We wrapped up September and boy was it one to remember but for all the wrong reasons. With fears of central bank over-tightening, the S&P 500 index dipped to a new 2022 low. The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield surpassed 3.8%, marking the quickest re-rating in daily yields since 2009. A 60/40 balanced portfolio of U.S. stocks and U.S. bonds is now down -20.2% year-to-date through September 30th,...
By: Henry VanBuskirk, CFP®, Wealth Manager New parents in any country all share a common goal – to have their kids be better off than they were. In America, we colloquially call it ‘The American Dream’. In some respects, the dream is alive and well. In others (budgeting, debt management, and financial literacy in general) it looks more like ‘The American Nightmare’. My goal today is not to...
The S&P 500 index experienced its worst August in seven years as traders weighed the prospect of more aggressive action from the Federal Reserve (the Fed) on interest rates to rein in inflation — even if that means some pain for households and businesses. Here are 3 things you need to know: The unemployment rate in August backed up to 3.7% (from 3.5%) driven by a huge increase in the...
We concluded our Summer Webinar Series in August of 2022. We had a great turnout and thank you to our clients and friends that joined us live. The educational series covered great topics such as planning for loved ones, retirement plan basics, behavioral investing, Social Security and Medicare. We hope you learned something new to help you achieve your retirement goals. For those that were...
Investors bought the dip in July on hopes the Federal Reserve is about to change course and relax policy before inflation has even peaked. Here are 3 things you need to know: July was the best month for the S&P 500 since November 2020, when the first vaccine trial results were reported.High yield corporate bonds returned +5.9% in July (total return), the strongest monthly performance since...
We are grateful to our clients who joined us at BFSG Investors’ Forum & Luncheon in Newport Beach at Balboa Bay Resort for in-depth discussions on geopolitics & globalization with Matt Gertken of BCA Research, innovations in medicine with Dr. Jeffrey Golden of Cedars-Sinai, and how blockchain works and the basics of cryptocurrencies with BFSG’s own Steven Yamshon, PhD, and team. Check...
The first half of the year was difficult for investors as the Federal Reserve (the “Fed”) began an aggressive tightening cycle to fight inflation sitting at 40-year highs and risk-off sentiment pervaded. Here are 3 things you need to know: The S&P 500 index dropped 20.6%, marking its worst first half of a year since 1970.Bonds, as measured by the U.S. Aggregate Index, had their worst first...
By: Thomas Steffanci, PhD, Senior Portfolio Manager Some say it is a chaotic and frustrating time to be an investor. Rising employment and wages and resilient consumer spending are offset by rising inflation driven mostly by volatile commodity markets and supply chain disruptions. Higher corporate earnings estimates are being met by declining price-earnings multiples. And the Russia-Ukraine...
By: Thomas Steffanci, PhD, Senior Portfolio Manager The first link in the supply chain, the number of ships backed up in Los Angeles and Long Beach harbors, is in sharp decline as the accompanying chart from BCA shows. Source: BCA Research The harder part is relieving the structural scarcity of trucks, drivers, and logistics (i.e., port workers, warehouse capacity) to decompress...
By: Robert Verdugo, CMFC®, APMA®, Financial Analyst As the Federal Reserve (the Fed) is poised to start raising rates today, and with the S&P 500 (1) down over 10% off its highs, is it time to declare the bull market dead? History would say no – in fact, a resounding no. Jess Menton’s article in Bloomberg, titled “What Happens to Stocks When the Fed Hikes: A Historical Guide”, does a...
By: Thomas Steffanci, PhD, Senior Portfolio Manager Let’s cut through the ongoing cross currents of Wall Street and other pundits’ chatter about supply chains, the pandemic, the Federal Reserve (the “Fed”), and market volatility to concentrate on the proven drivers of stock market investing. History attests to the maxim that if you don’t expect a recession nearby, stay invested in stocks. That...
By: Robert Verdugo, CMFC®, APMA®, Financial Analyst What a difference a year makes. Last spring, you couldn’t avoid the topic SPACs (Special Purpose Acquisition Companies) in any financial publication you laid your eyes on. Now the SPAC conversation is still prevalent, but for opposite reasons. Investor sentiment has dissipated dramatically in recent months as the prospect of higher inflation...
Global equities ended the year near record highs even as the current surge in COVID-19 cases surpassed peak levels last seen since the start of the pandemic. Here are 3 things you need to know: The S&P 500 finished up +27% for 2021 hitting 70 all-time highs and completing its best three-year stretch since 1999 - “Let’s Go Crazy”!Not everyone was “Partying Like It’s 1999”. The areas of...
November returns would have looked very different had the month ended at Thanksgiving, but the last three days turned global markets on a head. Here are 3 things you need to know: The gradual removal of pandemic-era monetary policy accommodation in the United States has begun with the Federal Reserve’s announcement on November 3 that it would start to scale back its bond-buying program.President...
Source: Michael Liebowitz, Realinvestmentadvice.com By: Thomas Steffanci, PhD, Senior Portfolio Manager Is the real unemployment rate 2.3%? If you back out people who quit voluntarily to look for better paying jobs, the answer is yes. Quitters are still “employed”. They are in transition to other employment opportunities and should be considered as part of the labor force. If you adjust...
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