In this edition, antitrust issues curbing Big Tech M&A; a look at semiconductor industry; Hanesbrands' transformation has been overlooked; and EasyJet, Humana, and Repligen.

Broadcom is the sixth-largest semiconductor company globally and has expanded into various software businesses, with over $30 billion in annual revenue. It sells 17 core semiconductor product lines across wireless, networking, broadband, storage, and industrial markets. It is primarily a fabless designer but holds some manufacturing in-house, like for its best-of-breed FBAR filters that sell into the Apple iPhone. In software, it sells virtualization, infrastructure, and security software to large enterprises, financial institutions, and governments. Broadcom is the product of consolidation. Its businesses are an amalgamation of former companies like legacy Broadcom and Avago Technologies in chips, as well as Brocade, CA Technologies, and Symantec in software.

The U.S. presidential election is fast approaching, with the debate between the vice presidential candidates scheduled for early October. But it's not just the presidency that is up for grabs, as control for the House of Republicans and Senate also will be contested. The popular Wall Street wisdom is that the best outcome in Washington is gridlock. Investors perceive that when one party has hegemony -- which we define as controlling the presidency, House, and Senate simultaneously -- ideology supplants pragmatism and compromise. In this scenario, expensive and impractical legislation is passed and the market suffers the consequences. Our analysis of S&P 500 performance since 1945 does not substantiate that widely held perception, however. Our work suggests that the market has actually outperformed in years in which one party prevailed, though the results fail to establish a clear pattern. We start with the base-line annual average market performance since 1945 of 9%. Political scenarios that topped this average included a Republican president and Congress (+10.9%), and Republicans controlling the White House and either the House or the Senate (+10.3%). In years in which the White House was occupied by a Democrat, stocks also outperformed (+10.2%). Heading into the November voting, current odds indicate a Republican House and Senate, and a toss-up for the presidency. At stake is a party's ability to set tax and fiscal policy and a trade and regulatory agenda, while also selecting the Cabinet and members of the Federal Reserve. There's a lot on the line.

Argus has published its latest Portfolio Selector, which features its popular Focus List. Each month, Director of Research Jim Kelleher, CFA, surveys the team of Argus Research industry analysts for their timeliest recommendations out of the company's fundamental universe of approximately 500 stocks. The Focus List typically includes 30 stocks: turnover is high, as Jim typically adds three or four new stocks per month. Below are the latest additions, all of which are rated BUY at Argus.