2026INVESTMENTOUTLOOK

Riding

Tailwinds

Aglobalinterplayofkeythemesincludeslowerrates,earningsgrowth,andAIhopes.

2

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

Mac「oOve「view

GiulioMartini—

Partner,DirectorofStrategicAssetAllocation

I.

KeyPoints

Globalfinancialmarketshavesurgedwitheasierfinancialconditionsandbroad-basedearningsgrowth,withoptimismabouttheadoptionofartificialintelligence(AI)adominanttheme.

TheresilienceofChinaandothermajoroverseaseconomieshas

beencriticalforsustainingglobalgrowth,andinflationhascontinueddeceleratinginmostcountries.

RiskstowatchincludeinvestorresponsestorisingU.S.debtlevels,

geopoliticalconditions,anddevelopmentsthatcouldpotentiallyderailexpectationsforthecontinuedgrowthofAI.

3

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

I.MacroOverview

As2026begins,financialconditionshaveeasedaroundtheworld,ledbycentral

banksloweringinterestratesinvirtuallyeverycountry.Thathastriggered,alongwithotherfactors,strongstockmarketsglobally,tightenedcreditspreads,and

ampleavailabilityofcredit.

Oneencouraging

signforinvestors

hasbeenthatcentralbankshavenotbeenoverlyrigidabout

hittingtheirinflationtargetsintheveryshortrun.

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

4

Figure1.

GlobalFinancialConditionsHaveEased

U.S.FinancialConditionsIndex(top)andGlobalFinancialStressIndex(bottom),November10,2024–November10,2025

Source:Bloomberg,GoldmanSachs,andBofAMerrillLynch.DataasofNovember10,2025.Forillustrativepurposesonlyanddoesnot

representanyspecificportfoliomanagedbyLordAbbettoranyparticularinvestment.

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

5

Oneencouragingsignforinvestorshasbeenthatcentralbankshavenotbeenoverlyrigidabouthittingtheir

inflationtargetsintheveryshortrun.

Forexample,whiletheU.S.Federal

Reserve’s(Fed)inflationtargetis2%,inflationhasheldabovethatlevel.

Nevertheless,theFedhasdecidedthatinflationisheadinglowerinthemediumtermandcloseenoughtoitstargetto

allowittoimplementratecutsaimedatsupportingrealeconomicactivityand

maximumemployment,evenasinflationremainsslightlyabovetarget.Financialmarketshavetakenapositiveviewof

thispolicyflexibility,andmedium-terminflationexpectationshaveremained

well-anchored,consistentwiththe

2%target.

BroadEarningsGrowthandAIHopesFuelMultipleExpansion

Strongearningsgrowth,ledby

thetechnologysector(butnotjust

concentratedintech),hasalsosupportedfinancialmarkets.Thebroadeningof

earningsgrowthbeyondtechhasalsobeenmetwithexpandingmultiples,

drivenmostlybytheoutlookforAI.

AlthoughitremainsuncertainhowfarAIdevelopmentswilltransformbusinesses,thereisstillplentyofroomforoptimism.

AIshowspromisenotjustinmaking

scientificresearchanddrugdiscovery

processesmoreeffective,butalsoasadevelopinggeneral-purposetechnologythatcanbeappliedacrossbusinesses

andindustriestoboostefficiency.Theexpansionofequityvaluationmultipleshasbeen,inpart,anexpressionof

thatoptimism.

KeyThemesExtendtoOverseasMarkets

Multipleexpansion,drivenbylower

interestrates,thepromiseofAI,andrelativelylowinflation,hasalsobeenastrongtailwindforfinancialmarketsglobally.Thisstrengthisevident

notonlyintheUnitedStates,where

stockshaverisenabout17%thisyearthroughOctober31—basedonthe

performanceoftheS&P500?Index—butalsointernationally.TheMSCIAllCountryWorldIndex(ACWI)ex-U.S.

hasrisenabout28%inthesameperiod,reflectingbothaweakerU.S.dollar

androbustperformancebyoverseas

companies.Thismarksanotableshift

fromprioryears,whennon-U.S.equities,despiteappearingattractivelyvalued,

consistentlyunderperformedU.S.stocks.Incontrast,manyinternationalmarkets,

includingJapan,theEurozone,the

UnitedKingdom,andseveralemergingeconomies,havepostedhigherreturnsin2025.

