Impax Asset Management, an investment management company, released its “Impax US Sustainable Economy Fund” third-quarter 2025 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. In Q3 2025, the portfolio lagged behind the Russell 1000. Similar to the second quarter, the US equity markets favored a risk-on approach, benefiting high-risk, high-momentum, and lower-quality factors. Although the portfolio’s focus on relatively modest, lower-risk, and high-quality factors contributed to the underperform ...

Core Viewpoint - Net Lease Office Properties (NLOP) announced the sale of six office properties for approximately $75.8 million and declared a special cash distribution of $5.10 per common share, totaling around $75.6 million, payable on January 20, 2026 [1][2]. Group 1: Property Sales - NLOP sold six office properties for gross proceeds of approximately $75.8 million [1]. - The properties sold include: - Securitas Electronic Security, Inc. in Plymouth, MN for $5.654 million, with an annual base rent (ABR) of $1.218 million and a size of 182,250 square feet [2]. - JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. in Tampa, FL for $13.650 million, with an ABR of $1.934 million and a size of 135,733 square feet [2]. - A vacant property in Oak Creek, WI for $2.576 million, previously occupied by Master Lock Company, LLC [2]. - Cohesity Inc. in Roseville, MN for $14.625 million, with an ABR of $2.255 million and a size of 136,125 square feet [2]. - Pioneer Credit Recovery, Inc. in Moorestown, NJ for $6.250 million, with an ABR of $0.931 million and a size of 65,567 square feet [2]. - Another JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. property in Fort Worth, TX for $33.000 million, with an ABR of $4.850 million and a size of 386,154 square feet [2]. - The total ABR for all properties sold is $11.188 million, with a combined size of 1,026,712 square feet [2]. Group 2: Company Overview - Net Lease Office Properties is a publicly traded real estate investment trust (REIT) that focuses on owning high-quality, primarily single-tenant office properties in the U.S. [3]. - The properties are net leased to corporate tenants across various industries [3].

Core Viewpoint - The technology sector has experienced significant growth, particularly due to the artificial intelligence boom, attracting many investors [1] Group 1: ETF Performance - The Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT) has increased nearly 21% year-to-date through November, outperforming the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite [2] - VGT tracks the U.S. information technology sector, comprising 314 companies across various industries, with the top five being semiconductors, systems software, technology hardware, application software, and semiconductor materials and equipment [3] Group 2: Concentration Risk - VGT is weighted by market capitalization, leading to a high concentration of a few large companies, which raises concerns about risk [4] - The top three holdings in VGT are Nvidia (18.18%), Apple (14.29%), and Microsoft (12.93%), collectively accounting for over 45% of the ETF [4][5] - High concentration can benefit investors when these companies perform well, but a downturn in any of them could negatively impact the entire ETF [8] Group 3: Alternative Options - There are alternative tech-focused ETFs, such as the Invesco QQQ Trust ETF, which holds a significant amount of Nvidia, Apple, and Microsoft but with lower dependency on their performance [6]

Summary of Key Points from the Conference Call Industry Overview - **Industry**: Technology Sector - **Key Focus**: Analysis of technology valuations, AI performance, software versus semiconductors, and hyperscaler capital expenditure trends Core Insights 1. **Technology Valuations**: - Global technology trades at a 36x HOLT Economic P/E, which is in the 75th percentile of historical valuations, only exceeding 40x during the dot-com bubble [7][8][12] - The sector has shown strong fundamentals, with earnings revisions outpacing other sectors since summer, leading to forecasts of all-time high returns [2][12] 2. **AI Performance**: - The AI Winners basket has returned +46% in 2025, while the AI Risk basket has declined by 33% [3][20] - Despite a decade-high valuation premium for AI Winners, near-term fundamentals remain strong for both groups, with AI Winners expected to achieve a CFROI of 20% [23][20] 3. **Software vs. Semiconductors**: - Software has underperformed semiconductors this year, with recent sell-side earnings upgrades favoring semiconductors [4][30] - In the software sector, Palantir (PLTR) leads in revenue growth expectations, while Adobe (ADBE) is priced for the lowest long-term sales growth [4][33] 4. **Hyperscaler Capital Expenditure**: - Hyperscaler capital expenditure (Capex) is projected to reach an all-time high of $780 billion in 2026, with R&D spending expected to increase by 40% [5][37] - Companies like META, MSFT, and ORCL are forecasted to see a decline in CFROI in the near term, but overall economic profit for hyperscalers is expected to reach $400 billion in 2026, driven by growth [5][45][43] Additional Important Insights 1. **Market Sentiment**: - The technology sector has a disproportionate number of firms ranking in the top quintile on HOLT's Momentum Factor, indicating strong market sentiment [9][12] - CFROI revision breadth has been strong, with the largest tech firms outpacing others in earnings revisions [12][16] 2. **Valuation Screening**: - A screening of tech companies with strong price performance and rising CFROI revisions identified 71 attractive stocks, including NVIDIA, Microsoft, and Broadcom [18] 3. **Sales Growth Expectations**: - Market-implied sales growth for AI Winners is expected to be in double digits over the next decade, contrasting with low single digits for many AI Risk firms [26][28] 4. **Investment Recommendations**: - Companies such as Amazon, Microsoft, and Broadcom are rated as "Buy," while Adobe is rated "Neutral" [64] This summary encapsulates the key points discussed in the conference call, highlighting the current state and future outlook of the technology sector, particularly in relation to AI, software, semiconductors, and hyperscaler investments.

Core Insights - The second-quarter 2025 earnings season is expected to show resilience and an improving outlook for the banking sector and overall market [1] - Total S&P 500 earnings are projected to increase by 4.9% year-over-year, driven by a 3.9% rise in revenues [2] - Nine out of sixteen Zacks sectors are anticipated to report earnings growth, with Consumer Discretionary leading at 105.6% [3] Sector Performance - Consumer Discretionary sector is expected to see the highest earnings growth at 105.6%, followed by Aerospace at 15.1%, Technology at 11.8%, Finance at 7.8%, and Utilities at 7.7% [3] - The "Magnificent 7" companies are projected to have an 11.3% increase in earnings with an 11.2% rise in revenues compared to the same period last year [3] ETF Highlights - Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLY) has an AUM of $22.5 billion and an expense ratio of 0.08% [5] - iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (ITA) holds $8.4 billion in AUM with an expense ratio of 0.40% [6] - Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT) manages $95 billion in assets and has an expense ratio of 0.09% [7] - Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) has an AUM of $51.3 billion and charges 0.08% in annual fees [8] - Utilities Select Sector SPDR (XLU) has an AUM of $19.1 billion and an expense ratio of 0.08% [9]