Several establishment members of Congress were among the top lawmakers to successfully trade stocks in 2023, a report by Unusual Whales found Tuesday.
The findings raise concerns that many members of Congress trade stocks based on information unavailable to the public.
Some of the most notable establishment members to beat the market were:
- Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) — up 38.2 percent
- Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) — up 65.5 percent
- Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) — up 18.1 percent
- Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) — up 52.8 percent
- Rep. John Curtis (R-UT) — up 25.3 percent
The top trader in Congress was Rep. Brian Higgins (D-NY) from the Buffalo area. Higgins was first elected in 2005 and sits on the House Committees on the Budget and Ways and Means.
- Rep. Brian Higgins (D-NY) — up 238.9 percent
- S&P Index was only up about 24 percent
Below are many of the top performers of 2023:
Congressional Democrats’ stock returns beat the S&P 500 by seven points in 2023, the report found:
- Democrats up seven points (31 percent up).
- Republicans did not beat the S&P, falling short by 6 points (18 percent up).
Beating the S&P is very difficult for stock traders due to the challenge of regularly identifying stocks that will gain more than the S&P:
- The S&P 500 is a stock market index tracking the stock performance of the 500 largest companies listed on the U.S. stock exchanges.
- The S&P provides diversified exposure, reducing portfolio risk.
- The S&P 500’s composition incorporates factors of size, value, quality, and volatility.
“Democrats came out on top significantly, due to their heavy tech portfolios. Republicans only returned around 18%, which is still great,” the study reported. “They underperformed as an aggregate because their portfolios are mainly in financials, oil, and commodities, which had a difficult year due to the banking collapses and high rate hikes.”
More information on congressional stock trading from 2022 is here.
Follow Wendell Husebø on “X” @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.