Insights
Trip Insights
Katrina Lee
Author
Global Equities Analyst
Date
30/9/2026
Sector Coverage
Trip Insights: United States and Europe September 2026
September 2026
Important Information:
This webinar contains information specifically intended for institutional clients, asset consultants, advisers, platforms and researchers, who are professional investors and wholesale clients (as defined in the Corporations Act 2001).
I confirm that I am a professional or wholesale investor as defined by the Corporations Act 2001 and wish to proceed.
Region: United States and Europe
Period: September2026
Download PDF version here.
Over two weeks in mid-September, I met with 40 companies and analysts across the US and Europe, including 11 companies held in our portfolios. One of the conferences I attended was more general in nature, while the other two were more specialised in Financials and Healthcare, providing a broad cross-section of perspectives across the market.
The trip was well timed. Earlier in the year, parts of the market were viewed through a binary AI lens, with companies cast as either beneficiaries or at risk of disruption. The rally through July and August broadened leadership to areas that had been out of favour, including healthcare and segments of financials, and investors have since refocused on individual company fundamentals.
Regionally, US equities remain supported by strong earnings growth and AI-related investment, though leadership is still concentrated. Europe's momentum is improving, helped by defence and infrastructure spending, but the region is more exposed than the US to higher yields, energy prices and fiscal pressures. The prospect of rates remaining higher for longer was a recurring theme. The Fed's first rate hike in more than three years came during the trip – yet the reaction was muted, with companies and investors now seemingly accustomed to a higher and less certain rate environment.
Sector takeaways
Healthcare
Healthcare offered a clear example of the dispersion beneath headline sector performance. Life science tools businesses such as Agilent, which supply laboratory instruments and consumables, continue to benefit from a multi-year instrument replacement cycle and the reshoring of pharmaceutical and semiconductor manufacturing. By contrast, sentiment was more mixed across parts of medtech and pharmaceuticals, where company-specific setbacks, from cyberattacks in medtech (e.g. Stryker, Boston Scientific) to disappointing trial results in pharma (e.g. Novartis), have weighed on investor confidence. There were nevertheless some more encouraging individual bright spots in attendance. Our meeting with continuous glucose monitor (CGM) maker Dexcom, for example, pointed to continued share gains and high-teens volume growth, with type 2 diabetes now the main growth driver and a potential Medicare coverage decision for non-insulin type 2 patients towards year-end extending the runway further.
Financials
Financials were generally strong, with banks, insurers and capital-markets businesses benefiting from higher nominal growth, higher rates and more active markets. Shares of information and data businesses, however, have lagged their fundamentals as fears of AI disintermediation call terminal values into question. We believe select companies will prove resilient, and in some cases benefit from AI, though each needs to be assessed on its own merits. MSCI is one example: despite weak YTD share-price performance, management points to healthy underlying demand, with TTM net new recurring subscriptions up c.20–24% and new product sales up 40% in H1, suggesting improving momentum and growing AI-driven product innovation.
Consumer
Recent meetings with analysts and companies point to a consumer that is resilient, but selective. Value and scale continue to win: Walmart and Costco remain well positioned, though the market is scrutinising near-term comps and slowing membership growth more than the durability of the underlying models. In travel, Amadeus described volatile near-term volumes amid Middle East disruption, with global bookings not expected to return to growth until Q4, though management remains comfortable with its medium-term outlook. Housing-linked spending remains the weak spot, as ~7% mortgage rates lock in homeowners and defer renovation activity, with no clear recovery trigger in sight.
A portfolio example: GTT
Gaztransport et Technigaz (GTT) was a reminder of the value of meeting companies directly. The team first identified the holding on an earlier research trip, and this meeting was a chance to test whether the thesis had evolved as the business and market developed.
GTT holds a near-monopoly in LNG containment technology, with its systems fitted to the vast majority of large LNG carriers. Management's latest outlook of roughly 550 additional LNG carrier orders through 2035 rests primarily on continued growth in LNG demand and expanding export capacity, particularly in the US. The meeting left us more confident that this is conservative. Longer shipping distances as more US LNG heads to Asia, further projects in Qatar and replacement of the ageing fleet all offer upside to vessel demand.
