Nominal thinking in investing, a form of the "money illusion" bias, is the failure to account for inflation's erosion of purchasing power. The primary problems with this approach are overestimating real returns, misjudging true wealth, and making poor long-term investment decisions based on misleading nominal figures.
Another strong year for US equities in 2025 reminds us that tax loss harvesting has the potential to contribute substantial value to direct indexing portfolios—even during bull markets.
EMs are entering 2026 from a position of renewed strength. A weakening U.S. dollar, improving fundamentals, and broadening country and sector leadership have created a favorable backdrop for investors—and we believe
It’s a brave new world for educational savers — and none too soon. In 2025, lawmakers outdid themselves by expanding ways families can help their children or grandchildren obtain a degree or certificate.
Following strong 2025 returns, high quality fixed income continues to offer attractive yields and global diversification at a time of stretched equity valuations and tight credit spreads.
Last year, gold rose by over 64 percent, setting 53 new record highs along the way. Silver gained just under 148 percent. Platinum’s price increased by 125.9 percent. Palladium was up just over 80 percent.
Portfolio Managers Benjamin Wang and Zoey Zhu explain how a historic valuation discount in small caps versus large caps combined with quality’s worst performance in 30 years creates a noteworthy setup in 2026.
Investors have flocked to the evolving income ETFs space in recent years. The arrival of the ETF rule in 2019 helped launch countless new and intriguing ETF offerings aimed at adding income to investor portfolios.
Municipal bonds enter 2026 as a compelling option for investors: attractive yields, strong fundamentals, and structural changes that continue to reshape the market. After a volatile 2025, marked by Treasury market dislocations and record muni issuance, the outlook for this year suggests more stability — and opportunity.
This video looks at the long term trends of household net worth using the Q3 2025 Z.1 release from the Federal Reserve.
With large cap growth companies showing signs of frothy valuations, investors could be looking elsewhere to add that extra shot of growth. Thematic ETFs can do just, focusing on niche sectors that may not get the fanfare on financial news sites.
Vanguard Group Inc. is bringing its decades-long relationship with Wellington Management into the ETF structure. It is launching three active equity ETFs. This marks the indexing giant’s first venture into actively managed equity products in the wrapper.
Under France’s presidency of the G7, the club of rich countries will focus on major economies’ external deficits and surpluses. While the agenda makes sense politically, the economic case remains to be made.
Morgan Stanley’s debt bankers increased revenue 93% in the fourth quarter, by far the biggest jump on Wall Street and capping a record year for that business.
Billionaire Stephen Ross aims to position Florida’s Palm Beach County as the next Silicon Valley, calling the region a more business-friendly environment for tech investors and executives than California.
The billionaire Ellison family said this week that it will try to overhaul the board of Warner Bros Discovery Inc. unless the Hollywood studio engages with their $108 billion takeover bid. But winning support in a corporate fight won’t be easy as long as their offer contains holes.
Silver pulled back from a record high as investors took profits after a blistering rally and as the US refrained from imposing import tariffs on critical minerals.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. blew through expectations for equities-trading revenue, posting an all-time Wall Street record of $4.31 billion in the final three months of last year.
Despite strong U.S. equity returns and continued enthusiasm around AI, 2025 marked a turning point in market leadership. Paul Vella examines the fading dominance of mega-cap tech, the resurgence of international equities, and the role diversification played in delivering more durable outcomes for investors.
Fixed income performed well in 2025, but we are proceeding cautiously, as we believe headwinds in the new year could cause the rally to stall.
U.S. equities moved higher in the first full week of 2026. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500, and Russell 2000 all finished the week at record levels, reflecting a continuation of the positive momentum that closed out last year.
Most DC plan participants share the same goal of a comfortable retirement. It’s the journey that differs and much depends on personal investment knowledge, risk comfort level and other qualities, according to the latest research by AllianceBernstein (AB).
Defaults among auto loans are noteworthy because these had been seen as a safe form of lending. Living without a car is impossible in much of the United States; in the GFC, borrowers were more likely to surrender their home than their car.
EM stocks have increasingly become tied to the fortunes and risks of the growth in AI. Should the AI capex race continue, and earnings estimates are realized, EM stocks have the potential to continue to rise, because valuations are not yet extended.
