Through much of the year the international equity markets have easily outpaced the domestic U.S. equity markets. This past month, however, saw a break in that trend with the U.S. outperforming international equities as both groups moved higher. Despite this, both developed and emerging international equity markets are well ahead of their U.S. counterparts on a year-to-date basis.
Submitted by Vantage Financial Partners Limited on May 24th, 2017
by Jon Alton
There’s no doubt that a 529 savings plan is one of the best available options for college funding. It has a high contribution limit ($14k annual eligible for gift splitting up to $28k annual and it can even be super funded in the initial year up to $140k). The owner of the 529 savings plan can direct the investments (within plan constraints), and is even allowed to change the beneficiaries. Depending on state of residence, contributors may be eligible for a state tax deduction based on 529 contributions.
As we work our way through earnings season, companies are broadly reporting growth in both revenues and net income that is higher than what analysts expected. Despite this positive news, investors have been reassessing their growth and inflation expectations as the feasibility of the Trump administration’s pro-growth agenda is being called into question. This move has benefited the fixed income markets with yields declining off their recent highs.
by Scott Rosenquist, CFA History of the Option Market
Option contracts trace their origins back to ancient Greece where they were used to speculate on the olive harvest. If someone thought the harvest in a given year was going to be plentiful, they paid the owners of the olive presses for the right to use them in the future. If they were correct and the harvest was large, then the rights to use those olive presses would be very valuable and could be sold for a profit.
Submitted by Vantage Financial Partners Limited on April 24th, 2017
It is easy to get lost in the alphabet soup of Planned Giving vehicles. CGA, CRAT, CRUT, and DAF are common abbreviations for Planned Giving Vehicles used by charity groups, financial advisors, non-profit groups, and estate planning attorneys. People in these groups, myself included, can slip into “industry speak” and lose the charitably minded audience we are trying to help. My hope is to briefly explain a few of the different Planned Giving Vehicles and the tax benefits to donors.
The U.S. Equity markets had a good start to the year adding to the post-election rally. Much of the performance was attributed to an improving economy and the potential of regulatory and tax reforms contained within the new administration’s agenda. More recently however, the U.S. equity markets have hit the pause button, seemingly taking a breather while assessing the feasibility of these reforms.
Submitted by Vantage Financial Partners Limited on March 28th, 2017
by Thomas Rueger, JD
With the post World War II baby boom generation typically being defined as those born between 1946 and 1964, and with the first members of that group now reaching the age of 70 ½; 2017 unofficially marks the beginning of Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) for an entire generation. It’s the typical good news bad news scenario.
Submitted by Vantage Financial Partners Limited on March 28th, 2017
Do you have a gap in your understanding of the gospel? What would it look like to be an all-out radical parent? What can I do to save on my healthcare costs? Take a look at the articles below for insight on answering these important questions.
The post-election rally may be over for now. Over the past month, the major U.S. Indices are mixed. Large companies represented by the S&P 500 Index are up a little over 1%. At the same time, mid and smaller sized companies, represented by the S&P 400 and Russell 2000 respectively, were slightly negative over the past month.
One sign of a healthy business is the amount of cash it produces from its operations. The cash from operations minus any investments to maintain the business (capital expenditures) is considered free cash flow (FCF).
Securities and Advisory services offered through LPL Financial. A registered investment advisor. Member FINRA & SIPC.
The LPL Financial representative associated with this website may discuss and/or transact securities business only with residents of the following states: IL
by Dan Zalipski & Scott Rosenquist, CFA
by Jon Alton
by Scott Rosenquist, CFA
by Thomas Rueger, JD
Do you have a gap in your understanding of the gospel? What would it look like to be an all-out radical parent? What can I do to save on my healthcare costs? Take a look at the articles below for insight on answering these important questions.
by Scott Rosenquist, CFA
