Research

Syntax LLC, a New York based data provider, introduced today its new wealthtech platform, Syntax Direct™, at the T3 Technology Conference 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Syntax Direct puts advanced index creation and management capabilities in the hands of financial advisors and wealth managers.

The Kelly US Cash Flow Dividend Leaders Index, calculated and maintained by Syntax, includes companies with a blend of high trailing and future free cash flow yields that have a history of paying and growing dividends. The index comprises at least 40 and up to 100 large- to mid-cap publicly traded US companies exhibiting characteristics of high free cash flow and consistent dividend growth. The index aims to provide long-term capital appreciation and monthly income distributions. 

While institutional investors may think they know the S&P 500 inside out, our research reveals the untold nuances and business risks embedded in this iconic index. How well do you truly understand your investments? Uncover hidden gems and fascinating facts about the S&P 500 through our innovative FIS industry classification system. Did you know the index comprises 262 unique business activities and a whopping 2,500 product lines? 

How far will the Fed go to bring inflation down to 2%?

NVIDIA’s stock price started the year at $143 per share and reached a peak of $493 on August 31st before ending the quarter at $435 per share, a gain of roughly 205% over the last nine months. NVIDIA and ChatGPT have been dominating the financial headlines as the Artificial Intelligence (AI) story has gone viral, but has NVIDIA’s seemingly overnight growth been as sudden as it appears?  

March 2021 marked a historic moment in the world of sustainable finance when the EU introduced the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR). Our newest installment of Breaking Down the Basics takes a closer look at the SFDR and examines:

• How Article 6, 8, and 9 Investments are categorized;
• What are Principle Adverse Impacts;
• What are the reporting requirements for Articles 6, 8, and 9 and;
• What is mandatory reporting across Asset Managers, Advisors, and Financial Products

NEW YORK, Sept. 27, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Syntax, a leading provider of innovative financial data and technologies, and Mansueto Ventures, the publisher of Fast Company and Inc., have launched the Fast Company Most Innovative Companies Index (the "Index"), a one-of-a-kind index that allows investors to track the performance of the publicly traded honorees from the Fast Company Most Innovative Companies List (the "MIC List"). 

First introduced in 2008, the annual MIC List has been the definitive source for recognizing the organizations that are transforming industries and shaping society. The list recognizes 540 global companies from 54 distinct industry categories, reflecting innovation across sectors and often capturing emerging technologies and sustainable consumer products and services that are propelling the world forward. The Index is constructed to be investable by selecting securities of companies from the MIC List that meet the minimum liquidity and size criteria and are traded on the recognized global stock exchanges.

Andrei Senyuk, Head of Index Development at Syntax, said, "The Most Innovative Companies Index includes a group of names that are well-positioned to grow and disrupt their respective industries. The companies included in the Index span different sectors and industries but share the important characteristic of developing and delivering cutting edge technologies and products to customers."

The Index is designed to measure the performance of publicly traded entities on the MIC List. The MIC List is curated each year by Fast Company's editorial staff, which assesses the novel significance of the business initiatives of thousands of companies and considers the impact of those efforts on each company's business, its industry and society at large. Ultimately, this group is narrowed down to spotlight the most innovative companies in a given year.

"Innovation can come from anywhere, and at Fast Company, we look for it everywhere," says Brendan Vaughan, Editor in Chief of Fast Company. "Each year, Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies list celebrates standout organizations, regardless of size, location or industry. Our team of editors and reporters spend months researching the lists, searching for companies whose innovative work will change the world in demonstrable ways. The MIC Index provides a new lens for tracking the impact of these innovations over time."

Additional details on the Index can be found at www.syntaxdata.com/indices/FCMICX.

About Fast Company
Fast Company is the only media brand fully dedicated to the vital intersection of business, innovation, and design, engaging the most influential leaders, companies, and thinkers on the future of business. Headquartered in New York City, Fast Company is published by Mansueto Ventures LLC, along with our sister publication Inc., and can be found online at www.fastcompany.com.