While the trip strengthened my conviction in the long-term quality of the business, it also reinforced the importance of valuation discipline as the market increasingly recognises the strength of the underlying opportunity.
Important information
This document has been prepared by Bell Asset Management Limited (BAM) and is provided on a confidential basis solely for information only purposes of selected “professional investors” (as the term is defined in the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)) and investors in other jurisdictions which, if they were located in Australia, would qualify as professional investors.
The distribution of this document may be restricted by local laws in certain jurisdictions and BAM accepts no responsibility for recipients of this document in those jurisdictions – recipients in those jurisdictions should inform themselves as to the requirements of, and observe accordingly, local laws. To the maximum extent permitted by law, none of BAM and its directors, employees or agents accepts any liability for any loss arising, including from negligence, from the use of this document or its contents nor does BAM assume any obligation to update the information. Recipients of this document agree to maintain the document confidential and to only use it to evaluate a potential investment in a BAM product or strategy. Recipients of this document also agree not to share this document in whole or in part with any person who is not a professional investor.
This document may contain forward looking statements and such statements are made based on information BAM holds as reliable; however, no guarantee is given that such forward looking statements will be achieved. BAM has made every effort to ensure the accuracy and currency of the information contained in this document; however, no warranty is given as to the accuracy or reliability of the information.
Information about specific investments is included for illustrative purposes, in order to assist prospective investors in better understanding the investment strategies and processes used by BAM, and is not intended to be indicative of actual future investments or performance results that will be achieved in the future. There is no assurance that similar investment opportunities will be available in the future, and the results of actual investments in the future may differ significantly.
Important Information:
This video contains information specifically intended for institutional clients, asset consultants, advisers, platforms and researchers, who are professional investors and wholesale clients (as defined in the Corporations Act 2001).
I confirm that I am a professional or wholesale investor as defined by the Corporations Act 2001 and wish to proceed.
Region: United States and Europe
Period: September2026
Download PDF version here.
Over two weeks in mid-September, I met with 40 companies and analysts across the US and Europe, including 11 companies held in our portfolios. One of the conferences I attended was more general in nature, while the other two were more specialised in Financials and Healthcare, providing a broad cross-section of perspectives across the market.
The trip was well timed. Earlier in the year, parts of the market were viewed through a binary AI lens, with companies cast as either beneficiaries or at risk of disruption. The rally through July and August broadened leadership to areas that had been out of favour, including healthcare and segments of financials, and investors have since refocused on individual company fundamentals.
Regionally, US equities remain supported by strong earnings growth and AI-related investment, though leadership is still concentrated. Europe's momentum is improving, helped by defence and infrastructure spending, but the region is more exposed than the US to higher yields, energy prices and fiscal pressures. The prospect of rates remaining higher for longer was a recurring theme. The Fed's first rate hike in more than three years came during the trip – yet the reaction was muted, with companies and investors now seemingly accustomed to a higher and less certain rate environment.
Sector takeaways
Healthcare
Healthcare offered a clear example of the dispersion beneath headline sector performance. Life science tools businesses such as Agilent, which supply laboratory instruments and consumables, continue to benefit from a multi-year instrument replacement cycle and the reshoring of pharmaceutical and semiconductor manufacturing. By contrast, sentiment was more mixed across parts of medtech and pharmaceuticals, where company-specific setbacks, from cyberattacks in medtech (e.g. Stryker, Boston Scientific) to disappointing trial results in pharma (e.g. Novartis), have weighed on investor confidence. There were nevertheless some more encouraging individual bright spots in attendance. Our meeting with continuous glucose monitor (CGM) maker Dexcom, for example, pointed to continued share gains and high-teens volume growth, with type 2 diabetes now the main growth driver and a potential Medicare coverage decision for non-insulin type 2 patients towards year-end extending the runway further.
Financials
Financials were generally strong, with banks, insurers and capital-markets businesses benefiting from higher nominal growth, higher rates and more active markets. Shares of information and data businesses, however, have lagged their fundamentals as fears of AI disintermediation call terminal values into question. We believe select companies will prove resilient, and in some cases benefit from AI, though each needs to be assessed on its own merits. MSCI is one example: despite weak YTD share-price performance, management points to healthy underlying demand, with TTM net new recurring subscriptions up c.20–24% and new product sales up 40% in H1, suggesting improving momentum and growing AI-driven product innovation.
