Blog

Market Strategy by Talley Leger, Chief Market Strategist August 21, 2026 S&P 500: The Tug of War Between Earnings & Interest Rates Investors committing capital to US stocks at all-time highs may have an understandable feeling of...

The Weekly Wealth Watch August 17, 2026 The Markets “Purchase price matters.” — Marc Rowan, CEO, (Apollo Global Management) U.S. equity markets posted strong gains this week, with broad participation across major indexes. The S&P 500...

Market Strategy by Talley Leger, Chief Market Strategist August 14, 2026 Anatomy of a Bull Market: Why 2026 Isn’t 2022 Is the US stock market overextended and heading for a crash? No, not in my opinion. While we won’t know the precise...

The Weekly Wealth Watch August 10, 2026 Is It Really Different This Time? “Be quick, but don’t hurry.” — John Wooden The Markets Investors came back from wherever they had been hiding and decided to buy stocks with both hands. The S&P...

Market Strategy by Talley Leger, Chief Market Strategist August 7, 2026 Corporate Productivity: The “Flywheel” Is Spinning Every great investment thesis eventually comes down to one question: Can companies keep growing their earnings?...

The Weekly Wealth Watch August 3, 2026 The Markets "The stock market is a device for transferring money from the impatient to the patient." — Warren Buffett It was another constructive week for investors, with the major equity...

Market Strategy by Talley Leger, Chief Market Strategist July 31, 2026 Sales: Companies’ Ultimate “Proof of Concept” As my regular readers know, I’ve argued that strong sales tell companies the world wants their products and services....

The Weekly Wealth Watch July 27, 2026 The Markets “The key to successful investing is to stay disciplined, keep costs low, diversify broadly, and maintain a long-term perspective.” — Tim Buckley, Former Chairman & CEO, (Vanguard) U.S....

Market Strategy by Talley Leger, Chief Market Strategist July 24, 2026 The Bond Market Isn’t Screaming – You’re Just Listening to the Wrong People When Treasury yields rise, investors tend to make the same diagnosis: Debt. Deficits....

The Weekly Wealth Watch July 20, 2026 The Markets “The biggest investment opportunities often emerge when investors can distinguish between short-term market noise and long-term technological change.” — Dan Benton, Founder, Andor...

Market Strategy by Talley Leger, Chief Market Strategist July 17, 2026 Bank Earnings Ratify the “Tech Enablement” Thesis Corporate management teams are signaling their growing optimism this earnings season. According to FactSet, the...

The Weekly Wealth Watch July 13, 2026 The Markets “Investing isn't just about owning great companies—it's about understanding how they create long-term value for all stakeholders.” — Jeff Ubben, Founder, (Inclusive Capital Partners)...

Market Strategy by Talley Leger, Chief Market Strategist July 10, 2026 Did You Say ‘Over?’ In the immortal words of John (Bluto) Blutarsky from the 1978 film, Animal House: “What? Over? Did you say ‘over?’ Nothing is over until we...

The Weekly Wealth Watch July 6, 2026 The Markets “Successful investing requires discipline, thoughtful diversification, and a long-term perspective. Markets will fluctuate, but resilient portfolios are built to weather those...

Market Strategy by Talley Leger, Chief Market Strategist July 2, 2026 Market Memory: What Past Performance Implies About Future Results Every investment professional – including me – is familiar with the ubiquitous compliance...

The Weekly Wealth Watch June 29, 2026 The Markets “The market is constantly weighing probabilities, not certainties. Successful investing comes from recognizing when expectations have become disconnected from reality.” — Lee Ainslie,...

Market Strategy by Talley Leger, Chief Market Strategist June 26, 2026 Mid-Year Outlook: “Dynamic Optimism” in a Non-Inflationary Equilibrium How can advisors balance the structural tension between protecting and growing their clients’...

The Weekly Wealth Watch June 22, 2026 The Markets “You can’t predict. You can prepare.” — Howards Marks, (Oaktree Capital) Markets closed out a shortened trading week on a positive note as investors navigated a lighter calendar ahead...

Market Strategy by Talley Leger, Chief Market Strategist June 19, 2026 Why Infinite Space May Not Equal Infinite Value A couple of weeks ago, I explored some thoughts and related research questions about the space economy. While it’s a...

The Weekly Wealth Watch June 15, 2026 The Markets “Investing is about finding opportunities and having the patience and discipline to let them develop over time.” — Abigail Johnson, (Fidelity Investment) U.S. equity markets continued...

Market Strategy by Talley Leger, Chief Market Strategist June 12, 2026 Signal vs. Noise: Cool “Core” CPI, Hot “Headline” CPI What Happened: As expected, the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS’) Consumer Price Index (CPI) for All Urban...

The Weekly Wealth Watch June 1, 2026 The Markets The key to long-term success is not being right all the time—it’s managing risk when you’re wrong.” — Michael Platt, (BlueCrest Capital) U.S. equity markets pulled back this week as...

Market Strategy by Talley Leger, Chief Market Strategist June 5, 2026 A Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Space Economy It’s time-minus seven (T-7) days and counting until the SpaceX (SPCX) initial public offering (IPO), which is targeting a...

