“The S&P 500 rose 27% in 2021, capping a third consecutive year of double-digit gains. Yet stocks are cheaper than they were a year ago: The S&P is trading at 21 times analysts’ projected earnings over the next 12 months, down from 22.8 times at the end of 2020. Lower valuations, together with an expanding […]
Tag Archives | investing
Quote Of The Week: Keep The Sound Turned Off
“If you must watch CNBC or other financial television, watch it with the sound turned off.” Jason Zweig, “The Best Investment for This Coming Crazy Year,” The Wall Street Journal, January 7, 2022 What’s the secret to successful investing? Financial columnist Jason Zweig says what’s needed to invest successfully in 2022 is the discipline to stay […]
Quote Of The Week: Is The S&P 500 Index Giving You The Diversification You Need?
“Like most indexes, the S&P 500 is weighted by capitalization: The bigger the market cap a company has, the more its influence on the performance of the index. Any cap-weighted index fund is a heavy bet on larger companies. Lately, that bet has become extremely heavy because a few stocks have become gigantic. All by themselves, Alphabet (GOOGL), […]
Bottoms Up: Investing In Rare Whiskey, Designer Handbags, And Classic Cars
You already know that residential real estate and the stock market have racked up solid price gains over the past year, but they are far from topping the investment charts. Luxury goods like art, classic cars, and fine wine have set even more ambitious price records, despite the uncertainty caused by the pandemic. In 2020, […]
The Market Is Rebounding. Why Isn’t That Helping More People?
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on many companies and especially on those in industries like travel, retail and hospitality. But the stock market has held up quite well, thank you, rebounding strongly off of its March lows. Why is it, then, that more people are not benefiting from the market’s resilience? One […]
Closing The Gender Wealth Gap
Most of us have heard about the gender pay gap. Women on average make 82¢ for each $1.00 earned by white male workers. But there’s an even more serious gender wealth gap. The typical woman has accumulated only 32¢ in wealth for each dollar accumulated by men, says female finance pioneer Sallie Krawcheck, co-founder and CEO […]
Real Estate Winners And Losers: Taking A Closer Look
Like many other investors, you probably own a handful of REITs or real estate mutual funds in your portfolio. Publicly traded real estate, whether packaged inside real estate mutual funds or exchange traded funds (ETFs), has been a perennial investor favorite, offering decent income payouts, good portfolio diversification, inflation protection, and tax benefits. Lately, as […]
Quote Of The Week: What Low Interest Rates Mean For You
The Federal Reserve has pushed interest rates to new lows to fight COVID-19. How do these historically low rates affect your wallet? “Good news, bad news. Borrowers will benefit from the low-rate environment. The 30-year fixed mortgage rate is likely to remain below 4% for the foreseeable future. Auto, home-equity and other consumer loan rates will […]
7 Things You Need To Know About Investing In Preferred Securities
Many investors are attracted to preferred stock investments due to their generous income yields, but are somewhat mystified by how these hybrid securities work. Is it a stock? Or is it a bond? And when does it make sense as an investment? Here’s 7 quick facts about this often misunderstood investment category, and why they […]
Quote Of The Week: The Risk Of Surrendering To Cash
“While it might feel safer going to cash when markets are volatile, cash positions don’t work like they used to. If you went to cash during the 1987 stock-market crash, you were still making 4.75% to 5.5% interest. If you had gone to cash in the dot-com crash you were making around the same—3.5% to […]
About Mari Adam, CFP®
Mari Adam, Certified Financial Planner™ has helped hundreds of individuals and families build wealth and plan for a more secure financial future for over 30 years. Her advice has appeared in publications such as Wall Street Journal, Kiplinger’s, Money Magazine, Business Week, and CBS MarketWatch.
