Tape Talk | Investing, Business, Wealth, and Your Money

On this week's episode of Tape Talk, Quint and Daniel discuss what you need to know about financial planning to best reach your goals in your financial journey.

The news this week was all politics. With Tuesday's election in the rear view, financial markets breathed a sigh of relief and traded higher on Wednesday. Quint breaks down what this might mean for markets going forward and what he's watching as this move plays out.

One of the key elements that keep people from creating a financial plan to help them achieve their financial goals is not really understanding what a financial plan is. There are multitudes of misconceptions about what the financial planning process is and how the planner works with clients to help them succeed. We break down a few of these misconceptions to remove any doubt why it's time to get your plan together and set out on the journey towards reaching your goals.

Once you've set a roadmap for your financial journey it becomes critical to understand the difference between the risk your portfolio can tolerate and the risk your personality temperament can stomach. While these sound similar they are distinctly different measures that work in tandem to create your target portfolio risk. During the financial planning journey, we explore with clients both of these risk aspects and create a plan for investment portfolios that will allow the plan to succeed and the client to sleep at night.

The most difficult step in developing a financial plan is getting started. While this first step takes the most effort it creates the momentum your financial life needs to meet your goals. If you don't have a plan in place it may be time to ask yourself "why?"

Interested in getting started on your financial plan? Find out more HERE

On this week's shortened episode of Tape Talk, Quint and Daniel review where the market ended the month of October and what it means as investors look ahead.

As investors leave the month of October in their rearview it holds up to its mythical reputation as a month of volatile events. Investors saw the month start with many of the indices at or near highs only to see markets go nearly flat by month-end. After coming close to testing lows for the year many investors, no doubt, are curious about what the remainder of the year has in store.

While stocks started November with a bit of a reprieve, the October damage has been done in a variety of sectors. Financials are what we're looking at here in the coming weeks. The sector was especially weak in the latest downturn and that can be a bit concerning when one considers the pivotal role financial companies play in our overall domestic economy.

As we allow markets to digest the latest move and tip their hand to the next leg of the journey cash is an appealing place for a piece of our portfolios here. We'll walk through why this makes sense for us and our portfolios even while the downturn seems to have paused for the moment.

For a long time, we've calculated risk requirement when working with clients on their financial plans and assessed their risk temperament through conversation and fact-finding. Now, though, we're excited to introduce a new technology to our planning services that will help clients quantify the risk most suitable for their temperament as well as update it as need. If you are interested in getting started with finding your risk number and whether your portfolio is correctly allocated for it click below to get started.

Analyze Your Risk Here!

On this week's episode of Tape Talk, Quint and Daniel explore the recent volatility in the stock market and discuss what some of the driving forces may be behind these moves.

There are a lot of different headlines one could point to for the recent uneasiness in the stock market. There is the geopolitical risk with Saudi Arabi, trade wars with China, and internal strife between the President and the Federal Reserve. We'll explore a few of these excuses for the market's movements and consider whether they're the cause or it's simply investors' changing expectations.

When expectations change so do prices. Is this what we're seeing currently in the market? It could be! When investors have priced in perfect news they may just be apt to sell what's construed as merely "good" news. That is one of the keys Quint is watching in the market now. The market selling off on good news gives him concern here and he'll be watching for it to be bought on bad news as a sign this latest temper tantrum is over.

The key to navigating markets as we've seen recently is to know what group of investors you're in. Are you still accumulating wealth with years until your goal is in sight? If that's the case you may want to be a holder and buyer as the market goes lower. Are you near or at retirement? You may not be able to stomach the volatility and need to consider proactive steps in your portfolio or a more prudent allocation. Retired and can't sleep at night because of the market risk? It may be time to ensure your portfolio lines up with your risk temperament.

On this week's Tape Talk, Quint and Daniel discuss the recent moves in financial markets and assess whether it's the bulls or bears in control now.

The month of October has seen its fair share of volatility across financial markets. While stocks moved steadily higher through the end of September it was only a few days into the new month that things abruptly changed sending stocks cascading lower led. in large part, by the higher momentum names that had marched the market higher. Quint explains a few of the key levels he's watching here for signs of where the bulls might come back into the market and provide support for this recent decline.