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

6

GlobalGrowthProspectsDrivenbyMajorEconomies

AnothermajorthemehasbeenresilienceinChina.China’stransitionfroma

housing-ledeconomytoanexport-drivenmodelhasfacedchallenges.Therisks

toitsexportsectorcameintheform

oftariffpolicyintheUnitedStates,as

wellasgrowinguneaseinindustries

globallywhereChinahasexpanded

rapidly,particularlyinmotorvehicles,

especiallyelectricvehicles(EVs).Despitetheseheadwinds,industrialactivityin

Chinahasbeenresilient,boostinghighvalue-addedproductionathomeand

leveragingitstraderelationshipswith

countriessuchasVietnamandThailandtomaintainoverseasmarketaccess.

WhathappensdomesticallyintheUnitedStatesandChinahasasignificantimpactontheglobaleconomyduetotheirsize.China’scontinuedstrongperformance

anditsavoidanceofpoliticaland

financialcriseshaveunderscoredits

resilience,whichhasbeenamajorfactorshapingtheglobaleconomy.

Europehasseenstrongergrowth

amidchallengesposedbytheongoingwarinUkraine,highenergycosts,

anduncertaintyaboutfuturesupply,

andrisingmilitaryspending.Indeed,

spendingonredevelopmentand

expansionofmembernations’defenseandsecurityinfrastructure,anda

relaxationofbudgetaryrulesinmajor

economiesintheregion,haveactedasfiscalstimulus,liftingEurozonegrowthabovethesluggish1%previouslyseen.

Meanwhile,Japanhasmaintainedpro-

growthpoliciesthatthenewgovernmentappearstobecommittedto.

ASupportiveEraforCryptocurrency,Stablecoins,andTokenization

TheUnitedStateshastakenastrong

stanceinsupportingthedevelopmentofcryptocurrency,stablecoins,

andtokenization,anapproachthat

contrastswiththecautionofthe

previousadministrationandglobal

centralbanks.Thisbackinghasfueledmomentumintheindustry,driving

ralliesindigitalcurrenciesandsharesofrelatedbusinessesandaccelerating

theadoptionofnewpaymentsystems.

Whiletheseinnovationscarrybothrisksandbenefits,theynowappearpoisedtopotentiallybecomeapermanentpartofthefinanciallandscape.Giventhatglobalpaymentsystemsunderpintheentire

financialsystem,anyshift,whetherdisruptiveorenhancing,couldhavefar-reachingimplications.

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

7

RiskstoWatchin2026

GrowingDeficits

Anunresolvedchallengeforglobal

marketsistherapidgrowthofpublic-

sectordebtinrelationtoeconomic

output,particularlyintheUnitedStates.U.S.debtappearstobeonapathto

riseindefinitelyasashareofGDP,sooncrossingthe100%threshold.

Whiletheexactnumbermattersless

thantheprospectofitscontinuedrise,investorsmayeventuallydemandmorecompensationforbearingthisrisk.

InflationandTariffs

Anunresolvedissueremainsaround

theinflationaryimpactofU.S.tariffs.If

tariffsraisethebaselinelevelofinflation,itcouldcomplicatetheFed’sability

tocutratesbeforereachingitstarget,

highlightingongoingtensionbetween

fiscalandmonetarypolicy.Marketsare

currentlypricedfortheFedtolowerratesanother100basispointsin2026,and

stubborninflationcouldforceare-assessment.

TheUkraineWar

Anothersignificantriskstemsfrom

theongoingconflictinUkraine,which

hascontinuedtoescalateratherthan

diminish.Thelongertheconflictdrags

on,themorepressingthethreattoglobalfoodsuppliesandthemorepressing

thenecessityofsubstitutinglow-pricedRussianoilandnaturalgaswithmore

expensivealternatives.

8

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

BondMa「ket

StevenRocco,CFA?

Partner&Co-HeadofTaxableFixedIncome

RobertLee

Partner&Co-HeadofTaxableFixedIncome

II.

KeyPoints

Despitetariffconcernsandalate-yeargovernmentshutdown,gross

domesticproduct(GDP)growthstayedpositive,inflationhasmoderatedtoward2.8%,andcorporateearningshavebeenstrong.

TheFederalReserve(Fed)resumedratecutsandfiscalmeasures

aresettoprovideincrementalstimulusinearly2026,creatingamoreaccommodativebackdropforriskassets.

Althoughcreditspreadsremaintight,healthycorporatefundamentals

andstronginvestordemandforyieldsupportopportunitiesacrossfixedincomemarkets.

