Death Care Index is “Flat” year-to-date. . . . lags major indexes

July 2, 2025/Finance/

The end of trading on Monday marked the end of the first-half of the year for stocks. And, it was a significant day as on Monday the Nasdaq and S&P 500 both recorded All-Time highs in their numbers. However, as you may know, the road to the record in 2025 was not a straight climb without a little descent put into the numbers on the way to the records.

In 2025, stocks moved very high into February and then receded. . . and further receded after President Trump announced his “Liberation Day” of tariffs on foreign country products coming into the United States. As that issue worked its way through the markets and other contemporary issues such as inflation, debt, interest rates, and the potential tax bill moved forward the markets took a turn for the better culminating with those record highs on Monday.

At the end of the day following that roller-coaster ride of six months the major indexes settled up for the period as such. . . S&P 500 up 5.10%, Nasdaq up 4.98%, and the Dow Jones Industrials up 3.36%.

Funeral Director Daily’s Death Care Index (DCI) which consists of the the American public companies bringing in a large share of their revenue from Death Care industry sales also rose for the half-year. However, the DCI lagged the three major indexes with an absolute increase of 0.95% which, when rounded like the other indexes comes in a a 1.0% increase.

The DCI is comprised of four stocks — Matthews International, Service Corporation International, Carriage Services, and Security National Financial Corporation. One share of each of those stocks was worth a combined total of $159.38 on January 1, 2025, and those same shares climbed to a value of $160.90 as of the close of business on June 30, 2025.

As you can see, Carriage Services was the half-year gains leader among DCI stocks with a 14.78% return.

Disclosure — The author of this article for Funeral Director Daily is a shareholder of Service Corporation International, Carriage Services, and Security National Financial Corporation.

Funeral Director Daily take: It’s certainly been an interesting six months, not only watching the markets, but watching the world. I’m guessing that a new president in the Oval Office and how he operates has something to do with the “ups and downs” of today’s market.

As for Death Care specifically, the lack of value movement to the upside or the downside does not surprise me. I think that there is a lot of anxiety and caution about the direction of Death Care business. Certainly, direct cremation, do-it-yourself memorial services, and other changes have investors wondering how those decisions will affect traditional funeral homes and cemeteries. And, on the positive side, I think some investors are expecting technological advances to begin to show financial improvements in Death Care businesses. I expect as these changes move out into reality and are quantified, public investment in Death Care will eventually move one way or another.

As for the overall market, I don’t remember a time when there seemed to be so many “balls in the air” on the front burner that have some financial or political ramifications to them that can affect the market. We have inflation, interest rates, debt and deficits, tariffs, tax bills, world peace initiatives, and more that will affect how we do business moving forward — and the stock market will be a reflection of how that politics and business, including Death Care, moves forward.

Here’s some articles on the subjects for your 4th of July lakeside reading: