Research from Water Tower Research, Water Tower Research

Water Tower Research

Water Tower Research is a leading equity research firm that provides research on micro, small and mid cap companies.

Water Tower Research was founded by Wall Street veterans after witnessing a fundamental shift in the investment research industry with the result being a declining knowledge base among investors, a lack of awareness and a shrinking pool of fundamental research being conducted on companies across the small-cap and micro-cap spectrum. The same issues are now increasingly occurring in the mid-cap space. This sea change within the investment community is impacting not only the companies themselves but also current shareholders and potential investors. With significantly less active sell-side sponsorship by Wall Street, a substantial information gap has developed between companies and various constituents in the financial community. The net result is fewer channels for insight and information to flow between companies and investors.

Research from Water Tower Research

Equity Research Firm

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

United states Consumer discretionary / Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<ul><li>A good week for furniture and furnishings stocks. The Water Tower Research Commercial/Contract Index (+3.5%) and Home Goods Retailers Index (+2.5%) posted strong returns relative to the market (-0.5% to +0.1%) and the Mass Retailers Index (-0.6%).</li><li>Our Residential Manufacturers &amp; Suppliers Index (-0.5%) was in line with the broader market.</li><li>The China price is now the highest in Asia. According to Science Is Strategic (citing Haver Analytics), unit labor rates in China are now ~2.5x to 4x higher than other Asian countries (see Figure 1). </li></ul>

A good week for furniture and furnishings stocks. The Water Tower Research Commercial/Contract Index (+3.5%) and Home Goods Retailers Index (+2.5%) posted strong returns relative to the market (-0.5% to +0.1%) and the Mass Retailers Index (-0.6%).Our Residential Manufacturers &amp; Suppliers Index (-0.5%) was in line with the broader market.The China price is now the highest in Asia. According to Science Is Strategic (citing Haver Analytics), unit labor rates in China are now ~2.5x to 4x higher than other Asian countries (see Figure 1). 

Furniture/Furnishings Weekly - June 3, 2024