9

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

II.BondMarket

As2025drawstoaclose,theU.S.

economyhasprovenremarkablyresilientinthefaceofsignificantchallenges.

Earlierintheyear,fearsoftariff-drivendisruptiondominatedheadlines,and

aprolongedgovernmentshutdowninthefourthquarteraddeduncertainty.

Yet,realGDPgrowthremainedpositive,supportedbycorporateadaptabilityandprudentpolicyadjustments.Inflation

hasmoderatedtoward2.8%,stillabovetheFed’stargetbuttrendinglower,

andgrowth,whileslowerthanmid-

yearhighs,hasheldsteadyenoughtoavoidrecession.Thisresiliencesets

thestageforaconstructiveinvestmentenvironmentaswelookaheadto2026.

Real[inflation-adjusted]U.S.

GDPgrowth

remainedpositivein2025,supportedbycorporate

adaptabilityandprudentpolicyadjustments.

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

10

APositiveBackdropforFixedIncome:Rates,Resilience,andOpportunity

Monetarypolicyhasshiftedmeaningfully.Afteranine-monthpause,theFed

resumedratecutsinSeptemberand

October,reducingratesby50basis

points(bps)intotal.Thesemovesfollowearliercutstotaling100bpsinlate2024.Therationalehasbeenslowerhiring,lowturnover,andrevisionstopriorpayroll

datathatshowednegativeprints.With

anewFedchairexpectedinMay2026,webelievethepolicybiasappears

firmlytowardeasing,reinforcingamoreaccommodativebackdropforriskassets.

Consumerdynamicstellamorenuancedstory.Spendingremainssolidoverall,buttheeconomyisincreasinglyK-shaped.

Higher-incomehouseholdscontinuetodriveconsumption,buoyedbystrong

assetprices,dueinparttorisinghomeprices,near-recordhouseholdwealth,andequitygains.Incontrast,lower-

incomecohortsfacepressurefrom

elevatedpricelevelsandtightercreditconditions,reflectedinrisingsubprimeautodelinquenciesandtrade-down

behavior.Themiddle-incomesegmentwillbecriticalindeterminingwhether

theseheadwindsspillovermore

broadly.Fornow,consumeractivityinaggregateremainshealthy,butpocketsofweaknesswarrantclosemonitoring.

Labormarketshavealsosoftenedbut

havenotcollapsed.Jobcreationhas

slowed,andturnoverislow,signalingadecelerationwithoutwidespreadlayoffs.Yet,immigrationpolicychangeshave

contributedtoreducedlaborsupply,

andwhileunemploymenthastickedupto4.3%,itremainshistoricallylow.Thisevolvingbackdroppointstowhythe

Fedhasresumedcuttingrates,andwhyfurthereasingmaybenecessaryiflabormarketconditionsweakenfurther.

Inflationhasbeentrendingloweras

wemovethroughthefourthquarterof

thisyear.Andwhilerecentdatahave

beenlimited,inflationswapshavebeenindicatinglevelsaround2.5%(seeFigure2).Thissuggestsaquartercharacterizedbyslowinggrowthandslightlylower

inflation,thoughstillabovetheFed’s

target.Meanwhile,fiscalpolicyhasbeenneutraltoslightlystimulative.Legislationpassedearlierin2025providesmodestsupport,andprovisionsarestructuredtodeliverincrementalstimulusinthefirst

quarterof2026.Thiscombinationof

monetarypolicyeasingandthepotentialforpositiveeffectsfromfiscalactivity

supportsapositiveoutlookforgrowth.

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

11

Figure2.

InflationSwapsHaveShownModeratingInflationExpectations

U.S.dollarinflationswaprate,November21,2024–November21,2025

Source:Bloomberg.DataasofNovember21,2025.TheUSDzero-couponinflationswapisaderivativeusedtotransferriskfromonepartytoanotherthroughanexchangeofcashflows.Inazero-couponinflationswap,onlyonepaymentismadeatmaturity,whereonepartypaysafixedrateonanotionalfixedamount,whiletheotherpartypaysafloatingratelinkedtoaninflationindex.Forillustrativepurposesonlyanddoes

notrepresentanyspecificportfoliomanagedbyLordAbbettoranyparticularinvestment.