There's no blanket answer for what everyone should be doing with their investments at any one time. In fact, your personal financial plans and goals should dictate what steps you take next rather than any headlines. However, as a rule of thumb, there may be a few points investors should keep in mind. Daniel walks through what you might want to consider when approaching the investing markets depending on what stage of life you're currently in and how far of your investing goals are.

Before wrapping up this week's show we discuss the character of the recent moves in stocks and what separates a healthy market correction from a "crash." Quint examines why just because he foresees some weakness ahead it doesn't mean it's time for outright panic.

On this week's Tape Talk, Quint and Daniel review the current moves in interest rates and what that means to investors' portfolios.

Before diving into this week's meat and potatoes we take a look at some of the headlines this week and some updates we've been making in the portfolios.

Last week's jobs report was decently solid news. By and large, people who want jobs are finding them and people who have jobs are seeing increases in wages. However, since the news hit the headlines the stock market has suffered. We discuss what might be behind this "sell the news" event.

While stocks have traded lower, bond yields have actually risen. We examine what this has to do with the recent trade wars and where yields may be heading from here.

While interest rates rallied earlier in the year they have traded in a solid range since then. However, over the past couple weeks, long-term yields such as the 10-year treasury have managed to break out to the upside. Moving from 3.00% to 3.20% may not sound like a big difference but we'll take a look at how this small change can have big ripple effects.

The changing environment in yields doesn't just affect Wall Street, banks, and big corporations. We are all exposed to changes in interest rates in various places in our financial life. We'll examine a few of the key things investors need to be mindful here as interest rates tick higher and where you might also benefit from the changes.

On this week's episode of Tape Talk, Quint and Danie dive into the topic of risk. What is risk? Why is it important? How should investors handle the risks they take?

Before diving into the title topic, Quint and Daniel peruse this week's headlines.

The Federal Reserve raised their headline interest rate by 0.25% this week which may put pressure on other market interest rates. More interestingly though was how the market digested the news.

Amazon causes headaches for yet another retailer as Bed, Bath, & Beyond reports abysmal earnings but what's lurking under the surface?

When talking about risk, investors commonly use the idea of risk and volatility interchangeably. However, this might not be the best idea. Traditionally, volatility is understood the positive and negative moves in an investors portfolio. In contrast, risk it the potential for an investor to not have that portfolio meet its goals. Therefore, volatility is an element of risk but there are other elements as well. We dive this week into what investors need to know about risk to keep working towards achieving their goals.

Two key elements of risk investors need to be aware of is their risk requirement and their risk temperament. An investor's risk requirement is the volatility and uncertainty they must take on in an effort to achieve their goals. Their risk temperament is the amount of risk they are actually capable of taking on and still being able to eat or sleeping at night. Ensuring these two measures of risk are aligned is important for the overall success of an investor's goals.

For a long time, we've calculated risk requirement when working with clients on their financial plans and assessed their risk temperament through conversation and fact-finding. Now, though, we're excited to introduce a new technology to our planning services that will help clients quantify the risk most suitable for their temperament as well as update it as need. If you are interested in getting started with finding your risk number and whether your portfolio is correctly allocated for it click below to get started.

Analyze Your Risk Here!

On this week's Tape Talk, Quint and Daniel dive into the continuing headlines on the US/China trade war to discuss whether these tariffs are everything the headline make them out to be.

The trade war was in the news again this week as the White House announced $200B in tariffs on Chinese imports to the US. The back and forth in this trade war has become so regular that it's actually becoming difficult to track what tariffs we already knew about and which ones are actually new news. Daniel is keeping an eye on the Tariff Tracker for clues while Quint breaks down why the headlines make be making too much about the potential impacts of the recent updates.

Quint and Daniel break down a recent investment in the Chinese large-cap ETF (FXI) which might seem against the grain with the recent turbulent headlines. However, Quint looks at both the technical and fundamental reasons why Joule has decided to wade into this particular area of the investment world.

Taking a break from the headlines, Quint and Daniel talk with Kim Milner about the upcoming Medicare enrollment period about what enrollees need to know during this season.

