Nerd's Eye View

FEBRUARY 7, 2024

The need for financial professionals to ask prospects and clients questions has a long history in the industry. In earlier days, questions simply facilitated the process of gathering information in order to open accounts and recommend the appropriate products to be sold. However, as the industry evolved from being primarily transaction-based to relationship-based, it has become increasingly important for advicers to become less sales-oriented and more focused on how they can better develop deep,

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Clients Communication Financial Planning Retirement 246

Calculated Risk

FEBRUARY 9, 2024

The BLS reported 353 thousand non-farm jobs were added in January. During the Winter months, I like to look at the weather impact on the report. The BLS reported 553 thousand people were employed in non-agriculture industries, with a job, but not at work due to bad weather. The average for January over the previous 10 years was 257 thousand (median 248 thousand), so more people than normal were impacted by bad weather.

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Wealth Management

FEBRUARY 9, 2024

Through mutual funds, ETFs, target date funds and direct stock ownership, 168 million Americans have exposure to publicly traded REITs.

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Abnormal Returns

FEBRUARY 4, 2024

Top clicks this week Josh Brown, "Just please, no matter what you do, don’t say the G word. Never say it." (downtownjoshbrown.com) Should you invest in stocks when they are at all-time highs? (ofdollarsanddata.com) Why the vast majority of investors should avoid alternatives. (humbledollar.com) Are you doing these seven things that represent 'real financial planning'?

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Automation generally supercharges any process and brings its value to the forefront. See how infusing automation such as ART (our month-end close solution), into your close can get you to the next level of closing. We will share a live demo of SkyStem's solution, ART and share the key elements of month-end close automation. Through ART, we'll take a look at: What month-end close automation entails Which process steps can and should be automated Benefits of achieving process automation, and Why i

Accounting

The Big Picture

FEBRUARY 7, 2024

 At the Money: Stock Picking vs. Value Investing with Jeremy Schwartz, Wisdom Tree. (February 7, 2024) How much you pay for stocks really matters. Should value investing be part of that strategy? To find out more, I speak with Jeremy Schwartz, Global Chief Investment Officer of WisdomTree, leading the firm’s investment strategy team in the construction of equity Indexes, quantitative active strategies and multi-asset Model Portfolios.

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Investing Investments Valuation Portfolio 296

Calculated Risk

FEBRUARY 7, 2024

From Manheim Consulting today: Wholesale Used-Vehicle Prices Flat in January Wholesale used-vehicle prices (on a mix, mileage, and seasonally adjusted basis) were unchanged in January compared to December. The Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index (MUVVI) remained at 204.0 but down 9.2% from a year ago. The index experienced the same 0.0% monthly change from December 2021 to January 2022.

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Consulting Taxes Economics Sales 314

Abnormal Returns

FEBRUARY 7, 2024

Podcasts Khe Hy talks about how to quit a high-paying, high-powered job. (podcasters.spotify.com) Sam Dogen talks with Emily Luk, Co-Founder and CEO of Plenty, a wealth platform for today's modern couples. (sites.libsyn.com) Daniel Crosby reads a chapter from his new book "The Soul of Wealth." (standarddeviationspod.com) Peter Lazaroff on investing at all-time stock market highs.

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Retirement Transportation Taxes Distribution 289

The Big Picture

FEBRUARY 3, 2024

The weekend is here! Pour yourself a mug of coffee, grab a seat by the fire, and get ready for our longer-form weekend reads: • So, you want to buy a sports team? Here’s how : Thinking about joining the likes of Ryan Reynolds, David Beckham, and (probably) Jeff Bezos in the mad scramble to land your own club? It’s suddenly the hottest pastime of the global super-rich – here’s how the game is played. ( GQ ) • Why Tim Cook Is Going All In on the Apple Vision Pro : Inside Apple Park, t

Portfolio Management 290

Portfolio Management Economics Retail Manufacturing 290

Calculated Risk

FEBRUARY 7, 2024

From the MBA: Mortgage Applications Increase in Latest MBA Weekly Survey Mortgage applications increased 3.7 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending February 2, 2024. The Market Composite Index, a measure of mortgage loan application volume, increased 3.7 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis from one week earlier.

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Marketing Marketing 311

Wealth Management

FEBRUARY 5, 2024

Breaking down the four major fintech record keepers.

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Where are top advisors focusing in 2025? AcquireUp’s 2025 Industry Index reveals it all. Based on insights from 200+ financial professionals nationwide, discover why 74% say seminars and referrals deliver the best ROI, how automation is helping advisors scale faster, and why only 8% are tapping into niche marketing (a major growth opportunity!). Whether you're refining your client acquisition strategy or scaling your practice, this report gives you the real-world data, benchmarks, and action ste

Clients

Abnormal Returns

FEBRUARY 8, 2024

Books An excerpt from "Read Write Own: Building the Next Era of the Internet" by Chris Dixon. (tim.blog) A Q&A with Chris Dixon author of "Read Write Own: Building the Next Era of the Internet." (semafor.com) David Perell talks with Chris Dixon about writing "Read Write Own: Building the Next Era of the Internet." (open.spotify.com) Business How the FTC allows funeral homes to flout the rules.