Market Strategy by Talley Leger, Chief Market Strategist May 29, 2026 Treasury Yields: Water Finds Its Own Level In my June 4, 2025, Market Strategy Flash, “Why bond yields have increased around the world,” I argued that rising yields...

MarketStrategy by Talley Leger, Chief Market Strategist May 22, 2026 Software vs. Semis: Skate to Where the Puck Is Going Since April 2025, I’ve consistently opined about information technology, which remains a bright spot on the US...

The Weekly Wealth Watch June 1, 2026 The Markets “I’ve always believed that prices move first and fundamentals come later.” — James Simons (Renaissance Technologies) U.S. equity markets extended their advance this week, with gains...

The Weekly Wealth Watch May 25, 2026 The Markets “The first step toward getting somewhere is to decide you’re not going to stay where you are.” — John Pierpont Morgan (J.P. Morgan) U.S. equity markets moved higher this week, with gains...

The Markets What are your expectations for inflation? Inflation occurs when the prices of goods and services increase. Last week, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) showed that inflation moved modestly higher from July to August. Prices...

Roth Conversions in a Post-OBBBA World: What to Consider Before Converting

Erika Ferris

Monday, September 8, 2025

You’ve probably heard of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, or something close to it. We’re calling it OBBBA, and while it may not directly rewrite retirement account rules, it could have indirect effects that impact your Roth conversion...

The Markets Was the jobs report good news or bad news for the stock market? In financial markets, sometimes bad news is good. It looked like that might be the case last week. On Friday, the Employment Situation Summary was released. It...

Will the bull market in stocks continue? There is always a diversity of opinion about whether stocks are headed higher or lower. Last week, investors were feeling more bearish than bullish about where the stock market may...

The Markets Will the Fed lower rates? Last week, in a much-anticipated speech, Federal Reserve (Fed) Chair Jerome Powell said, “In the near term, risks to inflation are tilted to the upside, and risks to employment to the downside—a...

The Markets Was inflation higher, lower, or steady? Perspective has a tremendous influence on how we perceive the world around us. If you saw any three-dimensional chalk drawings on sidewalks this summer, you understand how perspective...

The Markets U.S. companies have been hitting it out of the park! Earnings season happens four times every year. It’s the period of time when publicly traded companies report how they performed during the previous quarter. So far, in...

The Markets Fast as a snail. In July, the weather in Norfolk, England, was perfectly rainy as Bilbo Sluggins won the World Snail Racing Championship with a time of two minutes and 11 seconds. Fans and competitors traveled from the...

What the One Big Beautiful Bill Act Means for Your Financial Plan

Caitlin Allard

Friday, August 1, 2025

On July 4, 2025, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) was signed into law. This sweeping legislative package combines permanent tax reforms, new deductions, and significant spending changes across federal programs. Here are a few of...

Rethinking Multi-Factor Investing: Is Smart Beta Smart?

Jim Worden, CFA®, CMT®, CAIA®

Friday, August 1, 2025

I remember when multi-factor strategies became popular 15 years ago. They were marketed to add more diversification than the market while capturing the known risk premia – value, momentum, quality, volatility, and size – and were...

What My Dog Taught Me About Loss, Grief and Life Insurance

Raymond Bell

Friday, August 1, 2025

My spouse, Jorvany, and I have two dogs: Max, a Terrier mix, and Nani, a Chihuahua. On July 4th, Jorvany left for a month-long trip to visit his family in Veracruz, Mexico. He took Nani with him, thinking it would be easier for me to...

The Markets How fast will an AI-powered economy grow? Global economic growth has not always been robust. Until the 1700s, economic growth averaged about 0.1 percent per year and was closely tied to population growth. “Bigger harvests...

The Markets This is not the inflation you’re looking for… In general, everyone who buys goods or services in the United States would prefer to see prices trend lower – and that’s what happened in the earlier part of this year. Over the...

The Markets Are financial markets too complacent? In Aesop’s fable, The Boy Who Cried Wolf, a young shepherd repeatedly raises a false alarm. Eventually, the people in his village ignore his warnings. When a wolf appears, the villagers...

2025 Mid-Year Review

Jim Worden, CFA®, CMT®, CAIA®

Tuesday, July 8, 2025

What a whirlwind were the first two quarters of the year! If we simply looked at year-to-date returns, it would seem like a pretty normal year. Up 6% for the S&P 500. Up 4% for core US bonds¹. Sectors that we have liked for a while,...

Estate Planning Basics: What Everyone Should Know

Caitlin Allard

Tuesday, July 1, 2025

When people hear the term estate planning, many assume it’s something only the wealthy need to worry about. In reality, estate planning is an essential part of financial planning for nearly everyone—regardless of age, income, or assets...

The Case for Succession Planning

Raymond Bell

Tuesday, July 1, 2025

A business owner's mindset is often focused on long-term survival. Yet, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 25% of new businesses survive 15 years or longer. In the early years, owners are typically laser-focused on...

Insurance Blogs Life insurance policies are incredibly detailed, and even a good policy might not cover everything you should know. Here are ten items every life insurance consumer should be aware of: • The Free Look Period: Every...

Nowadays, it’s extremely rare to meet someone who hasn’t encountered a cyber scam, phishing attempt, or identify fraud of some kind. Unfortunately, it’s a reality that these types of threats are omnipresent and only projected to...