Retirement Watch Weekly
The Outlook for Earnings
What’s the outlook for U.S. corporate earnings and what does it mean for stocks? Earnings were in a recession, even while the economy grew, from 2014-2016. Earnings for most companies declined year-over-year during that period. Late in 2016, we finally saw positive and even robust earnings growth. Analysts generally expect such strong earnings growth to […]
The Return of Active Managers and Hedge Funds
This article covers a conference that tipped against the current wisdom. The conference participants talked about the advantages of hedge funds and active stock fund managers. Most participants seemed to agree that over the last few years, the vehicles haven’t delivered what investors expected. But they expect that investors will want these vehicles sometime in […]
Worry About a Narrow Market – The Problem with Capitalization Weighted Indexes
It is the nature of capitalization-weighted indexes that a few large companies dominate the returns for the index. This becomes especially pronounced after long bullish runs. So, these days we hear a lot of talk about five to 10 stocks deceiving investors about the nature of the market. There’s some truth to that idea. But […]
Medical Spending in Old Age and Retirement
This is a policy/academic paper by economists at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. Yet, it’s interesting reading. It points out that medical spending varies by income level, with lower income people on average spending more on medical care. But most of that spending is due to nursing home costs. The paper also looks at […]
Is a Bear Market Coming? A Response to Pessimists
Some analysts have been forecasting the end of the economic expansion and bull market in stocks for awhile. In fact, both are on the verge of setting longevity records. This article explores the records and why the expansions have continued. It also forecasts they are likely to continue for a while. Don’t be nervous. It […]
Mastering Aging: How to Have a Successful Retirement?
Many people flounder in retirement, because there aren’t enough resources to help them develop successful retirements. There now is a class available called Aging Mastery available through the National Council on Aging. Read here for more details. Watts met classmates who have turned into real friends. She also learned about an important aspect of managing […]
Understanding the Latest Employment Reports
Last week’s Employment Situation reports disappointed some investors and analysts. They’re misinterpreting the data. The government reported only 138,000 new jobs created. Also, last month’s reported 211,000 new jobs were revised down to 174,000, well below the numbers of the past year, thus raising concerns among some observers about reduced growth. In addition, average hourly earnings increased […]
Should You Put Your Estate Planning Strategy On Hold? (8-Point Checklist)
Tax reform proposals are slowly being developed in Congress, including changes in the estate tax. People are asking, “Should I delay my estate planning until the new law is clear?” We’ve been down this road before, and the answer is: You shouldn’t delay. Congress is looking at changing only the federal estate and gift taxes, […]