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Marketing Marketing 264

Nerd's Eye View

FEBRUARY 9, 2024

Enjoy the current installment of "Weekend Reading For Financial Planners" – this week's edition kicks off with the news that a recent survey sponsored by CFP Board demonstrates the upsides of a career in financial planning, from a median salary of nearly $200,000 to flexible work schedules and a strong sense of purpose among advisors. In addition, related research suggests further opportunities for firms looking to acquire and retain talent, from providing a greater sense of autonomy to bu

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Financial Planner Fee Only CFP Commission 246

Calculated Risk

FEBRUARY 5, 2024

Today, in the Real Estate Newsletter: Lawler: Update on Mortgage Rates and Spreads Brief excerpt: From housing economist Tom Lawler: For the second consecutive year 2023 saw high levels of volatility in the US fixed-income markets in general and the mortgage/MBS markets in particular. Unlike in 2022, however, key Treasury rates and mortgage/MBS yields ended 2023 close to where they began. 30-Yr CCMBS: Yield on “notional par” MBS derived from price for coupon closest to but below par and price fo

Numbers 299

Numbers Marketing Marketing 299

Wealth Management

FEBRUARY 7, 2024

The adaption of model portfolios hasn’t become as widespread as the industry expected when they came on the market.

Portfolio 306

Portfolio Marketing Marketing 306

Speaker: Claire Grosjean, Global Finance & Operations Executive

Finance teams are drowning in data—but is it actually helping them spend smarter? Without the right approach, excess spending, inefficiencies, and missed opportunities continue to drain profitability. While analytics offers powerful insights, financial intelligence requires more than just numbers—it takes the right blend of automation, strategy, and human expertise.

Management

Abnormal Returns

FEBRUARY 5, 2024

Strategy Valuations matter, but using them in your investment process is a challenge. (entrylevel.topdowncharts.com) When does passive investing become a problem for valuing companies? (silverlightinvest.com) Companies Why are companies holding more cash these days? (hbr.org) A look at the tail winds behind the aggregates business. (fortunefinancialadvisors.com) It's hard to believe but Facebook is now 20 years old.

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Financial Advising Media Valuation Economy 264

Nerd's Eye View

FEBRUARY 5, 2024

Welcome to the February 2024 issue of the Latest News in Financial #AdvisorTech – where we look at the big news, announcements, and underlying trends and developments that are emerging in the world of technology solutions for financial advisors! This month's edition kicks off with the news that financial planning software platform RightCapital has launched a workflow management tool called RightFlows to help advisors manage and assign steps in the financial planning process to team members

Estate Planning 246

Estate Planning Financial Planning Planning Wealth Management 246

Calculated Risk

FEBRUARY 8, 2024

Today, in the Calculated Risk Real Estate Newsletter: MBA: Mortgage Delinquencies Increase in Q4 2023 A brief excerpt: From the MBA: Mortgage Delinquencies Increase in the Fourth Quarter of 2023 The delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one-to-four-unit residential properties increased to a seasonally adjusted rate of 3.88 percent of all loans outstanding at the end of the fourth quarter of 2023, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) National Delinquency Survey.

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Wealth Management

FEBRUARY 6, 2024

New Exec Ed Stober will work to develop relationships within the nascent family office / CPA structure.

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Speaker: David Worrell, CFO, Author & Speaker

Your financial statements hold powerful insights—but are you truly paying attention? Many finance professionals focus on the income statement while overlooking key signals hidden in the balance sheet and cash flow statement. Understanding these numbers can unlock smarter decision-making, uncover risks, and drive long-term success. Join David Worrell, accomplished CFO, finance expert, and author, for an engaging, nontraditional take on reading financial statements.

Numbers

Abnormal Returns

FEBRUARY 6, 2024

Markets A look at Magnificent Seven valuations. (ft.com) Nvidia ($NVDA) has added some $500 billion market cap in just six weeks or so. (markets.businessinsider.com) Newsletter writers are bullish. (allstarcharts.com) Strategy A long term look at bond yields vs. stock yields. (morningstar.com) What kind of investor are you? (behaviouralinvestment.com) How to pick a proper investment benchmark.

Financial Advising 264

Financial Advising Valuation Manufacturing Media 264

Nerd's Eye View

FEBRUARY 8, 2024

When a new year comes around it is often customary to set new personal and professional goals. Yet, in the midst of the tradeoffs that come with balancing new goals and their required behaviors, the challenge of creating sensible targets with flexibility and grace can be confounded by the reality of living in a world where uncertainty abounds and complex life situations are difficult (and sometimes even impossible) to map out.

