent volatility, both up and down, among individual stocks. We saw one day of strong breadth on Wednesday and one weak day on Friday.

We see what we believe are some great opportunities right now in Healthcare -- and we like the sector overall. Argus Director of Research Jim Kelleher, CFA, recently completed his quarterly sector review and raised Healthcare sector to Over-Weight from Market-Weight. The healthcare environment is undergoing rapid transitions, and we now see an unfolding period of significant promise and opportunity. Our newly-favored stance is based on resumption of deferred medical procedures and significant new quality-of-life drugs and treatments. The category is broad and has underperformed the S&P 500 over the past year. The Healthcare sector ETF (XLV) is up 15% over the past year compared to a gain of 31% for the S&P 500. We see opportunity here to pick up some steady companies, with big brands and solid financials. These companies are science-focused and enhance lives. They are innovators. In our list this week, we look across several subsectors within the Healthcare sector and pull out some leaders we like. These stocks also are included in our Focus List and Model Portfolios, as noted below.

Gold and silver have blasted off over the past two days, which just happens to coincide with a decent slide in Treasury yields. What is a bit strange is that the rally was not due to a big break in the U.S. Dollar Index (USD), which has been going sideways over the past few weeks. It is possible that the USD uptrend since late December is over, but we would like to see more technical evidence.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

Stocks rose on Wednesday morning as investors digested new earnings reports and economic data. In December, the U.S. trade deficit was $62.2 billion -- an increase of 0.5%, with exports rising 1.5% to $258.2 billion and imports increasing 1.3% to 320.4 billion. The S&P 500 rose 0.7%, the Dow 0.4% and the Nasdaq was up 0.8%. Crude oil traded above $73 per barrel and gold traded at $2053 per ounce.

Panic on Wednesday turned into euphoria on Thursday, as the major indices dismissed the musings of Fed Chairman Powell and recovered a big part of their prior-day losses. Immediately after the close yesterday, Meta and Amazon reported and were sharply higher -- which suggests there will be more "high-fiving" among bulls today. On the flipside, Apple was off over 2% after reporting. On top of all that, the January employment report hits the tape at 8:30am today.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

Generally, the dollar was stable in 2023, as we expected, with the Real Trade-Weighted U.S. Dollar Index finishing the year about where it started. But it wasn't exactly a quiet year for the greenback, which declined about 5% in the first half as investors anticipated the Fed would move to the sideline by mid-year. When it became evident that the U.S. central bank was still in rate-hike mode in the second half, the dollar reclaimed lost ground and established highs for the year. Then, at year-end (and once the Fed signaled it is likely to cut rates in 2024), the greenback eased back toward current levels. We note that those levels are still 16% higher than the historical average since 2000. Looking ahead, we anticipate a modest downward trend for the greenback in 2024. Indeed, the dollar typically tracks GDP growth trends and we think U.S. economic expansion is poised to slow in coming quarters due to the Fed's rate hikes. In addition, we expect higher rates to increase the interest payments as a percent of GDP from recent lows of 1.5%, putting a modest strain on the U.S. balance sheet; the current rate is 1.8%. Lastly, the still-elevated valuation of the greenback implies that other currencies -- and even gold or other commodities -- are possibly undervalued, and we would expect investors (such as the petrodollar-fueled sovereign wealth funds) to bid up those values at a measured pace over time. For investors, a lower dollar is a positive factor for export companies, as their goods become cheaper in the global marketplace.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

Here is the list of the Top Picks for 2024 from the Argus team of analysts. The team is deeply experienced, as each analyst has spent ,on average, 25 years on Wall Street and 15 years at Argus Research. As such, our analysts are extremely well-versed in our proprietary fundamental six-point system and the sectors they cover. They also have solid relationships with many of the management teams they cover. But they do not operate in a vacuum. An Investment Policy Committee (IPC) comprised of Director of Research Jim Kelleher, CFA; President John Eade; Chief Compliance Officer & Senior Financial Analyst Kevin Heal; and Director of Financial Institutions Research Steve Biggar provide macro outlooks for the economy, interest rates, earnings, and the stock market. The IPC reviews all proposed ratings changes. Our list below is organized by sector.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The largest stock on earth, Apple, fell 3.6% on the first trading day of 2024, dragging the S&P 500 (SPX), NASDAQ, and NASDAQ 100 (QQQ) lower. While it looked ugly until about 3:00, stocks rallied in the final hour, cutting into their intraday losses. The SPX ended 0.6% lower and the seven-day Santa Claus rally (ends January 3 close) is suddenly in jeopardy, but by only a few points.

