For the past decade-plus, the performance record has favored growth stocks over value. Yet the tide may be changing. In 2025, value stocks and growth stocks had similar returns, with growth advancing 13.8% and value returning 13.6%. More than halfway through 2026, value stocks have climbed 16.8% while growth stocks have returned 5.7%. The post COVID-19 economy gave a lift to some of the cyclical companies (energy and regional banks), and value stocks outpaced growth stocks that year. While growth stocks led for a few years after that, history has shown other instances where value stocks have outperformed. Value stocks tend to be more resilient in times of market uncertainty and higher volatility as they are less likely to overreact to economic news. Another factor, in our view, has been the level of interest rates. If interest rates are high, discount rates will be high, and future profits will be worth less, creating an unfavorable environment for growth stocks. In any event, the value sector is the place to achieve income.

National Fuel Gas Co. is an integrated energy company with approximately $8.7 billion in assets. The regulated gas utility operation distributes and transports gas to approximately 750,000 customers in northwestern Pennsylvania and western New York. The E&P segment, Seneca Resources Co., produces crude oil and natural gas in Appalachia. The Pipeline and Storage segment owns and operates natural gas pipelines running from Pennsylvania through western New York to the Canadian border near Buffalo. The company has 2,322 employees. The shares are a component of the S&P MidCap 400 index.

Earnings reports are winding down -- but there are still some important names that will report this week, and some key inflation data also is due to come out. Last week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 3%, the S&P 500 was up 4%, and the Nasdaq popped 5%. Year to date, all three indices are in positive territory, with the DJIA up 12%, the S&P 500 up 13%, and the Nasdaq up 15%. On the earnings calendar, headliners this week include CoreWeave and Super Micro Computer on Tuesday; Cisco Systems on Wednesday; and Applied Materials on Thursday. At this point, 87% of S&P 500 companies had reported as of Friday. Earnings so far are up a whopping 51% from last quarter, with Energy and Communication Services leading the charge, and Healthcare at the low end. On the economic calendar, investors will get new insight about consumer spending and inflation via the Consumer Price Index (CPI) report on Wednesday, the Producer Price Index (PPI) report on Thursday, and new retail sales data on Friday. Turning to other economic data, gas prices moved lower last week, to an average of $4.04 per gallon for regular gas. Meanwhile, the Atlanta Fed GDPNow forecast calls for GDP growth of 5.8% 3Q, a big jump from the 1.5% reported for 2Q. The Cleveland Fed Inflation Nowcast forecast for CPI is at 3.4% for July and 3.5% for August. Mortgage rates rose another three basis points last week, with the average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage now at 6.69%, according to FreddieMac. The next Federal Open Market Committee (FOMS) rate decision is on September 16. Odds are at 42% for a rate hike at that meeting. That's much lower than the 63% last week and reflects the weak jobs data that came out on Friday. Taking a deeper dive into performance so far in 2026, a leading industrialized global stock market index, the ETF EFA, is up 13% year to date, while the leading emerging market ETF (EEM) is up 20%. U.S. growth stocks are up 5% year to date when looking at ETF IWF, while value stocks (IWD) are up 22%. Crude oil prices continue to be volatile. On Friday, oil closed at $77 per barrel and is up 33% for the year. In other asset classes for the year to date, AGG bonds are down 3%, gold is up 1%, and Bitcoin is down 26%. The U.S. dollar is up 1%, tracking DXY. The VIX Volatility Index was about 15 on Friday, below its historical average of 20. Turning to sector performance, the list from first to worst so far in 2026 is Energy (+30%), Information Technology (+29%), Industrials (+19%), Materials (+15%), Real Estate (+11%), Consumer Staples (+10%), Healthcare (+6%), Financials (+6%), Utilities (+2%), Consumer Discretionary (-1%), and Communication Services (-6%).

National Fuel is an integrated energy company with approximately $8.7 billion in assets. The regulated gas utility operation distributes and transports gas to approximately 750,000 customers in northwestern Pennsylvania and western New York. The E&P segment, Seneca Resources, produces crude oil and natural gas in Appalachia. The Pipeline and Storage segment owns and operates natural gas pipelines running from Pennsylvania through western New York to the Canadian border near Buffalo. The company has 2,100 employees. The shares are a component of the S&P 400 Midcap Index.