Nerd's Eye View

DECEMBER 6, 2023

Over the past several years, the financial services industry has undergone a tremendous evolution in how financial advisers deliver and charge for their services. While commission-based models remain in use, fee-for-service models (including AUM, hourly, retainer, and subscription) have become increasingly popular. And because many service offerings have traditionally focused on areas like investments and securities recommendations, there has been little debate about the need to register as an a

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Investing Investments Retirement Planning Financial Advising 245

Abnormal Returns

DECEMBER 3, 2023

Also on the site On the end of the influential The Reformed Broker blog. (abnormalreturns.com) Top clicks this week Why market timing is so difficult. (ritholtz.com) On the Magnificent 7 vs. Other 493 narrative. (investmenttalk.co) Jason Zweig, "More than almost anyone I’ve ever known, Munger also possessed what philosophers call epistemic humility: a profound sense of how little anyone can know and how important it is to open and change your mind.

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The Big Picture

DECEMBER 6, 2023

 Investing Skill vs. Luck with Michael J. Mauboussin, Counterpoint Global (Dec 6, 2023) Is it better to be lucky or good? How much of a role does luck pay in investing? And how can you tell the difference between chance and skill? In this episode of At the Money, I speak with Michael Mauboussin. ~~~ About Michael J. Mauboussin: Michael Mauboussin is head of Consilient Research at Counterpoint Global, Morgan Stanley Investment Management.

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Investing Investments Management 270

Carson Wealth

DECEMBER 8, 2023

By Mark N. Petersen, CPA, CFP ® , CP, Affluent Wealth Planning The holidays are upon us! That must mean it’s time to roll up my sleeves and get to work on year-end financial planning – with an emphasis on 2023 income tax. One consideration this year is that we’re two years from the expiration of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TJCA). This will mean: · Elimination of the state and local tax cap of $10,000 · The return of other itemized deductions in 2026 · Reversion of individua

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Planning Retirement Planning Taxes Retirement 138

Speaker: Amanda Adams, Fractional CFO, CPA

Are you ready to elevate your accounting processes for 2025? 🚀 Join us for an exclusive webinar led by Amanda Adams, a seasoned fractional CFO and CPA passionate about transforming back-office operations for finance teams. This session will cover critical best practices and process improvements tailored specifically for accounting professionals.

Accounting

Nerd's Eye View

DECEMBER 4, 2023

Welcome to the December 2023 issue of the Latest News in Financial #AdvisorTech – where we look at the big news, announcements, and underlying trends and developments that are emerging in the world of technology solutions for financial advisors! This month's edition kicks off with the news that Black Diamond has announced the launch of its own CRM system, targeting advisors at mid-size firms who have data complexity and workflow needs greater than what more basic CRM options can accommodat

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The Big Picture

DECEMBER 8, 2023

You may have missed the most important data point in today’s Employment report. It wasn’t that Nonfarm payrolls increased by 199,000 in November, somewhat higher than expected; nor was it the unemployment rate, which fell to 3.7% in November, from 3.9% in October; nor was it that Wages continued to rise at a modest pace, with average hourly earnings up 0.6%.

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Numbers Retirement Economy Accounting 261

Wealth Management

DECEMBER 6, 2023

SoFi Securities, SogoTrade, M1 Finance and Open to the Public Investing will pay more than $1 million in restitution after clients were promised fees from lending securities they allegedly never received.

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Nerd's Eye View

DECEMBER 8, 2023

Enjoy the current installment of "Weekend Reading For Financial Planners" - this week's edition kicks off with the news that a new study from research firm Cerulli has found that investors' willingness to pay for financial advice has risen over the last 15 years, with more investors reporting using a financial advisor (and a decreasing share considering themselves "self-directed"), in spite of the proliferation of DIY investing options in the internet era – which highlights the value that

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Financial Planner Numbers Clients Assets 211

Abnormal Returns

DECEMBER 2, 2023

Tesla Who is the audience for the Tesla ($TSLA) Cybertruck? (ritholtz.com) The Tesla ($TSLA) Cybertruck is no favor to the environment. (wired.com) EVs Now is a good time to buy an EV. (bloomberg.com) Why do EV range estimates vary so much? (wsj.com) Which EVs charge the fastest? (arstechnica.com) A look at the growing Formula E circuit. (wsj.com) Transport How e-bikes and scooters reduce carbon emissions more effectively than EVs.

