Posts Tagged ‘asset management’
Wednesday, October 12th, 2011
Find Out What’s Driving Your Investment Performance – Has Fear Replaced Reason?
We are experiencing unprecedented volatility in the financial markets. As you watch your investment performance, your stomach may be queasy from what feels like a never-ending rollercoaster ride! And the volatility continues with no apparent reprieve.
Many seasoned market analysts would say that this cycle of volatility is largely driven by headlines and will most certainly end. These analysts think that fundamentals (reasonable analysis), and presumably more predictable times, will once again prevail over the financial markets. Others disagree and claim the market has shifted from what has historically driven performance to what is being called the “new normal,” a normal that most of us will not necessarily like.
Please join us for a discussion with Starmont’s Harvey Rowen and Steve Cassriel, Vice President at Dodge and Cox Funds, a firm which has been investing on behalf of investors like you for over 80 years. Steve will talk about the role of fundamental investing-why and when he thinks fundamentals will prevail and value based investing will once again drive the markets.
See more details below…
WHEN
Conference Call – through your phone or PC with slides
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
12:30 PM TO 1:30 PM (Pacific)
RSVP
To register and receive webinar call-in instructions email Suzanne Monaco at smonaco@starmont.com
(more…)
Tags: asset management, economic outlook, equity allocations, Harvey Rowen, Investments, market performance, Portfolio Managers, Starmont, Stock Market
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Monday, October 10th, 2011
October 7, 2011
To Our Valued Clients,
The last few years have been very volatile. In reporting to you on where we are today, I thought that it might be helpful to review where we have been over this wild ride, how Starmont has been able to preserve and grow your assets during this time, and what we plan to do going forward.
How We Got To Where We Are
In 2007 Starmont became concerned with the write downs US banks were taking on the mortgage backed bonds they carried on their books. Our concern was that those write downs could lead to failed banks and to a serious disruption in our country’s financial system and markets.
In December 2007 we started to sell down the equity funds held in our Clients’ portfolios. We continued selling through June 2008. We invested the proceeds of the sales primarily in bond funds.
In September 2008 Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy, Merrill Lynch sold itself to Bank of America, and the U.S. government “invested” $80 billion in AIG.
The result was a panic in the financial markets, (more…)
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Tags: asset management, economic outlook, equity allocations, financial planning, Harvey Rowen, Investments, market performance, Portfolio Management, Starmont, Stock Market, Wealth Management
Posted in Blog, Client Communications | No Comments »
Wednesday, September 21st, 2011
| September 20, 2011
To Our Valued Clients,
We finished trimming equity allocations last week, as we said we would do in our previous e-mails.
It was a good week for equities, mostly because of positive news out of Europe, but the outlook is still cloudy-at best.
Vivian and I went to a PIMCO conference last week. They are still on the “bumpy road to a new normal” theme, and the new normal is not positive. Their current forecast for the next 3-5 years:
- –One or more members of the European Union will default or restructure their debt, causing dislocations across the financial markets;
- –The United States will deal with its debt problem through a combination of austerity (driven by Congressional Republicans) and inflation (driven by the Fed). Neither is good for the stock and bond markets;
- –The Emerging Countries (led by China, and including India and Brazil), will continue to grow, but at slower rates as they try to contain inflation in their economies.
While PIMCO is not necessarily right, (more…) |
Tags: asset management, economic outlook, equity allocations, Harvey Rowen, Investments, market performance, Portfolio Management, Portfolio Managers, Starmont, Stock Market, Stocks, Vivian Groman, Wealth Management
Posted in Blog, Client Communications | No Comments »
Monday, September 12th, 2011
September 5, 2011
To Our Valued Clients and Friends,
Welcome back.
Labor Day marks the end of the summer season (even though Autumn does not officially begin until September 23rd). Kids go back to school, or off to college. The baseball season enters its final days, and the football season kicks in. Everyone comes back from vacation, and the pace of life picks up. The weather turns cooler (except that I am predicting a very hot Indian summer here in the Bay Area); swim suits get put away and sweaters and jackets begin to appear.
It has been a full summer for the Starmont community. People got married; people got divorced. Babies were born and others were conceived and are cooking for delivery in other seasons. No one in the Starmont community died, but we have had deaths in the past and expect them in the future. People went away—on trips across the United States; to Canada, Mexico, South America, Europe, Asia and the Pacific. People stayed home and had staycations. Body and soul were nourished and made ready for whatever is to come.
During the summer the global economy slowed and the U.S. debt rating was lowered from AAA to AA+ for the first time in history. (more…)
Tags: asset management, Congress, Harvey Rowen, market performance, Portfolio Management, Starmont, Wealth Management
Posted in Blog, Client Communications, The Market | No Comments »
Thursday, August 4th, 2011
Starmont’s Vivian Groman quoted. Read a recent article about how advisors can be mindful of gender differences .
