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?

June 8, 2020 Financial Perspectives

1:45 - Last Week's News
3:06 - Last Week's Financial Highlights
4:40 - How Will the US Pay for All This New Debt Spending?
7:54 - What Does GDP Mean for the Stock Market?

What I Think About When Working From Home

In the blink of an eye, it seems, our lives have taken a major turn, because of a sneaky, harmful, invisible germ. The concept of uncertainty is real and palpable.

May 29, 2020 Financial Perspectives

0:55 - This Week's News
2:39 - This Week's Financial Highlights
4:36 - Why Is the Stock Market Up When the Economy Is Down?
5:12 - Stock Prices Are Forward Looking
8:06 - Average Returns After Downturns Have Been Positive

May 22, 2020 Financial Perspectives

0:51 - Recap of the News this Week
2:40 - Market Results for the Week
3:42 - What Do Low Interest Rates Mean for Investors?
6:40 - Fixed Income Analysis
7:45 - Corporate Bond Default Rates
8:21 - Corporate Bonds vs Treasuries

May 15, 2020 Financial Perspectives

0:58 - Recap of the News this Week
2:14 - Market Results for the Week
3:01 - What Companies Will Do Best Coming Out of the Crisis?
3:40 - Quality and Growth
7:04 - Growth or Value
9:32 - Growth or Value or Something Else?

May 7, 2020 Financial Perspectives

2:03 - Recap of the News this Week
4:17 - Market Results for the Week
4:45 - Largest US Companies in the NASDAQ Index
9:15 - A Historical Look at NASDAQ Returns

Vaccine for Physician Pocketbooks

While many in the healthcare profession are working tirelessly to meet the demands the COVID-19 virus has placed on the system, others have seen their hours cut and sources of income dwindle. Here are some options for those of you whose financial situation has changed dramatically in the past few months.