In the financial crisis, defendants were less inclined to settle and dragged out negotiations, increasing the risk of the portfolio and driving down returns.

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Morningstar analyst Marisa Thompson, who follows the company, says more prudent cost management and improved capital discipline is driving higher returns on capital and strong free cash flow.

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These measures have had the effect of driving down the returns on government debt, making other assets, such as shares, more attractive.

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Many other firms, public and private, are jumping into the same businesses as Ventas (VTR) and driving down margins and returns on invested capital ( ROIC).

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The fall in inflation, which is driving down future nominal returns and so reducing the prospective value of the endowment policies, also means that homebuyers are paying less in mortgage-interest payments.

ECONOMIST: The economy

Despite the robustness of this effect in driving operational profitability and portfolio returns, the connection between gender and corporate success remains in large part unexplained.

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Demography is driving old and young to seek higher returns on household wealth.

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But the other side of that pattern is that the initial reaction is often reversed over the following few days, and the market returns to whatever was its driving force prior to the report.

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