Investment Insight

Updates and articles on timely topics from the Investment Team.

Quarterly Investment Insight: Beyond the Fiduciary Standard in Portfolio Management

Adam Hoffmann
Adam Hoffmann
Director of Investments & Research
Published July 18, 2017

The adoption, delaying, and reconsidering of the Department of Labor’s Fiduciary Rule has been a recent hot topic in the financial services industry. Much discussion and controversy has been swirling about whether the Rule would be adopted in its original form, modified in some way, or completely scrapped.As most of you know, CCM is firmly grounded in the fiduciary standard of care. If you missed Greg Carlson’s recent article on this topic, I encourage you to read, “What the Fiduciary Rule ... [Continue Reading]

Quarterly Investment Insight: True Diversification and Why it’s Important

Adam Hoffmann
Adam Hoffmann
Director of Investments & Research
Published April 21, 2017

TRIVIA TIME: how many stocks make up the Wilshire 5000 Total Market Index (a widely used benchmark for the U.S. equity market)?While the logical guess might be 5,000, the reality is that as of December 31, 2016, the index actually included around 3,600 companies. In fact, the last time this index contained 5,000 or more companies was at the end of 2005.1 Surprisingly to most, this reduction in investable companies is nothing new. Over the past two decades, there has been a steep decline in ... [Continue Reading]

The Importance of Low Costs, Understanding Data, and the Value of Trusted Advice

Adam Hoffmann
Adam Hoffmann
Director of Investments & Research
Published March 9, 2017

Throughout the years we’ve come to appreciate the different perspectives held by firms and service providers within the financial services industry that vary from ours at CCM. We believe that varying viewpoints lead to meaningful conversations that ultimately produce better advice, products and service for our clients. This point is timely this week, as a recent Wall Street Journal story, “DFA Funds Are Booming, but That Adviser Fee Matters,” rightly highlighted the benchmark beating performance ... [Continue Reading]

Investment Insight: Measuring all of the Factors that Make Up a Year

Adam Hoffmann
Adam Hoffmann
Director of Investments & Research
Published January 13, 2017

As the new year begins, one of the most common questions I’m asked in my role at the firm is, “What do you think about 2016? Was it a good year?” In this context, the question typically refers to the year from an investing perspective. However, assigning a letter grade or a broad ranking to the span of a year doesn’t necessarily align with the depth of our experience and how the world’s events impact our lives. Categorizing a year as exclusively good or bad can overlook the complexity of events ... [Continue Reading]

Dow 20,000 – Is this a Good Time to Sell?

Posted on January 11, 2017
 

“When markets hit new highs, is that an indication that it’s time for investors to cash out?”This is the question asked by the research team at Dimensional in their new white paper "New Market Highs and Positive Expected Returns." With new all-time market highs being reached earlier this month, and the psychological watermark of 20,000 on the Dow Jones industrial average close to being broken, it seems perfectly logical to wonder if future returns might be lower or if a correction should be ... [Continue Reading]

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