Financial Insights

The old saying attributed to Ben Franklin is “nothing is certain except death and taxes.”  Given what has happened in the financial markets over the past few months, I thought I would take some editorial license and title this update Death and Tariffs.  The recent passing of Pope Francis reminds all of us that death is inevitable.  Even the […]

For two years in a row, large-capitalization US stocks, particularly stocks and indices tilted towards growth like the NASDAQ and the S&P 500, have had strong returns. The average return for the S&P 500 over many decades is around 10%.  In 2023, the S&P 500 was up 26% and in 2024 it was up 25%.  Using simple […]

I’ve always liked the fall season.  Many people do.  Goldilocks temperatures, beautiful fall foliage, crisp cool mornings and sunny, shorter days.  However, it just occurred to me that I’m now in my personal fall.  I turned 62 this summer.  Based on actuarial lifespan estimates, I’m definitely in my fall, maybe even late fall?  I’m happy and healthy, but I did not […]

Reversion to the mean is a fancy statistical term for the tendency of data points to return to their historical average over longer periods of time.  As an example, according to Google, the average June rainfall in Pittsburgh is just over four inches for the month.  Could be zero, could be eight inches, but you would expect […]

The first quarter of 2024 turned out to be a positive one for investors, with most major market indices posting healthy gains in the quarter. The S&P 500, a broad measure of the U.S. stock market, rose by approximately 10.6% during this 90-day period. It was a great start to the year and a continuation […]

In my updates, I usually find an investment theme that I want to present to you and then attempt to write about it in an educational and fun way.  Given that the internet and cable TV are chock-full of financial reporting these days, there is better use for your time and mine than just repeating the […]

The title of this summer update applies to how the financial markets have started 2023 and my investigation into AI (artificial intelligence, smart software you can talk with).  The good news is the financial markets have performed well year to date (YTD), much better than all the hype of recession, inflation and economic woes.  The […]

Spring is here and my backyard is full of rabbits.  Many handily survived our mild winter and, yes, they are cute, but these are big bunnies.  I have lived in the same house for three decades now and have seen the ebb and flow of nature over the years.  In the past, we had more […]

From a financial viewpoint, 2022 was a year where we all suffered, but I sincerely hope your year was better than mine.  Although I hit a couple happy milestones this year – I celebrated my 60th birthday as well as the 40th anniversary with my lovely wife – this was also the year that Alzheimer’s […]

Several years ago, a sports reporter had a great idea.  Each year, they would “retire” some worn out, overused sports cliché, like “smash mouth” football or we play the season “one game at a time.”  In the economic drama that has unfolded over the current Fed tightening cycle, the appropriate economic cliché to retire for […]