The Big Picture

AUGUST 8, 2023

I love FRED — I am a big user of their charts and data (and even their swag ). Where I go full heterodox are in things like the Macroeconomic Uncertainty Index, which is a recent addition to FRED’s awesome database. It is a “monthly measure of how unpredictable overall economic conditions are 1 month, 3 months, and 1 year ahead.” FRED’s post on it observed that “Economists Kyle Jurado, Sydney Ludvigson, and Serena Ng use a set of 132 individual macroeconomic t

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The Reformed Broker

AUGUST 5, 2023

We had a lot of fun with Joe Terranova and Mark Fisher on the show this week. Mark shared a lot of behavioral stuff about what it takes to make it as a trader. It’s not for everyone and it costs a lot to find this out. I was fascinated by the discussion and judging for the feedback we’ve gotten, a lot of our listeners were as well. You can watch the full episode here: Or find it on your favorite podcast ap.

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Abnormal Returns

AUGUST 6, 2023

Markets Cullen Roche, "This has been one of the more fascinating years in economic and market history." (disciplinefunds.com) Countertrend rallies shouldn't be surprising. (awealthofcommonsense.com) Apple Why Apple ($AAPL) may be the most important company in history. (blairbellecurve.com) You don't need an 'everything app' when you already have the 'everything phone.

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Financial Advising Startup Economics Valuation 228

Nerd's Eye View

AUGUST 7, 2023

Welcome to the August 2023 issue of the Latest News in Financial #AdvisorTech – where we look at the big news, announcements, 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 estate planning platform Wealth.com has launched Ester, an AI-driven 'legal assistant' that uses machine learning to help advisors quickly review and extract the key information from clients' estate plan

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Speaker: Nancy Wu, Head of Sales and Customer Success at SkyStem

Join us for an enlightening webinar as we delve into the transformative realm of modern accounting practices. In today's digital age, the convergence of outsourcing and automation has revolutionized how businesses manage their financial operations. In this webinar we will explore the synergistic potential of these two strategies to streamline processes, enhance accuracy, save cost and drive strategic decision-making.

Accounting

The Big Picture

AUGUST 9, 2023

My RWM colleagues Josh Brown and Michael Batnick do a bang-up job each week diving into the specifics of the newsflow in What Are Your Thoughts? Don’t miss my favorite chart from this week’s discussion 46 minutes deep into the episode ; its from Bank of America by way of Batnick (above). All of the fall-off surrounding the 8% pullback in S&P 500 profits — literally, more than 100% of it — is due to the huge drop in energy profits.

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Communication Banking Numbers 246

Abnormal Returns

AUGUST 9, 2023

Podcasts Christine Benz and Jeff Ptak talks with Manisha Thakor about her new book ”MoneyZen: The Secret to Finding Your “Enough.” (morningstar.com) Peter Lazaroff talks with John Jennings, author of "The Uncertainty Solution" about how to invest with confidence in inherently uncertain markets. (peterlazaroff.com) Fraud How an empty lot was sold without the owner's knowledge or consent.

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Nerd's Eye View

AUGUST 8, 2023

Welcome back to the 345th episode of the Financial Advisor Success Podcast ! My guest on today's podcast is Lori Van Dusen. Lori is the CEO of LVW Advisors, an independent RIA based in Pittsford, New York, that oversees more than $2 billion in assets under management for over 450 small-to-mid-sized institutions and ultra-high-net-worth families. What's unique about Lori, though, is how through her multi-decade career, she has built a deep expertise in the investment intricacies and complex issue

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The Big Picture

AUGUST 11, 2023

My end-of-week morning train WFH reads: • Seth Klarman on What Makes a Value Investor and Committing ‘Sacrilege’ in New Edition of ‘Security Analysis.’ Klarman edited the classic to remind investors of basic principles — but he questions “how much of this will be read by institutional investors who may think they know it all.” ( Institutional Investor ) • Flying Cars Are Nearly Here—and They’re Electric : Companies like Joby and Archer are about to begin production of electric vertical takeoff a

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The Reformed Broker

AUGUST 8, 2023

Join Downtown Josh Brown and Michael Batnick for another round of What Are Your Thoughts? On this week’s episode, Josh and Michael discuss the biggest topics in investing and finance, including: ►A Textbook Buyable Dip – “Developing as a Textbook Seasonal Correction” ►Higher Rates? NBD – “S&P 500 Companies Are Still Benefiting From the Era of Low Interest Rates” ►Reason.

