Month: November 2023

Early Thanksgiving Thought

As the saying goes, it has been a year! It is time for an early Thanksgiving message.

Amidst the challenges near and far surrounding us today, I would like to express gratitude to several amazing groups of people:

  • Thank you to my clients, many of whom are also dear friends, who place trust in me to give advice regarding personal and business decisions large and small.
  • Thank you to YOU, my loyal readers of TGIF 2 Minutes!
  • Thank you to my family for their love and unending patience.

Based on the lives of my clients, colleagues, friends, and family I am hopeful for continued achievement of short-, intermediate- and long-term goals.

Finally, I would be remiss not to thank God for Fridays and for the many blessings we enjoy all year long.

Thank you for reading, an early Happy Thanksgiving and TGIF!

This material has been prepared for informational purposes only and is not intended to provide, and should not be relied upon for, tax, legal or accounting advice.

Time for The Greatest Chart Ever

A chart for the ages, nicknamed over the years “The Greatest Chart Ever”*.

Please make sure the chart above shows on your screen! If not, please ask me to email you a copy.

Simply put, the chart summarizes the inevitable volatility that stocks experience year-in and year-out, while still producing intermediate- and long-term positive returns. Last week’s TGIF 2 Minutes touched on similar concepts related to sticking with a 60/40 portfolio.

Continue reading “Time for The Greatest Chart Ever”

Is the 60/40 Portfolio Dead?

A short but necessary reflection on the “60/40 Portfolio”. (Hint for those wanting to move on to the weekend and stop reading here: the 60/40 portfolio is not dead.)

It would help first to define what a 60/40 portfolio is: an overall investment allocation of 60% stocks and 40% bonds (or bonds and cash). But even “stocks” and “bonds” can be too subjectively defined by the average investor. When it comes to a diversified 60/40 portfolio, the stocks category includes globally diversified equities of all sizes (large & small), styles (value & growth) and industries (all tech – not only super-AI tech – financials, energy, consumer goods, etc.). The bonds category can open a huge “can of worms” because a typical bond fund in a 401k account contains far riskier and longer-dated bonds than meant for the “steady, safe” portion of a retirement savings portfolio. Therefore, the bond category can do its best long-term work when invested in high quality, shorter-term bonds and cash instruments. Please ask me more about this topic.

Continue reading “Is the 60/40 Portfolio Dead?”