About Syntax
Syntax LLC is a financial data and technology company that codifies business models. Syntax operates through three segments: Company Data, Wealth Technology, and Financial Indices. Using its patented FIS® technology inspired by systems sciences, the Company Data segment offers the most comprehensive, granular, and accurate product line revenue data available on the market. The Wealth Technology segment then uses this abundance of data to facilitate the instantaneous creation and ongoing management of direct indexing solutions and rules-based equity portfolios through a fully automated platform. The Financial Indices segment enables Syntax to deliver customized and proprietary indices, including core global benchmarks and micro- and macro-thematic, smart beta, defined outcome, and target volatility indices. These indices are foundational for a range of financial products, such as ETFs, UITs, and structured products. Learn more at www.syntaxdata.com.

Disclosures
The Fast Company Most Innovative Index is the property of Mansueto Ventures LLC. Neither Mansueto Ventures nor Syntax provides investment, financial, or legal advice, and neither makes any representations or warranties regarding investment advisability. You should consult your own advisor regarding any prospective investments in products, securities or companies referenced herein.  

The new Platform delivers to investors portfolios with transparency and accountability that was previously lacking in the ESG and impact investing space.

Your insights are only as good as your data.

 Interest Rates and Inflation and AI! Oh My! 

DALLAS, July 13, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Texas Capital Bank Private Wealth Advisors (a subsidiary of Texas Capital) and the Texas Capital Funds Trust today announced the launch of the Texas Capital Texas Equity Index ETF (NYSE Arca: TXS) (the “Fund”). TXS will seek to track the performance of the Texas Capital Texas Equity Index (the “Index”), an index comprised exclusively of public companies headquartered in the state of Texas. At the time of launch, the Index included a diversified group of 216 publicly traded companies, with individual component weights determined first by sector, as defined by the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) and based on relative contribution to Texas’ reported Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and then by market capitalization. The construction of the Index is designed to reflect the overall performance of the Texas economy – which, at a GDP of $2.36 trillion in 20221, is the ninth largest in the world.2

“With today’s launch, we enable the world to invest in Texas,” said Edward Rosenberg, head of ETF & Funds Management for Texas Capital and president of the Texas Capital Funds Trust. “We believe the state’s pro-business environment creates persistent competitive advantages for companies based in Texas relative to companies headquartered elsewhere. The modest cost of living, net migration to the state and presence of renowned universities located across Texas means companies have access to human capital. Our launch of TXS will enable Texas-headquartered public companies to continue attracting financial capital as well.”                 

The Texas Capital Funds Trust is a Delaware statutory trust formed in 2023 and registered as an open-end management investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940. The Trust has retained Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services, Inc., doing business as Texas Capital Bank Private Wealth Advisors, as the adviser to the Fund. The Fund’s portfolio is managed by the chief investment officer of Texas Capital Bank Private Wealth Advisors, J. Steven Orr, who brings more than 30 years of portfolio management experience. The Board of Trustees for the Texas Capital Funds Trust includes Hayman Capital Management Founder and Chief Investment Officer J. Kyle Bass, Texas Capital’s Head of Corporate & Investment Banking Daniel S. Hoverman, Avery Capital Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Avery Johnson, Texas Capital’s Head of Investor Relations & Corporate Development Jocelyn Kukulka and PIXIU Founder and Chief Executive Officer Eddie Margain.

“The new Texas Capital Texas Equity Index ETF offers investors an opportunity to gain exposure to one of the largest, most diverse and fastest growing economies in the world,” said Texas Capital President & CEO, Rob C. Holmes. “As the premier full-service financial services institution based in Texas, we are uniquely positioned to bring TXS to market. For the many people who do not have the good fortune to live in Texas, TXS offers an opportunity to enjoy the economic benefits of the Lone Star State.”

About Texas Capital
Texas Capital Bancshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: TCBI), a member of the Russell 2000 ® Index and the S&P MidCap 400®, is the holding company of Texas Capital Bank (individually and collectively with all affiliates and subsidiaries, “Texas Capital”), a full-service financial services firm that delivers customized solutions to businesses, entrepreneurs and individual customers. Founded in 1998, the firm is headquartered in Dallas with offices in Austin, Houston, San Antonio and Fort Worth, and has built a network of clients across the country. With the ability to service clients through their entire lifecycles, Texas Capital has established commercial banking, consumer banking, investment banking and wealth management capabilities. For more information, please visit www.texascapital.com.

