Investor Conferences Take Center Stage as Earnings Season Exits the Scene
It has been more of the same through the first half of the first quarter. Mega-cap tech leads while small caps and the cyclical and defensive niches of the global equity market lag. The broadening-out theme from late 2023 has petered out, leaving the bears quick to suggest that fewer bullish stocks might not be a good thing as we progress through a historically dicey calendar stretch from mid-February through mid-March.
Too much of a good thing?
Still, earnings have come in well, and a second consecutive quarter of year-on-year EPS growth appears likely, according to the latest numbers from Factset.[1] Thus, it's not surprising that the S&P 500 rallied to all-time highs earlier this month before that hot CPI print for January spooked Wall Street.
The bulls still have in their back pockets robust economic data trends - the Citigroup Economic Surprise Index has taken off since the start of the year.[2] Normally that would be a boon to small-sized domestic companies and stocks in economically sensitive sectors, but robust data continues to push out the first expected Fed rate cut, viewed bearishly by investors. All eyes will be on upcoming PCE data while ears will be tuned to Fed Speak before the March 20 FOMC gathering.
2024's emerging risks and opportunities
Big picture, interest rates have been back on the rise while oil prices have quietly rallied toward fresh three-month highs, perhaps putting pressure on cyclical companies. Meanwhile, AI's awe feels stronger than ever after a lull in the second half of 2023 as a few cracks in the consumer appear.
But with ebbing corporate bankruptcies, rising dividends, tight credit spreads, and high demand for corporate bond issuance, there appear to be some tailwinds in play heading into springtime.[3]
Conferences in the Spotlight
While these macroeconomic trends are important, sector and industry-level details are often discovered at corporate conferences. In this mid-quarter update, we aim to provide investors with a schedule of the major events that could impact markets.
Information Technology & Communication Services February 27: Wolfe Research March Madness Software ConferenceMarch 4: JMP Securities Technology ConferenceMarch 4: Morgan Stanley Technology, Media, and Telecom (TMT) ConferenceMarch 8: SXSW Conference & FestivalsMarch 11: Deutsche Bank 32nd Annual Media, Internet & Telecom ConferenceMarch 12: UBS Tech Media & Internet ConferenceMarch 12: Citi TMT ConferenceMarch 14: Bank of America Securities Information and Business Services ConferenceMarch 19: NVIDIA GTC Financial Analyst Q&A (virtual)
Health Care February 26: Morgan Stanley European Medtech & Life Sciences ConferenceFebruary 28: Citi Healthcare Services, Medtech, Tools & HCIT ConferenceMarch 3: TD Cowen 44th Annual Healthcare ConferenceMarch 5: Carnegie Healthcare ConferenceMarch 12: Barclays Global Healthcare ConferenceMarch 12: Oppenheimer 34th Annual Healthcare Conference (virtual)March 19: KeyBanc Capital Markets Life Sciences & MedTech Investor Forum (virtual)March 20: BMO BioPharma Spotlight Series: Obesity Day (virtual)
Consumer Discretionary & Consumer Staples March 11: Barclays Leisure and Transport ConferenceMarch 11: Bank of America Business Service, Leisure, and Transport ConferenceMarch 13: UBS Annual Global Consumer and Retail ConferenceMarch 13: BNP Paribas Consumer Ingredients ConferenceMarch 14: JP Morgan Gaming, Lodging, Restaurant and Leisure Management Access ForumMarch 26: Bank of America Securities Automotive Summit
Financials & Real Estate February 26: UBS Financial Services ConferenceFebruary 28: Citi FinTech ConferenceFebruary 28: Wolfe Research Real Estate Conference (virtual)March 4: Citi Global Real Estate Property CEO ConferenceMarch 5: RBC Capital Markets Global Financial Institutions ConferenceMarch 12: Morgan Stanley European Financials Conference
Industrials March 5: Evercore ISI Industrials ConferenceMarch 5: Morgan Stanley Paris Industrials DayMarch 12: JP Morgan Industrials ConferenceMarch 18: HSBC Future Transport Week (virtual)March 19: Bank of America Global Industrials ConferenceMarch 26: TD Industrials Conference
Energy & Utilities February 28: Scotiabank 52nd Annual Energy & Power ConferenceMarch 4: Morgan Stanley Global Energy & Power ConferenceMarch 4: Bank of America Power, Utilities & Clean Energy ConferenceMarch 12: Wall Street Green SummitMarch 18: CERA WeekMarch 18: Piper Sandler 24th Annual Energy ConferenceMarch 20: UBS Global Energy Transition ConferenceMarch 26: Wells Fargo 2nd Annual Clean Energy Symposium
Materials February 25: BMO 32nd Global Metals, Mining & Critical Minerals ConferenceFebruary 28: Bank of America Global Agriculture and Materials ConferenceMarch 7: Jefferies Paper and Packaging SummitMarch 12: NYSE Investor Access: Materials Day (virtual)
Regional February 26: Morgan Stanley European Medtech & Life Sciences ConferenceFebruary 27: UBS European Healthcare ConferenceMarch 4: Goldman Sachs Latin America ConferenceMarch 4: Berenberg EU Opportunities ConferenceMarch 12: JP Morgan Pan-European Small/Mid-Cap CEO ConferenceMarch 18: Bank of America Asia Pacific APAC Telecom, Media & Technology TMT ConferenceMarch 19: Jefferies 5th Asia Forum
Investor Specific & Multi-SectorFebruary 26: JP Morgan Global EM ConferenceFebruary 26: JP Morgan Global High Yield & Leveraged Finance ConferenceFebruary 29: Morgan Stanley Titans of Capital Landmark MENA EventMarch 3: Raymond James & Associates 45th Annual Institutional Investors ConferenceMarch 5: Nasdaq Investor ConferenceMarch 13: Sidoti March Small Cap Conference (virtual)
1 Earnings Insight, FactSet, John Butters, February 16, 2024, https://advantage.factset.com?2 Earnings Insight, FactSet, John Butters, February 16, 2024, https://advantage.factset.com3 US bankruptcies hit 13-year peak in 2023; 50 new filings in December, S&P Global, Ingrid LexovaUmer Khan, January 9, 2024, https://www.spglobal.com?
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