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Media Financial Advising Transportation Food 281

Speaker: Abdi Ali, Sr. Lease Accounting Consultant

Join this insightful webinar with industry expert Abdi Ali, who will discuss the challenges that can arise from managing lease accounting with spreadsheets! He will share real-world examples of errors, compliance issues, and risks that may be present within your spreadsheets. Learn how these tools, while useful, can sometimes lead to inefficiencies that affect your time, resources, and peace of mind.

Accounting

The Big Picture

DECEMBER 2, 2023

This week, we speak with Michael Fisch , CEO and co-founder of American Securities , a $27-billion dollar private equity firm. He is a managing member of the general partners of the American Securities Partners’ series of private equity funds and a member of the investment committee of AS Birch Grove. He was previously a partner in two private equity funds, a consultant in the Paris office of Bain & Co., and worked in the mergers and acquisitions department of Goldman Sachs.

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Consulting Retail Management Assets 252

Wealth Management

DECEMBER 8, 2023

Kaival Patel was found guilty of conspiracy to commit wire and health care fraud to pocket money raised from fraudulent compound medication prescriptions, according to the DOJ.

Medical 139

Medical 139

Nerd's Eye View

DECEMBER 5, 2023

Welcome back to the 362nd episode of the Financial Advisor Success Podcast ! My guest on today's podcast is Jeff Brown. Jeff is the President of Stratos Private Wealth, an RIA based in San Diego, California, that oversees almost $1.5 billion in assets under management for just over 350 client households. What's unique about Jeff, though, is how his firm has developed associate advisor compensation plans and career tracks, with well-defined Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3 performance indicators of

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Compensation Planning Planning Financial Advisor Clients 205

Abnormal Returns

DECEMBER 6, 2023

Strategy Why investors may regret earning 5% on cash. (allstarcharts.com) The more room you can put between yourself and your investments, the better. (yield-to-maturity.beehiiv.com) Why investors are attracted to low probability games. (behaviouralinvestment.com) Technology Google ($GOOGL) has finally unveiled Gemini, its new AI model. (venturebeat.com) Eight charts that explain 2023 including the rise of the chatbot.

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Financial Advising Media Banking Management 276

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Accounting

The Big Picture

DECEMBER 7, 2023

My morning train WFH reads: • How much should it cost to sell a house? Your real estate agent may be charging too much. Why should homebuyers and sellers pay for services they neither want nor use? It’s like being forced to pay a travel agent commission when booking a flight directly online. ( USA Today ) • Signs of a Weakening Job Market, in Five Charts : Openings and quits data could give clues to the direction of hiring and the economy. ( Wall Street Journal ) see also Pay Thousands to

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Retail Commission Economy Accounting 238

Alpha Architect

DECEMBER 8, 2023

While the research shows that fund managers are skilled, skill doesn’t translate into outperformance due to the diseconomies of scale. Diseconomies of Scale in Investing was originally published at Alpha Architect. Please read the Alpha Architect disclosures at your convenience.

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Investing Investments Management 128

Calculated Risk

DECEMBER 6, 2023

From the MBA: Mortgage Applications Increase in Latest MBA Weekly Survey Mortgage applications increased 2.8 percent from one week earlier, according to data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending December 1, 2023. Last week’s results include an adjustment for the observance of the Thanksgiving holiday.

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Financial Market Marketing Marketing 127

Abnormal Returns

DECEMBER 5, 2023

Active management Active investing has a tax problem. (alphaarchitect.com) Why the active management space may be bigger than currently measured. (papers.ssrn.com) Replication Managed futures strategies are ripe for replication. (caia.org) How to replicate fund performance using index and smart beta funds. (insights.finominal.com) Factors What happened to the momentum effect?

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Portfolio Management Assets Taxes Management 275

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Banking

The Big Picture

DECEMBER 6, 2023

The Charlie Munger Manifesto / PDF The post The Charlie Munger Manifesto (via Vishal) appeared first on The Big Picture.

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Investing Investments 293

A Wealth of Common Sense

DECEMBER 3, 2023

After Charlie Munger passed away this week, I went looking through an old post I wrote about his investing principles from a decade ago. There was a table I recreated that showed the annual returns from the Munger Partnership, which was the fund he ran before joining Buffett at Berkshire Hathaway for good: The results are spectacular but look at how volatile his returns were.