When it comes to your financial plan, success often comes down to managing risks. Quint and Daniel preview a new technology that Joule is implementing in the coming months which will help investors get a more complete view of the risk level in their portfolio. After all, lining up your risk requirement with your risk temperament is critical to the success of your financial plan.

Mark Blythe may be one of the most decorated college athletes to emerge from the University of Kentucky. From humble beginnings in Lexington Kentucky, Blythe went on to be a stand out baseball player at UK during the mid-1980s.

This week Tape Talk Radio takes a break from the markets and economic reviews to talk about all things sports and life. Among his many honors, Blythe was recognized as a First Team All-SEC Selection in 1989 and still holds the records for 9th all-time home runs and 12th all-time RBIs for the Wildcats. In addition to his athletic prowess, Blythe was the first athlete, male or female, any sport, any school to make the SEC All-Academic Team 4 years in a row.

After graduating with honors in 1988, Blythe completed his master's degree in Administration before a short stint with Deloitte and Touche. In 1997 Blythe joined the Lexington Fire Department where he serves still today.

Shortly after graduating Blythe began coaching youth through a variety of outlets and can be found at Champions Sports in Nicholasville on a daily basis instructing youth in the areas of hitting, pitching and all around life skills.

It was an absolute pleasure to sit with Coach Blyth and discuss his past successes as long as his current view of the challenges facing youth today. Don’t miss the opportunity to pull up a chair and eavesdrop on this general conversation as you’re sure to gain a few morsels of wisdom along the way.

On this week's shortened episode of Tape Talk, Quint and Daniel take a look at the recent developments in trade agreements and what the market's reaction has been.

Mexico worked with the US to come to some agreeable terms on trade early in the week. The news got markets moving higher as concerns of the worst case scenario on North American trade deals subsided. While the news wasn't necessarily all good for industrial and automotive industries these names quickly rallied on the news before giving up the gains later in the week as the buzz wore off. 

While Mexico showed a willingness to work with Trump's administration on a deal, our neighbors to the north seemed reluctant to offer a handshake on any terms being discussed. As the Friday deadline approached for an agreement to be made all indications pointed to no progress on the northern front. 

After an underwhelming year for financial stocks, the recent market rally seems to have brought the sector back to life! Find out what's happening in this key sector and why it might matter for your portfolio. 

On this week's Tape Talk, Quint and Daniel discuss the upcoming GICS sector shift. After all, what's really in a sector?

The S&P 500 made headlines this week with a move to new intra-day highs. Many news outlets reported this new milestone as a win for the bulls by citing the longest bull market in history starting from the 2009 market lows. However, Quint dissects the numbers and examines what's happened during this time. Has it really been nine years of sunshine and rainbows? Or, have there been some notable corrections along the way that statisticians aren't quite giving credit for?

Markets are divided. In fact, stocks are grouped according to various similarities. First, the numerous public companies are broken into similar sectors, 11 in total. Then, these are broken further into industry groups. While this might all seem like simple semantics, sector and industry classifications actually can have an impact on investors and markets. For instance, companies in certain sectors tend to mirror each other's price movement due to sector-based investing. Also, certain sectors can become heavily influential in the indices as they steadily grow in size with the technology sector being the latest example as it creeps near 30% of the S&P 500 make-up.

Sectors are never truly static, as companies ebb and flow over time. However, investors are on the eve of one of the biggest changes to the sector landscape in recent history. At the end of September, the GICS classification for numerous stocks will change. At this time, many stocks which were previously classified as technology or consumer discretionary will be shifted to a new communications sector which steps in to replace what was the telecom sector. While many people won't notice a change in the day to day markets it does have ripple effects for some investors.

There are times when investors can cut through some of the market noise and find opportunities lurking beneath the larger headlines.  Quint walks through what he sees as one such example this week by looking at the iShares telecom ETF (IYZ) which will not be shifting to the new methodology. He'll walk through how this name appeared on our radar and lay out how we add an investment like this into our overall portfolio.

Important to note, clients of Joule Financial own the iShares telecom ETF (IYZ).