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.

WTI fell another 1% on Monday, closing at $73.27/barrel and near its November 16 closing low of $73.09. Crude oil is back near its lowest level since early July and has done a round trip from $70 to $95 and back again over the past five months. Oil just can't seem to get going in either direction, as it has traded between $64 and $95 since August 2022.

Sustainable Impact Investing, or ESG investing, is gaining traction not only with Argus Research clients but also with the global investment community. BlackRock CEO Lawrence Fink, who oversees approximately $9 trillion in assets, announced in January 2020 that his firm would be investing in companies that are making progress on sustainability. He doubled down in his January 2021 letter, calling on company managements to disclose their plans for making their businesses "compatible with a net-zero economy" by 2050. As assets have flowed in over the past 40 years, Sustainable Impact Investing has evolved. The discipline, originally known as Socially Responsible Investing, focused at first on excluding companies that conducted business in South Africa, or participated in industries such as tobacco, alcohol, and firearms. Performance of these initial strategies lagged, and the approach has been modified. Now, instead of merely identifying industries to avoid, the discipline promotes "sustainable" business practices across all industries that can have an "impact" on global issues such as climate, hunger, poverty, disease, shelter, and workers' rights.

Sustainable Impact Investing, or ESG investing, is gaining traction not only with Argus Research clients but also with the global investment community. BlackRock CEO Lawrence Fink, who oversees approximately $9 trillion in assets, announced in January 2020 that his firm would be investing in companies that are making progress on sustainability. He doubled down in his January 2021 letter, calling on company managements to disclose their plans for making their businesses "compatible with a net-zero economy" by 2050. As assets have flowed in over the past 40 years, Sustainable Impact Investing has evolved. The discipline, originally known as Socially Responsible Investing, focused at first on excluding companies that conducted business in South Africa, or participated in industries such as tobacco, alcohol, and firearms. Performance of these initial strategies lagged, and the approach has been modified. Now, instead of merely identifying industries to avoid, the discipline promotes "sustainable" business practices across all industries that can have an "impact" on global issues such as climate, hunger, poverty, disease, shelter, and workers' rights.

Equities have sent confusing and contradictory signals throughout a back-and-forth 2023. Since setting year-highs at the end of July, the S&P 500 has mainly moved lower. During various attempted recovery spurts, the one thing that has been consistently lacking has been breadth. A handful of AI superhero stocks cannot carry the market, and narrow recovery tries are doomed to fail, in our view.

The stock market has "snapped out of it" so far in November, if "it" can be described as obsessing over another potential hike in the fed funds rate. A positive (lower-than-expected) October nonfarm payrolls report and the Fed Chair's post-FOMC meeting commentary have convinced the bulk of investors that the Fed is finished raising rates in this cycle.

Innovation may be hard to define. But to borrow from former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart, you know it when you see it. The United States economy is full of innovation. It has to be. Manufacturing industries that dominated the economy decades ago - textiles, televisions, even automobiles to a large degree - have moved overseas, where labor and materials costs are lower. Yet the U.S. economy, even during the pandemic and the current period of high inflation, has expanded to record levels. If U.S. corporations weren't innovating, creating new products (such as vaccines) and services (such as Zoom calls) and moving into new markets and applications, the domestic economy would not be growing, and capital would not be flooding into the country. The current high level of the U.S. dollar relative to currencies around the world attests to the confidence that global investors have in the durable and innovative U.S. economy.

The 10-year Treasury yield rose 83 basis points (bps) on October 16; the five-year yield popped 73 bps; and the two-year rose five bps. Yet to everyone's surprise, the stock market posted some very nice gains that same day. There are times when investors start to ignore (or simply get used to) conditions that have been bothering them for months and start trading stocks on their merits. Still, even with the recent increase, yields have not yet reached recovery highs. With third-quarter earnings season upon us, investors now have something else on which to focus.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The sequence of market tops and bottoms (during an intermediate- to long-term period) and the relationship between assets (positive or negatively correlated) are fascinating for a chartist. As we see it, those considerations should be in the toolbox of any investor. Indeed, so-called Intermarket Analysis was made famous by John Murphy in his 1991 book titled "Intermarket Technical Analysis." Mr. Murphy went as far as to use this analysis to make forecasts about the economy and the business cycle.

