Secure Document SharingSecure Document Sharing

February 6, 2018 in Dimensional, Evidence-Based Investing, Investing by
February 2018 New Year, New Market Highs Every day stocks have a positive expected return regardless of whether markets are at an all‑time high or not. Throughout 2017, the S&P 500 Index recorded 62 new closing highs in 251 days of trading. In the first three weeks of January 2018 alone, the index crossed 10 new record closing highs in 13 days of trading. With stock indices continuing to set new highs, does...

January 30, 2018 in Dimensional, Evidence-Based Investing, Investing by
January 2018 Nine Experts, Four Surprises, and One Million Dollar Bet In 2017, we were again reminded of the importance of following an investment approach based on discipline and diversification vs. prediction and timing. As we gear up for the new year, we can look at several examples during 2017 that provide perspective on what guidance investors may want to follow, or not follow, in order to achieve the long-term return the...

January 16, 2018 in Dimensional, Evidence-Based Investing, Investing, Year In Review by
One Last Look at the 2017 Bond & Stock Markets Before we proceed full tilt into 2018, let’s take one last look at last year’s heady, mostly double-digit 2017 stock market returns, as shared in Dimensional Fund Advisor’s 2017 Market Review. How best to view the largely fair-weather market performances of late? Your investment experience is like a cross-continental trek. You get to define your desired destination – although, as in real...

January 10, 2018 in Dimensional, Evidence-Based Investing, Investing, Year In Review by
Hunches, Headlines and Indicators - 2017 Market Performance It’s a wrap! 2017 market performance numbers are now available for the fourth quarter and the year. And, wow, what a year it was. The Wall Street Journal called it “The Year Everything Went Up.” In a Bloomberg column, Barry Ritholtz declared it “A Very Weird Year in Markets.” The New York Times reflected on how wrong most expert predictions were – as...

November 15, 2017 in Dimensional, Evidence-Based Investing, Investing by
OCTOBER  2017 The Uncommon Average “I have found that the importance of having an investment philosophy—one that is robust and that you can stick with— cannot be overstated.” —David Booth The US stock market has delivered an average annual return of around 10% since 1926.[1] But short-term results may vary, and in any given period stock returns can be positive, negative, or flat. When setting expectations, it’s helpful to see the range of...

November 1, 2017 in Dimensional, Evidence-Based Investing, Investing by
SEPTEMBER 2017 Lessons for the Next Crisis  We recently experienced the 10-year anniversary of when, in early October 2007, the S&P 500 Index hit what was its highest point before losing more than half its value over the next year and a half during the global financial crisis. Over the coming weeks and months, as other anniversaries of major crisis-related events pass (for example, 10 years since the bank run on Northern Rock...

September 5, 2017 in Dimensional, Evidence-Based Investing, Investing by
AUGUST,  2017 Quit Monkeying Around! In the world of investment management there is an oft-discussed idea that blindfolded monkeys throwing darts at pages of stock listings can select portfolios that will do just as well, if not better, than both the market and the average portfolio constructed by professional money managers. If this is true, why might it be the case? TO READ MORE: OPEN PDF ARTICLE ...

April 18, 2017 in Evidence-Based Investing, Investing by
We all have our symbolic security blankets, right? Mine is Madeleine L’Engle’s “Wrinkle in Time.” I first read it when I was a young adult, shortly after it became a Newbery Medal winner and I was still the book’s target audience. It was such a bull’s eye that I continue to revisit it every few years, wrapping myself up in its satisfying triumph of good over evil. For investors, one of...