At the heart of value investing is the concept of buying an undervalued stock that appears to be mispriced by the market and holding that stock until its intrinsic value is reached. Investors determine intrinsic value in several ways, including analyzing a company’s financial statements, evaluating management, and identifying competitive advantages.
Raymond James Chief Economist Eugenio J. Alemán evaluates economic conditions heading into 2026.
Market experts from the WisdomTree recently discussed how the market is responding to the latest headlines, and where opportunities lie.
DoubleLine CEO/CIO Jeffrey Gundlach looked back at 2025 and ahead in 2026 for opportunities, with charts to support his assertions.
Join the experts at SS&C ALPS Advisors and VettaFi for an educational webcast as they discuss the outlook for MLPs/midstream in 2026.
Advisors who feel too much of the week slips away on administrative tasks should start by tackling these foundational areas. Saving time isn’t about doing less for clients; it’s about investing your energy where it has the greatest impact.
Smaller firms can achieve meaningful, defensible data lineage using tools they already own — if they understand what lineage actually means in practice.
As artificial intelligence (AI) matures, the real breakthrough will not be smarter algorithms outthinking financial planners. Rather, it will be quieter systems that remove friction and noise so advisors can think more deeply, listen more closely, and show up more human than ever.
In a year where moderation, not momentum, may define returns, options-enhanced ETFs offer an attractive way to stay invested while monetizing the more limited upside many expect.
US previously owned home sales climbed in December to the fastest pace since 2023, a welcome sign for a housing market that has lacked momentum for several years.
Wall Street loves few things more than a good acronym to describe a trading thesis. Think FANG, FOMO/YOLO and TACO.
Bank of America Corp.’s equity traders posted their best fourth quarter ever as the company reaped the benefits of volatile markets and net interest income topped analysts’ estimates.
Metals extended their dramatic start to the year — with gold, silver, copper and tin all hitting record highs — as investors piled into the commodities as a red-hot alternative to more traditional assets.
Skild AI Inc., a fast-rising startup that makes software to help robots learn to complete tasks, has secured about $1.4 billion in a new funding round that values the company at more than $14 billion, more than triple what it was worth just seven months ago.
Human behavior is far and away the most challenging aspect of any team — large or small. Add in family dynamics, and there is often plenty of “crazy” to go around.
The bullish AI narrative that dominated in 2025 is unlikely to continue overshadowing other lingering uncertainties, many of which reflect deeper structural shifts. Traditional factors underlying economic activity will be increasingly sidelined by national-security concerns, geopolitics, and domestic political machinations.
The US economy remains resilient. The gross domestic product (GDP) growth estimate from the Atlanta Federal Reserve (Fed) GDPNow model as of January 8 shows 5.4% real growth for the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2025.
If you’ve been around anyone under the age of 25 lately, you have likely been exposed to the “Six-Seven” phenomenon, whereby kids react excitedly upon hearing or seeing the numbers 6 and 7 in sequence. It can come from anywhere at any time…
The Wall Street consensus forecast for 2026 earnings growth is strong by historical standards. Analysts are giddy and projecting another year of double-digit growth in S&P 500 earnings per share (EPS).
Mao Zedong once warned that power grows out of the barrel of a gun. In recent decades, global institutions and markets that make kinetic interventions less common. But when those mechanisms fail, power will fill the void.
Drew O’Neil discusses fixed income market conditions and offers insight for bond investors.
LPL Research takes a look at fourth quarter earnings season as it unofficially kicks off this week with a dozen banks and asset managers in the S&P 500 slated to report.
Nuclear energy has seen a hot start to 2026, benefitting from positive sentiment around artificial intelligence, ongoing support from the US government, and notable nuclear news from Meta (META).
JPMorgan Chase and Delta Air Lines have both posted fascinating Q4 earnings, creating compelling opportunities for crafty advisors.
On this episode of the “ETF of the Week” podcast, VettaFi’s Head of Research, Todd Rosenbluth, discussed the iShares Systematic Alternative Active ETF (IALT) with Chuck Jaffe of Money Life. The pair discussed several topics related to the fund to give investors a deeper understanding of the ETF.
John Davi, Founder & Chief Investment Officer at Astoria Portfolio Advisors, highlights the firm’s 10 ETFs for 2026. Ryan Barksdale, Head of Active Equity Product at Vanguard, and Kim Gailun, Head of Equity Boutiques at Wellington Management, discuss their collaboration in bringing Vanguard’s first active equity ETFs to market.
