To download a printable version of this article: 201810 OPCM – Foreign Currency Conundrum On August 13th, 2018 a headline in the International Business Times read, “Turkey facing currency meltdown and credit crunch fears”. The “meltdown” the article was referencing was a three day, 30% decline in the value of Turkey’s currency, the Lira. Normally, … Continue reading Foreign Currency Conundrum
To download a printable version of this article: 201810 OPCM – Credit Markets, Another Rate Hike The third quarter saw yet another interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve. On September 26th, Fed Chairman Powell announced the Fed Funds target would increase another .25% to a range of 2.0-2.25% and officially removed the term “accommodative” … Continue reading Credit Markets: Another Rate Hike
To download a printable version of this article: 201810 OPCM – Trim Taxes, Increase Cash Flow, or Save Time The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was signed into legislation last December, and this upcoming 2018 tax filing will be our introduction to how the changes affect us personally. As Q3 comes to a close, we … Continue reading 11 Tips to Trim Taxes, Increase Cash Flow, or Save Time
Growth stocks have outperformed value stocks for the past eleven years in nearly a straight line. Most investors are now dramatically overweight growth stocks and growth sectors like technology,communications, healthcare, and consumer discretionary. Recently our investment team is now finding a record number of potential new investments that are labeled value stocks. In this article … Continue reading The Overcrowded Growth Trade
We are pleased that a number of new clients have chosen to work with OPCM in 2018. As we analyze new client and prospective client portfolios, a common theme appears in these portfolios – the combination of very high exposure to U.S. stocks, and an overall lack of diversity. It is easy to understand why … Continue reading The Tails To Heads Flip In U.S. Stocks
Times change, but thankfully for longer term investors, short-sighted fear and greed in the financial markets remain the same. 2017 was the best year for emerging market (EM) equity returns since 2009. EM was up 37%, beating domestic equities for the first time in five years. During 2017, the worst peak-to-trough decline was 5%, the … Continue reading Emerging Opportunities
The best gift I ever received from my parents growing up was my very own checking account when I was 12 years old. This may sound a bit dull at first, but the gift was much more than the physical checkbook and debit card I was so excited to use back then. That was the … Continue reading Financial Wellness for Kids!
The Federal Reserve raised interest rates again in June, marking the seventh rate hike since the Fed began its tightening campaign in late 2015. The Federal Funds rate now stands at 1.75-2.0%, with the Fed indicating they intend to raise rates two more times in 2018. Notably, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell stated that, beginning in … Continue reading Credit Markets: A More Transparent Fed
For many decades, a multi-asset class approach delivered superior returns with less risk. By approximately, equally weighting the major asset classes, an investor could earn 8-9% returns with far less volatility than a portfolio comprised solely of equities. However, in reviewing the last ten years, a simple equal weighting has failed to generate meaningful returns. … Continue reading Why Investors Are Focused On U.S. Equities In 2018
2017 extended the domestic equities bull market to nine years. Over this span, equities were able to continuously ascend through a litany of worries and slow earnings growth because of low valuations, low interest rates, low inflation, and an accommodative Federal Reserve. Over time these variables slowly shifted, and now as we enter the second … Continue reading The New Environment For U.S. Equities