About Syntax

Syntax is a financial data and technology company that has pioneered a proprietary systems-based approach to business classification, index construction, portfolio analysis, ESG and SDG measurement and other investment applications. Its patented Functional Information System (FIS®) platform goes beyond traditional sector and industry classification and employs a systems approach to organize and link public and private companies using FIS’ standardized multi-attribute system. Clients can understand a company’s business characteristics and product lines to evaluate its risk and reward profile with pinpoint accuracy through Syntax’s FIS-based Affinity® platform. Syntax’s mission is to power economic analysis and enable investors to make better decisions. Learn more at www.syntaxdata.com.

The Texas Capital Texas Equity ETF (the "ETF") is offered by Texas Capital Bank ("Texas Capital") and is derived from The Texas Capital Texas Equity Index (the “Index”), which is the property of Texas Capital. Texas Capital has contracted with Syntax to use Index weightings. Syntax does not make any representation or warranty regarding investment advisability.  Inclusion of a security within the Index is neither a recommendation by Syntax, nor is it investment advice; prospective investors should consult their own investment advisors. Syntax’s only relationship to Texas Capital with respect to the Index is the transfer of rights in certain intellectual property. Syntax and its licensors are not responsible for and have not participated in the determination of the prices, amount, redemption, or timing of the sale of the ETF. Syntax has no obligation or liability in connection with the administration, marketing or trading of the ETF. Texas Capital may have altered the constituents, weights, or strategy of the Index as part of its selection of securities for, or construction of, an ETF.

Disclosures
Investors should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks and charges of the Fund before investing. The prospectus contains this information and other information about the Fund, and it should be read carefully before investing. Investors can obtain a copy of the prospectus by calling 844.TCB.ETFS (844.822.3837). 

Texas Risk. Texas’ economy relies to a significant extent on certain key industries, such as the oil and gas industry (including drilling, production and refining), chemicals production, technology and telecommunications equipment manufacturing and international trade. Each of these industries has from time to time suffered from economic downturns, and adverse conditions in one or more of these industries could impair the ability of issuers of Texas municipal securities to pay principal or interest on their obligations.
Investment and Market Risk. As with all investments, an investment in the Fund is subject to investment risk. Investors in the Fund could lose money, including the possible loss of the entire principal amount of an investment, over short or prolonged periods of time.
Geographic Concentration Risk. Because the Fund and the Index will invest only in issuers headquartered in Texas, the Fund's performance is expected to be closely tied to various factors such as social, financial, economic and political conditions within that region. Events that negatively affect that region may cause the value of the Fund’s shares to decrease, in some cases significantly. As a result, the Fund may be more volatile than more geographically diverse funds.
Index Tracking Risk. There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. The Fund may have difficulty achieving its investment objective due to fees, expenses (including rebalancing expenses) and other transaction costs related to the normal operation of the Fund. These costs that may be incurred by the Fund are not incurred by the Index, which may make it more difficult for the Fund to track the Index.
New Adviser Risk. The Adviser has not previously served as an adviser to a registered mutual fund or ETF. As a result, there is no long-term track record against which an investor may judge the Adviser and it is possible the Adviser may not achieve the Fund’s intended investment objective.
New Fund Risk. The Fund is new and does not have shares outstanding as of the date of the Prospectus. If the Fund does not grow large once it commences trading, it will be at greater risk than larger funds of wider bid-ask spreads for its shares, trading at a greater premium or discount to net asset value, liquidation and/or a stop to trading. Any resulting liquidation of the Fund could cause the Fund to incur elevated transaction costs for the Fund and negative tax consequences for its shareholders.
Passive Investment Risk. The Fund is not actively managed, and the Adviser will not sell a security due to current or projected under performance of a security, industry, or sector, unless that security is removed from the Index by the Index Provider, who is unaffiliated with the Adviser. The Fund invests in securities included in the Index regardless of the Adviser’s independent analysis of the investment decision.

