Fred Alger's Fall 2012 investment commentary focuses on corporate earnings and where they see opportunities moving forward. "We are encouraged to see companies either start paying dividends or increase dividends. Many companies are also buying back stock at an aggressive rate. The result, we believe, is to put a fundamental floor on the U.S. stock market. We are highly encouraged by what we’ve seen in corporate fundamentals and market reactions. Regulators across the world are raising the rhetoric about slowing economic growth and in many parts of the world, such as China and Brazil, policies are clearly moving to a stimulative stance. In other parts, like Europe, it’s mostly rhetoric that is supporting equity market gains, but we increasingly think stimulus from policymakers is likely. We maintain that it is not time to sell equities as some suggest. Rather, it is time to buy if you have a time horizon that goes beyond a year, and buy more on market dips if you already own equities. During this back to school season, it is time to embrace equities and the rigorous work of conducting in-depth, fundamental research that we believe can find attractive opportunities. And it’s time to diversify away from a likely losing asset class that is offering historically low yields: U.S. Treasuries."
