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Understanding Mortgage Rates: A Conversation with Todd Smith of Bank Iowa | Financial Perspectives

Category: Investing
By Matt Moklestad
09/23/2024

This week, Matt Moklestad has a conversation with Todd Smith, the Mortgage Director at Bank Iowa, as he breaks down the complexities of mortgage rates. With nearly 30 years of experience in the banking and mortgage industry, Todd shares insights on how mortgage rates are determined, the factors that influence them, and tips for securing the best rates.

Wrong Thinking on Election & Markets

Category: Investing
By Kent Kramer
09/19/2024

Kent Kramer examines the effects of an election season on investors. Drawing on historical data and behavioral economics, he emphasizes the importance of recognizing cognitive biases and staying optimistic.

Chart of the Month – September 2024

Category: Investing
By Michael Westphal
09/05/2024

Do you wonder why we invest in equities? Equities are an attractive investment for their growth characteristics, but they have also served as a hedge against inflation.

How Should a Nonprofit Allocate its Investment Portfolio?

Category: Investing
By Matt Moklestad
08/13/2024

Let's review two industry studies, the NACUBO Study of Endowments and the Association Investment Policies, Practices and Performance. Each organization is different and has its own set of unique goals and challenges. Although this is the case, learning how other nonprofits invest can help ignite a meaningful conversation within your own organization.

Predictable Mistakes

Category: Investing
By Kent Kramer
07/25/2024

We believe that investors increase their chances of success by avoiding predictable mistakes, those practices that sound like they should work but have been shown time and again to have very low probabilities of success.

Predictable Mistakes

Category: Investing
By Kent Kramer
07/25/2024

We believe that investors increase their chances of success by avoiding predictable mistakes, those practices that sound like they should work but have been shown time and again to have very low probabilities of success.

ROMO: Regret Over Missing Out | Financial Perspectives

Category: Investing
By Kent Kramer
07/08/2024

In the first six months of 2024, NVIDIA has seen its stock price appreciate by just under 150%, which represented about 1/3 of the total gain of the S&P 500 in the same period. For those investors who did not own NVIDIA, they are likely experiencing ROMO. This week, Kent Kramer analyzes concentration of value and performance of the global stock market.

Whenever Possible, Don’t Do Dumb Things | Financial Perspectives

Category: Investing
By Kent Kramer
06/24/2024

We believe that investors increase their chances of success by avoiding predictable mistakes -- those practices that sound like they should work but have been shown time and time again to have very low probabilities of success. This week, Kent Kramer examines different studies to help inform our fifth investment principle.

Chart of the Month – June 2024

Category: Investing
By Michael Westphal
06/06/2024

No one can time the market and determine when those best months will occur. The best months are surprisingly random. More important than timing the market is time in the market. 

Value vs Growth – What does that Mean?

Category: Investing
By Michael Westphal
05/15/2024

Have you heard the words, “value” and “growth,” when it comes to investing? Let’s face it: These words are often misunderstood and poorly utilized. 

The Market: The Original AI | Financial Perspectives

Category: Investing
By Kent Kramer
05/06/2024

The acronym “AI” has become synonymous with Artificial Intelligence. But what is Aggregate Intelligence -- "AI"? This week, Kent Kramer explains how trusting markets and harnessing their power and prices is a fundamentally sound way to invest.