All of you Art History majors – or fans of the movie Ferris Bueller’s Day Off – might remember seeing the famous painting A Sunday on La Grande Jatte, composed by Georges Seurat in the 1880s. This masterwork is likely the best known example of ‘Pointillism’ – a technique in which small, distinct dots of color are applied in patterns to form an image. Taking more than two years to complete, Seurat’s painting, whose setting is a small island on the river Seine, is estimated to contain approximately 220,000 dots.Seurat’s masterpiece is the inspiration behind our approach to navigating 1Q 2024 earnings season. Let’s imagine each company’s performance can be summarized by a few quotes, where a series of these summaries establish a theme, and a set of themes express the broader picture of what we see across the corporate earnings landscape. Building upon this analogy, this month’s Equity Beat contains dozens of “dots”, grouped into four distinct themes that attempt to express our earnings takeaways. From a distance, there are a few pockets of strength across the corporate landscape that carry the day. However, excluding these areas (namely data center/AI infrastructure, digital advertising and aerospace/defense), the outlook is relatively mixed. In my opinion, for the narrow market leadership trend of recent years to dissipate, investors need greater evidence of broader improvement across economic sectors. It does not seem as though we’re quite there yet.Theme #1: Industrial markets are generally weak, with the exception of data center infrastructure and aerospace/defense.Theme #2: The “Consumer” is mixed; the aspirational/lower income consumer is feeling some pain. The higher income cohort’s spend remains healthy.Theme #3: Digital advertisers are seeing strong demand thanks to Gen AI (better engagement and ad relevancy).Theme #4: Capital spending growth acceleration for Gen AI infrastructure is benefiting semiconductor companies. Thanks for reading, and remember to never skip a Beat Eric1FactSet2The Art Institute of Chicago The views expressed are those of the author and Brown Advisory as of the date referenced and are subject to change at any time based on market or other conditions. These views are not intended to be and should not be relied upon as investment advice and are not intended to be a forecast of future events or a guarantee of future results. Past performance is not a guarantee of future performance and you may not get back the amount invested. The information provided in this material is not intended to be and should not be considered to be a recommendation or suggestion to engage in or refrain from a particular course of action or to make or hold a particular investment or pursue a particular investment strategy, including whether or not to buy, sell, or hold any of the securities mentioned. It should not be assumed that investments in such securities have been or will be profitable. To the extent specific securities are mentioned, they have been selected by the author on an objective basis to illustrate views expressed in the commentary and do not represent all of the securities purchased, sold or recommended for advisory clients. The information contained herein has been prepared from sources believed reliable but is not guaranteed by us as to its timeliness or accuracy, and is not a complete summary or statement of all available data. This piece is intended solely for our clients and prospective clients, is for informational purposes only, and is not individually tailored for or directed to any particular client or prospective client.Terms and Definitions:Capital expenditures (CapEx) are funds used by a company to acquire, upgrade, and maintain physical assets such as property, plants, buildings, technology, or equipment.