Shares are not individually redeemable and are issued and redeemed at their net asset value only in large, specified blocks of shares called creation units. Shares otherwise can be bought and sold only through exchange trading at market price (not NAV). Shares may trade at a premium or discount to their net asset value in the secondary market. Brokerage commissions will reduce returns.

Texas Capital Bank Wealth Management Services, Inc. d/b/a Texas Capital Bank Private Wealth Advisors (“PWA”), a wholly owned subsidiary of Texas Capital Bank and a Registered Investment Advisor with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), serves as investment adviser to the Texas Capital Texas Equity Index ETF and is paid a fee for its services. Shares of the Texas Capital Texas Equity Index ETF are not deposits or obligations of, or guaranteed or endorsed by, Texas Capital Bank or its affiliates. The Texas Capital Texas Equity Index ETF is not insured by the FDIC or any other government agency. The Texas Capital Texas Equity Index ETF is distributed by Northern Lights Distributors, LLC, member FINRA/SIPC, which is not affiliated with Texas Capital Bank Private Wealth Advisors. 

Not a Deposit. Not FDIC Insured. Not Guaranteed by the Bank. May Lose Value. Not Insured by any Federal Government Agency. 

1 Source: U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Economic Analysis
2 Source: Texas Economic Development Corporation

In July 2020, the European Union began development on the EU Taxonomy, the first-of-its-kind sustainable business classification system that aims to standardize for the investment community what qualifies as an investment in a sustainable business. In this installment of our “Breaking Down the Basics” series, we take a deeper dive into what the EU Taxonomy is, who it applies to, what its objectives are and what challenges does it present for investors.

Investments in cybersecurity have risen significantly over the last decade with the acceleration and advancement of the digital economy. Thematic ETFs focused on cybersecurity offer an easy way for investors to participate in this growth opportunity. However, not all thematic ETFs are created equal. This paper uses the cybersecurity lens in Syntax's Affinity® Platform to examine the key similarities and differences between the ETFMG Prime Cybersecurity ETF (HACK) and the Global X Cybersecurity ETF (BUG), two of the largest cybersecurity ETFs (by AUM) currently in the market.

NEW YORK, May 8, 2023 /Business Wire/ -- Syntax (www.syntaxindices.com), a leading provider of innovative financial data and technologies, announced today that it has been selected as the index data partner by Hennion & Walsh for the Healthcare Innovations II, Series 1 and Technology Revolution Trust II, Series 1 strategies on its SmartTrust® UIT platform. These two strategies are among the suite of innovative, theme-based solutions that Hennion & Walsh offers financial advisors to help achieve the investment objectives of their clients. 

 

"The value of Syntax as an index provider was immediately apparent to us due to the depth of the team creating the indices and the technology they employ," said Kevin Mahn, Chief Investment Officer of SmartTrust®. 

 

Syntax has pioneered systems economics and a revolutionary framework and technology, FIS® (Functional Information System), to map companies through two perspectives – the activities it engages in to produce a product or service and the resources needed to perform these activities. This approach enables a deep understanding of a company and its business characteristics and risks, as well as the ability to compare against other companies that share similar characteristics and risks. 

 

“At Syntax, by leveraging our FIS technology, we provide data that is unmatched in its granularity and accuracy," said Patrick Shaddow, President and CEO. “Our data enables partners, like SmartTrust®, to develop and manage quality products that deliver value and align with different investment goals.” 

 

"SmartTrust® continues to work with partners, such as Syntax, that complement our unique approach to UIT creation and development, which focuses on timely, innovative, and impactful portfolio strategies,” said SmartTrust® COO, Matthew Wolcott. 

 

About Syntax 

 Syntax is a financial data and technology company that has pioneered a proprietary approach to index construction, portfolio analysis, ESG and SDG measurement and other investment applications. Its patented Functional Information System (FIS®) platform goes beyond traditional sector and industry classification by using a systems approach to organize public and private companies. Clients can understand a company’s business characteristics and product lines to evaluate its risk and reward profile with pinpoint accuracy through Syntax’s FIS-based Affinity® platform. Syntax’s mission is to power economic analysis using systems processing and enable investors to make better decisions. Learn more at www.syntaxindices.com. 

