We are modifying the name of our firm to Parthenon LLC. We are doing this in order to avoid any potential confusion with a private equity investment firm in Boston that was formed at nearly the same time that we formed Parthenon. Coincidentally, the name of their firm is Parthenon Capital. Although their client base…
To Our Clients and Friends of Parthenon Capital Management The stock market rallied sharply in the second quarter and most broad indices finished the first half of the year up over 10%, providing investors with a welcome respite after three years of relentless declines. The S&P 500 rose 11.78%, including dividends, for the first six…
To Our Clients and Friends of Parthenon Capital Management The S&P 500 fell 13.2% in the first six months of the year. But the first half was only a prelude to the weakness to follow. Since the end of the quarter, the market decline has accelerated with the index now down more than 20% for…
To Our Clients and Friends of Parthenon Capital Management For the first time in a generation the S&P 500 fell for two consecutive years. The Index fell 11.8% in 2001, which completes the first consecutive declines since 1973-1974. The past year was also the worst year for the index since 1974. Interestingly, this was only…
To Our Clients and Friends of Parthenon Capital Management Although we can offer few words that would be adequate for the human toll of the terrorist attacks on America, our sympathies go out to all those who have suffered a loss. Before the attacks the economy appeared to be entering or bordering on a recession.…
To Our Clients and Friends of Parthenon Capital Management A moderate dose of optimism returned to the stock market in the second quarter sending the S&P 500 up 5.85%, leaving the index down 6.69% for the first half of the year. Bond prices fell and yields on 10-year treasuries rose to 5.41% from 4.99%. The…
To Our Clients and Friends of Parthenon Capital Management The date on the calendar changed but the market’s action was undeniably retro in the first quarter as stocks extended the decline of last year. The S&P 500 Index fell 11.9% in the period as the weakness that had been concentrated primarily in technology and internet…
To Our Clients and Friends of Parthenon Capital Management Investors must search back over a quarter century to find a more negative year for total return on the S&P 500 Index than 2000. The Index fell 9.1% after an unprecedented string of five straight years with returns over 20%. The worst damage, obviously, occurred in…
To Our Clients and Friends of Parthenon Capital Management Stocks finished the third quarter down marginally as measured by the S&P 500 Index. The Index, with dividends included, was down .97% in the quarter and down 1.37% through the first three quarters. The market has continued to weaken slightly in the fourth quarter with the…
To Our Clients and Friends of Parthenon Capital Management The S&P 500 rose 2.3% in the first quarter while the 30-year Treasury bond yield fell from 6.48% to 5.84% although shorter rates increased on average by .25% to .50%. That concludes our summation of the first quarter. We suspect the market’s activity in the first…