Portfolio Building

If the U.S. and other countries sit idly by, we may look back at today as a turning point in global economic affairs. The U.S. does not have to cede economic growth. But it must readapt capitalistic logic, which, ironically, China is slowly grasping.

Even a choppy September hasn’t changed a key measure of 2021’s bullish tone: only twice in the last 20 years have more S&P 500 stocks headed into the fourth quarter with gains for the year.

Cathie Wood sold a near $270 million stake in Tesla Inc. as the bond selloff hit rate-sensitive technology stocks to spur outflows from her growth-focused funds.

Democrats hit a wall in their high-stakes effort to simultaneously avert a government shutdown, avoid a debt default and advance President Joe Biden’s $4 trillion agenda, as feuding gripped lawmakers and a looming economic catastrophe shook markets.

A key Democratic lawmaker said a detailed, final agreement to restore the federal deduction for state and local taxes could be reached this week, with another advocate flagging a temporary repeal of the break’s limit as the likely proposal.

After already registering the worst monthly losses in almost a year so far in September, little relief appears in sight for investors adhering to the 60/40 stock-bond portfolio strategy.

Understanding inflation beyond the headlines helps us answer the all-important question: How transitory is transitory? From there, we can assess potential Fed and market reactions.

After languishing at historical lows for the better part of the last decade, uranium suddenly came back from the dead.

Former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin’s new investment fund is flush, courtesy of some of the same Middle Eastern countries he courted closely when he was one of the most powerful U.S. financial regulators.

There’s a fallacy among advisors that selecting a platform partner is an either/or proposition: a TAMP or an open-architecture solution. There is a middle ground. Some describe it as a “full-service portfolio management platform.” The team at SEI calls it a Techstodian^SM.

Using a risk tolerance questionnaire to establish a retirement income strategy is akin to your doctor checking your pulse to measure your cholesterol. There is nothing wrong with checking your pulse, but it is an inappropriate test for the situation. We propose an alternative test – the RISA – to select the best deaccumulation approach.

House Democrats’ plan to limit a favorite tax break for private equity -- but not do away with it entirely as President Joe Biden had proposed -- is more restrictive than it first appeared, according to investment advisers and attorneys who’ve examined the details of the proposal.

Cathie Wood’s exchange-traded funds sold $66 million of Tesla Inc. shares Tuesday and picked up more Robinhood Markets Inc. as the retail broker’s dismal stock market performance continues.

Many Fed members are vocal about tapering soon, but the Fed has not backed their words with action. Might the Fed be speaking loudly but carrying a feather?

After vaulting up the ranks of the U.S. exchange-traded fund leaderboard, Ark Investment Management is starting to slip.

Dimensional Fund Advisors converted two more of its equity mutual funds into exchange-traded vehicles, further boosting the quant giant’s heft in the $6.8 trillion arena.

Applying a relatively single-indicator trend-following strategy is an excellent way to obtain meaningful exposure to the overall market with significantly lower downside risk and higher long-term risk-adjusted returns.

There are vast inconsistencies between the stated climate objectives of money managers and “the reality of their investments.”

When American Campus Communities Inc. announced the signing of a $1 billion sustainability-linked credit line in May, its executives decided to take a victory lap.

With a 30% contribution to CPI, shelter prices are prone to boost CPI higher in the months ahead. It seems like a logical conclusion, but is it?

On August 24 and 25, we held our second annual Thought Leader Summit. Here is a short summary of each session and a link to watch the replay for CE credits.

A little more than a week ago financial markets appeared on the edge of a precipice, about to be overwhelmed by the delta variant’s insidious spread and the plateauing economic recovery.

Put simply, the climate crisis represents the “biggest market failure of all time.”

Those on Wall Street and the Fed do not see the debt elephant in the room. Even worse, they see it but ignore that perpetuating the problem serves their interests best.

Want to know where the world’s biggest technology stocks are heading? Just watch one of the oldest measures there is: the bond market.

We provide a practical definition of the ideal personalized risk-free asset, and then we’ll discuss how to construct an efficient portfolio when that ideal asset doesn’t exist in investable form.

For almost three decades the acronym TAMP, for turnkey asset management program, has stuck. It’s time to kill it.

For advisors looking to add diversification and growth potential to client portfolios, life settlements are a compelling asset class.

Last week witnessed a bold adventure in in-person conferencing… and lessons in how to manage clients (and their portfolios) in an unprecedented market environment. But the memorable moment at the ENGAGE conference was David Kelly’s statement that bitcoin is a cult and not a currency.

he current inflationary surge is temporary. When flexible prices, especially some of those mentioned, normalize, inflation is likely to follow suit.

Choosing a fund or ETF with a positive ESG profile is fraught with risk. New research shows how carefully investors must weigh considerations such as screening criteria, factor exposures, industry concentration and expenses.

Bitcoin’s spectacular rallies and crashes have investors scratching their heads about whether it fits in a balanced portfolio. History shows a 60/40 allocation to stocks and bonds could be improved by some exposure to the digital asset, despite the risks.

A comeback by megacap growth stocks and the stalling of the value trade arrived at exactly the wrong moment for one $15.3 billion exchange-traded fund.

Forcing the price of money to absurdly low or even negative rates is slowly but constantly detracting from economic progress and ripping the social fabric of our nation.

Global issuance of bonds for environmental, social and governance goals look set to hit $1 trillion for the first time ever this year. That’s more than double what was sold in all of 2020 as more borrowers are pushed to sell ethical debt by investors.

I’m hearing from advisors who are worried about the profession's evolution and whether smaller firms can survive. They feel small and helpless against the wave of consolidation.

This article is about an exception to a rule – an exception that, I believe, has ceased to be. And so the rule has become stronger, and there is a little less joy in the investing world.

As stocks around the world continue to smash one record after another, some of the world’s biggest money managers have a simple message: Get used to it.

Much is being written on the state of extreme equity and bond valuations. Surprisingly, there is little research focusing on what keeps valuations at such levels. Liquidity is our asset bubble's lift and worth closely examining to better assess the markets' potential flight path.

Here is how I am positioning my firm’s portfolio for the risk – the possibility, not the certainty – of long-term inflation.

Why consider volatility as a separate asset class? Because it is endemic.

Adding “alpha” to client relationships may be easier through effective estate and tax planning than with investment manager selection or portfolio construction. Potential changes to the tax code illustrate many of those planning opportunities.

The entrepreneurial culture and meritocracy of the wealth management is what makes this profession unique. But have you ever wondered what we could learn from other industries?

As someone who has completed transactions and has walked away from a number of others, getting a deal done is more complex than putting out a “for sale” sign.

How much clearer would things look from the outside if advisors were willing to tell the whole truth instead of virtue signaling?

The most consequential program in the financial planning world is being ignored by those to whom it matters most – aspiring advisors and the firms that will benefit from hiring them.

The Fed is under the misconception that it controls events, according to James Grant. It is overconfident in its belief it can accurately calibrate and attain a 2% inflation target.

How do we preserve and grow our client's wealth at inflation-adjusted rates, consistent with long-term returns of the requisite asset class, and to do so without taking undue risk of a permanent loss of capital?

Institutions are increasingly allocating to digital assets, but their role in a portfolio is not yet well defined or studied. This piece focuses on Bitcoin and reviews its relationship with major asset classes in the context of an institutional caliber portfolio. Standard techniques are used to help advisors better understand position sizing and the associated risk/reward tradeoff.

The Asset-Map process and its toolset is a force for robust conversations that provides the basis for your advice.