The Bottom Line The rally in stocks continued during the 3rd quarter, as the market tacked on another 4.5%, bringing the gain in the S&P 500 to 14.2% so far this year. While generally favorable economic fundamentals have been the engine behind these returns, there have been many issues that would be logical candidates for investors to be concerned about: a potential North Korean conflict, uncertainty in regard to expected tax reform, continued Federal Reserve [...]

The Bottom Line During the first quarter, the equity market extended its gains from last year, with the Dow and S&P 500 up in the 5-6% range. The bond market has treaded water after yields ratcheted up at the end of last year. Our views for the equity market are still positive as the fundamentals are pointed in the right direction. However, we would not be surprised if more volatility emerges sometime this year. Volatility [...]

The Bottom Line The equity market continues to grind out further gains, advancing a little over 3% during the second quarter, leaving it around 9% as of the end of June. Bond yields also declined slightly during the quarter, but have moved sharply higher over the last week or so, leaving them very close to where they started the year. Valuations remain extended, reinforcing our belief that returns over the next 3-5 years will unlikely [...]

Overview 2016 was a good year to be invested in stocks - although it did not look that way on Feb. 11, when the S&P 500 was already down 11% for the year. Another reminder that investor sentiment can change quickly! To the surprise of many, the election of Donald Trump was greeted with cheers from investors, resulting in a strong rally to close out the year. The S&P 500 was up 12% for the [...]

Overview Since the beginning of 2012, we have maintained a positive view for the equity market. In our view, the economy has been “good enough” to generate modest earnings growth. In a low interest rate environment, with an accommodative Fed, we felt this should result in a good market environment for investors, which it most certainly has been. In our October 2014 Market Outlook we noted that it had been three years without a 10% [...]