
FOCUS Quarterly Report | Q3 2025
Muddle, Bust, or Boom? Scenarios for the Economy and Consumers OVERVIEW The third quarter of
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Topics

Muddle, Bust, or Boom? Scenarios for the Economy and Consumers OVERVIEW The third quarter of

Another major revision to U.S. employment data The U.S. economy created 911,000 fewer jobs from

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The AI boom is also being driven by some old-school industries Last week, Nvidia—whose processors

Sentiment finally rises After months of feeling downbeat, consumers’ attitudes are perking up. The University

Tariffs are taxes and taxes slow economic growth. The Trump administration’s newly announced tariff policy


Chief Investment Scott Ladner joined BNN Bloomberg to discuss potential impacts of the U.S. election

The stock market is two years (and counting) into a bull market. Last Saturday marked

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-f7S0cz_D-4&t=95s We remain bullish on equities, anticipating that continued support from the Fed will drive
What Happened? The Federal Reserve (Fed) started their much-awaited easing cycle on Wednesday after holding

September holds its notorious history of challenging stocks. How could interest rate cuts affect the

Regardless of stabilized delinquency rates and healthy debt-to-income ratios, consumers do not believe this is

Despite Nvida’s recent slump, the market kept moving. Chief Investment Officer Scott Ladner joins Schwab

Keeping a close eye on Treasury market volatility Volatility in the Treasury bond market is

Taking a tactical approach to “junk” bonds Yield-hungry investors eyeing an eventual Fed rate cut

Prices of many services are heating up again. Last week, we learned that the Fed’s

Robust consumer spending continues to support a strong economy. Last week’s impressive jobs data—employers added

The economy and inflation are lining up as investors hoped they would. All eyes were

“Sticky” shelter costs could keep overall prices uncomfortably high. While inflation’s steady march downward of

OVERVIEW Following a third-quarter slump, stocks roared back to life during the final three months

Will December bring glad tidings to small-company stocks? Small-cap stocks have had quite the slog

Scott Ladner joins BNN Bloomberg to discuss the U.S. markets, and Powell’s recent comments on

GDP growth over the past three months may have been huuuuuge. Third-quarter GDP growth could

House hunters are facing a shocking number these days. Pity today’s homebuyers who are looking

OVERVIEW During the third quarter of 2023, investors hit “pause” on the rally that had

Bond market must get ‘under control’ before stocks rise again. Chief Investment Officer Scott Ladner

https://www.horizoninvestments.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Q3-Webcast-Super-TB-Small_1.mp4 Chief Investment Officer Scott Ladner and Managing Director of Consulting Solutions Austin Fitch review

Look Outside of the Stocks that Gained from the Inflation Trade The staples companies were

The greenback’s recent rally could have legs. The U.S. dollar is lighting up the charts,

Next-generation investing in AI will take hold in 2024 CIO Scott Ladner joined BNN Bloomberg

https://youtu.be/mWhUrUv0Ffo?feature=shared Hear Zach cover what Horizon is taking from recent economic data, our expectations for

Sharply higher oil prices have the potential to re-ignite inflation. Last week saw oil prices

CIO Scott Ladner joined Schwab Network to discuss recent employment and inflation data, factors behind

There are few signs of the economic struggles predicted at Jackson Hole last year. Attention

Stock investors may want to brace for some bumps in the road. After months of

https://youtu.be/e26Kr8v2gvg Head of Portfolio Management Zach Hill, CFA® covered why the Fed matters less today,

CIO Scott Ladner joined Yahoo! Finance to discuss portfolio positioning and how to prepare for

Is the Fed’s battle to contain inflation finally done? The market seems to think so.