Advisors: Clients’ Gender Clue to Understanding Financial Behavior
Tags: asset management, financial planning, Gender differences, Portfolio Management, Starmont, Stock Market, Vivian Groman, Wealth Management, Women Clients
Posted in Blog, Starmont In The News | No Comments »
Tuesday, July 19th, 2011
To Our Valued Clients,
We sent to you a week ago an e-mail that included a discussion of what is going on with the debt ceiling legislation under a heading that read, “July Could Be A Volatile Month-Buckle Up.” If you didn’t have a chance to read it, here is a link: http://www.starmont.com/2011/07/market-and-debt-ceiling-update/
Where Are We Now?
The date at which the United States Treasury runs out of cash and could start defaulting on the payment of principal and interest on Treasury bills, notes and bonds is only 15 days away.
No resolution is in sight from the White House and Congress, although there are numerous plans being floated in Washington.
Stock and bond markets have been rather blasé about this until today, when the Dow closed down around 100 points. As the drop dead date of August 2nd gets closer with no resolution, we expect increased volatility in the markets.
Ask just about anyone in the investments business why there has been little interest in this topic and they will say, “It’s all a bunch of political posturing, and by August 2nd they will have raised the debt ceiling.”
Maybe. But maybe not.
And the consequences of Maybe Not could be severe.
We are only speculating, since the United States has never defaulted on its debt in its over 200 year history as a country. But here is what could happen:
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Tags: asset management, Bonds, Congress, Debt Ceiling, economic outlook, Harvey Rowen, Investments, market performance, Portfolio Management, Starmont, Wealth Management
Posted in Blog, Client Communications, The Market | No Comments »
Monday, July 18th, 2011
Starmont’s Harvey Rowen and Christine Benz of Morningstar, were quoted by the Associated Press regarding the Debt Ceiling, Congress and Client portfolios.
Click here to see Mark Jewel’s July 14, 2011 article, “7 tips for rebalancing your fund portfolio now” on MSN.Money.com
Tags: asset management, Congress, Debt Ceiling, economic outlook, equity allocations, Harvey Rowen, Investments, Portfolio Management, Starmont, Stock Market, Wealth Management
Posted in Blog, Starmont In The News, The Market | No Comments »
Monday, July 11th, 2011
To Our Valued Clients and Friends
June started out badly, but rallied at the end of the month and closed only moderately down for the month. (Markets were down for the month, but are up for the year. See below).
The major U.S. stock indexes were down from 1% to 2.5% for the month. The EAFE index (Developed International Markets) was down 1.2%, and the iShares EEM (Emerging International Markets) was down 0.94%. For the year through June 30th, all major domestic and international stock indexes are up, from 8.6% for the DJIA and Russell 2000 (domestic small cap) Growth; to 0.91% for the iShares EEM.
Domestic and international bond indexes were negative for the month, with the Barclays Capital U.S. Aggregate Bond Index down 0.45% and the Barclays Capital Global Treasury Ex-US Index down 0.01%. For the year through June 30th these indexes are positive.
Commodities and REITs, both domestic and international, were negative in June, and the commodity index has gone negative for the year.
All Starmont Client portfolios are positive for 2011 through June 30th—with the amount dependent on how their assets are allocated among the various asset groups. So far in 2011 the higher the allocation to equities, the better the portfolio performance. Your First Half Reports will be sent to you later in the month.
July Could Be A Volatile Month—Buckle Up!
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Tags: asset management, Bonds, Congress, economic outlook, Economy, Harvey Rowen, Interest Rates, Investments, Portfolio Management, U.S. economy, Wealth Management
Posted in Blog, Client Communications, The Market | No Comments »
Tuesday, July 5th, 2011
Click on the link below to see Harvey Rowen on MarketWatch.com discuss the dangers if Congress does not pass the legislation raising the debt ceiling this month.
US Knocking At Debt’s Door
Tags: asset management, Congress, equity allocations, Harvey Rowen, Interest Rates, Investments, market performance, MarketWatch.com, Starmont, Stock Market, Stocks, Wealth Management
Posted in Blog, Starmont In The News, The Market | No Comments »
Monday, June 27th, 2011
By Vivian Groman, Senior Advisor, Starmont Asset Management, LLC
A typical Starmont event focuses on educating Clients about investing. Several times each year, we host intimate gatherings that feature a fund manager or investment expert in dialogue with clients over lunch or cocktails.
But on June 13, the women of Starmont rocked the house. 40 Starmont Clients and friends met at the Hyatt Embarcadero, in the lingering daylight of a lovely summer evening. We shared a glass of wine, made new friends and talked….not mutual funds but style!
We were under the spell of LA celebrity stylist, Jennifer Butler, who spent nearly two hours teaching us how to express our essence more powerfully, authentically and effectively through style and color.
Jennifer’s approach diverges significantly from the fashion advice we get in magazines or watch on TV. Instead, she teaches how to use clothing and accessories to help express our true essence. By dressing and accessorizing in this way, we appear more congruent and therefore more trustworthy, naturally beautiful and authentic.
(more…)
Tags: asset management, Harvey Rowen, Investments, Portfolio Management, Starmont, Vivian Groman, Wealth Management
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