We’ve written about education savings accounts (known as 529 plans) in the past (you can read initial post here). I was working with clients on 529 plan funding approach this week and they asked what happens if the accounts are overfunded. While this doesn’t seem to happen all that often, it certainly is a possibility, […]

As I’ve mentioned in the past, we subscribe to a few research services to help provide timely information and analysis of markets. One of these firms (FS Insight) published a video this week discussing the “wall of worry” markets have been attempting to climb (unsuccessfully) ever since late July. I thought it would be worthwhile […]

Markets – stocks and bonds alike – seem singularly focused on one factor in recent weeks – interest rates. The business news channels have the 10-year interest rate ticker in the corner of the screen, watching it near a 5% level all week (which it crossed late Thursday night). As rates continue to rise, both […]

I wouldn’t normally use this column to analyze the daily movements of any individual equity. As you all know, there are many reasons for a stock price to move day in and day out, and as long term investors, we don’t like to get too deep into those daily gyrations. However, when a client asked […]

The “data dependent” Federal Reserve received another two data points this week as two inflation reports for September were published. Let’s take a look at what each revealed – and what they may mean for the path forward. Producer Price Index (“PPI”) First up was PPI, which measures wholesale prices (cost producers pay for finished […]

My mom’s neighbor called me this week to ask about the “bond crisis” as he had read a headline to that effect. I have shared my concerns over the general business media in the past and this is yet another example of why I feel the headlines don’t tell the full story (and perhaps are […]

During the last quarterly reporting cycle, I wrote to clients about the “shock and awe” that characterized the first half of 2023. The “shock” came from the failures of several financial institutions in March, which was accompanied by the “awe” that was the stunning rebound in equity markets, particularly in certain sectors exposed to the […]

A client reached out last week in an attempt to understand the mechanics of a recent trade. He had sold a combination of securities (a money market fund and a few ETFs) to free up cash in his after-tax account to pay for a recent purchase. The day after he placed the sale order/trade, he […]

Another quarter is (almost) behind us. As every investor knows, there are always lessons to be learned from time in the market and the past ninety days of activity were on exception. Below I summarize three key learnings from Q3 2023. 1.) It’s a Long and Winding Road This quarter was a great reminder that […]

It’s almost that time of year when you start to think “what was it that I needed to get done before 12/31 again?” – both on a personal and financial level. A popular item in the financial column is the processing of Required Minimum Distributions from pre-tax investment accounts. We covered this question/topic in detail […]