We see some possible gems right now in the Healthcare sector. Overall, we have a sector rating of Market-Weight, but this category is broad and has underperformed the S&P 500 year-to-date. The Healthcare ETF (XLV) is down 1.6% year-to-date compared to a gain of 19% for the S&P 500. We see opportunity to pick up some consistently steady companies, with big brands, and solid financials. These companies are science-focused, enhance lives, and are innovators. Some have recently raised guidance, communicating management's confidence. In our list this week, we look across several subsectors within the industry and pull out some leaders that we like.

Treasury bond yields have been rising in recent weeks on concerns about stubbornly high inflation. Meanwhile, corporate bond yields have risen, but not as rapidly as Treasury yields, as investors remain optimistic about the potential for economic and profit growth -- and thus lower default rates. As a consequence, spreads between corporate and Treasury bond yields have narrowed. The spread between AAA-rated corporate bonds and 10-year government bonds in August was 78 basis points (bps), below the 35-year average of 123 bps and down 30 bps from May. The gap between the government 10-year bond yield and a BAA-rated bond (still investment grade) in August was 185 basis points, below the historical average spread of 231 bps and down about 15 bps from the prior month. We watch these spreads closely for a couple of reasons. From an asset-allocation standpoint, tight corporate bond spreads signal that prices are above historical fair value, and we may look to underweight the segment in our model portfolios. From a broad market standpoint, the changes in the spreads offer clues to the bond market's view of corporate financial strength, which appears to be improving given the narrowing spreads. This is important as the economy approaches a period of slower growth.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

Market participants often exhibit something called "recency bias," which is the tendency to overstate the importance of recent experiences or the latest information when contemplating future events. This "memory bias" leads one to believe that recent events give an indication about how future events will unfold. There has been a lot of talk about market seasonals lately, with many worried about August, September, and the first few weeks of October. And yes, historically those periods have featured the worst time of year for the stock market -- using many different timeframes.

Weekly Tee Up: Back to Business

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

Dividend income is often overlooked amid gyrations in the stock market. Thus far in 2023, market bulls are boasting about first-half S&P 500 returns that may top 15%. No one is very focused on the broad market index's 1.6% current yield. 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%. In 2018, dividend payments softened the blow when most market indices declined as the Fed hiked rates. The pattern was repeated in 2022. 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.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

Weekly Tee Up: Jobs Friday

The Federal Reserve's favorite inflation indicator, the PCE Price Index, will be released by the BEA today. The index differs from the better-known Consumer Price Index in that its composition is changed more frequently and is quicker to reflect the impact of real-time pricing fluctuations. In the most-recent report, from March, PCE inflation was reported at 4.2% (the latest CPI report, from April, had inflation at 4.9%). At Argus, we forecast a rate of 4.0% for April PCE. Core PCE, which removes volatile food and energy prices, was 4.6% in the latest month. We expect the Core PCE to dip to 4.5% this month. Inflation appears to have peaked last summer and is continuing to decline, though the rate of decline may slow in the months ahead. We track 21 inflation measures on a monthly basis. On average, they indicate that prices are rising at a 2.5% rate year-over-year, down from 2.8% a month ago and 8.7% nine months ago. The numbers are distorted a bit by a sharp decline in Producer Price Intermediate Goods, which are falling at a 19% rate. Focusing on core inflation (which we obtain by averaging Core CPI, market-based PCE Ex-Food & Energy, the core GDP PCE Price Index, the five-year forward inflation expectation rate and the 10-year TIPs Break-even Interest Rate), our reading is 4.0%, flat month-over-month. That's largely because, sticky prices at the other end of the spectrum, like shelter and transportation remain high (The Sticky Price Core CPI Index reading is currently 6.3%.) Looking ahead, investors are expecting that the Federal Reserve's series of rate hikes ultimately will tame inflation, with the three-year forward expectation rate now down to 2.9% and the five-year forward expectation rate at 2.35%.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

