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Portfolio Strategy Review Q1 2023
It’s a Bailout: Taxpayer Dollars Hard at Work
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Portfolio Strategy
Latest Posts
Portfolio Strategy Review Q1 2023
by Jerry Matecun | Apr 15, 2023 | Portfolio Strategy
Bank-run fever drove the headlines as the Clickbait culture helped fuel SVB’s stunning and rapid descent. Signature and Silverlight banks followed suit. Out came the shameless charlatans of all stripes vying for political points, likes, or trading gains. The...
Portfolio Strategy Review 2022
by Jerry Matecun | Jan 15, 2023 | Portfolio Strategy
Overview The reset of 2022 was a painful reminder that investment fads and cycles can shift direction with little warning. Diversification helps mitigate risk, but it isn’t perfect. Bonds typically are a reliable and stable diversifier when stocks decline, but the...
Portfolio Strategy Review Q3 2022
by Jerry Matecun | Oct 17, 2022 | Portfolio Strategy
Overview The primary financial headline is the same: Inflation is over 8.0%; Interest rates are still rising. With a lot of political and economic drama beneath the surface. In the time honored tradition, the party in power takes more credit or gets more blame for the...
Portfolio Strategy Review Q2 2022
by Jerry Matecun | Jul 18, 2022 | Portfolio Strategy
Overview The second quarter continued the negative trends that we saw in the first quarter. Interest rates and inflation increased, though there has been recent price relief in the housing, energy, and other commodity markets. The labor market remains strong with...
Portfolio Strategy Review Q1 2022
by Jerry Matecun | Apr 18, 2022 | Portfolio Strategy
"I need ammunition. Not a ride." History Lessons from War, Appeasement, and Markets It’s useful to compare the events in Ukraine against history because we all have a stake in the outcome. In 1938, Hitler annexed Austria; and demanded a portion of Czechoslovakia that...
Portfolio Strategy Review 2021
by Jerry Matecun | Jan 16, 2022 | Portfolio Strategy
Overview Between the pandemic that won’t go away and the politics of the day, US stock markets shrugged it off and delivered extraordinary returns in 2021. At least we are closer to the end of the pandemic. The politics I’m not so sure about. Economic growth forecasts...
401k & Retirement Planning
Latest Posts
Portfolio Rebalancing: You Can’t Spend an Average
by Jerry Matecun | Nov 21, 2021 | 401k & Retirement Planning, Advice that Matters, Investment Discipline
Avoiding Bad Luck with Rebalancing It’s easy to be complacent as our account balances have risen over the past twelve years. The record fast market decline from COVID was offset by an equally fast recuperation, driven by large doses of fiscal and monetary stimulation....
Social Security Ain’t Going Broke!
by Jerry Matecun | Oct 12, 2021 | 401k & Retirement Planning, Personal Planning
Social Security Status: Ignore the Headline Hype Social Security issued its Annual Trustees report on August 31. The report discussed the long-term financial status of the program. However, different media sources report the same data in very different ways. Some...
How Long to the Other Side
by Jerry Matecun | Apr 13, 2020 | 401k & Retirement Planning
How Long to the Other Side The market recouped about half its losses over the past two weeks, as investors weigh risks and grapple with when life will get back to normal. Some investment strategists say we’ve hit the bottom; some say this will last longer and be...
Calm, Care, & Caution
by Jerry Matecun | Mar 24, 2020 | 401k & Retirement Planning
Calm, Care, & Caution How to stay calm during challenging times? The late Vanguard founder John Bogle used to say that in times of market turmoil, “Don’t just do something. Stand there!” His point was that panic selling after market declines guarantees loss....
Bear Markets
by Jerry Matecun | Mar 17, 2020 | 401k & Retirement Planning, Investment Discipline
Bear Markets When you compare your 401k balance to three weeks ago it hurts. I know. The record long bull market ended on March 11, and we officially entered bear market territory. A bear market is defined as a 20% decline from peak stock prices. After 11 years of...
SECURE Act Becomes Law
by Jerry Matecun | Dec 31, 2019 | 401k & Retirement Planning, Personal Planning
The SECURE Act Becomes Law in 2020 The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (aka SECURE Act) was passed by Congress and will become law January 1, 2020. There is a lot to unpack beneath the surface, so let me give you a high-level summary. As I...
Investment Discipline
Latest Posts
It’s a Bailout: Taxpayer Dollars Hard at Work
by Jerry Matecun | Mar 15, 2023 | Investment Discipline
Several people have had concerns about the recent bank failures. The short version of this article is that the three bank failures we have witnessed in the past week appear isolated to firms with high concentration risk and poor risk management. There will likely be...
The Energy Debate: Green vs Greener
by Jerry Matecun | Jun 1, 2022 | Investment Discipline
My last conference summary to you was about rising prices. Energy costs contribute to the price of most everything. Whether its vacation travel, transportation of goods or raw materials, food, heating or cooling, or just staying plugged in! Therefore, the debate (or...
The January Effect
by Jerry Matecun | Feb 3, 2022 | Investment Discipline
According to the zany theory called the January Effect, they are supposed to go up. January was rough across most markets. The doomsayers, armed with historical data, were out in full force predicting the “mother of all bear markets” is just around the corner. And...
Portfolio Rebalancing: You Can’t Spend an Average
by Jerry Matecun | Nov 21, 2021 | 401k & Retirement Planning, Advice that Matters, Investment Discipline
Avoiding Bad Luck with Rebalancing It’s easy to be complacent as our account balances have risen over the past twelve years. The record fast market decline from COVID was offset by an equally fast recuperation, driven by large doses of fiscal and monetary stimulation....
Portfolio Rebalancing: The Dull Discipline
by Jerry Matecun | Nov 11, 2021 | Advice that Matters, Investment Discipline
The famed economist John Maynard Keynes once quipped: “The market can remain irrational longer than you can remain solvent.” Or employed. Or happily married. It’s easy to get complacent when we watch our account balance increase during the great melt up over the past...
The Three Most Important Investment Decisions
by Jerry Matecun | May 18, 2021 | Advice that Matters, Investment Discipline, Personal Planning
The Three Most Important Investment Decisions Many investors believe active stock picking, choosing the hottest fund, or timing the market is the best path to achieve wealth. Yet many well documented studies indicate this path produces poor results that are caused by...
Business Valuations
Latest Posts
Interest Rates, Valuation, and Investment Choice
by Jerry Matecun | Feb 10, 2017 | Business Valuations
The benchmark US Treasury bond yield spiked from 1.35% in early July to about 2.50%; almost a 100% increase in 7 months! Will rates continue to spike with the so-called “reflation trade”? How would the interest rate change impact the valuation of various asset classes...
Buyer’s View and Risk of Return
by Jerry Matecun | Nov 11, 2016 | Business Valuations, Exit Planning
I hate to use clichés but when they help clients to understand key concepts that can get lost in technical details – I’ll use em! No pain, no gain; no guts, no glory – are ways to describe the risk vs. return decision. Investors have choices in how to invest across a...
Cash Flow: Vaguely Right or Precisely Wrong
by Jerry Matecun | Aug 16, 2016 | Business Valuations
In explaining how he adjusts a company’s cash flow for investment analysis, Warren Buffet once quoted the economist John Maynard Keynes, “I would rather be vaguely right, than precisely wrong.” Buffet’s comments mean it’s false to pretend that financial analysis is a...
Valuation Theory, Transactions, and Conflicted Views
by Jerry Matecun | May 15, 2016 | Business Valuations
At a breakfast panel I attended, the speaker said that most business valuation work is done for tax compliance and litigation purposes. He noted that these valuations are performed under the fair market value standard, which is highly theoretical and doesn’t work in...
Words and Standards Have Dollar Implications!
by Jerry Matecun | Feb 15, 2016 | Business Valuations
Many business valuations are done to facilitate the transfer or sale of a business. The terms and valuation of internal transfers are often dictated in the buy-sell agreement. This is a common contract in businesses that have more than one owner. The problem is that...
The Importance of the Credible Expert
by Jerry Matecun | Nov 15, 2015 | Business Valuations
Business appraisals are needed in many situations. Regardless of the situation, if your goal is an objective and reasonable result, a competent and credible expert is your logical starting point. A professional who is abreast of current best practices and able to...
Exit Planning
Latest Posts
Buyer’s View and Risk of Return
by Jerry Matecun | Nov 11, 2016 | Business Valuations, Exit Planning
I hate to use clichés but when they help clients to understand key concepts that can get lost in technical details – I’ll use em! No pain, no gain; no guts, no glory – are ways to describe the risk vs. return decision. Investors have choices in how to invest across a...
Family Business Ties: Good, Bad, or Ugly?
by Jerry Matecun | May 5, 2016 | Exit Planning
I was raised in a family business. As the eldest son I experienced the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly! I’ve also had the pleasure and opportunity of working with family owned-business over the last twenty years. Many of their stories go something like this: Once upon a...
Business Succession Plan Considerations
by Jerry Matecun | Feb 5, 2016 | Exit Planning
Most small business owners think about the future of his or her business. Because “the business” is usually the primary wealth generator and a large portion of personal net worth, many estate planning issues interact with business succession planning. A business...
The Purpose of Your Buy-Sell Agreement
by Jerry Matecun | Nov 7, 2015 | Exit Planning
A Buy-Sell agreement (BSA) serves several key purposes for business owners. A well-articulated BSA creates a ready market and liquidity to a selling owner, and should establish price, terms, and financing for the transfer. In short it spells out a process so that all...
Business Exit Planning: Transitions Are Inevitable
by Jerry Matecun | Aug 3, 2015 | Exit Planning
Your business planning, focus, and success has given you income, status, and lifestyle. Yet many successful business owners fail the transition phase, also known as business exit planning. Failure to recognize or acknowledge the inevitable is bad business and has...