 
About SmartTrust®    

SmartTrust® UITs, sponsored by Hennion & Walsh, offer diversified income and total return opportunities through innovative investment strategies. Headquartered just outside of New York City, in Parsippany, NJ, Hennion & Walsh deposited its first SmartTrust® UIT in 2003 and currently has 26 different UIT strategies available for purchase in the primary market. For more information about Hennion & Walsh's SmartTrust® UIT products, please contact the firm's Internal Support Desk at (888) 505-2872, or visit www.smarttrustuit.com. Hennion & Walsh is a member of FINRA and SIPC. Additional information on Hennion & Walsh is available at www.hennionandwalsh.com. 

 

Media Contact 

Irene Chow 

ichow@syntaxindices.com 

+1 212 880 0241 

 

SOURCE
Syntax 

 

 

 

 

 

NEW YORK, April 18, 2023 /Business Wire/ -- Syntax (www.syntaxindices.com), a leading provider of innovative financial data and technologies, is pleased to announce the acquisition of the assets of Tyemill, a software research and development company headquartered in Seattle, Washington. The Tyemill team of 24 engineering, design and operations professionals became part of Syntax, effective March 1, 2023. As part of the integration, Tyemill’s CEO, Ellen Anderson, joined Syntax as Managing Director and Head of the Seattle Office. 

 

"With Tyemill joining Syntax, the combined teams will continue to develop and launch groundbreaking products and services," said Patrick Shaddow, Syntax President and CEO. "Adding Tyemill’s expertise to our organization will enable us to deliver a seamless client experience and provide differentiated data that serve the investment community.” 

 

The acquisition expands Syntax’s in-house capabilities and resources to execute its growth strategy and deliver on its robust product roadmap. Founded in 2010, Tyemill has supported Syntax’s economic research with technology that powers patented systems and proprietary commercial software applications. Tyemill’s tools are used in developing new methodologies for measuring risks associated with companies and investment vehicles, identifying trends in financial data and automating complex workflows.  

 

“While changes are on the horizon, our passion remains unchanged,” stated Ellen Anderson. “Our shared vision, combined with the FIS methodology and domain expertise, will enable us as one team to continue driving product innovation and accelerate disruptions in the industry as we write our next chapter as a data company.” 

 

About Syntax  

Syntax is a financial data and technology company that has pioneered a proprietary approach to index construction, portfolio analysis, ESG and SDG measurement and other investment applications. Its patented Functional Information System (FIS®) platform goes beyond traditional sector and industry classification by using a systems approach to organize public and private companies. Clients can understand a company’s business characteristics and product lines to evaluate its risk and reward profile with pinpoint accuracy through Syntax’s FIS-based Affinity ® platform. Syntax’s mission is to power economic analysis using systems processing and enable investors to make better decisions. Learn more at www.syntaxindices.com. 

 

About Tyemill  

Tyemill partners with industry leaders in economic research, healthcare, and bioinformatics, building innovative solutions to expedite early product adoption and capture market share, with customer experience at the core. Our projects involve designing scalable architecture, processing, distributing and analyzing big data, and automating complex workflows. Tyemill’s diverse, collaborative, and passionate team is the foundation that inspires our inventions.   

 

Media Contact:

Irene Chow 

ichow@syntaxindices.com 

+1 212 880 0241 

 
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Given the constantly evolving nature of ESG investing, Syntax believes gaining clarity is of the utmost importance to the growing number of investors in this space. Consequently, we are focused on educating investors on ESG topics and using our proprietary data to provide unparalleled transparency on the ESG characteristics of their portfolios. In this installment of our “Breaking Down the Basics” series, we explore the topic of ESG reporting standards and frameworks. 

What lies beneath the S&P Consumer Discretionary Select Sector ETF (XLY)

Syntax LLC, a New York based data provider, introduced today its new wealthtech platform, Syntax DirectTM, at the T3 Technology Conference 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Syntax Direct puts advanced index creation and management capabilities in the hands of financial advisors and wealth managers. 