Innovation may be hard to define but, to borrow from former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart, you know it when you see it. The United States economy is full of innovation. It has to be. Manufacturing industries that dominated the economy decades ago - textiles, televisions, even automobiles, to a large degree - have moved overseas, where costs are lower. Yet the U.S. economy is at its largest point in history and still growing. If U.S. corporations weren't innovating, creating new products and services, and moving into new markets and applications, the domestic economy would be contracting, not expanding, and capital would not be flooding into the country. Particularly at this juncture of the market and economic cycles, when uncertainty is high due to high inflation and rising interest rates, we look to innovative companies to successfully navigate the challenges. At Argus, an 88-year-old independent research firm that has innovated a time or two in its long history, we have focused on four types of innovative companies: Industry Disruptors; First to Market; New Product Specialists; and Product & Process Perfectors. Here are some examples of companies, featured in our Innovation Theme Model Portfolio.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

Innovation may be hard to define. But to borrow from former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart, you know it when you see it. The United States economy is full of innovation. It has to be. Manufacturing industries that dominated the economy decades ago - textiles, televisions, even automobiles to a large degree - have moved overseas, where labor and materials costs are lower. Yet the U.S. economy, even during the pandemic and the current period of high inflation, has expanded to record levels. If U.S. corporations weren't innovating, creating new products (such as vaccines) and services (such as Zoom calls) and moving into new markets and applications, the domestic economy would not be growing, and capital would not be flooding into the country. The current high level of the U.S. dollar relative to currencies around the world attests to the confidence that global investors have in the durable and innovative U.S. economy.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

In this edition, global oil inventories face future; feeling the internet's backbone; and initiating coverage of Qualys; and Lithium Americas, Bausch & Lomb and Macy's.

The Federal Reserve's favorite inflation indicator, the PCE Price Index, will be released by the BEA today. The index differs from the better-known Consumer Price Index in that its composition is changed more frequently and is quicker to reflect the impact of real-time pricing fluctuations. In the report from January, PCE inflation was reported at 5.4% (the latest CPI report, from January, had inflation at 6.0%). At Argus, we forecast a rate of 5.4% for the February PCE Price Index. Core PCE, which removes volatile food and energy prices, was 4.7% in the latest month. We expect the Core PCE to remain steady at 4.7% this month. Overall, inflation appears to have peaked during the summer and is on the decline, though the rate of decline may slow. We track 21 inflation measures on a monthly basis. On average, they indicate that prices are rising at a 3.4% rate year-over-year, down from 4.2% a month ago and 8.7% nine months ago. Focusing on core inflation -- which we obtain by averaging Core CPI, market-based PCE Ex-Food & Energy, the core GDP PCE Price Index, the five-year forward inflation expectation rate and the 10-year TIPs Break-even Interest Rate -- our reading is 3.8%, up slightly from 3.7% last month. We note some movement among our components. Producer Prices appear to be cooling, with substantial declines in PPI Intermediate Prices for Processed and Unprocessed Goods. The rate of wage increases also is stable/slowing. But the Sticky Price Index is drifting higher (shelter, food, transportation, etc.). Investors are expecting that the Fed's series of rate hikes ultimately will tame inflation, with the three-year forward expectation rate now down to 2.7% and the five-year forward expectation rate at 2.3%.

The Vickers Top Buyers & Sellers is a daily report that identifies the five companies the largest insider purchase transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions as well as the five companies the largest insider sales transactions based on the dollar value of the transactions.

In this edition, railroads may be in for a bumpy ride; ESG has some opportunities; biotechs innovate; and Constellation Brands, Autodesk, and Tencent.

In this edition, railroads may be in for a bumpy ride; ESG has some opportunities; biotechs innovate; and Constellation Brands, Autodesk, and Tencent.

Argus has published its latest Portfolio Selector, which features its popular Focus List. Each month, Director of Research Jim Kelleher, CFA, surveys the team of Argus Research industry analysts for their timeliest recommendations out of the company's fundamental universe of approximately 500 stocks. The Focus List typically includes 30 stocks: turnover is high, as Jim typically adds three or four new stocks per month. Below are the latest additions, all of which are rated BUY at Argus.

The Portfolio Selector features the Argus Focus List, a group of 30 "best idea" stocks generated and regularly updated by Argus' analysts and investment policy committee. It also includes the director of research’s monthly investment strategy column, stock recommendations and sector picks, economic forecasts, and an asset allocation model. This month, the Focus List additions are Raymond James Financial, Inc. (RJF); Sonoco Products Co. (SON); Arista Networks Inc (ANET); Lilly(Eli) & Co (LLY) and the Focus List deletions are Merck & Co Inc (MRK); Huntington Bancshares, Inc. (HBAN); Quanta Services, Inc. (PWR); HubSpot Inc (HUBS).