BlackRock’s Moore Says Stock Investors Can Win During Inflation

Kate Moore said that stock investors can profit even when inflation is bad.

There are investment themes around higher inflation that are really interesting, according to Moore, the managing director overseeing thematic strategy at BlackRock.

Moore told David Westin that companies with less dependence on labor, efficient technology, long-term contracts with suppliers and other factors that reduce input costs are likely to perform better when inflation is rising.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported this week that U.S. prices increased 8.3% in the year through April, the highest pace in four decades. The S&P 500 closed up for the day but still posted a sixth consecutive weekly drop, the longest losing streak since 2011.

David Bianco, chief investment officer of the Americas for DWS Group, said portfolio diversifiers such as commodities, real estate and inflation-protected securities are healthy holdings during inflationary periods when stocks and bonds are falling.

Bianco said that cash is not trash at a time of uncertainty.