Five interesting things that Hodges Capital research analysts discovered this week...

#1 FOLLOW THE PRIVATE EQUITY MONEY: The Wall Street Journal reported that private equity financiers have contributed a record nearly $150 million to this year’s midterm election races, ensuring that one of finance’s most powerful sectors will continue to have the ear of legislators both inside and outside The Beltway.

#2 SOUTH KOREA LABOR CHALLENGES: According to an article published by the Economist, South Korea plans to issue a record number of foreign work visas in 2023, bringing immigration to a historical high. These actions aim to address a shortage of unskilled labor as the country’s rural population continues to shrink.

#3 SALES CYCLES CONTINUE TO INCREASE: As companies assess the effect of a looming recession, more report that sales cycles for purchasing have increased. In addition, the purchasing decisions now require a higher level of authorization than in the previous year.

#4 “PELOTON EQUALS PETS.COM”: Former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Larry Summers has a tough message to Silicon Valley and technology companies and investors ravaged by the downturn: “Part of it is not coming back.” Summers talked through the confluence of events that has brought Silicon Valley and tech companies to a level of pain he likened to the dot-com bust. “Peloton equals Pets.com,” he said.

#5 FACEBOOK MAKES CUTS: Mark Zuckerberg announced layoffs of 11,000 employees, 13% of the total workforce at Meta. The layoffs were driven by the recent economic downturn coupled with bad investments made by Meta during the pandemic.

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