When events such as COVID-19 occur, investors often feel at the mercy of wildly fluctuating portfolios. Investing in the market involves risk — your portfolio will go down. And according to the math of percentages, the more significant your losses, the more returns you’ll need to break even. Read more…
What Does it Mean to Be an ESG Investor?
In late 2017, I was tasked with building Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) portfolios for Plancorp. To be honest, I was initially less than thrilled; my past experiences with these types of portfolios were not necessarily positive. Read more…
What Business Owners Should Look for in a 401(k) Advisor
We know business owners don’t start their business to oversee healthcare plans or manage a 401(k) plan. However, benefit plans are necessary to recruit and keep employees, so it’s important to find someone you can trust will help your plan, your employees, and your business. Read more…
5 Ways Our Firm is Adapting So We Can Still Offer Internships
This piece is not taking aim at anyone. I understand that because of the coronavirus and the related economic upheaval, some businesses are being forced to cut staff or even close their doors. I know how gut-wrenching that is. However, I’m hearing from some students that the internships they Read more…
Is Now the Time to Buy Individual Stocks?
As people across the globe are being told to stay put in their homes, it’s not surprising to see some companies suffering more than others. Our normal routines are turned upside down, and so are our normal consumer spending habits. Read more…
5 Financial Questions to Help Physicians Prepare for a Market Downturn
The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting virtually everyone in our society, and our hearts go out to all who have suffered first-hand or through friends and family. As a former practicing physician, I cannot help focusing on the plight of our healthcare workers – including nurses, aides, support staff, Read more…
Choose to Be an Optimist
We are facing risks unlike any we’ve dealt with in our lifetimes. Being told you’re in danger triggers all your evolutionary defense mechanisms intended to keep you safe. Unfortunately, none of these instinctive reactions are useful in the arena of long-term investing. Read more…
COVID-19 Summarizing Recent Legislation and Tax Relief
As we all learn to live with the impact the coronavirus is having on our daily lives, recent legislation and relief from the federal government seeks to alleviate the financial impact of COVID-19. The most significant piece of legislation is the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act. Read more…
How You Can Benefit from a Down Market Using an Employer Stock Purchase Plan
An ESPP (short for Employer Stock Purchase Plan) is a super valuable benefit offered by your company that allow you to purchase your company stock at a discount. With the recent drop in the US stock market however, you might find that the price of your company shares is now below even the Read more…
7 Ways You Can Take Advantage of the Down Market
Volatility and risk are part of the stock market experience – it’s why stocks produce higher returns than less-risky assets over long periods of time. We say this often, it’s easy to forget when the market declines. Read more…