Morningstar Spotlight Morningstar Blog - Morningstar Spotlight Morningstar Subscribe Adviser Spotlight Our latest news, research and insights. Subscribe Choose a topic Behavioural science ESG Housing & you In Practice Inside Morningstar Investing basics Investing Trends Reporting Season Research Insights Retirement The Big Picture The finance industry Top stories Behavioural science How advisers can rise to the challenges and opportunities of next-gen clients Deeper engagement can build an advantage with the next generation of investors. Read more | 5 min read Investing basics 4 ways to take advantage of the market turmoil Economists tell us with certainty that tariffs are always bad news and point to the 1930 Smoot-Hawley legislation that supposedly caused the Great Depression. The problem is that it didn’t cause the Depression and there’s genuine debate about how much it contributed to the depth and length of the depression that took place. Read more | 5 min read Investing Trends The babies thrown out with the bathwater Some investors just want cash and they’re willing to liquidate at almost any price, and that’s where rational investors can take advantage. Read more | 6 min read Top stories [Video] What does the RBA rate cut mean for investors? Morningstars Chief Investment Officer for Asia-Pacific and Director of Personal Finance share their thoughts on the recent RBA rate cut. Read more | 4 min read Research Insights [Video] Australian Equity Market Outlook Q1 2025 Tune into this exciting webinar to hear Morningstar’s Mathew Hodge, Director of Equity Research, Adrian Atkins, Senior Equities Analyst and Lochlan Halloway, Market Strategist, present the equity market outlook for Australia. Read more | 30 min read Investing basics The two best ways to maximise dividend income People often marvel at Warren Buffett now getting 60 cents in annual dividends on every dollar he invested in Coca-Cola 30 years ago. What’s often overlooked are the secrets to how he achieved this phenomenal result. Read more | 5 min read Reporting Season Insights from reporting season: So far, so good We’ve upgraded our fair value estimate for 29 companies, or 40% of those that have reported thus far. Read more | 6 min read Investing Trends Why small caps could shine bright in 2025? Small caps are currently trading at a substantial discount compared with their large-cap counterparts. Read more | 5 min read Behavioural science Financial Advisers: Where Are Values in Your Value Proposition? Getting clients to talk about their values can drive better understanding and fulfilling outcomes. Read more | 5 min read The Big Picture Video: Our Outlook for 2025 Morningstar Equity Market Strategist Lochlan Halloway discusses his view on what we can expect in markets in 2025. Read more | 5 min read Reporting Season Video: Cost cutting still holds the key to Telstras dividend Brian Han talks about Telstras cost cutting measures, the companys dividend outlook and its embarrassing mobile margins. Read more | 6 min read Investing Trends Navigating the dividend doldrums While the overall dividend outlook is less than impressive, some pockets of the market still screen favourably. Read more | 6 min read Reporting Season Reporting Season Wrap: Three Key Themes With big share price swings on earnings ‘beats’ and ‘misses’, there is often undue focus on the noisy near-term. Read more | 7 min read The Big Picture A map of wealth in Australia Recents data suggests that Australia remains the lucky country. Read more | 5 min read Research Insights Why did ANZ buy Suncorp Bank? Senior Equity Analyst for Banking, Nathan Zaia, on the ANZ-Suncorp deal. Read more | 5 min read Research Insights Our view of mining shares Mining analyst Jon Mills discusses his new report Industry Pulse on Mining for Q2 2024. Read more | 7 min read Behavioural science The Psychology of Retirement Income: From Saving to Spending Are you lost in the retirement consumption puzzle? Read more | 6 min read ESG Global Sustainable Fund Flows: Q2 2024 in Review Recovery continues in Europe, but redemptions persist in other parts of the world. Read more | 10 min read Retirement Why the Government will continue to target super and the pension An aging population will drive policy decisions. Read more | 6 min read Reporting Season ‘Tis the season to avoid folly Having been through over 50 earnings seasons, here are three ways I recommend long-term investors to cut through the noise and make the most of this bi-annual bedlam. Read more Investing Trends VIDEO: Top opportunities in the Aussie tech and AI space Morningstars Michael Malseed interviews First Sentiers Dawn Kanelleas and Maple-Brown Abbotts Phil Hudak. Read more | 7 min read Housing & you Australian housing is twice as expensive as the US Here’s how Australia stacks up against seven other developed countries. Read more | 7 min read Investing basics Invest in equities until you reach our sleeping point Benjamin Graham wrote that everyone should hold between 25% and 75% in equities, with the rest in bonds. The right level is the point where you sleep easy. Read more | 5 min read Behavioural science The psychological shift from saving to spending in retirement Why do people have trouble shifting from a saving to spending mindset in retirement? Researchers have plenty of theories though cant identify an exact cause, nevertheless there are things that can enable the shift. Read more | 5 min read Investing basics Using financials to find interesting stocks Ideas and business investment opportunities often present themselves as numbers. Read more | 5 min read Investing Trends Video: The bull market in commodities may be just starting https://video.morningstar.com/aus/sd/2024/240528_Rob_Almeida_MFS_mstar.mp4 .... Read more | 8 min read Research Insights Video: Are Guzmans growth targets realistic? https://video.morningstar.com/aus/sd/2024/240613_Halloway_GYG_mstar.mp4 .... Read more | 7 min read Investing Trends Stock markets can do well despite inflation Stocks can do well in inflationary periods, particularly companies with strong pricing power and reasonable financial leverage. Read more | 6 min read The Big Picture An investors take on the Budget Near-term economic outlook points to subtrend revenue growth. Read more | 6 min read The finance industry Challenges confronting the mega funds There’s been barely any questions asked about how the size of the super funds is essentially forcing them to diversify further into alternative and international assets, and the risks that this entails. Read more | 6 min read Investing Trends Our top mining pick Morningstar Analyst Jon Mills on his top pick. Read more | 3 min read Investing basics Investing Trends Our view of Australian Banks Our latest banking industry pulse explored the state of the industry. Read more | 4 min read Retirement The challenges of retirement aren’t just financial Moynes, a former educator and financial adviser, wrote the short book after his own struggles in retirement and subsequent interviews with other retirees. He believes that there’s a predictable and identifiable pattern to retirement, and it involves four phases: Read more | 5 min read The Big Picture If the US economy sneezes, will Australia catch a cold? At the start of 2024, a stronger-than-expected run of economic data has unsettled markets, with concerns inflation is proving stickier than expected. Read more | 6 min read Investing basics Building portfolios using quantitative signals James Gruber chats with Andrew Francis and David Walsh from RQI Investors. Read more | 6 min read Investing basics Wisdom from a career in markets Morningstar Head of Equity Research Peter Warnes reflects on a 61 year career. Read more | 10 min read Research Insights Infrastructure boom or bust? Growing population and wealth will create both demand for greater and improved infrastructure capacity. Read more | 7 min read Investing Trends Why LICs may be close to bottoming Investor disgust, consolidation, de-listings, price discounts, activist investors entering it’s what typically happens at business cycle troughs, and it’s happening to LICs now. That may present a potential opportunity. Read more | 6 min read Investing basics Boosting the magic of compounding—Berkshire has a way We at Morningstar are indebted to the Berkshire dynamic duo, for the way we think about the sources of durable competitive advantages. Read more | 8 min read The Big Picture [Video] Central banks have won the war on inflation Inflation will head back towards central bank targets of 2-3% in the US and Australia over the next 12 months, according to bond manager, Pimco. Read more | 2 min read Investing Trends [Video] How are investors approaching the markets nabtrade’s Gemma Dale provides a snapshot into how investors are positioning their portfolios in a challenged investment environment. Read more | 2 min read