Why Falling Interest Rates are Great News for Investors in 2024

The Fed's rampant rate increases have wreaked havoc on stocks in recent years. Yet we're perhaps finally seeing a light emerge at the end of the tunnel.

Projections released by the Fed suggest that America's central bank will reduce its Fed Funds target rate multiple times during 2024. The Fed ultimately wants to reach a median target rate of 4.6% by the end of this year.

Falling interest rates are generally good for business. It allows them to raise capital and more attractive rates and to begin reinvesting in growth projects once again.

For investors in those businesses, falling interest rates translate into lower discount rates. This is the metric that institutional investors on Wall Street use to discount a company's future profits to the present in their discounted cash flow models. When a discount rate falls (which typically happens when the Fed reduces the Fed Funds rate), future cash flows get discounted at a lower rate. And you ultimately end up with a greater present valuation and a higher stock price.

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