An economic recovery is cause for celebration, but how, exactly, do we capitalize on it? Since it began in 2020, the decline that COVID brought us has been called the deepest and shortest economic crisis in history, and the nature of the forced shutdown followed by the subsequent reopening is an indication of just how unique this recovery has been. In this episode, we examine the recovery’s progress as it stands now. We also touch on where some of the risks may lie and how our portfolios are positioned to best take advantage of the recovery as it marches on.

Simple, but Not Easy

How to Capitalize on the Economic Recovery

China is a key talking point in the investment community today, as a regulatory crackdown has spooked markets. Chinese regulators have targeted specific sectors such as technology, education and real estate as part of a crackdown aimed at aligning the Chinese private sectors with its long-term policy agenda. In today’s episode, we will take a closer look at recent events in China and discuss both risks and potential opportunities in Chinese stocks today.

Sizing up Risks and Opportunities in Chinese Equities

Changes in the corporate tax rate can have large, one-time effects on a company’s financial statements. Michael Budzinski, Senior Investment Analyst and Portfolio Manager, shares recent Morningstar Investment Management LLC research around corporate tax rate changes. 

The Potential Impact of Corporate Tax Hikes on Equities

ESG investing, which focusses on an investment’s environmental, social, and governance impact or risk, has grown immensely in recent years, attracting significant inflows. But what happens to ESG investing during a market downturn? Are ESG considerations left by the wayside as investors focus on financial market risks? Ryan Murphy, Head of Decision Sciences for Morningstar Investment Management, discusses his research on the behavioral sustainability stress test.

The Sustainability Stress Test

With stocks reaching new highs and companies borrowing at historically low rates, broad markets offer limited upside. So how should investors position their portfolios in face of that?

Our Global Convictions Following Q2 2021

As more of the US reopens and people begin to return to their normal routines we’ve seen a disconnect between supply and demand, and many are worried that price increases are here to stay. Alfonzo Bruno, associate portfolio manager, shares insights around the current state of inflation, how to interpret updated guidance from the Fed, and how he anticipates inflation pressures around supply chains to ease in a post-pandemic market.

2021 Inflation Insights

Other than the strong recovery this year, the energy sector has been avoided by many investors. Whether environmental concerns of an increasing number of ESG-focused investors or worries about the secular decline in oil revenues as the world transitions to renewal energy sources, energy stocks have been among the least popular investments out there. Philip Straehl, global head of research at Morningstar Investment Management, welcomes James Foot, Head of Research, Asia Pacific from Morningstar Investment Management Australia, to dive deep into why they think certain energy stocks may offer attractive long-term returns.

Global Energy Stocks: In Structural Decline or a Buying Opportunity?

Our Select Equity portfolio managers share five key takeaways from the 2021 Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting. Portfolio specialist Jeff Wagner sits down with Mike Corty, Morningstar Investment Management’s Head of our Select Equity Portfolios team and the portfolio manager of our Tortoise portfolio, as well as senior portfolio manager John Owens, who manages Select Equity portfolios, All-Cap Equity and Small/Mid-Cap Equity.

Our Reactions: 2021 Berkshire Hathaway Annual Meeting

After the late-2020 rally continued into 2021, Philip Straehl and Edward Fane assess the aggregate reward-for-risk picture in world markets and share their views on select asset class opportunities. Philip is the Chicago-based global head of research at Morningstar Investment Management LLC. Ed, based in London, is head of research for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa at Morningstar Investment Management Europe, Ltd., which is an FCA-regulated firm.

Our Investment Convictions: Searching for Select Opportunities

Slides for this episode are available here, or by emailing us at simple@morningstar.com.

Will Consolidation Destroy Personalization for Financial Advisors?

We'll have a new episode next week, then every other week for a temporary period. Thanks for listening!

We're Temporarily Moving to a Biweekly Cadence

Stocks have generally roared back from their pandemic lows about a year ago. But what about income? Many dividends were cut when COVID-19 shuttered businesses and kept us at home. What’s the outlook for dividend investors now that stock prices have rebounded? George Metrou, portfolio manager for the Dividend Select Equity Portfolios at Morningstar Investment Management, shares his thoughts on managing through the pandemic, and on the current landscape and his outlook for dividend-paying stocks.

Dividend Stocks: How Coronavirus, Value/Growth, and Interest Rates Have Affected Income

While we're off for spring break, we're reprising this episode featuring Terry Hawkins, sales manager at Morningstar Investment Management and Paul Kaplan, research director for Morningstar Canada. They discuss dollar-cost averaging, or the practice of investing slowly over time instead of in one lump sum. Research by Kaplan and others show that dollar-cost averaging might be expected to underperform a lump-sum approach. But what if it's what gets an investor into the markets?

Is Dollar-Cost Averaging Irrational? Compared to What? (Ep. 30 Rebroadcast)

While we're off for spring break, we're revisiting this episode that considers whether and when retirees should buy annuities to insure a steady stream of income, based on David Blanchett's research at the time of original airing. Few products are as polarizing among financial advisors than annuities, but certainly they have a place in the retirement picture for some individuals. In this episode, we look at Blanchett's research, which may help advisors decide when a client should annuitize or not, as well as a way savers can self-annuitize. Blanchett is head of retirement research at Morningstar Investment Management.

To Annuitize or Not? (Episode 35 Rebroadcast)

Click here to download the slides for this episode, or email us at simple@morningstar.com.

Rules as Tools: Using Heuristics to Help Empower Financial Success

Simple, but Not Easy is a podcast about investing and behavioral science by Morningstar Investment Management LLC. Most shows focus on our asset class research, our principled approach to managing money, or our insights on using behavioral science to help investors and advisors make better decisions.

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Simple, but Not Easy

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