Having a fiduciary duty to our clients puts us on similar footing with other professional consultants, such as physicians or attorneys. You hire us partly because we have dedicated our career to understanding
Continue reading...“The American marketplace is an economic jungle. As in all jungles, you easily can be destroyed if you don’t know the rules of survival. … But you also can come through in fine shape and you
Continue reading...A top-heavy stock market with the largest 10 stocks accounting for over 20% of market capitalization and a marquee technology firm perched at No. 1? This is not new. A breakdown of the largest US stocks
Continue reading...What’s going on in the market when stocks and the economy diverge? It can be puzzling when a bleak economic report emerges from the press, only to be accompanied by a positive surge in the stock market.
Continue reading...Earning dividends aren’t the only way a stock investor can generate income. Investors often see earning dividends as a way to grow income. But dividend strategies are not the only way to produce cash,
Continue reading...From books to blogs, from media mavens to marketeers, from pundits to pros … there’s never a lack of talking heads telling you how to make the most of your money. Why hire an independent advisor to
Continue reading...Downplay the prediction game! Rather than basing investment decisions on predictions of which way debt or equity markets are headed, a wiser strategy may be to hold a range of investments that focus on
Continue reading...Whenever investors are spooked by turbulent times, dollars tend to flow out of the stock market, and into “safe harbors” investments such as bonds, bond funds, CDs, money markets, or even cash. As
Continue reading...The impact of missing just a few of the market’s best days can be profound. There’s no proven way to time the market—targeting the best days or moving to the sidelines to avoid the worst. History
Continue reading...Compared to actively managed funds that seek to “beat” the market by engaging in now-outdated speculative strategies, a more solid solution for sensibly capturing available market returns is offered
Continue reading...You might be suprised to learn that when it comes to the big earners — those earning more than $1 million a year — women now take the cake over men. Also, the millionaire club is getting a
Continue reading...Market indexes and market index mechanics, you read about them all the time. In Part III of this series, we take a closer look at market index mechanics to gain a better understanding of why they do,
Continue reading...Checking an index point at any given time is like dipping your toe in the water to see how the ocean is doing. You may have good reasons to do that toe-check, but as with any approximation, be careful
Continue reading...A question worth finding answers to is ‘what is the total cost of ownership?’ The costs you expect to pay are likely to be an important factor in making any investment decision, including major
Continue reading...The lure of getting in at the right time or avoiding the next downturn may tempt even disciplined, long-term investors. The reality of successfully timing markets, however, isn’t as straightforward as
Continue reading...In today’s world of one-page financial plans, bargain-basement fund pricing and automated investing tools, you don’t just need advice. You need good advice.
Continue reading...What are Liquid Investments? When a holding is liquid, it simply means you can sell it anytime the market in which it trades is open for business, without losing your proverbial shirt in the exchange.
Continue reading...A rubric of modern portfolio theory taught at colleges and universities holds that investors get paid extra return for taking risk. The risk premium is the amount you get paid for owning a risky asset.
Continue reading...The vast majority of employees of banks, brokerage firms, and insurance companies charge a management fee part of the time and are commissioned salespeople at other times. These brokers call themselves
Continue reading...Life happens and, sometimes, it can be incredibly worrisome from a financial standpoint. You’ve struggled through a divorce. Perhaps you’ve faced a life-threatening illness. And, you look at your bank
Continue reading...Models are approximations of the world. They are simplifications of reality. Models can be useful for gaining insights that help us make good decisions. But they can also be dangerous if someone is overconfident
Continue reading...Odds are, you hadn’t even heard the term until recently. Now, it seems as if everybody and their cousin are getting in on it. Psychologists have assigned a term to the angst you might be feeling in the
Continue reading...Young or old, wealthy or poor, online or in person … Nobody is immune from financial scams and identity theft fraud. No matter who you are or how well-informed you may be, the bad guys are out there,
Continue reading...Index Investing – Opportunities and Obstacles Legend has it, a pharmacist named John Pemberton was searching for a headache cure when he tried blending Coca leaves with Cola nuts. Who knew his recipe
Continue reading...Even after the crackdown, special rules can pay off handsomely for husbands and wives as survivor benefits come into play. Social Security smiles on married couples, with special rules that can richly
Continue reading...This study looks for evidence of mean reversion in the equity, profitability, size, and value premiums. Regressions test for statistical evidence of mean reversion, and trading simulations examine whether
Continue reading...Every year brings its share of surprises. But how many of us could have imagined that 2016 would see the Chicago Cubs win the World Series, Bob Dylan receive the Nobel Prize in Literature, Donald Trump
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