OVERVIEW During the second quarter of 2023, several key equity market indices built on their

https://youtu.be/etvuMLvXBAM Chief Investment Officer Scott Ladner and Managing Director of Consulting Solutions Austin Fitch review

The housing market is the latest economic indicator to light up the charts? One of

The positive surprises in the labor market just keep on coming. Job creation in the

CIO Scott Ladner, and Managing Director Austin Fitch, CFA® discuss the debt ceiling debate, disinflation,

Fear-inducing headlines are likely painting too grim of a picture. Silicon Valley Bank. Signature. First

Overview The idea that the financial markets “climb a wall of worry” by showing resilience

Scott Ladner and Austin Fitch discuss the Fed announcement and the current market and what

Stocks stand to benefit if the Fed eases up on the brakes Continued concerns about

“The U.S. economy looks pretty strong, and we think that will feed into corporate profits.”

Overview Financial markets suffered sizable—in some cases, historic—losses in 2022. Soaring inflation combined with an


CIO Scott Ladner joined Maria Bartiromo on Fox Business to discuss the impact of inflation

Zach Hill, CFA® shares his expectations around negative demand, the next Fed meeting, and his

Horizon Investments CIO Scott Ladner explains the lull in chip demand and why now is

CIO Scott Ladner argues housing leads the economy and will cause a market ‘softening’ as





















































Categories
Topics

Muddle, Bust, or Boom? Scenarios for the Economy and Consumers OVERVIEW The third quarter of 2025 reinforced the year’s defining pattern — a series of

Another major revision to U.S. employment data The U.S. economy created 911,000 fewer jobs from April 2024 through March 2025 than originally reported, according to


The AI boom is also being driven by some old-school industries Last week, Nvidia—whose processors are a key driver of the AI wave—became the world’s

Sentiment finally rises After months of feeling downbeat, consumers’ attitudes are perking up. The University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment index (one of the oldest gauges

Tariffs are taxes and taxes slow economic growth. The Trump administration’s newly announced tariff policy represents a ~$600 billion tax hike, roughly twice the size


Chief Investment Scott Ladner joined BNN Bloomberg to discuss potential impacts of the U.S. election on markets.

The stock market is two years (and counting) into a bull market. Last Saturday marked the second anniversary of the current bull market for stocks.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-f7S0cz_D-4&t=95s We remain bullish on equities, anticipating that continued support from the Fed will drive markets higher as we close out the year. Head of
What Happened? The Federal Reserve (Fed) started their much-awaited easing cycle on Wednesday after holding their target rate in the 5.25-5.50% range since last July.

September holds its notorious history of challenging stocks. How could interest rate cuts affect the market’s response? Chief Investment Officer Scott Ladner joins BNN Bloomberg

Regardless of stabilized delinquency rates and healthy debt-to-income ratios, consumers do not believe this is a good economy. Chief Investment Officer Scott Ladner joins Fox

Despite Nvida’s recent slump, the market kept moving. Chief Investment Officer Scott Ladner joins Schwab Network to discuss a shift in focus to the broadening

Keeping a close eye on Treasury market volatility Volatility in the Treasury bond market is once again flirting with its recent lows. That could be

Taking a tactical approach to “junk” bonds Yield-hungry investors eyeing an eventual Fed rate cut are moving into high-yield corporate bonds thesedays, a show of

Prices of many services are heating up again. Last week, we learned that the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge—the core personal consumption expenditures(PCE) price index—rose by

Robust consumer spending continues to support a strong economy. Last week’s impressive jobs data—employers added 353,000 new jobs in January, nearly double the expected amount—had

The economy and inflation are lining up as investors hoped they would. All eyes were on the Fed this week as it held its first

“Sticky” shelter costs could keep overall prices uncomfortably high. While inflation’s steady march downward of late has investors (and the Fed) cheering, it may be

OVERVIEW Following a third-quarter slump, stocks roared back to life during the final three months of 2023. The S&P 500 index of large-company stocks rallied

Will December bring glad tidings to small-company stocks? Small-cap stocks have had quite the slog this year. Punished by rising interest rates and lingering fears

Scott Ladner joins BNN Bloomberg to discuss the U.S. markets, and Powell’s recent comments on raising rates. Watch Video

GDP growth over the past three months may have been huuuuuge. Third-quarter GDP growth could be a monster. True, it’ll be a few weeks before

House hunters are facing a shocking number these days. Pity today’s homebuyers who are looking at an average monthly mortgage payment just shy of $2,900.