ValuationsandIssuanceTrendsinCreditMarkets

Againstthisbackdrop,creditmarkets

presentacompellingpicture.Credit

spreadsremaintightbyhistorical

standardsacrossinvestment-grade

corporatebonds,highyieldbonds,and

securitizedproducts.Whilespreadshavewidenedslightlyfromrecentlows,they

reflectstrongfundamentals.Corporateearningshavebeensolid,withmid-to-

highsingle-digitrevenuegrowthand

double-digitnetincomegains.Balance

sheetsremainhealthy,andrealestate

markets,bothcommercialandresidential,appeartobestabilizingasTreasury

yieldsandmortgageratesmoderate,

whichcanhelptoimproveaffordabilityandreducerefinancingpressure.

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

12

Figure3.

TightCreditSpreadsaReflectionofStrongFundamentals

Source:BloombergandICEDataServices,

LLC.DataasofNovember21,2025.The

option-adjustedspread(OAS)istheyield

spreadthatmustbeaddedtoabenchmark

risk-freeyieldcurve(usuallyU.S.Treasuries)

todiscountabond’scashflowssothatits

presentvalueequalsitsmarketprice,after

adjustingfortheimpactofembeddedoptions.Itmeasuresthedifferencebetweenabond’s

yieldandtherisk-freerate.Highyield=ICEBofAU.S.HighYieldIndex.IGCorporate=ICEBofAU.S.CorporateIndex.CMBS=ICEBofACMBSIndex.ABS=ICEBofAFixed-RateAssetBackedSecuritiesIndex.MBS=ICEBofAU.S.MortgageIndex.ForillustrativepurposesonlyanddoesnotrepresentanyspecificportfoliomanagedbyLordAbbettoranyparticularinvestment.

Supply-and-demanddynamicshave

beenconstructive,withhighyield

issuancetrendingonlymodestlyhigherandremainingrelativelycontainedonthesupplyside,drivenlargelybyrefinancingactivity.Atthesametime,stronginvestordemandforyieldpersists,withpotentialupsideifmergersandacquisitions(M&A)activityaccelerates.Investment-grade

supplyhasbeendrivenbycorporate

spendingoninfrastructureforartificialintelligence(AI)andotherstrategic

initiatives.Onthedemandside,appetiteforyieldremainsstrong,supportedbysolidreturnsandanattractiveincome

environment.Technicalsinhigh-qualityfixedincomeappearbalanced,with

healthysupplyabsorbedbyrobustinstitutionalandretaildemand.

Inprivatecredit,headlineshavefocusedonisolatedstress,particularlyin2021–2022vintagesmarkedbyaggressive

lendingduringzero-interest-rate

conditions.Theseissuesarerealbut

notsystemic,inourview.TheFed’sratecutscaneasedebtserviceburdensforfloating-ratestructures,whichcanhelptomitigateriskforissuers.Although

defaultsmayrisemodestly,highyield

andbroadlysyndicatedloans(BSLs)

shouldgenerallyremainresilient,

supportedbystrongcreditfundamentals.

Oneemergingthemethatcouldimpactissuanceandsectordynamicsisthe

massivebuildoutofAIinfrastructure.

Hyperscalersareinvestinghundreds

ofbillionsofdollarsannuallyindata

centers,powergeneration,andrelatedtechnology.Whiletheseprojectscreateopportunitiesacrossinvestment-

grade,highyield,leveragedloans,and

securitizedmarkets,theyalsocarry

risks.Historyshowsthatlarge-scale

infrastructurecycles,suchasinthe

telecommunicationindustryinthe

1990s—andtheshalerevolutionintheoilandgasindustry—canendinoversupply.Fornow,thebuildoutisintheearly

stages,butvigilanceisessential.Activemanagersmustbeselective,favoring

issuerswithstrongfundamentalsasissuanceaccelerates.Atthesame

time,large,highlyratedtechnology

companiesissuingmulti-tranchedebtatattractiveconcessionspresentattractiveopportunitiesforinvestorsseeking

qualityandyield.

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

13

TheRoadAhead:Questions,Challenges,andActiveOpportunities

Lookingahead,severalkeyquestionsmaydefinetheinvestmentlandscape:

WillAI-drivencapitalspendingprove

sustainableorevolveintoabubble?

WillthetensionbetweensolidGDP

growthandasofterlabormarketresolvetowardstrengthorweakness?How

significantwillcreditcracksbecome,

andwilltheyremainidiosyncraticratherthansystemic?Willinflationcontinue

tomoderate,orsurprisetotheupside,

complicatingtheFed’seasingpath?Andhowwillimmigrationtrends,nowsharplyreversed,affectlaborsupply,wages,andgrowthpotential?Theseuncertainties

underscoretheneedforflexibilityandrigorousriskmanagement.

