HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_014590.jpg
Extracted Text (OCR)
Exhibit 63: Relative Performance of "Stable” and
“Volatile” EAFE Stocks
Investors have recently shifted toward firms more exposed
to the business cycle.
Relative Return (%)
8 5 wStable
= Volatile
6
4
Last 3 2016-to-Date 5 Years 10 Years 1987-2007 = Since 1987
Months
Annualized Returns
Data as of October 31, 2016.
Note: Equally weighted USD-hedged returns relative to the developed markets (ex-US). Stable
and volatile stocks are drawn from the large-cap universe. Stability is measured using a model
based on return on equity, earnings growth, financial leverage and beta.
Source: Investment Strategy Group, Empirical Research Partners.
po
Exhibit 64: Spain 5-Year Credit Default Swap and
Relative Equity Performance
The dramatic reduction in Spanish default risks suggests
equity valuations have scope for upside.
Price Ratio (July 24, 2012 = 100) Basis Points
50 4 0
40 + ¥
30 5
, *
fo ides i 100
te
200
| 300
20 4
- 400
500
00 -
+ 600
90 = MSCI Spain vs. MSCI EMU (Sector-Adjusted) L 700
=— — — — Spanish CDS Spread (Right, Inverted)
80 L g00
2009 =. 2010 2011 2012 = 2013 2014 = 2015 2016
Data through December 31, 2016.
Source: Investment Strategy Group, MSCI, Datastream.
has both hobbled bank profits—which represent
a third of EuroStoxx 50 earnings—and boosted
equity valuations. But with ECB policy unlikely
to become any more accommodative, additional
valuation expansion can no longer be taken for
granted. Instead, the onus for Eurozone equity
upside now rests with earnings.
Here, the prospects are favorable for several
reasons. First, above-trend Eurozone GDP growth
is likely to lead to boosted domestic sales and
reduced economic slack, both of which have lifted
Eurozone earnings in the past. Second, the broader
pickup in global GDP growth we expect should
benefit the 45% of the EuroStoxx 50’s sales that
are generated outside Europe. Higher revenue
is particularly beneficial to these EuroStoxx
firms given their operating leverage, as small
improvements in sales spread over their sizable
fixed costs also push profit margins higher. Finally,
financial sector earnings stand to benefit from the
higher interest rates we foresee.
Against this backdrop, we expect earnings
to expand 5% in 2017. Meanwhile, valuation
multiples are likely to contract slightly as interest
rates normalize higher and investor focus shifts
toward eventual ECB tapering late this year.
Combining these elements with a 3.6% dividend
yield implies EuroStoxx 50 total returns of
3% in 2017.
The risks to our base case are skewed mildly
to the upside. After underperforming most equity
markets in 2016, Eurozone equities have room to
play catch-up. Moreover, the passing of long-feared
French and German elections could compress
today’s elevated equity risk premium, although
political uncertainty is likely to remain high in the
interim. Finally, investors’ recent shift toward firms
more exposed to the business cycle should benefit
Eurozone firms given their greater operating
leverage (see Exhibit 63).
Within the Eurozone, we are overweight
Spanish equities. Here, we are drawn to attractive
valuations (see Exhibit 64), domestic growth
momentum and embedded overweight to banks.
UK Equities: Scaling the Wall of Worry
While the Brexit vote was surprising, the
subsequent performance of the UK stock market
was even more so. Despite the tremendous
political and social uncertainty engendered by the
referendum’s outcome, UK equities generated one
of the strongest returns of any major equity market
last year in local currency terms.
Several factors at the root of this
outperformance should continue to work in favor
of UK equities in 2017. First, FTSE 100’s global
Outlook | Investment Strategy Group 57
HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_014590
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| Indexed | 2026-02-04T16:23:03.442417 |