Financial Guide Blog

Market Recap In the first three months of 2024, the U.S. economy remained resilient despite short-term interest rates sitting near 20-year highs. Noteworthy in the quarter was the continuing robustness in the labor market, stronger-than-anticipated corporate earnings, and a convergence of market participants’ aggressive forecast of rate cuts with the Fed’s own projections. Retail sales […]

Market Recap What a difference a year makes. In 2022, high inflation and the Fed’s commitment to tame it, led to sharply rising interest rates and negative returns for both stocks and bonds. In 2023, much to the surprise of many forecasters, global stock and bond markets ignored widespread expectations that we were headed for […]

Market Recap The S&P 500 reached a 2023 high at the end of July before selling off 7.5% through August and September to finish the quarter down 3.3%. Year-to-date the index remains up a solid 13%. Smaller-cap stocks (Russell 2000) also had momentum early in the quarter but changed course and ended the quarter down […]

Market Recap Global equities continued to rally in the second quarter, led by surging U.S. mega-cap technology and growth stocks, particularly anything related to Artificial Intelligence (AI). The S&P 500 index gained 6.6% in June and 8.7% in the second quarter, driving its year-to-date return to 16.9% overall. The technology heavy Nasdaq Composite has driven […]

Thoughts on The Debt Ceiling Impasse The United States reached its borrowing limit (debt ceiling) back on January 19, and the Treasury Department estimates that unless the limit is raised, the government will run out of money in early June. In short, the U.S. spends more than it takes in and depends on borrowing to […]

The story of the Silicon Valley Bank is by now well known, and the failure of First Republic Bank has become recent news. While the immediate contagion risk has been addressed by aggressive regulatory intervention, the implications for the broader banking industry remain a source of concern for many and we wanted to address the […]

Market Recap Despite the stress in the banking system, including the failure of Silicon Valley Bank, global equity markets held up remarkably well in March and posted solid returns for the quarter. The S&P 500 index was up 3.7% in March and gained 7.5% in the first quarter. Developed international stocks (MSCI EAFE Index) did […]

Recent problems in the banking industry have increased uncertainty in the financial markets. In this email, I will summarize the circumstances at Silicon Valley Bank that led to its failure and provide comments on the broader investment implications.  Impact of the Silicon Valley Bank Failure Silicon Valley Bank, the 16th largest bank in the U.S. […]

A lot has happened since the beginning of the year. The biggest macro event is Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine. While the human impact has been devastating and tragic—and our hearts and support are with the Ukrainian people—our job here is to focus here on the economic and financial market impact of this event. It […]

Investment Portfolios in Today’s Uncertain Times It has been a choppy start to the year and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has only added to the volatility so we wanted to share some of our thoughts and market expectations. The underlying circumstances around any market volatility always differ, but they usually center on uncertainty. Today, Russia’s invasion […]

Self-Employed Retirement Plan Options Are you a freelancer or an entrepreneur? Being your own boss has many perks. You can set your own schedule, prioritize the projects that mean the most to you, and have the leverage to make key decisions that can alter the course of your career (maybe hit the slopes of Mount […]

American Rescue Plan Act. The federal government recently passed a third stimulus package called the American Rescue Plan Act. Eligible individuals and families will receive stimulus checks up to $1,400 per person. As a reminder, here is what you need to know about your third stimulus check. Stimulus Checks: Q&A Taxpayers who qualify will receive […]

Analysis: Socially Responsible Investing vs Impact Investing. What Is It And Why Should You Consider Adding It To Your Investment Portfolio? 2020 has been a year of stress and uncertainty – but it has also been a year that’s brought to light issues of social justice, climate change, and social responsibility. But as investors, our […]

2020 continues to be the year of volatility in our financial markets. Consumers do not have to look very far to see an advertisement for a mortgage refinance or may have even received a call from their current lender regarding lower rates available in today’s market. Or even heard of friends who recently refinanced at […]

Q1 2020 Client Letter Dear Ascent Client: We are living through an extraordinary period in history. The impact on our families, communities, and country has been profound. The United States and world are now facing the dual threats of a health crisis and an economic crisis. Both need to be fought with monumental government policy […]

CARES ACT passed (Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security Act) On Friday, March 27th, 2020, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”).  Below is a summary of the incentives passed that may affect you and your business.  This summary is not meant to be all-inclusive and many of the provisions […]

Ascent Continues to Operate Remotely Hello, Clients and Friends of Ascent: First and foremost we hope all of you continue to stay physically and mentally healthy during this global pandemic crisis our Nation and the World try to overcome. It is hard to believe that 10 days have passed since Ascent first made the decision […]

COVID-19 UPDATE: ASCENT OPERATING REMOTELY Dear Clients and Friends of Ascent Capital: In response to the ongoing COVID-19 situation and in an effort to protect the health and well-being of the Ascent Team and visitors to our office, Ascent will operate on a virtual basis effective March 17 through at least Friday, March 27th. As […]

Investment Management vs Wealth Management A common misconception among consumers seeking professional financial advice is that all advice is created equal, or ‘all financial advisors do the same thing’. This could not be further from the truth. As its name suggests, investment management focuses on the oversight of investment assets without much, if any, consideration […]

Is a Roth Conversion Right For you? Roth conversions are a hot topic right now with investors due to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 and the more recent changes to retirement planning with the passing of the SECURE Act in December of 2019. But the question remains, should I be converting my […]

2019 Market Recap What a difference a year makes. While in 2018, it was very difficult to make money in financial markets, in 2019 pretty much everything went up. Our portfolios meaningfully participated in the global equity rally. And portfolios with fixed-income allocations benefited from the fall in interest rates/rise in bond prices last year […]