Communication 212

Communication Clients Planning 212

Calculated Risk

FEBRUARY 8, 2024

Realtor.com has monthly and weekly data on the existing home market. Here is their weekly report: Weekly Housing Trends View — Data Week Ending February 3rd, 2024 • Active inventory increased, with for-sale homes 12.2% above year ago levels. For a 13th consecutive week, active listings registered above prior year level, which means that today’s home shoppers have more homes to choose from that aren’t already in the process of being sold.

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Sales Marketing Marketing 292

Wealth Management

FEBRUARY 8, 2024

Inside the college competition that gives students a taste of the challenges advisors face.

Financial Planning 299

Financial Planning Planning 299

Speaker: Erroll Amacker

Automation is transforming finance but without strong financial oversight it can introduce more risk than reward. From missed discrepancies to strained vendor relationships, accounts payable automation needs a human touch to deliver lasting value. This session is your playbook to get automation right. We’ll explore how to balance speed with control, boost decision-making through human-machine collaboration, and unlock ROI with fewer errors, stronger fraud prevention, and smoother operations.

Accounting

Abnormal Returns

FEBRUARY 8, 2024

Yields At some point, cash will no longer be king. (barrons.com) Does Meta's ($META) dividend initiation imply a new trend? (economist.com) Alternatives KKR ($KKR) says they are making headway selling alts to mass affluent investors. (investmentnews.com) What does the research say about private equity performance? (morningstar.com) Companies Looking back at 20 years of Facebook.

Financial Advising 264

Financial Advising Marketing Marketing Media 264

The Big Picture

FEBRUARY 5, 2024

Back in the bad old days of mainframes, “Time-sharing” was how computing power and database storage were provided to the large corporations that could afford it. Computing was less the purchase of goods than a service. The modern cloud-based era has seen the rise of “Software as a service” (SaaS).1 This approach was based on the idea that it was more cost-effective for the consumer and more efficient (and profitable) for the provider to offer computing operations as services instead of physicall

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Retail Economics Distribution Banking 195

Calculated Risk

FEBRUARY 4, 2024

On Friday, the BEA released their estimate of vehicle sales for January. This graph shows heavy truck sales since 1967 using data from the BEA. The dashed line is the January 2024 seasonally adjusted annual sales rate (SAAR). Heavy truck sales really collapsed during the great recession, falling to a low of 180 thousand SAAR in May 2009. Then heavy truck sales increased to a new record high of 570 thousand SAAR in April 2019.

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Sales Marketing Marketing 266

Wealth Management

FEBRUARY 9, 2024

The addition builds on the wirehouse's ultra-high-net-worth business.

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Based off SkyStem's popular e-Book, the book of secrets to the month-end close will be revealed in this one-hour webinar. Learn leading practices when it comes to building a strong and sustainable month-end close that has room to grow and evolve. Learn about the power of precise estimates, why reconciliations are critical to closing the books, how and when to automate, and how the chart of accounts play into your close process.

Accounting

Abnormal Returns

FEBRUARY 7, 2024

Strategy In the long run, fundamentals matter. (albertbridgecapital.com) Some classic investing lessons from Ed Thorp. (moontower.substack.com) Finance The SEC has expanded its definition of who is a 'securities dealer.' (wsj.com) Incentives matter when it comes to capital providers. (chudson.substack.com) Where corporations are borrowing. (apolloacademy.com) ETFs Why ETFs may be a better fit for less liquid asset classes.

Financial Advising 263

Financial Advising Media Retirement Assets 263

The Big Picture

FEBRUARY 9, 2024

Hey, I am heading up to Boston today for the annual MIT Sloan Investment Conference. Its’ always a fascinating time (I usually depart with some quality swag!). I will be on a panel discussing Macroeconomics with former Fed Economist Claudia Sahm. I am looking forward to meeting Karen Karniol-Tambour, Co-Chief Investment Officer at Bridgewater Associates.

Investing 147

Investing Investments 147

Calculated Risk

FEBRUARY 6, 2024

Today, in the Real Estate Newsletter: ICE (Black Knight) Mortgage Monitor: "Positive Signs in Housing, Mortgage Markets" Brief excerpt: There have been very few low credit score mortgage originations. During the housing bubble, many of the low credit score loans were made through the private-labeled securities market. • In the absence of any meaningful private-labeled securities market, the rise in FHA delinquencies is worth watching, as FHA and VA loans can be early indicators of broader mortga

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Marketing Marketing Banking Accounting 234

Wealth Management

FEBRUARY 8, 2024

The 10-member Variant Path Group in Charlotte, NC joins Rockefeller Global Family Office from Morgan Stanley,

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Like being inches from the end zone, many advisors are frustratingly close to their next level of success. You work hard. You put in the hours. But if your closing rate is stuck or your pipeline feels like a revolving door… something has to change. Most advisors are just one small shift away from dramatically increasing their revenue. The difference?

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