To Inform:   Since my oldest son is preparing for the ACT this summer, this week’s To Inform portion of Wealthnotes is a test question: Based on popular market indexes, which of the following statements is CORRECT? U.S. stock performance is flat this year U.S. stock performance is up double digits this year U.S. stock performance […]

To Inform:   On June 13 the Federal Reserve increased short-term interest rates by 0.25%, taking the upper end of the range of the Fed Funds rate from 1.75% to 2.00%.  Was the market surprised by the increase?  Not at all!  Due to strong economic and employment data, the market was not only expecting this rate […]

To Inform:   Earlier this week we held our monthly Portfolios at Panera session and had a terrific discussion about the “why” behind our allocation and fund manager decisions.  One of the big topics on people’s minds seemed to be bonds.  With stock market volatility increasing and interest rates higher, is now a good time to […]

To Inform:     Aaron Filbeck, portfolio manager, recently traveled to New York City to attend an investment conference. One of the keynote presentations focused on the future of emerging markets, essentially dividing future growth drivers into three themes: Technological Disruption. The rise of mobile payments is changing how sectors do business. In emerging markets, wallets are quickly […]

To Inform:   Last week the interest rate on the 10-year Treasury bond hit 3% for the first time in over four years, prompting major headlines in the Wall Street Journal and much discussion at last week’s Portfolios at Panera.  However, in The Joseph Group’s Investment Strategy Team meetings, it’s not the rate on the 10-year […]

To Inform:   At The Joseph Group, we are not big market technicians who look for patterns in market charts, but we do want to be cognizant of investor behavior.  Despite talk of trade wars, social media privacy, and Russia, on down days for stocks, the S&P 500 is bouncing around the same levels it hit […]

To Inform:   As we are typing this note, the S&P 500 is slightly positive year-to-date 2018, but it’s time to look under the hood.  To use a car analogy, the engine may be keeping things moving forward overall, but some components are working harder than others. Out of the 500 stocks that make up the […]

To Inform:   After a week of market corrections and the most volatility in two years, it’s time for a little good news for the stock market.  The good news is corporate earnings look terrific. We are currently in the midst of earnings season where companies announce their earnings for the previous quarter and management provides […]

To Inform:   Earlier this week we sent out a note regarding the Dow’s “biggest point loss in history” (although it does not crack the top 100 declines in percentage terms) and how computerized trading strategies related to volatility seemed to be driving extremes in market movements.  After another significant decline on Thursday, most U.S. stock […]

To Inform:   1. What’s Happening?! After one of the strongest starts to a year ever in 2018, the stock market has quickly corrected over the last few days, reversing January’s gains.  The market correction, including the largest point loss for the Dow ever on Monday, has been fast and furious but in a big picture […]