Consumer
Recent meetings with analysts and companies point to a consumer that is resilient, but selective. Value and scale continue to win: Walmart and Costco remain well positioned, though the market is scrutinising near-term comps and slowing membership growth more than the durability of the underlying models. In travel, Amadeus described volatile near-term volumes amid Middle East disruption, with global bookings not expected to return to growth until Q4, though management remains comfortable with its medium-term outlook. Housing-linked spending remains the weak spot, as ~7% mortgage rates lock in homeowners and defer renovation activity, with no clear recovery trigger in sight.
A portfolio example: GTT
Gaztransport et Technigaz (GTT) was a reminder of the value of meeting companies directly. The team first identified the holding on an earlier research trip, and this meeting was a chance to test whether the thesis had evolved as the business and market developed.
GTT holds a near-monopoly in LNG containment technology, with its systems fitted to the vast majority of large LNG carriers. Management's latest outlook of roughly 550 additional LNG carrier orders through 2035 rests primarily on continued growth in LNG demand and expanding export capacity, particularly in the US. The meeting left us more confident that this is conservative. Longer shipping distances as more US LNG heads to Asia, further projects in Qatar and replacement of the ageing fleet all offer upside to vessel demand.
While the trip strengthened my conviction in the long-term quality of the business, it also reinforced the importance of valuation discipline as the market increasingly recognises the strength of the underlying opportunity.
Important information
This document has been prepared by Bell Asset Management Limited (BAM) and is provided on a confidential basis solely for information only purposes of selected “professional investors” (as the term is defined in the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)) and investors in other jurisdictions which, if they were located in Australia, would qualify as professional investors.
The distribution of this document may be restricted by local laws in certain jurisdictions and BAM accepts no responsibility for recipients of this document in those jurisdictions – recipients in those jurisdictions should inform themselves as to the requirements of, and observe accordingly, local laws. To the maximum extent permitted by law, none of BAM and its directors, employees or agents accepts any liability for any loss arising, including from negligence, from the use of this document or its contents nor does BAM assume any obligation to update the information. Recipients of this document agree to maintain the document confidential and to only use it to evaluate a potential investment in a BAM product or strategy. Recipients of this document also agree not to share this document in whole or in part with any person who is not a professional investor.
This document may contain forward looking statements and such statements are made based on information BAM holds as reliable; however, no guarantee is given that such forward looking statements will be achieved. BAM has made every effort to ensure the accuracy and currency of the information contained in this document; however, no warranty is given as to the accuracy or reliability of the information.
Information about specific investments is included for illustrative purposes, in order to assist prospective investors in better understanding the investment strategies and processes used by BAM, and is not intended to be indicative of actual future investments or performance results that will be achieved in the future. There is no assurance that similar investment opportunities will be available in the future, and the results of actual investments in the future may differ significantly.
Region: United States and Europe
Period: September2026
Download PDF version here.
Over two weeks in mid-September, I met with 40 companies and analysts across the US and Europe, including 11 companies held in our portfolios. One of the conferences I attended was more general in nature, while the other two were more specialised in Financials and Healthcare, providing a broad cross-section of perspectives across the market.
The trip was well timed. Earlier in the year, parts of the market were viewed through a binary AI lens, with companies cast as either beneficiaries or at risk of disruption. The rally through July and August broadened leadership to areas that had been out of favour, including healthcare and segments of financials, and investors have since refocused on individual company fundamentals.
Regionally, US equities remain supported by strong earnings growth and AI-related investment, though leadership is still concentrated. Europe's momentum is improving, helped by defence and infrastructure spending, but the region is more exposed than the US to higher yields, energy prices and fiscal pressures. The prospect of rates remaining higher for longer was a recurring theme. The Fed's first rate hike in more than three years came during the trip – yet the reaction was muted, with companies and investors now seemingly accustomed to a higher and less certain rate environment.
