Quarterly Client Letter: Q4 2022
“The margin of safety is always dependent on the price paid. It will be large at one price, small at some higher price, nonexistent at some still higher price.” It has been said countless times that, “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes,” a quote attributed to Mark Twain. In reality, history occasionally does…
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2023 Key Planning Numbers
The following “Key Numbers” document highlights changes to tax reference numbers for 2023. Contribution limits for retirement accounts and HSA accounts have increased for 2023: Furthermore, those individuals who contribute to a Colorado College Invest 529 plan in 2023 can fund an account up to: $20,700 for single filers per beneficiary per year $31,000…
Not-So-Boring Bonds
Not-So-Boring Bonds At the top of 2022, we wrote that stock market multiples were precariously perched after soaring well above historical averages. Since then, multiples have pulled back to more benign averages: Source: J.P. Morgan Asset Management, Guide to the Markets, 12/15/2022 We had also noted that after a relatively calm year in the S&P…
Would You Buy All of the Bitcoin in the World for $25?
The recent debacle at FTX and the broader selloff in cryptocurrencies over the past year have us thinking a lot about our investment discipline and why we believe in owning productive assets. What makes for a good investment strategy? In our view, the simple answer is to buy productive assets. No doubt there are a…
Discounted Cash Woes
Discounted Cash Woes It’s earnings season on Wall Street, an opportunity for investors to peer into the latest financial results of publicly traded companies. When Amazon reported earnings on October 27th, the stock dropped about 20% the following day. Joe Weisenthal at Bloomberg quipped that after looking at their numbers, “back-of-the-envelope math would suggest that…
Medicare & Social Security: Changes for 2023
The new Medicare premiums and Social Security cost of living adjustments (COLAs) have been announced. To learn about the updates, please continue reading below: Medicare Medicare’s Open Enrollment Period — which runs from October 15 through December 7 — is your annual opportunity to switch your current Medicare health and prescription drug plans to ones…
Quarterly Client Letter: Q3 2022
We have to get supply and demand back into alignment and the way we do that is by slowing the economy. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell 09/21/22 Press Conference The Stock Market and Speculation Deflation The stock market closed the 3rd quarter at the low for the year. As measured by the S&P 500 (with…
CHIPS+ in Semiconductor Supply Chains
In light of the passage of the CHIPS+ act and recent news about tensions between China and Taiwan, I’d like to shed some light on microchip manufacturing trends in the US and around the world. The strength of the semiconductor supply chain is a national security issue akin to ensuring a strong US energy supply.…
Inflation Reduction Act: What You Should Know
The Inflation Reduction Act, which was signed into law on August 16, 2022, includes many initiatives such as healthcare and energy-related provisions. Below are some of the key points that you should be aware of: Medicare The legislation authorizes the Department of Health and Human Services to negotiate Medicare prices for certain high-priced, single-source drugs.…
529 Plans in a Covid World
Its widely understood that 529 plans are tax-advantaged education savings vehicles and that there are two types of 529 plans — savings plans and prepaid tuition plans. The tax advantages of each are the same, but the account features are very different. While much of this seems to be known about 529 plans, the pandemic…
Economic Tug of War
Economic Tug of War On Wednesday August 10th, the stock market rallied on news that inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), may be starting to cool down. The YoY increase in CPI for July of 8.5% was down from the 9.1% print for June, a welcome change in direction and a lower…
Document Retention: The Do’s and Don’ts
Document Retention: The Do’s and Don’ts We receive a lot of questions from our clients here at Peak about what documents need to be kept, for how long and in what format. While every person’s situation is unique, we hope this blog post provides some helpful guidelines for you. The task of reviewing your household…
Stock Review: Booking Holdings
Stock Review: Booking Holdings Broad stock market indices have been under pressure through the first half of 2022. As the indices slide (see the chart below), we often look to our individual stock holdings for clarity and confidence in our long-term allocations to risk assets. Directly owning businesses with strong balance sheets and healthy free…