US equity markets posted modest declines this past week after the Federal Reserve held rates steady and maintained its status quo "wait-and-see" approach, but acknowledged heightened inflation and labor market risks. Meanwhile, White House officials headed to Switzerland to begin high-level trade talks with China, which follows the announcement of the first major post-Liberation Day trade deal with the United Kingdom. Following its best two-week stretch since late 2022, the S&P 500 slipped 0.4% this week - extending its drawdown to around 8% from its mid-February record highs.

AGNC Investment Corp. (NASDAQ:AGNC ) Q1 2025 Earnings Conference Call April 22, 2025 8:30 AM ET Company Participants Katherine Turlington - IR Peter Federico - Director, President and CEO Bernice Bell - EVP and CFO Christopher Kuehl - EVP and Chief Investment Officer Conference Call Participants Bose George - KBW Crispin Love - Piper Sandler Doug Harter - UBS Trevor Cranston - JMP Securities Matthew Erdner - JonesTrading Jason Stewart - Janney Montgomery Scott Eric Hagen - BTIG Rick Shane - JPMorgan Harsh Hemnani - Green Streets Operator Good morning, and welcome to the AGNC Investment Corp. First Quarter 2025 Shareholder Call. All participants will be in listen-only mode.

AGNC has delivered subpar returns, with only 1% annualized over a decade. The bulk of this was powered by selling stock above tangible equity and not from the base business. We dive into how an income investor, even one requiring very high yields, can do better with other lower-yielding plays.

US equity markets steadied this past week while bond markets rallied as investors parsed a surprisingly solid slate of economic data and a decent start to corporate earnings season. Early week gains were pared following comments from Fed Chair Powell regarding the inflationary impact of tariffs and the reluctance of the Fed to step in to support markets. The hawkish comments sparked a series of blistering critiques by President Trump, accusing the Fed Chair of "playing politics" and posting that his "termination cannot come fast enough."

We live in a very challenging environment. Many REITs are facing severe headwinds. Don't buy just anything. Here are some of the worst REITs to buy today.

I recommended AGNCM and AGNCO preferred stocks roughly 2 years ago. The investment has achieved solid double-digit returns, outperforming the S&P500 with 40.7% and 33.4% total returns, respectively. AGNCM and AGNCO may be attractive during this recent spate of market volatility and the increase in market interest rates.

Floating rate preferreds, initially created in a zero interest rate environment, now yield around 10% due to the timing phenomenon and changes in interest rates. Key factors for analysis include company stability, size of preferred issue relative to common equity, discount/premium to par value, and adjustment above SOFR. Risks include rapid yield curve fluctuations and potential Fed rate cuts, which could lower SOFR and subsequently reduce yields on floating rate preferreds.

Ahead of the April 2nd tariff unveiling, US equity markets were under renewed pressure this week on downbeat data showing a further dip in consumer confidence and hotter-than-expected PCE inflation. As a turbulent first quarter wraps up, the updated GDPNow - the Atlanta Fed's closely watched GDP tracking model - forecasts growth of -2.8% overall and -0.5% on a "gold-adjusted basis." Posting weekly declines for the seventh time in the past nine weeks, the S&P 500 finished lower by 1.5% - extending its drawdown to 9.3% from its record-highs.

While the S&P 500 and other major benchmarks entered "correction territory" this month for the first time since 2023, U.S. REITs have meaningfully outperformed the broader equity market since mid-January. The rebound follows a truly forgettable three-year period for REITs dating back to the start of the Fed's rate hiking cycle in which REITs have accumulated 40 percentage-points of underperformance. REITs remain as unloved as ever: The number of publicly listed REITs declined for a fourth-straight year in 2024. As an asset class, REITs are the single-largest "underweight" among institutional investors.

US equity markets remained under pressure this week as encouraging inflation data and a deal to avoid a government shutdown were offset by further tariff escalations and weak sentiment data. Markets struggled to agree on how the FOMC will interpret the latest economic data, with recent "hard data" showing encouraging trends while "softer" survey data has painted a far-bleaker outlook. Following its worst week in six months, the S&P 500 finished lower by another 2.3% this week - its fourth-straight week of declines - which dragged the index into "correction territory."