Why value stocks do better with rising interest rates & inflation
Year to date returns for Value stocks have exceeded that from Growth stocks across all market caps, both domestically and abroad. There are several reasons for this. US Vaccination rates have been greater than expected, which has helped traditional companies (value) at the expense of technology companies (growth). Company specific earnings have likely made a […]
What’s the best lockheed martin pension benefit option?
Our Lockheed Martin clients in the Syracuse and Owego plants often ask for our recommendation on how to elect their pension payment. Take the hypothetical example: John works at Lockheed Martin in Syracuse and his life only pension benefit is $5,000/month, or $60,000/year. At the other extreme, his 100% survivorship benefit is $4,000/month, or […]
Market commentary: Q1 2021
Stock Markets Stocks continued to climb in the first quarter and these results are signaling a robust economy ahead. Markets have made a dramatic rebound since the sharp fall in the first quarter last year. Look at the returns over the past twelve months in the chart to the right. Also note that stocks traded […]
The American rescue plan act of 2021: understanding the 2021 recovery rebate stimulus payments
The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 is now a done deal. Among the items of greatest interest to most Americans is a third round of stimulus checks – or IRS “recovery rebates” – of up to $1,400 for every “eligible individual.” That’s the quick take. But what’s the fine print? How Much Will You […]
Lockheed Martin 401(k) plan fund changes
Lockheed Martin announced a change to their current 401(k) plan lineup. Aside from some funds being renamed, the major changes are: Retiring the Global Real Estate Fund. This eliminates exposure to REIT’s in the plan unless you invest in a Target Date Fund Retiring the Emerging Markets Indexed Equity Fun. This change eliminates exposure to […]
Lockheed Martin resources
A good portion of our clients are employees of Lockheed Martin’s plant in Syracuse. As a result, we receive a lot of questions about Lockheed’s Martin benefit program, 401(k) allocation, etc. We took some time and did a deep dive into their benefits package and highlighted some areas you don’t want to overlook if you […]
How to save additional tax advantaged money in the Lockheed Martin 401(k) plan
A common question we receive from clients: “How can I save more money in a tax advantaged way?” Fortunately, if you are an employee of Lockheed Martin you have a unique opportunity. As us nerds call it, the “Mega Backdoor Roth IRA” is a strategy available in 401(k) plans that allow for after-tax 401(k) contributions […]
Bonds are down on the year and that is ok
Most of our clients hold bonds and most of those bonds have “lost value” in the first three months of the year. That does not mean any of the bonds have defaulted. In fact, almost no bonds have defaulted in 2021. Rather, interest rates have risen causing the value of existing bonds to drop. It […]
SPACs, NFTs, and other jungle creatures
“The American marketplace is an economic jungle. As in all jungles, you easily can be destroyed if you don’t know the rules of survival. … But you also can come through in fine shape and you can even flourish in the jungle—if you learn the rules, adapt them for your own use, and heed them.” […]
What does it mean to short a stock and what’s going on with GameStop?
GameStop has been in the news in the last week as the share price jumped from $35 to $350, and is up from an April intraday low of $2.57. There are lots of things going on with this but the one getting the most attention is the “short squeeze.” We’re going to describe what a […]