Portfolio Advisors Blog

As we enter the New Year, we at Portfolio Advisors wish you and your loved ones a healthy and prosperous 2021! In looking forward to what is in store for us in 2021, I wanted to share a quick story of what has been and will forever be our focus, YOU!

If my memory serves me correctly, I attended one of my first industry conferences for the Financial Planning Association around 2010. During this conference, I was given a bright blue wrist band that had the words Clients First engraved on it. Those words resonated with me as I thought that they clearly summed up my primary role as a financial planner/advisor. This has been my guiding principle and philosophy ever since, and it continues to influence my decisions and interactions with our clients.

In late 2020, Dimensional Fund Advisors, introduced exchange-traded funds (ETFs) complementing their existing suite of mutual funds. In September 2019, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC) adopted a new ruling (Rule 6c-11) which streamlines regulations concerning ETFs, allowing for greater flexibility in ETF management. Along with this improved flexibility, Dimensional will apply its consistent investment philosophy of providing low-cost, broadly diversified investment solutions aimed at pursuing higher expected returns across all of its investment vehicles.

Before we dive deeper into Dimensional’s ETF lineup, let’s take a closer look at ETFs themselves. Introduced to the investor market in 1993, an ETF is a collection of securities, such as stocks, that can hold hundreds or thousands of companies across various industries and sectors, which is very similar to a mutual fund. However, ETFs are listed on exchanges and can be traded throughout the day like individual company stocks. This is unlike a mutual fund that is traded and priced only once a day after market close. (Source: www.investopedia.com)

By Ken Hatfield

Congratulations are extended to AJ Flores for recently completing and passing his Certified Financial Planning course and board exam.  The designation is awarded to those that have completed rigorous course work and testing and is recognized as the standard of excellence for financial planners. 

Many folks are feeling as much anxiety about the end of this contentious presidential election as they were feeling during the long months of campaigning. It’s impossible to predict with 100% accuracy what a new president and a new Congress are going to do. That feeling of uncertainty can send out ripples through our financial and political systems until we get a clearer picture of the agenda for the next four years.

As important as elections are, we believe that a solid financial plan gives you the tools to keep improving your Return on Life no matter what’s happening with our nation’s politics. Instead of fretting about what may or may not happen starting in January, try to focus on these three areas of your life that will help you control major transitions.

The anticipation building up to elections often brings with it questions about how financial markets will respond.  This interactive exhibit examines market and economic data for nearly 100 years of US presidential terms.  The data provided helps to reinforce the benefits of maintaining a long-term investment approach regardless of the administration in place.

Please click here to learn more and see how your favorite president did.

Portfolio Advisors continues to seek out ways to add value to our clients. As we look to build relationships with future clients and current clients, we have found a unique set of tools to help drive meaningful conversations surrounding your money.

Let us introduce you to Return on Life. Focusing first on your life and second on your money, our objective is to help you live your best life possible with the resources you possess. These collaborative tools will bring your life to the center of our planning discussions. Our conversations and future recommendations can be shaped in a way that helps you achieve your best life possible. To get started, click here to find out your Return on Life Index score. Upon completing your Return on Life Index, our office will be in touch to discuss your results. If you wish to schedule a time to learn more about our life-centered planning process, please find a time here that works best with your schedule.

Historically, value stocks have outperformed growth stocks in the US, though recently that hasn't been the case.  While disappointing periods emerge from time to time, the principle that lower relative prices lead to higher expected returns remains the same.  Logic and history argue for a steadfast commitment to value stocks, as the data covering nearly a century illustrates.  Click here to view this illustration.  

We believe that those who invest for the long-term are best served by staying in their seats during times of extraordinary market turbulence.  Emotional and anxiety driven efforts to get out of the market when times are bad and get back in the market when times are better often lead to costly results. 

To help illustrate this point, we have attached a piece provided by Dimensional Fund Advisors entitled “Recent Market Volatility” (click here).  The piece graphically displays the market (as defined by the Russell 3000) during the 41-year period from 1979 thru 2019.  We note that significant market volatility occurred throughout the period and that substantial intra-year losses were experienced in all but 7 years.  However, “despite substantial intra-year drops, calendar year returns were positive in 34 years out of the 41 examined.”   As such, one might observe that trying to make course corrections in advance of unpredictable yearly market swings is more a matter of luck than of skill.

Congratulations to our own Devin Watts who recently completed and passed his Certified Financial Planning course and board exam leading to the sought-after CFP designation.  As a result, Devin's role will continue to be expanded, having more direct client involvement as he continues to develop as a Financial Advisor. 

Devin became an intern at Portfolio Advisors in 2016 after meeting with Portfolio Advisors management staff attending a job fair at California State University, Fresno.  He became a permanent member of our team in 2018.  Devin, a Craig School of Education graduate in 2018, was wed to his wife Hannah in 2017.