Despitethesepotentialchallenges,theoutlookfor2026remainsconstructive.

Easingmonetarypolicy,fiscalsupport,

andresilientcorporatefundamentals

createafavorablebackdropforcredit-

sensitivesectors.Inthisenvironment,

activemanagementandmulti-sector

strategiesmaybecritical.Sector

performancemayvarywidelywith

macroeconomicconditions,anddynamicallocationacrosscreditmarketsoffers

theopportunitytocapturevaluewhilemitigatingrisk.

14

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

Equities

MatthewDeCicco,CFA?

Partner&DirectorofEquities

III.

KeyPoints

Despitestrongperformance,historicalcontextshowsthecurrentbull

marketremainsaveragecomparedtopastcycles,suggestingvaluationsarefarfrombubbleterritory.

Hyperscalersareontracktofuelrapidrevenuegrowthacrosstechnologyandinfrastructuresectors.Unliketraditionalprojects,artificialintelligence(AI)-relatedinvestmentsaregeneratingrevenuegrowthquickly,creatingapotentialearningstailwind.

Whileconsumersentimenthasreflectedconcern,stableemploymentandfiscalmeasurescouldsupportspendingin2026.Mergers&acquisitions(M&A)andinitialpublicoffering(IPO)activitycouldalsosignalrenewed

confidenceandhealthiermarketbreadth.

15

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

III.Equities

Atmid-year,optimismwasbuildingassecond-quarterearningsrolled

in.Roughly70%ofcompanieshad

exceededestimates,accordingto

FactSet,andmanywereguidinghigherfortheremainderoftheyear.Fast

forwardtotoday,theS&P500?has

delivereddouble-digitreturns,year-

to-datethroughtheendofNovember2025.Yet,despitestrongperformance,questionspersist,mostnotablyaroundwhethercurrentvaluationssignal

abubble.

Comparedtohistory,thecurrentbull

marketisfarfrombubbleterritory.

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

16

AreWeinaBubble?

Therecentriseinequitieshasbeendrivenprimarilybyearningsgrowth.

Third-quarterresultsmirroredthe

strengthofthesecondquarter,with

broad-basedgainspushingS&P500

earningsgrowthtoapproximately15%.

Andimportantly,contextmatters.While

thecurrentbullmarkethasdoubledoff

itsOctober2022lows—astrongabsoluteperformance—itremainsaverageby

historicalstandards.Overthepast

century,bullmarketstypicallylastthreeyearsanddeliverabout100%gains.1

Bycomparison,the1980sReaganomicsbullmarketlastedoverfiveyearsand

deliveredexceptionallystrongreturns.

Thedot-comeraextendedbeyondfiveyearswithevengreatergains,andthepost-globalfinancialcrisis(GFC)bull

marketranforsixyears,alsoproducingrobustperformance.Tomatchthose

historicalperiods,today’smarketwouldneedtopushtheS&Ptoward12,000by2028–2029toresemblethoseperiods.

Whilethat’snotaforecast,itunderscoresthatcurrentconditionsarefarfrom

bubbleterritory,comparedtohistory.

TheEcosystemBehindArtificialIntelligence(AI)andtheCapitalSpendingSurge

OneofthemostpowerfulthemesdrivingmarketshigheristheexpansionofAI

andthemassivecapitalexpenditure(CapEx)behindit.Hyperscalers,suchasGoogle,Amazon,Microsoft,Meta,andOracle,wereinitiallyexpected

tospend$250billiononCapExthisyear.2Thatestimateprovedfartoo

conservative.Actualspendingisontracktohit$400billion,a$150billion

increase(seeFigure4).Thissurge

usuallyflowsdirectlyintoearningsfor

companiesbuildingtheinfrastructure—semiconductormanufacturers,heating,

ventilation,andairconditioning(HVAC)

providers,andelectricalcontractorsfor

datacenters.ThatadditionalCapExoftenflowsdirectlyintoearningsgrowthfor

thecompaniesbuildingandequippingdatacenters.

17

Figure4.

AIHyperscalerCapExHasContinuedtoGrowMeaningfully

TotalCapEx-Alphabet,AmazonWebServices,MetaPlatforms,Microsoft,Oracle

Source:GoldmanSachs.DataasofNovember30,2025.Pastperformanceisnotareliableindicatororguaranteeoffutureresults.Datafor2025,2026,and2027reflectconsensusestimates.Thereisnoguaranteeanyforecast,estimate,orprojectionwillberealized.CapExshowniscompanytotal,exceptforAmazon,whichreflectsanestimateforAmazonspend.Hyperscalersarethelargecloudcomputing

companiesthatownandoperatedatacenterswithhorizontallylinkedserversthat,alongwithcoolinganddatastoragecapabilities,enablethemtohouseandoperateAIworkloads.

