MidSouth Week in Review
August 16, 2024

Weekly Update from Fund Manager Buzz Heidtke, MidSouth Investment Fund

For the week the S&P was up 3.9%.  Mortgage rates hit the lowest level in more than a year.  Gold made a new high at $2542.  Inflation hit the lowest level since 2021.  The S&P rose on expectations of an interest rate cut next month.  Sources:  Wall Street Journal and New York Times

Interest Rate Cuts – will come at the next Federal Reserve meeting on September 18.  Progress on inflation, along with slowing economic growth will help industry justify the decision – The Kiplinger Letter

Birth Rates – A recent poll found that 47% of all adults under 50 say they are unlikely to ever have children.  The current U.S. fertility rate of 1.6 children per woman is well below the “replacement rate” of 2.1 children – The Atlantic

Investing – If you invest $887 per month into a Roth 401(k) from age 35 to 65 with a 10% rate of return you will have $2,000,000 tax-free at retirement - @crackingthecodetosuccess

Conventional Wisdom – Sell the stock when the company announces a new corporate headquarters…Sell the stock when the CEO doesn’t return your call…More stocks double than go to zero…A stock well bought is a stock half sold…There are many millionaires in Wall Street, not all of whom started out as multimillionaires…You can always tell a Harvard man, but you can’t tell him much…The difference between plagiarism and research is that research utilizes more than once.

$20 Billion CEO – After it was announced that Starbucks (SBUX) had a new CEO, their stock rose 25%, a gain of more than $20 billion – New York Times

Pew Charitable Trusts – estimated that, in the United States, there were 1.4 million active contracts for deeds – multiyear installment contracts in which the seller retains the title to a home until the buyer makes a final payment – U.S. Agency

Warren Buffett – of Berkshire Hathaway has $234.6 billion worth of short-term investments in U.S. Treasury bills – Quarts

The Overaged Electric Bill – between June and September is expected to reach $720, setting a 10-year record.

Disney – reported $2.62 billion in profits on $23.08 billion in revenue – Wall Street Journal

Coca Cola – said it will pay $6 billion in back taxes and interest to the IRS.  It has been alleged for decades that Coca Cola avoided paying some federal taxes by shifting too much of its profits to overseas subsidiaries – Wall Street Journal

The Dollar – a stronger-than-expected U.S. economy is still lifting the U.S. dollar, contrary to expectations that it would weaken against other currencies, as interest rate cuts made Treasury bonds less attractive to investors.  The U.S. Dollar Index is still up 1.8% since the start of the year – The Kiplinger Letter

Tom Jones - https://www.instagram.com/p/C-cyNDCyGEX/?igsh=Yjd5NDAyNnZxbWdn

He Turned Audition Into A Concert - https://www.instagram.com/reel/C-qGbTQy75M/?igsh=OGNsOWQxYXR0cXF6

First Native American To Win A Gold Metal for U.S. - https://www.instagram.com/p/C-bKONwt1WB/?igsh=MXQ1aHJlbmg0MWs5Mg==

The material was prepared by MidSouth Investment Management LLC, and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party, nor their affiliates.  This information has been derived from sources believed to be accurate.  Please note – investing involves risk, and past performance is no guarantee of future results.  The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services.  If assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional.  This information should not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice and may not be relied on for the purpose of avoiding any Federal tax penalty.  This is neither a solicitation nor recommendation to put through a regular purchase or sell any investment or insurance product or service, and should not be relied upon as such.  This material represents an assessment of the market environment at a specific point in time and is not intended to be a forecast of future events, or a guarantee of future results.  Investments will fluctuate and when redeemed may be worth more or less than when originally invested.  All economic and performance data is historical and not indicative of future results.  Market indices discussed are unmanaged.  Investors cannot invest in unmanaged indices.