Choppy Waters

Choppy Waters After an amazing melt up since last November, the stock market has become choppy lately. When that happens, there is typically a ‘push-pull’ occurring that has the market uncertain of its next direction. In this case, the push higher is based on a growing economy and the presumably strong earnings that will bring. […]
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Can’t Wait!

Can’t Wait! With Thanksgiving behind us, Christmas looms as the next big event. Is this a Santa Claus rally or the beginning of a new bull market? One thing we know about this market is that Wall St. is very much like those kids expecting Santa Claus’s arrival. They can’t wait. It seems this market […]
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Gradually, Then Suddenly

Gradually, Then Suddenly We’re getting more than a bit tired of the debt ceiling ‘debate’ (and we use that term very loosely). The sooner this comes to head and is ‘resolved’ (again, we use the term loosely), the better. Fundamentally, it is impossible to resolve our debt problem in the next 2-3 weeks. The current […]
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Stop. Take a Deep Breath.

Stop. Take a Deep Breath. The last few weeks have been amazing to watch, even for old investment pros. The narrative which over the course of 2022 had gone in our direction (recession), first flipped to a soft-landing scenario (slow growth, but no recession), then flipped to a ‘no-landing’ scenario (i.e., economic growth continues). Finally, […]
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Bottom’s Up!

Bottoms Up! In his classic 1934 book “Security Analysis”, Benjamin Graham, the father of value investing (and a mentor to Warren Buffet), said something to the effect that in the short run the stock market is a voting machine, but in the long run, it is a weighing machine. Eighty-nine years later, that comment still […]
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Now Might Be a Good Time for a Roth Conversion

Now Might Be a Good Time for a Roth Conversion One silver lining in the current bear market is that this could be a good time to convert assets from a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA. Converted assets are subject to federal income tax in the year of conversion, which might be a substantial […]
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Move Along, Nothing to See Here | September 17, 2022

Move Along, Nothing to See Here Investors have been hanging on every word from the Federal Reserve for years as their policies have been the most consistent driver of markets, be it stocks, bonds, housing, private equity, etc. Some level of rate increases has been baked in by markets, but, of course, that level gyrates […]
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