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Banking

Abnormal Returns

AUGUST 8, 2023

Quant stuff James Picerno, "In short, there are no silver bullets for building a solid backtest." (capitalspectator.com) How ChatGPT can suss out information in company filings. (marginalrevolution.com) Quants have beliefs: in their systems not a narrative. (mrzepczynski.blogspot.com) C-suite How the stock ownership of medical device company CEOs affects recalls.

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Marketing Marketing Medical Economics 225

Nerd's Eye View

AUGUST 11, 2023

Enjoy the current installment of "Weekend Reading For Financial Planners" - this week's edition kicks off with the news that the Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth has launched an investigation into how investment firms are using artificial intelligence-enabled technologies, echoing concerns expressed by the SEC that these tools could be used to put the firms' interests ahead of their clients if the methods of the developers who create the tools and the 'training' the AI goes through is

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The Big Picture

AUGUST 5, 2023

The weekend is here! Pour yourself a mug of coffee, grab a seat outside, and get ready for our longer-form weekend reads: • Inside the Wagner Group’s Armed Uprising : How Yevgeny Prigozhin’s private military company went from fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine to staging a mutiny at home.

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Wealth Management

AUGUST 11, 2023

Utah-based Alpine Securities is challenging the constitutionality of FINRA. Given recent judicial decisions from more conservative courts, some legal scholars think it may succeed.

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Speaker: Joe Buhrmann, MBA, CFP®, CLU®, ChFC® Senior Financial Planning Practice Management Consultant eMoney Advisor

During an era of evolving consumer preferences, the banking sector is undergoing a profound shift. As customers continue to broaden their perspectives, banking professionals must support their customers' financial wellness by providing holistic financial advice that aligns with individual goals and circumstances. Without adapting, financial institutions will find that loyalty may crumble amid uncertainty.

Financial Advice

Abnormal Returns

AUGUST 7, 2023

Crypto PayPal ($PYPL) has launched its own stablecoin. (theverge.com) Five questions about the PayPal stablecoin. (coindesk.com) Companies How Apple ($AAPL) saves money on new chips manufactured by Taiwan Semi ($TSM). (theinformation.com) Uber ($UBER) seems to have threaded the needle. (youngmoney.co) A closer look at Berkshire Hathaway's ($BRK.A) second quarter results.

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Financial Advising Manufacturing Media Economy 216

Nerd's Eye View

AUGUST 10, 2023

Financial advisors who have established and successfully built up their advisory firms over several years can often go through many stages of firm development, requiring them to hire staff and additional advisors to manage their growing clientele. When a firm becomes large enough, though, the firm owner may be compelled to consider stepping away from their long-standing work as a client-facing financial advisor into a more pronounced business leadership role to manage the growing business.

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The Big Picture

AUGUST 8, 2023

My Tuesday morning train reads: • A Fed Official Wonders: ‘Do We Need to Do Another Rate Increase?’ The head of the powerful New York Fed said that it was an “open question,” and that rates could fall next year. ( New York Times ) • Alternatives Have Been ‘Kryptonite’ to Alpha — At Least for Public Pensions : Richard Ennis finds public pension funds in the U.S. have generated negative alpha of approximately 1.2 percent annually since the global financial crisis in 2008. • Alternatives Have Been

Economy 244

Economy Financial Advisor Investing Investments 244

Wealth Management

AUGUST 10, 2023

The U.S. wealth business is still the sweet spot for CI Financial, growing earnings by nearly half as the firm continues integrating its acquired RIAs under the new Corient brand.

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Speaker: Carolina Aponte - Owner and CEO, Caja Holdings LLC

In today's rapidly changing business environment, building a resilient balance sheet is crucial to the survival of any business. A resilient balance sheet allows a company to withstand financial shocks and adapt to changing market conditions. To achieve this, companies need to focus on key strategies such as maintaining adequate liquidity, managing debt levels, diversifying revenue streams, and prioritizing profitability over growth.

Financial Planning

Abnormal Returns

AUGUST 10, 2023

Business Will the AI boom bail out San Francisco as a destination? (marketwatch.com) How Larry Fink, CEO of Blackrock ($BLK), became so demonized. (economist.com) Being an Airbnb ($ABNB) host is no longer easy money. (bloomberg.com) Cities When it comes to housing, supply and demand work. (nymag.com) How to make cities safe. (unchartedterritories.tomaspueyo.com) Environment Just how much have we already overfished the oceans?

