Barbell Portfolios Can Be Hard To Hold On To

Barbells work great at the gym because they put weight on a bar in such a way that it’s balanced, leaving room in the middle for someone to use it to workout. We often see portfolios that are designed like a barbell at the gym: lots of risk in one account and lots of cash or very short-term securities in another. In aggregate, it might produce some balance, but the reality is that it can create some real challenges.

October 25, 2021 Financial Perspectives

Kent Kramer recaps his top take-away moments from our event last week with Morgan Housel. Morgan used stories to illustrate lessons to help us understand behavioral finance and psychology and how that affects the way we invest.

The Influence of Trust

A good relationship with our clients comes down to a handful of things. One of those things is whether a client trusts that we know more than they do about the type of investing we do at Foster Group.

October 11, 2021 Financial Perspectives

Friction can slow can down any machine. What was humming along only minutes or weeks ago, can labor under the strain of too little oil, a little sand in the gears, you name it. The US economy and markets have been seeing an increase in perceived frictions over the past month. Can we get back to smoother operations?

Investment Policy Statement – Why Is It Important?

It is important for all investors, whether an individual, family, retirement plan, or nonprofit, to plan their investment approach around their goals and objectives. Investment Policy Statements (IPS) often document these items. Here are four reasons why it is important to have a clearly articulated IPS.

An Investment Portfolio Is Like a Good Smoothie

Recently, I rediscovered the benefits of homemade smoothies for breakfast. They are nutritious, natural, easy to make, efficient, and delicious! This morning, I was thinking about how a good investment portfolio is like a good smoothie! 

September 27th, 2021 Financial Perspectives

In Part two of our interview with Marlena Lee from Dimensional, Kent Kramer and Marlena dig deeper into changes to asset allocation and ESG investing risks and considerations.

DraftKings Knows More About You Than You Know About You

For 12 seconds, consider what a company knows about you and their own profitability if they are willing to offer you a $500 risk-free bet to get started. That’s what DraftKings just promised me in a commercial. Sounds awesome, doesn’t it? OK, the 12 seconds are up. What did you come up with?

December 7th, 2020 Financial Perspectives

1:10 - In the News: COVID-19 Surges, Vaccines, and Employment
3:32 – November Market Review
4:14 – Equity Factors
4:41 – Macroeconomic Factors Overview
5:00 – Style Factors Overview
7:07 – Style Factors in the Market

November 23, 2020 Financial Perspectives

1:13 - In the News: COVID-19 Cases, Employment Recovery
2:36 – Elections through Inaugurations
3:15 – Equity Factors: Comparison of Various Stock Indexes
5:24 – Expectations: Thinking Back to March 23, 2020

Elections and Your Money Part II: Post-Election

In this Q+A-style webinar, Kent Kramer and Jason Brown addressed: Questions arising from the November 3rd election, what has, hasn’t, and could change as a result of our country’s decision, and how investors should respond to the uncertainty surrounding the election.

October 26, 2020 Financial Perspectives

1:42 - In the News: Expansion in the US
2:24 - Recent Market Performance
5:07 - Patience: Why This Election is Different
6:52 - Elections Through Inaugurations: Should You Stay Invested?

October 12, 2020 Financial Perspectives

1:15 - In the News: What Employment Can Tell Us About Economic Recovery
2:52 - Stock Market Returns in October
3:43 - Value Stocks vs Growth Stocks Historical Returns
5:19 - Why Do Value Stocks Tend to Outperform Growth Stocks?
9:37 - What Should I be Investing in Now?

Elections and Your Money Q&A

Since we were unable to answer all of the questions asked during the live webinar, we'd like to share some of the questions and answers in written form.

September 21, 2020 Financial Perspectives

0:51 - In the News: Dr. Fauci, Employment, September Markets
4:18 - Which party would be better for markets and the economy?
4:45 - How would taxes change under each administration?
6:48 - 2021: What will have the most impact?