By: Mark Weiskind I sit here on this early March 2015 day, a day where the Nasdaq briefly broke the 5,000 level for the first time since 2000. It brings me back to memories of conversations I had with clients and friends in the late 1990s, trying to convince them (usually unsuccessfully) that [...]
By: Matt Garrott After the run up in the US stock markets, more and more people are asking why anyone would want to invest anywhere else. The world is falling apart and the US is the ‘least dirty shirt’ or the ‘best house in a bad neighborhood’. Apparently you are stripped of your [...]
By: Dan Gaugler We talk frequently about the ongoing Active vs. Passive debate. Of course, we are among the silent majority who believe in the Passive/Index approach. And the facts over the past 40 years support that view. The case first argued by John Bogle in the 1970s is essentially closed. Nevertheless, the [...]
By: Matt Garrott The US Dollar reigned supreme in 2014, driving commodities down (-17.01%) and dampening returns for foreign denominated asset classes such as foreign bonds (-2.77%), developed market stocks (-4.90%), and emerging markets stocks (-2.19%). Domestic large cap stocks had another strong year, up 13.69%. Small and mid-cap US stocks had a [...]
By: Matt Garrott December is home to many seasons – the holiday season, shopping season, skiing season, and cold/flu season. One of my favorite seasons, though, is forecasting season. At the end of every year, investment firms feel compelled to make predictions about the market environment for the coming twelve months. Though they [...]
By: Matt Garrott Welcome to the Fairway Wealth Management blog. Our aim is to provide you with compelling insight that is a departure from the media’s typical conjecture without getting too deep into the rough. Hopefully, we don’t break the internet in the process. Here is what you can expect from us in [...]
By: Matt Garrott Returns among asset classes were mixed this past quarter. The Barclays Aggregate Bond Index was barely positive, up 0.17% and municipal bonds rose 1.49%. TIPS dropped 2.04% while foreign bonds took a nosedive, down 5.34%. Large cap stocks were the lone bright spot in equities, up 1.13%. Small and mid [...]
By: Matt Garrott Returns were positive across almost all asset classes in the second quarter. The Barclays Aggregate Bond Index was up 2.0%. Municipal bonds popped up 2.6% and TIPS rose 3.8%. Foreign bonds were up 2.8%. US Large Cap stocks as measured by the S&P 500 returned 5.2% while Small and Mid [...]
By: Matt Garrott According to the Wall Street Journal, London restaurant chain Chilango is selling bonds maturing in four years that yield 8%. Normally, this would be a non-story, but on top of the 8% yield, investors who part with at least £10,000 also get a free burrito (a £5.99 value) each week. [...]
By: Matt Garrott Investors who alternate between chasing returns and safety wind up in the same situation as a dog chasing its tail – out of breath, dizzy, and living off of dog food. The notion that there is some strategy where the investor can perfectly time getting in and out of asset [...]