Stocks soar to record highs

The U.S. stock market closed out 2013 at record highs, and local stocks in the BizTimes Stock Index also soared.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed to new record highs 52 times during 2013, ending the year at a record 16,576.66, up 26.5 percent over last year. It was the largest one-year surge for the blue chip index in 18 years.

The broader Standard & Poor’s 500 Index did even better, climbing to 1,848.36, up 30 percent from the previous year.

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The tech-focused Nasdaq Composite Index rose to 4,176.59, up 38 percent from the previous year.

According to a popular Motley Fool review, the stock rally that closed out the year was fueled by a jump in the Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which rebounded in December and rose to 78.1, up from 72.0 in November.

“Consumer confidence rebounded in December and is now close to pre-government shutdown levels (September 2013, 80.2),” said Lynn Franco, director of economic indicators at The Conference Board. “Sentiment regarding current conditions increased to a 5½-year high (April 2008, 81.9), with consumers attributing the improvement to more favorable economic and labor market conditions. Looking ahead, consumers expressed a greater degree of confidence in future economic and job prospects, but were moderately more pessimistic about their earning prospects. Despite the many challenges throughout 2013, consumers are in better spirits today than when the year began.”

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“Investors were rewarded in 2013 by taking an optimistic view on macro-oriented risks and being positioned for valuation expansion,” said Jim McDonald, chief investment strategist at Northern Trust Bank.

The stocks of publicly traded companies based in southeastern Wisconsin (Milwaukee, Racine, Kenosha, Waukesha, Walworth, Ozaukee, Washington and Sheboygan counties) also flourished with the broader rally in 2013.

All but four of the 38 stocks in the BizTimes Stock Index gained ground during the year.

The 10 largest gainers for the year were: MGIC Investment Corp. (up 217.3 percent); MagneTek Inc. (up 127 percent); Roundy’s Inc. (up 121.6 percent); ManpowerGroup (up 102.3 percent); Strattec Security Corp. (up 73.1 percent); Journal Communications Inc. (up 72.1 percent); A.O. Smith Corp. (up 67.3 percent); Johnson Controls Inc. (up 65.1 percent); Generac Holdings Inc. (up 63 percent); and Bank Mutual Corp. (up 57.7 percent).

The top 10 local stocks included a diverse cast of companies, including five manufacturers, two financial services companies, a grocery retailer and a media company.

The resurgence of Milwaukee-based MGIC Investment Corp., the nation’s largest provider of private mortgage insurance, reflected the rebound of the nation’s housing sector.

“I am pleased to report that the favorable economic trends we have been benefiting from relative to home price appreciation and employment over the last several quarters have continued,” said Curt Culver, chief executive officer and chairman of MGIC. “I am encouraged by the progress we have made this year regarding new business writings and am pleased with the quality and performance of the business written since 2009.”

The only local stocks to lose ground in 2013 were: ZBB Energy Corp. (down 46 percent); Joy Global Inc. (down 8.3 percent); Brady Corp. (down 7.4 percent); and Merge Technologies Inc. (down 6.1 percent).

——————————————————————————

BizTimes Stock Index – 2013 Performance
Stock Name Symbol Price 12/31/12 Price 12/31/13 % Change
MGIC Investment Corp. MTG 2.66 8.44 217.3%
MagneTek, Inc. MAG 10.56 23.97 127.0%
Roundy’s, Inc. RNDY 4.45 9.86 121.6%
Manpower, Inc. MAN 42.44 85.86 102.3%
Strattec Security Corp. STRT 25.81 44.67 73.1%
Journal Communications, Inc. JRN 5.41 9.31 72.1%
A.O. Smith Corp. AOS 31.54 53.94 71.0%
Johnson Controls, Inc. JCI 30.67 51.30 67.3%
Generac Holdings, Inc. GNRC 34.31 56.64 65.1%
Bank Mutual Corp. BKMU 4.30 7.01 63.0%
Modine Manufacturing Co. MOD 8.13 12.82 57.7%
Fiserv, Inc. FISV 39.52 59.05 49.4%
Roadrunner Transportation Systems Inc. RRTS 18.14 26.95 48.6%
Twin Disc, Inc. TWIN 17.43 25.89 48.5%
Waterstone Financial, Inc. WSBF 7.80 11.10 42.3%
Harley-Davidson, Inc. HOG 48.83 69.24 41.8%
Rockwell Automation, Inc. ROK 83.99 118.16 40.7%
Snap-on, Inc. SNA 78.99 109.52 38.7%
Sensient Technologies Corp. SXT 35.56 48.52 36.4%
Johnson Outdoors, Inc. JOUT 19.92 26.95 35.3%
Quad/Graphics, Inc. QUAD 20.39 27.23 33.5%
Kohl’s Corp. KSS 42.98 56.75 32.0%
Actuant Corp. ATU 27.91 36.64 31.3%
Rexnord Corp. RXN 21.30 27.01 26.8%
Weyco Group, Inc. WEYS 23.36 29.43 26.0%
Douglas Dynamics, Inc. PLOW 14.39 16.82 16.9%
Badger Meter, Inc. BMI 47.41 54.50 15.0%
Wisconsin Energy Corp. WEC 36.85 41.34 12.2%
Marcus Corp. MCS 12.47 13.44 7.8%
Koss Corp. KOSS 4.75 5.10 7.4%
Briggs & Stratton Corp. BGG 21.08 21.76 3.2%
Merge Technologies, Inc. MRGE 2.47 2.32 -6.1%
Brady Corp. BRC 33.40 30.93 -7.4%
Joy Global, Inc. JOY 63.78 58.49 -8.3%
ZBB Energy Corp. ZBB 1.65 0.89 -46.0%
Westbury Bancorp, Inc.* WBB 13.59 13.95 2.6%
Artisan Partners Asset Management, Inc.* APAM 35.20 65.19 85.2%
Physicians Realty Trust* DOC 11.50 12.74 10.8%
*WBB Started trading on 4/11/13 at 13.59
*APAM Started trading on 3/7/13 at 35.20
*DOC started trading on 7/19/13 at 11.50
All data taken on 1/2/14 from Factset Research Systems
and compiled by Robert W. Baird & Co. Inc.

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