A&I Financial Services Periscope

A & I Financial Services LLC Newsletter
For the Week of
January 5, 2011
 
Greetings!  

 

Goodbye 2011, hello 2012! We look back on the year behind us with so many different feelings, now, don't we? With so much to write about regarding 2011, I thought I'd focus on one very different story you haven't read about:

 
How Steve Jobs May Transfer $6 Billion Tax-free

 

Steve Jobs kept things private, and likely his estate will remain private as well. But experts believe his beneficiaries won't pay a penny in estate taxes. How will he do that? With an expert team -not unlike the expert teams we are building here at AIFS of accountants, attorneys and insurance experts.

 

We don' t know, and may never know exactly, what Steve Jobs' team of experts put together. We do know that it involved a network of at least two trusts. California records show that he and his wife, Laurene, moved their Palo Alto house and other real estate into two trusts when his liver was failing in early 2009.

 

SEC filings show Jobs moved 5.5 million shares of Apple stock and 138 million Disney shares (Pixar) out of his estate and into a trust. Since he basically earned nothing from either Apple or Disney, it's possible that he died with no real assets in his name, achieving David Goldman's zero-probate scenario.

 

WOW!

 

If you haven't read his 2005 Stanford Commencement Speech, you should. It's a wow. Here it is.

 

"[My college life] wasn't all romantic. I didn't have a dorm room, so I slept on the floor in friends' rooms, I returned coke bottles for the 5¢ deposits to buy food with, and I would walk the 7 miles across town every Sunday night to get one good meal a week at the Hare Krishna temple. I loved it. And much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out to be priceless later on."

 

Can you imagine Steve Jobs doing that? This is how I want to remember Steve Jobs - before the success, putting in so much hard work, and endurance, and dependence on the kindness of a handful of friends and strangers - and so close to incredible success. In just a few years, he would change the world!

 

Now, the question remains: who is the beneficiary of $6 billion? Will he do it again, after death? Read more about what might happen with Steve Jobs' estate here.

 

Weekly Economic Update 

STOCKS IN 2011: DJIA +5.5%, S&P 500 ENDS FLAT
The Dow Jones Industrial Average bucked a global trend and advanced in 2011. The index rose 11.95% in the fourth quarter, a move that separated it from a pack of overseas benchmarks that finished the year with double-digit percentage losses. In terms of price return, the S&P 500 recorded its smallest annual change since 1947 (see below). The S&P's total return for 2011 was +2.11%. With all the fears about Europe and the Federal Reserve keeping interest rates incredibly low, long-term Treasuries had their best year since 2008 with a total return of 33%.(1,2,3)
  
CONSUMER CONFIDENCE BAROMETER RISES
The Conference Board's index of consumer confidence saw a big jump north in December, soaring 9.3 points to 64.5. Economists surveyed by Reuters had expected it to come in at 58.3.(4)

 

HOME SALE PRICES DOWN, HOME SALE CONTRACTS UP
The good news? The National Association of Realtors said its pending home sales index reached a 19-month peak in November, moving to 100.1 for a 5.9% annual gain. The bad news? The October edition of the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index slipped 1.2% from its September level.(4,5)

 

HIGHS & LOWS IN KEY COMMODITIES FOR 2011
Gold lost 10.48% for the month but went +10.23% for the year, in contrast to copper (-22.73%) and silver (-9.77%). Crude oil advanced 8.15% in 2011, while retail gas prices rose 6.41%. Notable yearly dives were made by natural gas (-32.15%) and cotton (-36.69%). The U.S. Dollar Index gained 1.56% on the year.(2)

 

A MINOR RETREAT TO END THE YEAR
All three major U.S. stock indices lost ground in the last trading week of 2011. The four-day performances across December 27-30: DJIA, -0.62% to 12,217.56; NASDAQ, -0.52% to 2,605.15; S&P 500, -0.61% to 1,257.60.(1,6)

Market Summary

% Change

Y-T-D

1Yr Chg

5-Year Avg

DJIA

+5.53

+5.53

+2.19

NASDAQ

-1.80

-1.80

+3.36

S&P 500

-0.003

-0.003

+0.95

(Source: cnbc.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov, treasurydirect.gov - 12/30/11).  Past performance is no guarantee of future results.  Indices are unmanaged, and investors cannot invest in them directly.
Create a beautiful week!

Karl Frank, MBA, MSF
Certified Financial Planner (R)
A & I Financial Services LLC
303.690.5070
 
Citations:   

 

(1) - blogs.wsj.com/marketbeat/2011/12/30/data-points-u-s-markets-71/ [12/30/11] 
(2) - money.msn.com/market-news/post.aspx?post=7a929e98-4d99-44cb-98c9-a0ef1c3151c4 [12/30/11]
(3) - blogs.wsj.com/marketbeat/2011/12/30/for-the-sp-500-2011-bascially-never-happened/ [12/30/11]
(4) - www.reuters.com/article/2011/12/27/us-economy-idUSTRE7BE12S20111227 [12/27/11]
(5) - www.realtor.org/press_room/news_releases/2011/12/
phs_nov [12/29/11]
6 - montoyaregistry.com/Financial-Market.aspx?financial-market=retirement-investment-funds&category=3 [12/30/11]

This material has been prepared and is distributed solely for information purposes only. It is not a solicitation or an offer buy any securities or instrument or to participate in any trading strategy. There is no assurance that a particular trading strategy will achieve investment success.
 
Securities offered through Geneos Wealth Management, Inc., member FINRA/SIPC.  Investment advisory services offered through A & I Financial Services LLC, registered investment advisor.
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Karl Frank In  Investor Advisor Magazine

Holiday header
Investor Advisor - November 2011
 
Investor Advisor Magazine's November 2011 edition features Karl Frank.  In the article "Never Satisfied," John Sullivan writes:  Passion born of tragedy drives Karl Frank to do all he can to help business owners ensure a legacy for loved ones and heirs.  Industrial age publisher and philanthropist Frederick Bonfils said there is no hope for the satisfied man. If that's the case, Karl Frank is full of hope. 

 

"I'm never satisfied," Frank says matter-of-factly when asked about his advisory firm

.....Read More.

Watch Karl Frank on Channel 9 News & Read his article "Where to Invest in Times of Turmoil"

Click Here

 

 

 

  Riddle of the Week

They can run side by side for thousands of miles; they are made of steel. While they constantly touch the ground, they seldom meet or touch each other. What are they?

  

 Last week's riddle:

  

 They are sometimes stomped on, yet they can also be very tasty and sweet. What are they?

       

Last week's answer:  

 

Grapes