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Investing Investments 123

Calculated Risk

DECEMBER 8, 2023

The headline jobs number in the November employment report was at expectations, however employment for the previous two months was revised down by 35,000, combined. The participation rate and the employment population ratio both increased, and the unemployment rate decreased to 3.7%. Leisure and hospitality gained 40 thousand jobs in November. At the beginning of the pandemic, in March and April of 2020, leisure and hospitality lost 8.2 million jobs, and are now down 158 thousand jobs since Febr

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Retail Numbers Economics Manufacturing 125

Abnormal Returns

DECEMBER 7, 2023

Rates 10-year Treasury yields are down nearly 100bp from their peak. (axios.com) 30-year mortgage rates have dropped from 8% back to 7%. (housingwire.com) Companies P&G ($PG) is still writing down the value of Gillette. (wsj.com) What phrases and words companies stood out in conference calls in 2023? (ft.com) VC SimpleClosure, a start-up that helps other start-ups wind down their operations, is doing a booming business.

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Digital Media Electronics Financial Advising Startup 271

Speaker: Igli Laci, Strategic Finance Leader

In today’s competitive market, pricing is more than just a number — it’s the cornerstone of profitability. The right pricing strategy ensures that you capture the true value of your offering, paving the way for sustainable growth and long-term success. Join Igli Laci, Strategic Finance Leader, in this exclusive session where he will explore how a well-crafted pricing approach balances customer perception with business objectives, creating a powerful tool for securing both competitive advantage a

Numbers

The Big Picture

DECEMBER 6, 2023

My mid-week morning plane reads: • The Fed Matters Less Than You Think : Listen, I’m not saying the Fed’s rate hikes had no bearing on inflation. It certainly helped slow hot sectors of the economy like the housing market. But their actions have mattered far less than you think during this bizarre pandemic-induced economic cycle. ( A Wealth of Common Sense ) • The Takeaways Two Years After ‘Transitory’ Timed Out : Whether or not you choose to use that word, price pressures weren’t permanent. ( F

Economy 208

Economy Economics Investing Investments 208

A Wealth of Common Sense

DECEMBER 5, 2023

These were some of the prevailing narratives from the post-GFC world: We only had a bull market in the 2010s because of the Fed juicing the economy. The only reason tech stocks did well is because of low interest rates. The only reason stocks kept recovering from every correction so quickly is because of the Fed put. These narratives all have a kernel of truth to them.

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Wealth Management

DECEMBER 6, 2023

The independent wealth management space is becoming less a friendly club and more a pitiless jungle, with big firms squeezing smaller competitors, poaching talent and where organic growth, not M&A, will drive firm value.

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Wealth Management Management 126

Abnormal Returns

DECEMBER 8, 2023

Strategy What happens after a 20% up year for the stock market? (awealthofcommonsense.com) No investor, or investment strategy, is perfect. (morningstar.com) Fund management The factor ETF space has gotten crowded. (riabiz.com) Blackrock ($BLK) is building its own AI tools. (pionline.com) Books Amy Edmondson has won the Financial Times and Schroders Business Book of the Year Award for "Right Kind of Wrong: Why Learning to Fail Can Teach Us to Thrive.

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Financial Advising Media Economy Economics 263

Speaker: Joe Buhrmann, MBA, CFP®, CLU®, ChFC® Senior Financial Planning Practice Management Consultant eMoney Advisor

During an era of evolving consumer preferences, the banking sector is undergoing a profound shift. As customers continue to broaden their perspectives, banking professionals must support their customers' financial wellness by providing holistic financial advice that aligns with individual goals and circumstances. Without adapting, financial institutions will find that loyalty may crumble amid uncertainty.

Financial Advice

The Big Picture

DECEMBER 5, 2023

The transcript from this week’s, MiB: Michael Fisch, American Securities , is below. You can stream and download our full conversation, including any podcast extras, on Apple Podcasts , Spotify , YouTube , and Bloomberg. All of our earlier podcasts on your favorite pod hosts can be found here. ~~~ 00:00:00 [Speaker Changed] This is Masters in business with Barry Ritholtz on Bloomberg Radio. 00:00:07 [Barry Ritholtz] This week on the podcast, I have an extra special guest.

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Management Investing Investments Numbers 173

A Wealth of Common Sense

DECEMBER 7, 2023

A reader asks: Sure it’s great the S&P 500 is up 20% this year but aren’t we just pricing in the inevitable Fed rate cuts in 2024? Should we really expect the market to go up again next year after surprising to the upside this year? Color me skeptical. Full disclosure: I’m naturally bearish and take a bit of an anti-Ben stance about the markets.

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Marketing Marketing 122

Advisor Perspectives

DECEMBER 8, 2023

Investing in “smart beta” was the rage in the early 2000s, as small-cap-value stocks vaulted over large-cap-growth stocks. But like all supercharged investment strategies, it didn’t last. Factors premiums have not materialized since the financial crisis. For most of the last decade, value has underperformed growth, driving the underperformance of the largest category of smart-beta strategies.

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