Karen Watkin, CFA

With major US policy change unfolding, flexibility across and within asset classes will be critical.

We expect the opportunity set to widen for income investors in 2025, though less clarity around the second half requires a dynamic approach.

As we draw the curtain on season one of AB Alpha Females—The Multi-Asset Investment podcast, Karen reflects on the key themes that have shaped the discussions.

Given the sophistication of multi-asset portfolios, what challenges do operations teams face in managing them effectively? In our podcast, Karen is joined by Jennifer Santangelo, Head of Business Operations—Global Investment Shared Services at AB, who unpacks the complex interplay of portfolio management, operations and technology.

Can diversity be the cornerstone of a responsible future? In our podcast, Karen is joined by Jodie Tapscott, Director of Responsible Investing Strategy, who explains the practicalities of integrating material ESG factors within strategies.

Are bonds back? In our podcast, Karen is joined by Tiffanie Wong, Director of Fixed Income Responsible Investing Portfolio Management, who delves into the resilience of the bond market, considering recent economic headwinds.

Cast a broad net or focus on a small number of stocks? In our podcast, Karen is joined by Arpita Bhabhera, a Senior Research Analyst at AB, who explains why less can be more in a disciplined equity portfolio.

Multi-asset strategies must adapt to a promising—but changeable—environment for generating income.

What separates managers from the pack? Karen is joined by Alla Harmsworth, Co-Head of Institutional Solutions, to discuss the world of fund manager selection.

Discerning market trends is often like appraising a work of art, so how can investors identify turning points across asset classes? Karen is joined by Caglasu Altunkopru who explores how she uses analysis of market cycles to guide portfolio decisions.

Is the 60/40 portfolio still relevant? Karen is joined by Defne Ozaltun, Portfolio Manager, who says portfolio managers must find a precise mix of ingredients for multi-asset portfolios in evolving markets.

In our inaugural episode, Karen talks with AB’s Honor Solomon, CEO EMEA and Head of EMEA Retail Sales, about her career and what it takes to build effective sales teams.

We think today’s market landscape calls for a different mix in multi-asset income strategies

We think US capital markets still offer plenty of potential for investors—especially those with the ability to reach across asset classes.

The US can be an expansive single source of long-term growth potential and income.

For multi-asset income investors, adapting portfolios for equity defense, credit potential and duration exposure should be on the docket for 2024.

Multi-asset strategies have benefited from US exposure for decades, and we don’t think that will change—even as the world continues to evolve.

An improved income outlook for multi-asset investors, including higher yields, sharply contrasts with cloudy conditions at 2023’s start.

Dividend investing should expand beyond traditional dividend-paying stocks to generate income effectively without giving up return potential in growth-led markets.

Multi-asset income strategies should feature high-dividend stocks, high-yield credit and global government bonds in 2023.

Global indicators continue to signal a sharp business recovery from last year's COVID-19 pandemic lows. While inflation expectations are increasing as a result, business improvements offer multi-asset investors good reasons to remain tilted to equities for the next stage of the recovery.

Having strongly underperformed the wider stock market in 2020, high-dividend stocks have shown early signs of a rebound in recent weeks.

Emerging-market (EM) asset returns substantially lagged their developed-market (DM) counterparts over the last decade. In 2020 so far, EM equity performance has been on par with DM equities. Are we at an inflection point?

Higher-income assets underperformed in the second-quarter rebound. But that also means there's pent-up potential in income-generating assets that may begin to show in later stages of the recovery.

The time is right to search for income with a diversified multi-asset portfolio. Since the coronavirus downturn, the opportunity to capture yield in dividend-paying stocks, real estate investment trusts, high-yield bonds and other income-generating assets has improved dramatically.

In today's slow-growth and low-interest-rate environment, investors should look beyond a conventional equity and fixed-income solution to meet their income needs. Breaking traditional constraints requires maintaining an open mind to all income sources while keeping a clear eye on risk management. In this paper, we examine how to carefully diversify higher-yielding assets and dynamically manage an array of hazards to help income investors capture yield while minimizing drawdown risk. The key, in our view, is to unchain a portfolio from traditional constraints, by sourcing higher-yielding securities across asset classes and around the world.

The last decade produced great performance across most asset classes. But in the 2020s, we expect investment market returns will be lower and risk harder to manage. Looking forward, a disciplined multi-asset approach will be especially valuable to identify opportunities and help mitigate setbacks.

The last decade produced great performance across most asset classes. But in the 2020s, we expect investment market returns will be lower and risk harder to manage. Looking forward, a disciplined multi-asset approach will be especially valuable to identify opportunities and help mitigate setbacks.

As global economic growth enters a period of likely protracted weakness, investors should revisit their exposures. From a multi-asset perspective, focus on surprisingly resilient high-yield credit and higher quality equities, while reducing exposure to parts of the market that are most vulnerable to trade tensions.

Welcome to the late, late stage of the economic cycle. The global economy is slowing, risks are rising and volatility will likely remain elevated after rising sharply in the first half of 2019. Investors would be wise to adapt a more neutral, well-diversified position, while leaving enough flexibility to take advantage of opportunities as they arise.

Karen Watkin provides an outlook for markets and takes a look at key themes such as inflation, central bank policy and the key investment trends driving markets in 2019.

Karen Watkin introduces the AB All Market Income Portfolio, explaining how this multi-asset fund seeks to provide investors with a consistent level of income combined with a lower level of volatility via a flexible investment approach.

There are a lot of suggestions these days about where to get extra income, but less discussion about the cost attached to it. A diversified multi-asset approach can help-and provide additional growth potential. But how it's designed matters.

As the new year begins to unfold, the environment for risk assets is still benign: the global economy is strong, monetary policy is accommodative, and volatility is low and steady. At this point, we don't see excesses developing that could change that.