Investor Conferences Take Center Stage as Earnings Season Exits the Scene

• The Q4 reporting period has been solid with bottom-line numbers verifying stronger than forecasts

• Some of last year’s risks have re-emerged on the macro front, though, perhaps drawing apprehension among CEOs

• We highlight key investor conferences and corporate events looking out to the end of Q1

It has been more of the same through the first half of the first quarter. Mega-cap tech leads while small caps and the cyclical and defensive niches of the global equity market lag. The broadening-out theme from late 2023 has petered out, leaving the bears quick to suggest that fewer bullish stocks might not be a good thing as we progress through a historically dicey calendar stretch from mid-February through mid-March. 

Too Much of a Good Thing?

Still, earnings have come in well, and a second consecutive quarter of year-on-year EPS growth appears likely, according to the latest numbers from Factset.[1] Thus, it’s not surprising that the S&P 500® rallied to all-time highs earlier this month before that hot CPI print for January spooked Wall Street.

The bulls still have in their back pockets robust economic data trends - the Citigroup Economic Surprise Index has taken off since the start of the year.[2] Normally that would be a boon to small-sized domestic companies and stocks in economically sensitive sectors, but robust data continues to push out the first expected Fed rate cut, viewed bearishly by investors. All eyes will be on upcoming PCE data while ears will be tuned to Fed Speak before the March 20 FOMC gathering.

2024’s Emerging Risks and Opportunities

Big picture, interest rates have been back on the rise while oil prices have quietly rallied toward fresh three-month highs, perhaps putting pressure on cyclical companies. Meanwhile, AI’s awe feels stronger than ever after a lull in the second half of 2023 as a few cracks in the consumer appear. 

But with ebbing corporate bankruptcies, rising dividends, tight credit spreads, and high demand for corporate bond issuance, there appear to be some tailwinds in play heading into springtime.[3]

Conferences in the Spotlight

While these macroeconomic trends are important, sector and industry-level details are often discovered at corporate conferences. In this mid-quarter update, we aim to provide investors with a schedule of the major events that could impact markets.

Information Technology & Communication Services 
February 27: Wolfe Research March Madness Software Conference
March 4: JMP Securities Technology Conference
March 4: Morgan Stanley Technology, Media, and Telecom (TMT) Conference
March 8: SXSW Conference & Festivals
March 11: Deutsche Bank 32nd Annual Media, Internet & Telecom Conference
March 12: UBS Tech Media & Internet Conference
March 12: Citi TMT Conference
March 14: Bank of America Securities Information and Business Services Conference
March 19: NVIDIA GTC Financial Analyst Q&A (virtual)

Health Care 
February 26: Morgan Stanley European Medtech & Life Sciences Conference
February 28: Citi Healthcare Services, Medtech, Tools & HCIT Conference
March 3: TD Cowen 44th Annual Healthcare Conference
March 5: Carnegie Healthcare Conference
March 12: Barclays Global Healthcare Conference
March 12: Oppenheimer 34th Annual Healthcare Conference (virtual)
March 19: KeyBanc Capital Markets Life Sciences & MedTech Investor Forum (virtual)
March 20: BMO BioPharma Spotlight Series: Obesity Day (virtual)

Consumer Discretionary & Consumer Staples 
March 11: Barclays Leisure and Transport Conference
March 11: Bank of America Business Service, Leisure, and Transport Conference
March 13: UBS Annual Global Consumer and Retail Conference
March 13: BNP Paribas Consumer Ingredients Conference
March 14: JP Morgan Gaming, Lodging, Restaurant and Leisure Management Access Forum
March 26: Bank of America Securities Automotive Summit 

Financials & Real Estate 
February 26: UBS Financial Services Conference
February 28: Citi FinTech Conference
February 28: Wolfe Research Real Estate Conference (virtual)
March 4: Citi Global Real Estate Property CEO Conference
March 5: RBC Capital Markets Global Financial Institutions Conference
March 12: Morgan Stanley European Financials Conference 

Industrials 
March 5: Evercore ISI Industrials Conference
March 5: Morgan Stanley Paris Industrials Day
March 12: JP Morgan Industrials Conference
March 18: HSBC Future Transport Week (virtual)
March 19: Bank of America Global Industrials Conference
March 26: TD Industrials Conference 

Energy & Utilities 
February 28: Scotiabank 52nd Annual Energy & Power Conference
March 4: Morgan Stanley Global Energy & Power Conference
March 4: Bank of America Power, Utilities & Clean Energy Conference
March 12: Wall Street Green Summit
March 18: CERA Week
March 18: Piper Sandler 24th Annual Energy Conference
March 20: UBS Global Energy Transition Conference
March 26: Wells Fargo 2nd Annual Clean Energy Symposium 

Materials 
February 25: BMO 32nd Global Metals, Mining & Critical Minerals Conference
February 28: Bank of America Global Agriculture and Materials Conference
March 7: Jefferies Paper and Packaging Summit
March 12: NYSE Investor Access: Materials Day (virtual)

Regional  
February 26: Morgan Stanley European Medtech & Life Sciences Conference
February 27: UBS European Healthcare Conference
March 4: Goldman Sachs Latin America Conference
March 4: Berenberg EU Opportunities Conference
March 12: JP Morgan Pan-European Small/Mid-Cap CEO Conference
March 18: Bank of America Asia Pacific APAC Telecom, Media & Technology TMT Conference
March 19: Jefferies 5th Asia Forum 

Investor Specific & Multi-Sector
February 26: JP Morgan Global EM Conference
February 26: JP Morgan Global High Yield & Leveraged Finance Conference
February 29: Morgan Stanley Titans of Capital Landmark MENA Event
March 3: Raymond James & Associates 45th Annual Institutional Investors Conference
March 5: Nasdaq Investor Conference
March 13: Sidoti March Small Cap Conference (virtual)

1 Earnings Insight, FactSet, John Butters, February 16, 2024, https://advantage.factset.com​
2 Earnings Insight, FactSet, John Butters, February 16, 2024, https://advantage.factset.com
3 US bankruptcies hit 13-year peak in 2023; 50 new filings in December, S&P Global, Ingrid LexovaUmer Khan, January 9, 2024, https://www.spglobal.com​

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