JHMU News and Press, John Hancock Multifactor Utilities From 05/23/22

Our rising price problem is, more than anything, a supply problem, and reducing demand is certainly one way to tackle it. But returning to the pre-COVID growth rate doesn’t mean we are headed to recession, that contraction is in our immediate future. US stocks and REITs wer...

UGI currently offers a 3.5% forward yield, which is a historically very appealing starting yield. With the recent 4.3% dividend hike, the company now boasts 35 consecutive years of dividend hikes and maintains a 50% payout ratio on a FCF basis. Short-term volatility in inflation, ...

We're seeing declining asset prices from bond to equities, and in some cases, real assets because of higher inflation. We are seeing early signs that inflation is starting to moderate. Equity market is currently pricing in the probability of a mild recession. For further det...

Eversource Energy reported very solid Q1 results that showed the earnings per share growth that we have come to expect from this company. This EPS growth was probably caused by the company's rate base being significantly higher than it was in Q1 2021. The company intends to contin...

Healthcare, Staples, and Utilities continue to outperform as selling intensifies in the growth style. Investor positioning is still light in the space – even after a year of alpha. While absolute valuations have turned somewhat pricey, the defensive supersector shows decent...

Typically, we look at net new highs as a way to confirm moves in the broader market. At the high last Wednesday, over 90% of S&P 500’s new highs came from defensive sectors. In other words, defensives have been a notable pocket of strength recently. For further de...

The broader equity categories turned in negative results in Q1. U.S. large-cap stocks, as measured by the S&P 500 Index, held up the best at a decline of 4.6%. Bonds performed worse than many of the equity categories, despite typically being viewed as a safe haven investment. In t...

Does the yield curve inversion cause a recession or does it just provide a signal? Is the inversion only about expected future monetary policy? Do other factors also influence the shape of the curve, and if so, can we disentangle the various factors? There is a lot that we don’...

Inflation expectations have kept the Federal Reserve center stage as they commenced their interest rate rising cycle in March. The war in Ukraine and Omicron’s spread in China impacted inflation and supply chains differently, but both delay supply chain normalization. Regar...

Stock markets fell in the first quarter as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine destabilized the growth outlook, amplified concerns about rising interest rates and unleashed geopolitical risks. While the conflict has created many uncertainties, we believe the impact of persistent infla...