A&I Financial Services Periscope

A & I Financial Services LLC Newsletter

For the Week of
March 22, 2012
 
Greetings!  

Congratulations to one of the portfolio managers for a fund used in our Foundation Income portfolio, Dan Fuss.  Dan was recently named the best fund manager by Lipper.  

 

The Award for Excellence in Fund Management "recognizes an outstanding asset manager who has delivered consistently strong risk-adjusted returns to their investors and, in the opinion of Lipper's research analysts, represent the best of the funds industry." (1) Way to go, Dan! 

 

Sometimes, the best advice comes from our clients. Here are two gems.

 

1. Paying my kid's health insurance is financial insurance for me.

With two kids in their twenties, this dad says he wants them to be independent, but he is fully aware that if they were to have a major medical condition, mom and dad would bail them out. So, paying for their health insurance is a way for them to give themselves financial insurance. Be careful to check guidelines, for tax deductiability says Stacie Lee, our in-house tax preparer, the deductibility stops at age 26.

 

2. Paying my parent's long term care insurance is financial insurance for me.

 

At the other end of the spectrum, this son says he is also paying for his parents' long-term care health insurance. He and his wife both admit that they would hope that his parents assets will last, but what if they do not? They know they will not allow mom and dad to go destitute - which is almost what it takes to apply for Medicaid. So, they're willing to pay for a little long-term care insurance. And they prefer the type of policy that will pay them a death benefit, larger than their total premiums, in case mom and dad never need it.

 

Finally, from a recent visit with another favorite client, final words that sure give me a good feeling:

 

"My reality surpassed my dreams."

 

Wow! Create another beautiful week! 

Weekly Economic Update 

 

PRICES RISE MOST IN TEN MONTHS
Consumer prices were up 0.4% in February according to the Commerce Department, yet core inflation rose only 0.1%. A 6% jump in gasoline prices represented 80% of the Consumer Price Index's biggest gain since April, while food prices were flat for the first time since July 2010. Economists polled by Bloomberg expected a 0.5% rise in CPI for the month. Producer prices also rose 0.4% last month, but prices for finished products were up but 0.1%. Annualized inflation was at 2.9% in February; annualized core CPI was at 2.2%. (2,3)

   
AN ILLUMINATING STATESIDE STRESS TEST
Applying a hypothetical "doomsday" scenario of the Dow losing half of its value, joblessness at 13% and home prices at 1996 levels, the Federal Reserve put 19 major U.S. banks through its annual stress test last week and found that 15 passed: American Express, Bank of America, Bank of New York Mellon, BB&T, CapitalOne, Fifth Third, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, Keycorp, Morgan Stanley, PNC, Regions, State Street, U.S. Bancorp and Wells Fargo. Four lenders did not pass - the Fed concluded that Citigroup, SunTrust, Ally and MetLife would lose enough assets under the stress test scenario to pose systemic risk. (4) 
 
CONSUMERS BUY MORE, SHOW LESS CONFIDENCE
The Census Bureau noted a 1.1% rise in retail sales for February and revised the January gain north to 0.6%. Elsewhere, the initial University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey for March showed a slight dip to 74.3 from 75.3 in late February.(5,6) 
  

Market Summary

% Change

Y-T-D

1Yr Chg

5-Year Avg

DJIA

+8.31

+13.94

+1.85

NASDAQ

+17.28

+16.75

+5.75

S&P 500

+11.65

+11.72

+0.25

(Source: cnbc.com, bigcharts.com, treasury.gov, treasurydirect.gov - 3/16/12).  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) http://www.marketwatch.com/story/lipper-selects-  

bond-veteran-dan-fuss-as-2012-excellence-in-fund-management-award-recipient-2012-03-09

(2)  - www.usatoday.com/money/economy/story/2012-03-16/February-inflation-consumer-price-index/53561880/1 [3/16/12]
(3) - money.msn.com/market-news/post.aspx?post=7b65a645-53f2-4b26-8b37-7c9c88448197 [3/16/12]
(4) - www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/
2012/03/16/investopedia77515.DTL [3/16/12]
(5)  - www.census.gov/retail/marts/www/marts_current.pdf [3/13/12]
(6) - montoyaregistry.com/Financial-Market.aspx?financial-market=common-financial-mistakes-and-how-to-avoid-them&category=29 [3/16/12]
 
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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Words for Thought

"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."

 

Winston Churchill

Karl Frank In Investment Advisor Magazine

Holiday header
Investment 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.

Karl Frank was interviewed by 9News on January 9, 2012 regarding "Key Questions to ask when picking a financial advisor". 

Click Here to View Video 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  Riddle of the Week

 

It is a short and simple word, and something that everyone needs. Put an 'r' on the end and you have a new friend, but if the first letter goes away, you are sad. What is this word?

 

 

  

Last week's riddle:

 

 What word doesn't belong in this group: blast, paper, castle, coin, box, storm.  

   

Last week's answer:  

 

 The word that doesn't belong is "coin" - you can put "sand" in front of all of the other words and end up with a new word.