What started as a minor theme just decades ago looks to be turning the corner with the force of more than 75 million investors in the United States alone.  Investors have long supported the idea of a greater good through philanthropic projects. But it wasn’t until late in the 20th century that they started accepting dual-missions of profitability and social responsibility at companies in which they invested. The idea has fought a tough argument against the traditional singular mandate of increasing wealth. Now it seems the theme is becoming a major force, and new evidence points to surprising upside for… Read More

What started as a minor theme just decades ago looks to be turning the corner with the force of more than 75 million investors in the United States alone.  Investors have long supported the idea of a greater good through philanthropic projects. But it wasn’t until late in the 20th century that they started accepting dual-missions of profitability and social responsibility at companies in which they invested. The idea has fought a tough argument against the traditional singular mandate of increasing wealth. Now it seems the theme is becoming a major force, and new evidence points to surprising upside for investors. As the market shifts to rewarding socially-responsible companies, investors need to know what to look for and how to take advantage of the new paradigm. A Generation Of Impact Investors Impact investing is led by not only financial criteria but also influenced by environmental, social and governance standards (ESG). Adopting an ESG framework means management is explicitly embracing social issues and responsibilities beyond shareholder profits.  #-ad_banner-#Several endowments and pension funds have adopted ESG rules for companies in which they will invest but the theme has yet to be adopted by many individual investors. University endowments, pension funds, and… Read More

Long second fiddle to the United States, China is racing to become the world’s largest economic power. Investors who heed the call are positioned to ride the bullish wave to handsome profits over the long term.  Make no mistake, China has and will continue to experience growing pains, but this is part of the economic expansion process. Savvy investors have used the short-lived bearish periods to snap up equities at deeply discounted prices.  And right now, it’s looking like the ideal time to buy into the Chinese financial sector.  The Current State Of The Chinese Economy Many investors were… Read More

Long second fiddle to the United States, China is racing to become the world’s largest economic power. Investors who heed the call are positioned to ride the bullish wave to handsome profits over the long term.  Make no mistake, China has and will continue to experience growing pains, but this is part of the economic expansion process. Savvy investors have used the short-lived bearish periods to snap up equities at deeply discounted prices.  And right now, it’s looking like the ideal time to buy into the Chinese financial sector.  The Current State Of The Chinese Economy Many investors were shaken by April’s nearly 3% decline in the Shanghai stock market.  The bearish volatility resulted from regulators clamping down on shadow banking and speculative trading. While short-term bearish, these moves will benefit patient investors.  The Xinhua News Agency recently stated that the changes toward stability, “have provided a good external environment and a window of opportunity to reduce leverage in the financial system, strengthen supervision and ward off risks… Over the past week, interbank rates trended higher, bond and capital markets suffered from sustained corrections and some institutions faced liquidity pressure. However, these have little impact on the stability of… Read More

Do you ever wonder why investors get so worked up about rising interest rates? Well, the most obvious answer is that higher rates will elevate corporate borrowing costs, which can bite into profits. But there is an even more fundamental reason.  At the end of the day, we only invest… Read More

On a recent trip to Des Moines to teach a class for financial professionals, the weather didn’t cooperate. This kept me from flying.  So a road trip was in order. Now, it’s a 20-hour trip by car from Florida. While the plan wasn’t to drive straight through, tunnel vision kept… Read More

Around our house, the month of May always seems to be unusually hectic. My wife is a teacher, so she is buttoning up her school year. My teenagers are furiously studying for and taking exams. Often, it seems that this domestic volatility is also found in the market. There is some truth to the investing adage “sell in May and go away.” This 10-year chart is compelling evidence. Over the last 10 years, the S&P 500 has experienced noticeable volatility during the month of May 9 out of 10 times. Would you have been better off selling and… Read More

Around our house, the month of May always seems to be unusually hectic. My wife is a teacher, so she is buttoning up her school year. My teenagers are furiously studying for and taking exams. Often, it seems that this domestic volatility is also found in the market. There is some truth to the investing adage “sell in May and go away.” This 10-year chart is compelling evidence. Over the last 10 years, the S&P 500 has experienced noticeable volatility during the month of May 9 out of 10 times. Would you have been better off selling and sitting on cash? Maybe, maybe not. However, as we approach the mid-year point, there are a few things investors can do to ensure their portfolio is well positioned for the second half of the year. Here are three key steps to take for a summer portfolio checkup. 1. Review Non-Core Holdings Good portfolio construction should include both core and non-core stocks. Core stocks would be those purchased based on a long-term, strategic story like the rise of the global middle class, the Internet of things, the aging baby boomer population, or consistent dividend growth. These are phenomena that take… Read More

Canada is emerging as an early global leader in the high-growth cannabis industry.  Medical cannabis has been legal in the country of 30 million since 2001. Then, in 2014, Canada implemented sweeping regulatory changes that set the stage for its young cannabis industry to prosper. Since then, the industry has been booming. Sales topped $1 billion in 2016. Today, Canada’s high-growth cannabis industry is about to get another huge boost. Canada just announced plans to legalize recreational cannabis by July of 2018. That would make Canada the first developed country in the world to legalize both medical and recreational cannabis. Read More

Canada is emerging as an early global leader in the high-growth cannabis industry.  Medical cannabis has been legal in the country of 30 million since 2001. Then, in 2014, Canada implemented sweeping regulatory changes that set the stage for its young cannabis industry to prosper. Since then, the industry has been booming. Sales topped $1 billion in 2016. Today, Canada’s high-growth cannabis industry is about to get another huge boost. Canada just announced plans to legalize recreational cannabis by July of 2018. That would make Canada the first developed country in the world to legalize both medical and recreational cannabis. It’s also set to unleash a multibillion dollar industry. Cannabis sales are expected to be between $5 and $7 billion in the first 12 months after legalization. That would be between a 400 percent and 600 percent increase from 2016. According to consulting firm Deloitte, this could generate up to $23 billion in economic activity. That would be more than beer and wine combined. If you want to learn how you can potentially profit from this cannabis revolution, let me tell you about Canada’s legal monopolies — an exclusive group of companies that have been issued a commercial license to… Read More