Daily Rundown

Chief Strategist, Bryan Jordan CFA
9 hours ago
2 min read

February 25, 2026

Chart of the Day

Number of the Day

5.7 - The annualized percentage increase in the Case-Shiller home price index in Q4, up from 0.8 percent in the prior quarter and the strongest since the fourth quarter of 2023

Quote of the Day

"Our customers have been on the sideline with respect to large remodeling projects for three years now. The homeowner is one of the healthiest customer cohorts out there, but they tell us that uncertainty is growing, that there's concern around housing affordability, around job losses." - Home Depot CFO Richard McPhail

Tuesday's Highlights

Consumer confidence (February) improved to 91.2 from a prior 89.0. The expectations component rose while the present situation index moved lower.

The Case-Shiller home price index (December) rose by 0.5 percent on the month and 1.5 percent year-over-year.

The Philadelphia Fed non-manufacturing index (February) fell to -17.3 from a prior -4.2, a 16^th consecutive negative reading.

Home Depot same-store sales (November-January) rose by 0.4 percent year-over-year. Transactions were down while the average ticket was higher.

Quick Commentary

Confidence still looks to be in a downtrend after the modest pickup in February, as labor market sentiment remains under pressure. More than a fifth of the respondents to the February survey described jobs as "hard to get", the highest percentage in five years, while, not coincidentally, income expectations remained in a jagged decline. A continued rebound in housing would help, but it will likely take a sustained improvement in employment growth to put confidence back on an upward path.

Today's Highlights

Mortgage applications

NVIDIA earnings

Lowe's earnings

TJX earnings

Daily Trivia

Whose business career was launched when his mother sent his undergraduate thesis on Shearson's merger with Hayden Stone to Sandy Weill?

(Tuesday's Question: What term first appeared in a 1971 article in Electronic News describing the growing geographic concentration of the semiconductor industry? Answer: Silicon Valley)