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Brown Advisory

AUGUST 11, 2023

The Equity Beat: Old Economy Stocks Aging Like Fine Wine mhannan Fri, 08/11/2023 - 17:10 Unlike my good friends who frequent Baltimore’s finest dining establishments about as often as the division-leading Orioles win (you know who you are), I would never be confused for a wine connoisseur. Yet through osmosis I’ve learned that aging affords some wines time to become smoother and mellower, developing a fuller flavor as the months and years pass.

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The Big Picture

AUGUST 11, 2023

I am super jazzed for this year’s Future Proof. Our second go-around is even bigger and better than last year’s! It is nothing like the usual financial conference — it’s totally outdoors, right on the Pacific in Huntington Beach. We took over all 5 hotels for the 3000 attendees, including 1,000 registered advisors and over 500 sponsors.

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Wealth Management

AUGUST 11, 2023

CI Financial revealed Corient’s latest additions during an earnings call this week, Dynamic Advisor Solutions added five new teams in the first half of the year, Integrated added a new Denver affiliate and WEG is staffing up for more growth.

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Accounting

Abnormal Returns

AUGUST 11, 2023

Strategy Bonds are showing positive real yield for the first time in a long time. (ft.com) Why Seth Klarman spearheaded a re-write of Graham and Dodd's classic "Security Analysis." (institutionalinvestor.com) Active ETFs are the future. (ft.com) Goldman Sachs Goldman Sachs ($GS) has a morale problem. (nymag.com) Why fingers are being pointed at Goldman Sachs' ($GS) CEO David Solomon could use a friend.

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Calculated Risk

AUGUST 10, 2023

Today, in the Calculated Risk Real Estate Newsletter: The Long-Term Housing and Population Shift A brief excerpt: Something different … Here is a look at the last 50 to 60 years, and some predictions about the next 50+ years. First, here is a graph from the Census Bureau showing the Median Center of Population for the United States: 1880 to 2020 A key driver of the westward movement was the availability of water , and this boosted population growth in California, and in several other states like

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The Big Picture

AUGUST 7, 2023

My back-to-work morning train WFH reads: • The Pandemic Small-Business Boom Is Fueling the US Economy : Startup registrations remain 42% ahead of 2019 levels, with growing numbers of companies founded by women and minorities. ( Businessweek ) • The Nifty Fifty => the Magnificent Seven : By May 1969, Buffett called it quits and wrote to advise his partners that he was closing the partnership: “I just don’t see anything available that gives any reasonable hope of delivering a good

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Economy Startup Food Numbers 243

Wealth Management

AUGUST 10, 2023

Brookfield Asset Management is aiming to raise $150 billion this year to take advantage of the buying opportunities it sees, reports The Wall Street Journal. Industry experts react to WeWork’s “going concern” warning and what it might mean for the already beleaguered office market. These are among the must reads from around the real estate investment world to end the week.

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Banking

Abnormal Returns

AUGUST 8, 2023

Strategy Don't make your investments based on who is in the White House. (retirementresearcher.com) When do dividend-focused strategies outperform? (morningstar.com) Semiconductors Arm Holdings is planning investments from Apple, Samsung and Intel on its IPO. (asia.nikkei.com) Taiwan Semi ($TSM) is building a big chip factory in Germany. (retirementresearcher.com) Weight loss In a study, Novo Nordisk’s ($NVO) Wegovy not only helped people lose weight but also reduced their risk of cardiovascular

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Calculated Risk

AUGUST 10, 2023

From the MBA: Mortgage Delinquencies Decrease in the Second Quarter of 2023 The delinquency rate for mortgage loans on one-to-four-unit residential properties decreased to a seasonally adjusted rate of 3.37 percent of all loans outstanding at the end of the second quarter of 2023 , according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) National Delinquency Survey.

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The Big Picture

AUGUST 10, 2023

A quick note on today’s BLS report on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which rose 0.2% in July on a seasonally adjusted basis, Over the last 12 months, the CPI has increased 3.2%. Once again, the biggest part of the gains was for shelter. As I have noted before, the entity primarily responsible for rising home prices higher is the Fed. There are numerous ways to measure price increases, and I wanted to highlight a specific approach the BLS occasionally references: “The 16% trimmed-mea

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