21 Aug 2015

Posted at 13:30h in The Friday Brief by
Market cycles, bull and bear, have considerably more impact on our psyche, confidence, and outlook than we perhaps realize. When stocks have risen for a period long enough for us to believe the trend will last, things simply look brighter. We feel more confident about our future, loosen our grip on our money, and feel more comfortable taking risk. With the the Total US Stock market up some 200% since March of 2009, we have had numerous discussions around increasing stock exposure to capture larger returns - it's only normal.

02 Jan 2015

Posted at 14:11h in The Friday Brief by
2014 marked another good year for the stock market.  With a 13.7% gain including dividends, the S&P 500 finished in positive territory for the sixth year in a row.  The market never goes up in a straight line and 2014 was no different. Several major geopolitical events including Ebola, ISIS, plummeting oil prices and the Russian invasion of Ukraine caused volatility during the year.   In fact, the S&P 500 fell 7.2% from its September 18 peak before bouncing back in late October and November.   Here's a chart of the S&P 500's 2014.

12 Apr 2013

Posted at 13:11h in The Friday Brief by
The stock market has been on a tear this week, making new highs while defying negative trending economic news and continued impasse in Washington on vital fiscal policies. The S&P 500 rose 0.4% yesterday to close at a record 1,593.37. It reversed this morning on news that retail sales for March came in well below expectations and that the weakness was broad based.