Posts Tagged ‘Stocks’
Investing 101: a Primer for Beginners
Many of us have heard the term “investments” used in many ways – and it’s a concept most of us are familiar with to some degree. But unless you’ve really taken an interest in the markets or set aside time to study them, you may not have a total understanding of what investing is, everything…
Read MoreQ1 2021 Stock Market Commentary
The market continued to surge higher as we said goodbye to 2020 and hello to 2021. Additional stimulus, mass vaccinations, and hopes for a return to a fully opened economy provided a nice backdrop for the market to further its gains. As rosy as that all sounds, we did run into some volatility late in…
Read MoreQ2 2020 – Second Quarter Stock Market Commentary
There is an old saying on Wall Street, “The stock market is not the economy and the economy is not the stock market.” We all got a little taste of that this past quarter when we saw a negative -4.8% GDP in the first quarter and predictions of negative -30% to -50% GDP for the second quarter. We saw record…
Read More2020 First Quarter (Q1) Market Commentary
Most economic slowdowns occur over time with a slow deterioration of Employment, Consumer Confidence, and Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Companies generally tighten their belts and the Fed and Government make monetary and fiscal policy changes to help soften the blow and eventually we come back slowly. It’s called the business cycle. We have been going…
Read MoreClient Alert: Coronavirus and Market Conditions – A Note from Tom & Tim
Over the weekend, oil prices dropped by about 20-30% as Saudi Arabia slashed its export oil price likely starting a price war with Russia. This spooked the markets which were already on edge with the spread of the Coronavirus. As a result, we saw the stock market drop 7% at the open this morning and the…
Read MoreCoronavirus Concerns? Consider Past Health Crises
During the last week of February 2020, the S&P 500 lost 11.49% — the worst week for stocks since the 2008 financial crisis — only to jump by 4.6% on the first Monday in March.1 By all accounts, the drop was largely driven by ever-increasing fears about the potential effects of the coronavirus (COVID-19) and its…
Read More2019 Q4 Market Commentary
One year ago, the market was convinced that our economy was headed for a recession and we began 2019 on the heels of one of the worst quarterly market returns in more than a decade. This could not have been further from the truth. Once the market figured out that a recession was not happening,…
Read MoreUnderstanding Risk
Few terms in personal finance are as important, or used as frequently, as “risk.” Nevertheless, few terms are as imprecisely defined. Generally, when financial advisors or the media talk about investment risk, their focus is on the historical price volatility of the asset or investment under discussion. Advisors label as aggressive or risky an investment…
Read MoreMutual Funds Explained in Simple Terms
A mutual fund pools the money of many investors to purchase securities. The fund’s manager buys securities to pursue a stated investment strategy. By investing in the fund, you’ll own a piece of the total portfolio of securities, which could be anywhere from a few dozen to hundreds of securities. This provides you with a…
Read More2Q 2017 Market Commentary
The markets continued to march higher into the 2nd quarter. With the strong finish, it marked the eighth straight month of gains for the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The Dow is now enjoying a rise of 8.0% for the year while the S&P 500 is up 8.2%. While those two indices have had impressive returns…
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