As the election closes in our investment committee has been meeting and having discussions around our client portfolios as well as talking with other top advisors and top institutional money managers, engaging in thoughtful conversations and the sharing of ideas. We’re not market timing, but rather looking at our portfolios and identifying tweaks we can make to help position our portfolios to be better suited for the months ahead.

Here are our main thoughts, followed by small changes we’re considering making to the portfolios:

• Since the large drops we saw in March and April the overall markets have, for the most part, rebounded from the March lows. Our largest sector which continues to be technology has played a key role in the recovery, as technology and innovation have been at the forefront of the pandemic recovery.
• With slightly less than a week to go until the election we are considering some small shifts in the overall portfolios. This isn’t to say we are going more conservative or more aggressive, as it remains unclear who will win. The purpose of these shifts are aimed to lower risk inside of the portfolios by shifting some of our equities from passive managers into more active managers, which in a year like 2020 active managers have mostly out performed their passive counterparts. We still like passive managers as they do still have their place within a portfolio and can help to ease tax burdens and keep fees low. But, with the potential of increased volatility around an already contentious election and the further possibility of what could be a contested election, we feel that the active managers will likely provide a better value.
• As we have been sharing for the past couple of years, we continue to favor U.S companies over international companies. It is always important to keep some allocation to global companies to maintain diversification. But, as the COVID-19 pandemic continues on, we believe that the United States as a whole is better positioned than other smaller countries who rely more on tourism and travel will continue to feel the effects at a much higher level.
• 2020 has been one of the most unusual years we have ever seen. Now more than ever, there is no substitute for a well-built financial plan and the importance of the three bucket RETIRE WHILE YOU WORK™ philosophy that you hear us talk about. Having these three buckets in place can help to provide a source of comfort throughout this year.

 

I will leave you with this stroke of optimism, regardless of what the news says, markets have performed well under both parties. As elections come up, we tend to get too concerned about which party might be better for the market. Historically, the market has continued to rise regardless of which party is in the White House. Since 1926, $1,000 invested in the S&P 500 would have grown to $8.96m as of 6/30/2020 – with a number of regime changes along the way.*

These are some quick thoughts from the investment committee that we wanted to pass along. As always, we are here for you and your families!  We’re here to help guide you through this busy and uncertain season. If there’s one thing that’s certain, it’s that we only have a limited time on this earth and it’s up to each of us to spend it wisely and with those we love. I encourage you to do so over the coming weeks!

*Source: Blackrock

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The information contained in this report does not purport to be a complete description of the securities, markets, or developments referred to in this material. The information has been obtained from sources considered to be reliable, but we do not guarantee that the foregoing material is accurate or complete. Any opinions are those of the author and not necessarily those of Raymond James. Expressions of opinion are as of this date and are subject to change without notice. There is no guarantee that these statements, opinions or forecasts provided herein will prove to be correct. Investing involves risk and you may incur a profit or loss regardless of strategy selected. Keep in mind that individuals cannot invest directly in any index, and index performance does not include transaction costs or other fees, which will affect actual investment performance. Individual investor’s results will vary. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Any information is not a complete summary or statement of all available data necessary for making an investment decision and does not constitute a recommendation.

The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index of 500 widely held stocks that is generally considered representative of the U.S. stock market.