September 8, 2022 (New York, NY) – LOGICLY, a U.S. fintech company and leading provider of analytics and portfolio tools to the wealth management industry, today announced the formation of a strategic partnership with Syntax Indices, a leading index provider and financial analytics company. The partnership will create the first thematics-based, investor values-driven portfolio construction and management platform for wealth management firms and advisors.

New York, NY (September 8, 2022) – Syntax Indices (“Syntax”), a leading financial technology company, announced today that Syntax has been selected as the data provider by Legal and General Investment Management (LGIM), one of the UK's leading financial services groups and a major global investor, for the underlying index of the L&G Metaverse ESG Exclusions UCITS ETF. 

The 3.6% sell-off in the S&P 500 on Friday (4/29) capped a dismal April for the world’s most traded index (-8.72%). 

As we wrote in our February note Regime Shifts: Why the S&P 500 could underperform Alternatively Weighted ETFs, “[the S&P 500] is highly exposed to several potential headwinds in 2022, including interest rate hikes, rising vaccination rates, increased regulation, and overly optimistic valuations. A change in the prevailing market dynamic could cause one (or more) of these headwinds to reverse the long-run market trends and see cap weighted indices underperform alternatively weighted products. The Stratified LargeCap Index outperformed its cap weighted counterpart by 3.12% in April.” 

 Key Points 

Why the S&P 500 could underperform Alternative Weighted ETFs: an analysis of three types of regime shifts and how they may cause headwinds for the S&P 500 and other cap-weighted strategies.

The crippling supply chain problems, which were widely reported in September and early October, are now being discounted as a transitory hiccup, rather than a more troubling symptom of the Pandemic. Using Syntax’s Affinity data, we calculate the supply chain exposures of a wide range of benchmarks and show the impact of the supply chain volatility in September and October. 

At its heart, portfolio management involves managing risk. Random shocks often occur, affecting groups of companies that share the same business risks. For example, Technology companies, which can be found in many different sectors, sharply sold off at the start of this week (10.4.21). The sell-off was led by Interactive Media & Services (-3.08%), Semiconductors (-2.76%), Software (-2.29%) and Hardware (-2.22%), while the market was down 1.30% and the average stock down only 0.63%. With technology companies spanning several sectors and trading as a thematic group, we question whether investors are aware of their total exposure to the technology theme. 

2020 saw a boom in US IPOs, with record numbers in Healthcare and Technology, though a conspicuous absence in Energy. The attached report uses Syntax's unique Affinity™ data to provide a deeper understanding of the key trends driving this surge in IPO activity.

One year on from the trough, equity markets have rallied to new highs and the Stratified LargeCap Index is up 89.8%, outperforming the S&P 500 by 12%. With the rally looking long in the tooth and market multiples remaining close to March 2000 highs, we believe a rotation is just getting started as investors seek diversification and valuation opportunities away from cap-weighted products.

Today, cap-weighted indices like the S&P 500 are more biased and concentrated towards mega cap technology stocks than they were in March 2000. Unlike the DotCom bubble, the risk this time may not be a tech collapse, but that the rest of the market is undervalued and underrepresented in investors’ portfolios. Stratified Weight indices are designed to allocate more equally to sectors and industries to better capture the broad equity risk premium.

Following several years of underperformance, investors are showing a renewed interest for small cap stocks. The S&P SmallCap 600 index rose 31.3% in Q4 2020, outperforming the S&P 500 by 19.2%. The Syntax Stratified SmallCap Index showed even stronger performance, rising 32.0%. 
The strong performance could signal an investor preference for the growth potential of small cap companies, coupled with their reasonable valuations, especially relative to their large cap counterparts.

S&P 500 has worst performance day versus Stratified Weight as vaccines news pushes markets higher in the face of rising Coronavirus infections

Thematic investing involves building portfolios in order to capitalize on secular trends. Rather than investing in a single sector, such as financials, thematic investing offers focused exposure to a strategic opportunity that can cut across several different sectors. Learn how Syntax's Affinity data can construct precisely targeted thematic investments.