Advice That Matters
Latest Posts
Portfolio Rebalancing: You Can’t Spend an Average
by Jerry Matecun | Nov 21, 2021 | 401k & Retirement Planning, Advice that Matters, Investment Discipline
Avoiding Bad Luck with Rebalancing It’s easy to be complacent as our account balances have risen over the past twelve years. The record fast market decline from COVID was offset by an equally fast recuperation, driven by large doses of fiscal and monetary stimulation....
Portfolio Rebalancing: The Dull Discipline
by Jerry Matecun | Nov 11, 2021 | Advice that Matters, Investment Discipline
The famed economist John Maynard Keynes once quipped: “The market can remain irrational longer than you can remain solvent.” Or employed. Or happily married. It’s easy to get complacent when we watch our account balance increase during the great melt up over the past...
The Three Most Important Investment Decisions
by Jerry Matecun | May 18, 2021 | Advice that Matters, Investment Discipline, Personal Planning
The Three Most Important Investment Decisions Many investors believe active stock picking, choosing the hottest fund, or timing the market is the best path to achieve wealth. Yet many well documented studies indicate this path produces poor results that are caused by...
The Simplified 401K Plan Solution
by Jerry Matecun | Sep 25, 2018 | 401k & Retirement Planning, Advice that Matters
The owners and plan trustees wanted to increase plan participation rates, especially with the younger, lower earning employees who make up most of the workforce. Due to the nature of the business (120 employees in multiple locations) the broker from a large...
Advice Only a Banker Could Love
by Jerry Matecun | Jan 28, 2018 | Advice that Matters, Personal Planning
Many banks now operate as a one-stop shop for all your financial needs. The convenience factor is seductive. How well does this “all-things, to all-people” boilerplate approach work? This is a tale of a community bank, acquired several times, and now part of a...
The Conflicted Sale
by Jerry Matecun | Jan 18, 2018 | Advice that Matters
A referral from a trusted adviser like one’s CPA usually helps to mitigate risk in selecting an investment adviser. However, just because a CPA works with numbers and is tax savvy doesn’t mean they are fully aware of the many potential conflicts that an adviser's...
Personal Planning
Latest Posts
Proposed Tax and Planning Updates
by Jerry Matecun | Oct 27, 2021 | Personal Planning
I spent 2 days last week at a continuing education conference with Ed Slott & Company. This is my third year in the program. Slott has been a thought leader in retirement and distribution planning for over thirty years. My Master Elite membership gives me full...
Social Security Ain’t Going Broke!
by Jerry Matecun | Oct 12, 2021 | 401k & Retirement Planning, Personal Planning
Social Security Status: Ignore the Headline Hype Social Security issued its Annual Trustees report on August 31. The report discussed the long-term financial status of the program. However, different media sources report the same data in very different ways. Some...
Medicare Nightmares
by Jerry Matecun | Sep 1, 2021 | Personal Planning
Plan Enrollment Errors: Advance Planning is Good Medicine Combine the federal government with the US tax and healthcare systems and what do you get? One very complicated maze of rules and regulations called Medicare! Medicare’s complex rules are confusing and can...
The Three Most Important Investment Decisions
by Jerry Matecun | May 18, 2021 | Advice that Matters, Investment Discipline, Personal Planning
The Three Most Important Investment Decisions Many investors believe active stock picking, choosing the hottest fund, or timing the market is the best path to achieve wealth. Yet many well documented studies indicate this path produces poor results that are caused by...
SECURE Act Becomes Law
by Jerry Matecun | Dec 31, 2019 | 401k & Retirement Planning, Personal Planning
The SECURE Act Becomes Law in 2020 The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (aka SECURE Act) was passed by Congress and will become law January 1, 2020. There is a lot to unpack beneath the surface, so let me give you a high-level summary. As I...
In Plan ROTH 401k Conversions
by Jerry Matecun | Sep 2, 2019 | 401k & Retirement Planning, Personal Planning
Options to Choose, Not Choose, or Defer to a Later Date Not all plans include the so-called “In plan conversions” detailed below, which allow existing pre-tax 401K dollars to be converted to after-tax ROTH 401k dollars. They can be a good way to build tax-free income...
Reading For Results
Latest Posts
Different From the Other 300,000?
by Jerry Matecun | Aug 25, 2019 | Reading for Results
Storytelling for Financial Advisors By Mitch Anthony and Scott West I picked up this book because my communication with clients and prospects needs improvement. People in all industries tend to fall back on acronyms, slang, and technical terms that are like a foreign...
Conserving Client Portfolios
by Jerry Matecun | Sep 25, 2017 | Reading for Results
Conserving Client Portfolios During Retirement by William Bengen Written in 2006, Bengen popularized what is known as the “4% Rule.” This work on distribution and withdrawal planning for sustainable retirement income has become the de facto standard against which...
The Remarkable Story of Risk
by Jerry Matecun | Oct 14, 2014 | Reading for Results
Against the Odds: The Remarkable Story of Risk by Peter L. Bernstein “Likeness to Truth is not the same as Truth” I found the historical breadth and depth of this work remarkable as the title suggests. Bernstein takes us on an interesting evolutionary path of...
