27
Feb
2023
Considering Inflation Protected Bonds (Again)
In the first quarter issue of Portfolio Insights in 2017, I wrote that Acropolis was phasing out our exposure to inflation-protected bonds, also known as TIPs (for Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities). At the time, inflation was low and stable, and although I whole heartedly supported removing TIPs, I wondered what would happen when we were hit with surprise inflation, which is when TIPs work best. Well, it took five years for… Read More
13
Feb
2023
New Rules Could Mean New Strategies
I’d like to meet the person in Washington who comes up with the silly names for laws just for the purpose of creating a catchy acronym. Case in point is the newest iteration of the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement, better known as the Secure 2.0 Act. The Act has a number of provisions that raise financial planning issues for a lot of people. For example, were you… Read More
6
Feb
2023
Acropolis Clients Market View
Since January, I’ve offered previews for the Investor Social, which we held last week to great success. Mother nature threw us a little snow, but we still managed to pack the house and will need to find a larger venue next year, and put it online. In the meantime, we’ll provide the presentation to anyone that asks. The highlight of the show for me is when we ask the audience… Read More
30
Jan
2023
Acropolis Investor Social Day
As I noted last week, this year’s Investor Social is full beyond capacity, so unless you’ve already reserved a spot, I won’t see you in person tonight. Not to worry, we’re going to find a bigger venue next year and may try and figure out video for a webcast (we’ll see). I don’t want to steal too much of my own thunder and am kind of wiped out from preparing,… Read More
23
Jan
2023
Acropolis Invest Social Preview #2
Last week, I said I would preview slides from the 5th Annual Investor Social on January 30th. Before I go any further, I want to announce that we’ve hit capacity on the Investor Social and can’t accept any more RSVPs. We’re going to have to find a new venue for next year! Thank you to everyone that is attending! Last week, I showed a slide that I’ll discuss but offered… Read More
17
Jan
2023
Portfolio Insights
We are pleased to provide a digital copy of Portfolio Insights, our quarterly newsletter. Table of Contents: Stock Market Summary Bond Market Review The Silver Lining of Bond Losses Inside the Economy Secure Act 2.0 The Big Picture Click here to read the issue: Q4 2022 Portfolio Insights
17
Jan
2023
Acropolis Investor Social Preview #1
After two years of staying home, Acropolis is hosting our 5th Annual Investor Social (invite below). I thought it would be fun to preview some of the slides leading up to the event, partly in hopes of drawing folks and partly to give the out-of-towners who weren’t invited some of the content (I’ll be happy to email the presentation after the event to those who missed it). This week, I… Read More
12
Dec
2022
Let Private Investments Stay Secret
Over the past five years, the hottest investments have all had the word ‘private’ in front of them: private equity, private credit, and private real estate. Private investments, or ‘privates’ as they are colloquially known, buy whole companies or properties or make direct loans to companies. When they buy companies or properties, the private fund managers can change management, business strategy, capital structure, or anything else that will allow them… Read More
5
Dec
2022
The Risk of Stagflation
Way back in March, I wrote about stagflation, an economic state with high inflation, unemployment, and slow economic growth. I grade my own articles on a curve, and I give that one a C because I didn’t talk much about stagflation, instead writing about the related Misery Index. Two or three weeks ago, I saw a thematic ETF launched that is designed to benefit from periods of stagflation which got… Read More
28
Nov
2022
Feeling Custodial Joy
I’ve used the word ‘schadenfreude’ at least three times over the years because I think it’s funny and all too real. It’s a German word that refers to the pleasure that we feel when witnessing someone else’s misfortune. I’m not proud of the feeling, but it came up recently with respect to the FTX crypto-exchange blowup and the general crypto-related losses of late. Although I’ve never really understood the appeal… Read More