This pick list highlights constituents of the Morningstar US Large Cap Index that we believe offer investors the best risk-adjusted return prospects. Stocks of large-cap companies where neither growth nor value characteristics predominate. Stocks in the top 70% of the capitalization of the U.S. equity market are defined as large cap.

Lowe's is the world's second-largest home improvement retailer, with sales of $86 billion in FY26. Based in Mooresville, North Carolina, the company operated about 1,759 home improvement and hardware stores in the U.S. at the end of FY26. Retail selling space was approximately 196 million square feet. Home Decor, which includes appliances and paint, was the biggest merchandise division at 37% of FY25 sales. Building Products, including lumber, was 32%; Hardlines, including tools, seasonal, and lawn & garden, was 29%; Other categories represented under 3% of sales. About 70% of sales are to individuals and 30% are to maintenance, repair, operations and construction professionals. The states with more than 100 stores at the end of FY25 were Texas, Florida, North Carolina and California. Stores stock about 40,000 items. Online sales represent approximately 11% of the company's total in FY24. The company's fiscal year ends on the Friday closest to the end of January. Based on the fiscal calendar, FY17 had a 53rd week, which happens about every five years. FY23 was also 53-week fiscal year. FY27 will end on January 29, 2027.

This week features the non-farm payrolls report for February, which comes out on Friday. Meanwhile, more big retailers will report, as earnings season winds down. As well, the new military conflict in Iran will bear closing watching, particularly if it lasts for more than a few weeks. Last week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 1.3%, the S&P 500 was down 0.4%, and the Nasdaq shed 1%. Year to date, the Dow is up 2%, the S&P 500 is higher by 0.5%, and the Nasdaq is down 2.5%. On the earnings calendar, MongoDB reports on Monday; Target, Best Buy, and CrowdStrike on Tuesday; Broadcom on Wednesday; and Costco on Thursday. About 96% of S&P 500 companies have reported so far, and overall earnings are up 14% from last quarter. Information Technology, up 34%, and Industrials, up 17%, are leading the pack. At the bottom are Consumer Discretionary, down 0.2%, and Healthcare, up 1%, according to LSEG I/B/E/S. On the economic calendar, the non-farm payrolls report takes center stage and various Federal Reserve officials have public speaking engagements. Turning to other data, the Atlanta Fed GDPNow is forecasting for 1Q and calls for 3.0% growth. The Cleveland Fed Inflation Nowcast forecasts a rate of 2.4% for February, which matches the print for January. Mortgage rates ticked down three basis points last week, with the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage now at 5.98%, according to FreddieMac. Gas prices went up two cents last week and are at an average of $2.94 per gallon for regular gas. The next Federal Open Market Committee meeting is on March 18, and odds are at 6% for a 25-basis-point cut at that meeting, according to the CME FedWatch rate tool. Taking a deeper dive into performance so far in 2026, a leading industrialized global stock market index, the ETF EFA, is up 9% year to date, while the leading emerging market ETF (EEM) is up 14%. U.S. growth stocks are down 6% year to date looking at ETF IWF, while value stocks (IWD) are higher by 6%. In other asset classes for the year to date, AGG bonds are up 1%, gold is up 21%, crude oil is up 15%, and Bitcoin is down 25%. The U.S. dollar is down 1%, tracking DXY. The VIX volatility index is at about 20, down from a high of 26 in late November. Turning to sector performance, the list from first to worst so far in 2026 is Energy (+22%), Materials (+16%), Industrials (+14%), Consumer Staples (+13%), Utilities (+8%), Real Estate (+3%), Healthcare (+1%), Communication Services (-0.2%), Consumer Discretionary (-3%), Information Technology (-4%), and Financials (-5%). By comparison, the S&P 500 is up 0.5% year to date.

Lowe's is the second-largest home improvement retailer globally, with more than 1,750 stores in the US, after the 2023 divestiture of its Canadian locations. The firm’s stores offer products and services for home decorating, maintenance, repair, and remodeling, with maintenance and repair accounting for two-thirds of products sold. Lowe's primarily targets retail do-it-yourself (around 70% of sales) and do-it-for-me customers, but has expanded its professional business clients to 30% from less than 20% in the past seven years (set to expand further with the acquisition of FBM). We estimate Lowe's captures a high-single-digit share of the domestic home improvement market, based on US Census data and management’s market size estimates.