Climate change is an increasingly critical area of interest for investors, but many of the popular ex-fossil fuel funds on the market miss out on significant sources of fossil fuel risk. In this video, Maggie Bolas talks about how Syntax's Affinity data can create comprehensive fossil fuel screens and build targeted clean energy portfolios.

Syntax Creates New ESG Index that Aims to Improve Portfolio Outcomes.

Just like everyone knows that we need to wear masks to stay safe, everyone knows that diversification and valuation are important considerations when constructing investment portfolios. But a “safety in numbers”, herd mentality has driven everyone into the same securities and investors are currently buying Amazon stock with the same intensity that they bought Clorox wipes from the Amazon website in April.

The risk reduction benefits of diversification are well understood by investors and form the cornerstone of risk management. This paper shows that diversification can also improve upside capture and lead to higher portfolio returns. 

As the market leadership shifts from mega-cap technology stocks to a more value oriented focus, we wanted to highlight the attractiveness of our Stratified Weight Indices. So far this quarter, our flagship indices have significantly outperformed their benchmarks in all categories (US Large Caps, Mid Caps, Small Caps and International).

In 2019, there were a total of 129 Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) in the United States. By number of IPOs, the Healthcare sector dominated, representing 48.8% of the 2019 IPOs. The next largest sector by number of IPOs, Financials, represented only 15.5%. The concentrations of IPOs in the Healthcare and Financials sectors represent a heavy weighting in certain business risks of new stock into the economy, however it does not tell the full story. While the Healthcare sector accounted for a significant plurality of IPOs in 2019, the Information sector took in a much greater share of the total market capitalization, with just over $104.9B. That is, 48.8% of the value of newly listed public companies came from the Information sector. This massive amount of funding is made all the more interesting due to the fact that there were only fifteen Information sector IPOs.

The root cause of the current market crisis is markedly different from anything we’ve seen before. However, the broad risk aversion, chaotic markets and divergence of sector performance has many of the hallmarks of the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. In this report, we examine the trajectory of the 2008 sell-off and subsequent recovery using our unique business risk lens and give actionable insights. If the 2008/9 hindsight is indeed 20:20, there are two ways to add value to our core portfolios: (i) rebalancing after the broad-based sell-off and (ii) reducing business risk concentrations during periods of high uncertainty. We will explore these two strategies in more detail and take stock of the market today. 

Since the first cases of Coronavirus were publicly identified in Wuhan at the end of 2019, the market has experienced significant decline as investors face uncertainty about the outbreak’s effects on corporate earnings. Using Syntax’s Functional Information System (FIS®) to evaluate shared business risks, we can granularly understand how the virus has specifically impacted the Tourism industry and the broader market. 

When investors think about diversification, they are usually looking to reduce downside volatility. However, a more diversified approach can be just as helpful in enhancing returns during a market recovery. The S&P 500 Financials Sector has given investors a turbulent ride over the last decade. Since that index peaked on February 20, 2007, it has had an incredibly sluggish recovery. Just yesterday, almost thirteen years after the last peak, the index achieved a new all-time high. The Stratified LargeCap Financials Index, on the other hand, recovered from the financial crisis five years ago.

Building on the concept of active share, Syntax has developed a new measure of portfolio risk called Active Business Risk. This white paper introduces Active Business Risk as the excess level of sector or industry exposure in a portfolio or index and shows that Active Business Risk is an important driver of portfolio return. It concludes that Active Business Risk is a quantifiable risk that is not adequately diversified by cap weighted indices. 

On September 28, 2018, S&P Dow Jones Indices and MSCI Inc. implemented the largest structural change to the Global Industry Classification Standard to date, significantly broadening the GICS Telecommunication Services sector to include a host of new companies and renaming it the Communication Services Sector. In this report, we discuss the new GICS changes through the lens of the Syntax Business Risk Taxonomy. 

This report analyzes business risk exposures present in the S&P 500 over the previous 25 years using Syntax’s Functional Information System (FIS). Unlike traditional industry classification systems, which offer a one-dimensional, static, taxonomical approach to classification, FIS utilizes a multi-dimensional attribute classification system to better understand underlying risk exposures in investment portfolios.