Sector takeaways
Healthcare
Healthcare offered a clear example of the dispersion beneath headline sector performance. Life science tools businesses such as Agilent, which supply laboratory instruments and consumables, continue to benefit from a multi-year instrument replacement cycle and the reshoring of pharmaceutical and semiconductor manufacturing. By contrast, sentiment was more mixed across parts of medtech and pharmaceuticals, where company-specific setbacks, from cyberattacks in medtech (e.g. Stryker, Boston Scientific) to disappointing trial results in pharma (e.g. Novartis), have weighed on investor confidence. There were nevertheless some more encouraging individual bright spots in attendance. Our meeting with continuous glucose monitor (CGM) maker Dexcom, for example, pointed to continued share gains and high-teens volume growth, with type 2 diabetes now the main growth driver and a potential Medicare coverage decision for non-insulin type 2 patients towards year-end extending the runway further.
Financials
Financials were generally strong, with banks, insurers and capital-markets businesses benefiting from higher nominal growth, higher rates and more active markets. Shares of information and data businesses, however, have lagged their fundamentals as fears of AI disintermediation call terminal values into question. We believe select companies will prove resilient, and in some cases benefit from AI, though each needs to be assessed on its own merits. MSCI is one example: despite weak YTD share-price performance, management points to healthy underlying demand, with TTM net new recurring subscriptions up c.20–24% and new product sales up 40% in H1, suggesting improving momentum and growing AI-driven product innovation.
Consumer
Recent meetings with analysts and companies point to a consumer that is resilient, but selective. Value and scale continue to win: Walmart and Costco remain well positioned, though the market is scrutinising near-term comps and slowing membership growth more than the durability of the underlying models. In travel, Amadeus described volatile near-term volumes amid Middle East disruption, with global bookings not expected to return to growth until Q4, though management remains comfortable with its medium-term outlook. Housing-linked spending remains the weak spot, as ~7% mortgage rates lock in homeowners and defer renovation activity, with no clear recovery trigger in sight.
A portfolio example: GTT
Gaztransport et Technigaz (GTT) was a reminder of the value of meeting companies directly. The team first identified the holding on an earlier research trip, and this meeting was a chance to test whether the thesis had evolved as the business and market developed.
GTT holds a near-monopoly in LNG containment technology, with its systems fitted to the vast majority of large LNG carriers. Management's latest outlook of roughly 550 additional LNG carrier orders through 2035 rests primarily on continued growth in LNG demand and expanding export capacity, particularly in the US. The meeting left us more confident that this is conservative. Longer shipping distances as more US LNG heads to Asia, further projects in Qatar and replacement of the ageing fleet all offer upside to vessel demand.
While the trip strengthened my conviction in the long-term quality of the business, it also reinforced the importance of valuation discipline as the market increasingly recognises the strength of the underlying opportunity.
Important information
This document has been prepared by Bell Asset Management Limited (BAM) and is provided on a confidential basis solely for information only purposes of selected “professional investors” (as the term is defined in the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth)) and investors in other jurisdictions which, if they were located in Australia, would qualify as professional investors.
The distribution of this document may be restricted by local laws in certain jurisdictions and BAM accepts no responsibility for recipients of this document in those jurisdictions – recipients in those jurisdictions should inform themselves as to the requirements of, and observe accordingly, local laws. To the maximum extent permitted by law, none of BAM and its directors, employees or agents accepts any liability for any loss arising, including from negligence, from the use of this document or its contents nor does BAM assume any obligation to update the information. Recipients of this document agree to maintain the document confidential and to only use it to evaluate a potential investment in a BAM product or strategy. Recipients of this document also agree not to share this document in whole or in part with any person who is not a professional investor.
This document may contain forward looking statements and such statements are made based on information BAM holds as reliable; however, no guarantee is given that such forward looking statements will be achieved. BAM has made every effort to ensure the accuracy and currency of the information contained in this document; however, no warranty is given as to the accuracy or reliability of the information.
Information about specific investments is included for illustrative purposes, in order to assist prospective investors in better understanding the investment strategies and processes used by BAM, and is not intended to be indicative of actual future investments or performance results that will be achieved in the future. There is no assurance that similar investment opportunities will be available in the future, and the results of actual investments in the future may differ significantly.