OVERVIEW During the third quarter of 2023, investors hit “pause” on the rally that had lifted stocks higher for much of the year. The major

Bond market must get ‘under control’ before stocks rise again. Chief Investment Officer Scott Ladner predicts ‘problems’ with small and mid-capital businesses amid high Fed

https://www.horizoninvestments.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Q3-Webcast-Super-TB-Small_1.mp4 Chief Investment Officer Scott Ladner and Managing Director of Consulting Solutions Austin Fitch review the third quarter of 2023 and provide a market outlook.

Look Outside of the Stocks that Gained from the Inflation Trade The staples companies were not hurt on the input side of the inflation equation,

The greenback’s recent rally could have legs. The U.S. dollar is lighting up the charts, rallying for the past ten weeks (see the chart). That’s

Next-generation investing in AI will take hold in 2024 CIO Scott Ladner joined BNN Bloomberg to discuss the upside in markets, cyclical commodities, Japan’s corporate

https://youtu.be/mWhUrUv0Ffo?feature=shared Hear Zach cover what Horizon is taking from recent economic data, our expectations for Fed and monetary policy, and our positioning across equities and

Sharply higher oil prices have the potential to re-ignite inflation. Last week saw oil prices hitting their highest point in 10 months following news that

CIO Scott Ladner joined Schwab Network to discuss recent employment and inflation data, factors behind soft August, and artificial intelligence.

There are few signs of the economic struggles predicted at Jackson Hole last year. Attention will be focused on Wyoming this week, where the 46th

Stock investors may want to brace for some bumps in the road. After months of gains and low volatility from stocks, emerging signs show that

https://youtu.be/e26Kr8v2gvg Head of Portfolio Management Zach Hill, CFA® covered why the Fed matters less today, takeaways from earnings season, and under-the-radar macro themes we are

CIO Scott Ladner joined Yahoo! Finance to discuss portfolio positioning and how to prepare for the Fed.

Is the Fed’s battle to contain inflation finally done? The market seems to think so. Recent comments from multiple Wall Street firms and economists suggest

OVERVIEW During the second quarter of 2023, several key equity market indices built on their gains from the prior three months (see Exhibit 1). For

https://youtu.be/etvuMLvXBAM Chief Investment Officer Scott Ladner and Managing Director of Consulting Solutions Austin Fitch review the second quarter of 2023 and provide a market outlook.

The housing market is the latest economic indicator to light up the charts? One of the key leading indicators of future economic activity—construction of new

The positive surprises in the labor market just keep on coming. Job creation in the U.S. continues to defy expectations. Case in point: last week’s

CIO Scott Ladner, and Managing Director Austin Fitch, CFA® discuss the debt ceiling debate, disinflation, equity allocations, and the current market environment. https://youtu.be/Sjn6C0NsP9g

Fear-inducing headlines are likely painting too grim of a picture. Silicon Valley Bank. Signature. First Republic. PacWest. Comerica. The list of regional banks that have

Overview The idea that the financial markets “climb a wall of worry” by showing resilience in the face of significant challenges was fully displayed during

Scott Ladner and Austin Fitch discuss the Fed announcement and the current market and what they are watching.

Stocks stand to benefit if the Fed eases up on the brakes Continued concerns about the health of the U.S. banking system and economy have

“The U.S. economy looks pretty strong, and we think that will feed into corporate profits.” – Zach Hill, Head of Portfolio Management

Overview Financial markets suffered sizable—in some cases, historic—losses in 2022. Soaring inflation combined with an aggressive monetary policy response by the Federal Reserve Board created


CIO Scott Ladner joined Maria Bartiromo on Fox Business to discuss the impact of inflation on earnings and his thoughts on the economy and a

Zach Hill, CFA® shares his expectations around negative demand, the next Fed meeting, and his thoughts on particular sectors. Watch the Video

Horizon Investments CIO Scott Ladner explains the lull in chip demand and why now is the time to invest in tech stocks on ‘The Claman

CIO Scott Ladner argues housing leads the economy and will cause a market ‘softening’ as he joins Maria Bartiromo on Fox News Media