Blog	INVESTING INSIGHTS AT WILLIAM BLAIR

Energy

The Age of Oil

The Active Share PodcastAugust 15, 2023

Podcast

We can’t understand current geopolitical events without understanding how fossil fuels shaped the 20th century. In this episode of The Active Share, Hugo sits down with Helen Thompson, a professor of political economy at Cambridge...

Inflation Went Wild; Here’s How It Might Be Tamed

Olga Bitel, Partner and Hugo Scott-Gall, PartnerJune 20, 2023

A Step Ahead

As inflation begins to moderate, Olga and Hugo examine the structural forces shaping the medium-term outlook in four categories: energy, housing, goods, and services. They uncover dynamics that challenge conventional wisdom about post-COVID shifts in...

What’s Shaping India? 5 Emerging Trends

Jeremy MurdenMay 22, 2023

Global Equity

In November 2019, members of our global equity team traveled to India to meet with management teams of more than 80 companies, gathering insights on India’s economic potential, growth drivers, and consumer demand across many...

4 Reasons to Get Excited About HVAC

Monika BudynMay 16, 2023

Global Equity

Investment analysts are constantly asking themselves: Is growth in my sector getting better, getting worse, or staying the same? And looking at one key area of industrials—heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC)—we believe there are...

3 Points About China

Vivian Lin Thurston, CFA, PartnerMarch 14, 2023

Global Equity

Clamping down on China has become a bipartisan effort in the United States, but I believe an outright conflict between China and Taiwan is a low-probability (albeit high-impact) event—and I remain constructive on the bottom-up,...

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Glossary

INDICES
The Bloomberg Barclays U.S. Aggregate Bond Index is a broad-based benchmark that measures the investment grade, U.S. dollar-denominated, fixed-rate taxable bond market, including Treasuries, government-related and corporate securities, mortgage-backed securities (agency fixed-rate and hybrid ARM pass-throughs), asset-backed securities, and commercial mortgage backed securities.

The MSCI ACWI IMI Index is a free float-adjusted, market capitalization-weighted index that captures large, mid, and small cap representation across developed and emerging markets.

The MSCI ACWI ex-US IMI Index is a free float-adjusted, market capitalization-weighted index that captures large, mid, and small cap representation across developed and emerging markets, excluding the U.S. The Value and Growth Indices are a subset of the Index that adopt a framework for style segmentation in which value and growth securities are characterized using different attributes. Multiple factors are used to identify value and growth characteristics.

The MSCI ACWI Small Cap Index is a free float-adjusted, market capitalization-weighted index that captures small cap representation across developed and emerging markets.

The MSCI Emerging Markets Index is a free float-adjusted, market capitalization-weighted index that is designed to measure the equity market performance of emerging markets.

The MSCI World Index is a free float-adjusted, market capitalization-weighted index that is designed to measure the equity market performance of developed markets.

The Russell 2000 Index is a market capitalization-weighted index designed to represent the small cap segment of the U.S. equity universe.

Index performance is for illustrative purposes only. The indices are unmanaged, do not incur fees or expenses, and cannot be invested in directly.

TERMS
Alpha is a measure of an investment’s return in excess of the market’s return, after both have been adjusted for risk.

Beta is a measure of the volatility of an investment relative to the overall market, represented by a comparable benchmark.

Half-life is a statistical measure of the time required for the discrepancy between price and value to contract by half of its starting value. Fundamental value estimates are based on the Dynamic Allocation Strategies team’s proprietary research.

P/E Ratio is a measure of valuation which compares share price to earnings per share, calculated using estimates for the next twelve months.

Standard deviation is a statistical measurement of variations from the average.

QUANTITATIVE MODELS – FACTOR DEFINITIONS
The William Blair Earnings Trend Model captures information about short- and medium-term changes in analyst estimates in an attempt to anticipate future estimate changes and stock performance. The score combines measurements of earnings revisions, momentum, and earnings surprise.

The William Blair Valuation Model combines varying metrics used to characterize the relationship between the stock’s trading price and its intrinsic value. By going beyond using only one or two measures, the model attempts to build a more holistic version of a stock’s worth vis-a-vis the market. The score combines measurements of earnings/cash flow based, asset-based, and model-based factors.

FEATURED TOPICS

U.S. EQUITY

GLOBAL EQUITY

EMERGING MARKETS DEBT

Blog

Energy

The Age of Oil

Inflation Went Wild; Here’s How It Might Be Tamed

What’s Shaping India? 5 Emerging Trends

4 Reasons to Get Excited About HVAC

3 Points About China

Andrew Pinheiro

Insights From Denver

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

FEATURED TOPICS

U.S. EQUITY

GLOBAL EQUITY

EMERGING MARKETS DEBT

Blog

Energy

The Age of Oil

Inflation Went Wild; Here’s How It Might Be Tamed

What’s Shaping India? 5 Emerging Trends

4 Reasons to Get Excited About HVAC

3 Points About China

Andrew Pinheiro

Insights From Denver

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Privacy & Security

Cookie Policy

Our use of cookies

Additional Resources

Social Media Disclaimer

Glossary