Way back in 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act established a brand new program to encourage investment into economically disadvantaged communities. This program, called the Qualified Opportunity Zone program, offered real tax incentives for investors through potentially deferred gains, a step up in basis, and tax-free growth. At the outset, investors with large realized capital gains were given the opportunity to reinvest and potentially save more by holding onto their investment longer; but with the capital gains tax deferral deadline coming up on December 31, 2026, can it still make sense to look at Opportunity Zones for tax savings? The first step in answering this question is to understand what is a Qualified Opportunity Zone and how investors interact with them. Learn more.

While "The Few, The Proud, The Marines" is a recruiting slogan for the U.S. Marine Corps, in the stock market, the “Few and the Proud” have been the “Magnificent 7” stocks (Nvidia, Apple, Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Meta, and Tesla) and their performance reminds one of the stampeding effects of charging elephants. Like these large pachyderms, the “Mag 7” have run roughshod over the broad stock market this year and have left most other stocks lagging far behind. Much of the excitement surrounding these companies is focused on their dominance in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) investment landscape. Learn more about our 2Q2024 market review.

In the Terminator movie franchise, the third installment was titled Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines and continued the original movie’s theme of how the growth of Artificial Intelligence (AI) would ultimately lead to the end of civilization, as AI would discover that it no longer had need of humans. Fortunately, as AI is still in its infancy, the stock market is pricing in only the positive aspects of the technology. While graphic chips provider Nvidia (up 82% in Q1) has served as the poster child for Artificial Intelligence investments, many other technology companies (such as Super Micro Computer – up 255% in Q1) with some connection, or perceived connection, to AI rallied strongly in the first quarter. This led to an overall positive market sentiment throughout the period that lifted the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ 100 higher.

Ultimately, we believe the most powerful trend in AI will be the productivity enhancements experienced by many companies across a wide swath of industries. Read more about our thoughts on market trends and our look ahead to the remainder of 2024.