Every year, thousands of LPL advisors gather at our national conference. In San Diego most years (including this year and next), the conference is a time to learn about new initiatives and resources, network with peers, share ideas, and celebrate success. It’s also a time for LPL to say thank you face-to-face to many of our over 30,000 financial advisors.

The LPL Research team sent eight team members this year. We collected their takeaways and summarized them in eight points below.

Top Eight Takeaways

1. A team on the rise. LPL Research is on the way up. Feedback was positive and traffic at our booth was h

July’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) report showed headline year-over-year inflation remained steady at 2.7%, below the anticipated level of 2.8%. Core inflation, which excludes more volatile food and energy prices, rose to 3.1% from a prior 2.9%, indicating underlying price pressures. The “Inflation Path” chart highlights the unchanged year-over-year print in headline CPI, and uptick in core CPI. We anticipate additional upward pressure on inflation in the coming months as the effects of recent tariffs become more evident in the data.

Inflation Path

• Source: LPL Research, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Burea

With 90% of S&P 500 companies having reported second quarter results, corporate America has handily topped expectations, displaying resilience in the face of a challenging policy environment. Although the S&P 500 had a relatively low bar to clear of just 4.9% earnings growth expected for the quarter, America’s largest companies have cruised past estimates. S&P 500 earnings per share (EPS) growth, tracking over 11% year-over-year growth, is more than doubling the level expected at the start of the season on July 1. Alongside the better-than-anticipated results, an earnings season rarity has also caught investors’ attent

Healthcare has been getting more support from the market pundits lately as a potential value play. While LPL Research’s Strategic and Tactical Asset Allocation Committee (STAAC) has a neutral recommended weighting for the sector, our assessment of the fundamentals (including policy risk) and our technical analysis work suggest the sector is closer to an underweight than an overweight. At this point, attractive valuations and the possibility that a near-term market pullback improves the performance of defensive sectors leave us comfortable at neutral. If some proceeds are needed to fund an upgrade, healthcare will be in the discussion &m