Unliketraditionalprojectsthattake

yearstopayoff,hyperscalers’AI-

relatedinvestmentsaregenerating

revenuegrowthmorequickly.Demand

forcomputingpower,drivenbytools

likeChatGPT,Copilot,andpartnershipswithfirmssuchasAnthropic,has

continuedtoexceedsupply,andas

userrequestsgrowmorecomplex,datacenterspendinghasaccelerated,fuelingrevenuegrowthforhyperscalersand

theirecosystems.

Beyondtechnology,acrosssectors

fromconsumertofinancials,companiesleveraginggenerativeAIhavebeenabletoboostproductivityandefficiency.

Theresulthasbeenabroad-basedreturnonunprecedentedlevelsofcapitalinvestment.

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

18

ConsumerDynamics:AK-ShapedEconomy

WhilecorporateearningsandAI-

drivengrowthdominateheadlines,theconsumerremainsthedriverforroughly70%ofU.S.grossdomesticproduct(GDP),accordingtotheU.S.

BureauofEconomicAnalysis.Recent

surveysreflectmixedsentiment,and

theeconomyincreasinglyresemblesa

K-shapedrecovery.Thatmeanshigh-

endconsumerscontinuetospend,

supportingsectorslikeluxurytravelandpremiumbrands.Low-endconsumers,

however,facesignificantchallenges,

pressuringcompaniesthatcater

exclusivelytothissegment.Consumer-

relatedequitieshavelaggedthisyear,

withbothstaplesanddiscretionary

stocksunderperformingbroaderindexes.Yet,therearereasonsforcautious

optimismheadingintonextyear.

Thelabormarketremainsstable,and

whilejobgrowthisnotexplosive,it

providesasolidfoundationforconsumerspending.Policytailwinds,including

monetaryeasingandfiscalmeasures

suchastaxreliefontipsundertheOneBigBeautifulBillAct(OBBA)passed

earlierin2025,areexpectedtohelp

boostdisposableincome.Additionally,

thelaggedeffectsofpriorratecuts

andtargetedstimulusprogramsshouldbegintoflowthroughtheeconomyin

early2026,furthersupportingconsumerconfidenceanddemand.

Selectivitywillbecritical.Company

performanceincreasinglydepends

onpositioningwithintheconsumer

sectorandtheabilitytoadapttoshiftingdemandpatterns.Forinvestors,this

createsopportunitiesinwell-managedbrandsandsectorspoisedtobenefit

fromcyclicalrecovery.

SignsofGrowingM&AandIPOActivity

Afteryearsofmuteddeal-making,M&A

andIPOactivityisshowingrenewed

strength.M&Avolumesareup40%,year-to-date,whileIPOactivityisontrackto

risemorethan60%(seeFigure5).Infact,perRenaissanceCapital,therewere64

U.S.IPOsraisingacombined$15.3billionin3Q25—thebestquartersince2021.

Whilethesefiguresbenefitfromeasycomparisonstoaweak2024,thetrendsuggestsdealflowhasaccelerated.

LORDABBETT/2026OUTLOOK:RIDINGTHETAILWINDS

19

Figure5.

IPOActivityHasRecentlyBeguntoPickUpAgain

U.S.IPOFilingsandProceeds,byYear(Minimum$50MMarketCap)

Source:RenaissanceCapital.Dataasof

November25,2025.Pastperformanceis

notareliableindicatororguaranteeoffutureresults.DataincludeIPOsanddirectlistings

withamarketcapofatleast$50mm.Excludesclosed-endfunds,unitofferings,andSPACs.

TheresurgenceisdrivenprimarilybystrategicM&A,withlargecompaniesacquiringsmalleroneswithintheir

industries.Thistypeofactivity

stalledneartheendoftheprevious

administrationduetoregulatory

uncertaintyandlengthyapproval

timelines.Today,thosebarriershave

eased,enablingdealssuchasamajor

cybersecurityacquisitionearlierthisyearandincreasedactivityinbiotech,wherelargepharmaceuticalfirmsarebuying

smallerinnovators.

TheIPOmarkettellsasimilarstory.

Strongofferingsin2024setth