Every quarter we publish our Capital Markets Review for the benefit of our clients and others.  We believe that markets work, and as managers, we add value through a deep understanding of our clients and their needs.  Then we implement a portfolio designed specifically to meet them.

In keeping with our philosophy, the review provides detailed information about the global markets we use to build portfolios. It begins with a global overview and includes a timeline of events over the previous quarter.  The review then features the returns of various stock and bond asset classes in the US and international markets.

Read More: 2018 Q2 Capital Markets Review

Greetings Clients & Friends,

It’s hard to believe that 2018 is already half over!  I hope you are enjoying your summer and all life has to offer. I’d love to hear of any fun adventures you’ve taken!

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In short, 2017 was a fantastic year for the equity portion of our portfolios.  It seems like we were continually met with heartwarming headlines such as “Relentless Rally”, “The Dow Races Through 23,000”, only to be followed by “The Dow Hurdles Past 25,000 to Record” and let’s not forget “S&P 500 Powers to New Heights”.  In fact, 2017 was so good, that it was the first time ever that the S&P 500 had a positive return for every single month.

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It’s getting hard to not feel as though I am writing the same thing about the markets each quarter.  In fact, the US markets have put together an impressive string of seven consecutive quarters of positive returns.  We have to go all the way back to the third and fourth quarters of 2015 to find any significant red (negative returns) across our asset class returns chart.  Major asset class returns for the third quarter and 2017 YTD are below.

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Every quarter we publish our Capital Markets Review for the benefit of our clients and others.  We believe that markets work, and as managers, we add value through a deep understanding of our clients and their needs.  Then we implement a portfolio designed specifically to meet them.

In keeping with our philosophy, the review provides detailed information about the global markets we use to build portfolios. It begins with a global overview and includes a timeline of events over the previous quarter.  The review then features the returns of various stock and bond asset classes in the US and international markets.

Read More: 2015 Q2 Capital Markets Review

At Cypress Wealth Management, nothing inspires us more than helping clients turn their dreams into reality.  In order to accomplish our mission, we need to understand our client’s values and ideal vision.  It’s only then that we dig into the numbers and help them allocate their resources in a way that improves their overall sense of fulfillment and quality of life.

Letting an outsider in on your most personal financial secrets is nerve racking, so hiring an advisor is a major decision.  There must be an enormous level of comfort and trust between you.  After all, you’re entrusting them to help you successfully navigate your financial future!

That’s why hiring an advisor who is required to work in your best interest is critical.  An elite advisor will go out of his way to remove conflicts of interest and operate in a fashion that puts your needs first.  How you pay that advisor is just as important. read more »

Every quarter we publish our Capital Markets Review for the benefit of our clients and others.  We believe that markets work, and as managers we add value through a deep understanding of our clients and their needs.  Then we  implement a portfolio designed specifically to meet them.

In keeping with our philosophy, the review provides detailed information about the global markets we use to build portfolios. It begins with a global overview and includes a timeline of events over the previous quarter.  The review then features the returns of various stock and bond asset classes in the US and international markets.

Read More: 2014 Q2 Capital Markets Review

Success can be an arbitrary term meaning different things to different people. However, all of us want to be considered successful.  Especially as an investor. For me, being successful is simply meeting your goals.  The take away form that is: you have to have goals!  More on that in a minute.

When it comes to our wealth and investing, we all invest for different reasons.  Those reasons might be saving for retirement, sending kids to college, or supporting our favorite charity. However most find that successful investing is elusive at best.  The research firm Dalbar performs an annual survey of investor returns over the preceding 20 year period and the results paint a dismal picture.

The survey shows that most investors fail to even come close to the returns generated by the market indexes themselves. For example, the most recent survey, covering 1990 to 2010, shows that the average investor earned an annualized return of just 3.83% while the S&P 500 returned 9.14% annualized for the same 20 year period.  That’s a lot of change left on the table.

Let me put this into perspective.  Say you invested $10,000 in 1990 and you are the average investor earning an annualized return of 3.83%.  By 2010, your account would be worth a whopping $21,205.  Now, lets say you are a smart investor and managed to get market like returns.  That same $10,000 investment has turned into $57,501.  That’s an incredible $36,296 of missed opportunity all because you didn’t follow successful investing rules!  That’s a lot of money and its worth taking a closer look at the rules that can generate it!

Through this series on How to be a Successful Investor I’ll be exploring the reasons most investors fail and the simple things you can do to succeed.  While there are many reasons most investors fail there are some easy things that you can do today that will make all the difference tomorrow. In investing, as with most things in life, there are a few simple things that the most successful do differently.

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In early August, Standard & Poor’s downgraded US government debt from a top-rated AAA to AA+.¹ In the weeks preceding the event, some market observers expected a downgrade to result in higher interest rates and lower stock returns.

After the downgrade, yields on US government securities fell across the term spectrum as investors around the world fled to the safe haven of US bonds. US stocks experienced negative returns in the following weeks but logged positive performance from the day of the downgrade to month end.²

These events raise questions about whether changes in sovereign debt ratings impact the financial markets. The short answer is that results are mixed, and that many other factors affect a country’s cost of capital and stock market returns.

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Volatility refers to how much stock prices vary over a given time frame, usually a year. The current renewed volatility in financial markets is reviving a lot of unwelcome feelings among many investors—feelings of anxiety, fear, and a sense of powerlessness. These are completely natural responses. Acting on those emotions, though, can end up doing more harm than good.

At its core, the increase in market volatility is an expression of uncertainty. Nobody knows what’s going to happen next. The sovereign debt strains in the US and Europe, together with renewed worries over financial institutions and fears of another recession, are leading market participants flee to what they consider to be less risky assets.

The problem for most investors with a long range-purpose, such as retirement, is that the huge swings in the market can wreak havoc on your portfolio if you’re not prepared.   The events of 2008 left many Americans wondering if they are ever going to be able to retire. Now, with the markets continuing to churn and memories of huge losses fresh in the minds of investors, many are looking for a safe place to park their money while still needing it to grow.

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