Category: Epic Insights

The Behavior Gap and Your Financial Health

Sep 9, 2024

Behavior Gap Brain Synapses
how might it affect you?

“It turns out my job was not to find great investments but to help create great investors,” writes Carl Richards, author of “The Behavior Gap.” From increasing our budget mindfulness to taking a steadier approach to investing, Richards has drawn attention to how our unexamined behaviors and emotions can be to our detriment when it comes to living a happy and financially sound life. In many cases, we make poor financial decisions when experiencing panic or anxiety due to personal or widespread events. 1 (more…)

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Market Update – A Recovery or Relief Rally in Stocks?

Sep 6, 2024

September is living up to its reputation as a historically bad month for stocks. The S&P 500 fell 2.3% in the first two trading days, with a highly anticipated August employment report on deck tomorrow morning. The sudden change in momentum and jump in volatility has left many investors questioning the sustainability of the recovery from the August lows and if the rebound was simply a relief rally off oversold levels.

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Market Update – What Does a Rate Cut Mean for Stocks?

Aug 30, 2024

With NVIDIA (NVDA) earnings now out of the way, investor focus turns to the personal consumption expenditures (PCE) report and next week’s busy economic calendar, including a highly anticipated August employment report and the Institute for Supply Management Purchasing Managers’ Index manufacturing and services survey data. These data points — especially the September 6 payrolls report — will help write the narrative for the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) next meeting on September 18.

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Health Insurance in Retirement

Aug 21, 2024

At any age, health care is a priority. When you retire, however, you will probably focus more on health care than ever before. Staying healthy is your goal, and this can mean more visits to the doctor for preventive tests and routine checkups. There’s also a chance that your health will decline as you grow older, increasing your need for costly prescription drugs or medical treatments. That’s why having health insurance is extremely important.

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Income Tax Tips for Business Insurance

Aug 19, 2024

Insurance serves many purposes for a business. You’ll need insurance to protect your business from property damage, personal injury suits, and other forms of financial loss. In addition, you may want to provide your employees with certain types of insurance (e.g., group health and life insurance) to attract and retain them. One of the issues you’ll face as a business owner involves the tax treatment of business-related insurance. Just what can you deduct, and how do you handle insurance reimbursements? Here’s an overview of what you should know.

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Market Update – A Deeper Dive Into the Carry Trade

Aug 14, 2024

What Happened?

In short, the recent sell-off was underpinned by three primary factors, including: 1) overbought conditions coming into August — especially in big tech; 2) waning confidence for a soft landing due to last week’s weak Institute of Supply Management (ISM) manufacturing and employment data; and 3) the rapid unwinding of the crowded yen carry trade.

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Market Update – More Pullback Perspective

Aug 9, 2024

This latest bout of market volatility has been unsettling, especially after such a calm 2023 and 2024 for stocks. However, with the benefit of some historical perspective, volatility of this magnitude is quite common.

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Market Update – Perspectives on Market Volatility

Aug 7, 2024

Stocks must have gotten the memo that August tends to be weak historically. July, the eighth positive month in the past nine, was quickly forgotten as the beginning of August greeted us with a selloff. The primary catalyst was August 2’s weaker-than-expected employment report, which ignited concern that the U.S. economy could tip into recession. Several additional factors exacerbated the selling pressure: (more…)

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What is Critical Illness Insurance

Aug 5, 2024

What is Critical Illness Insurance
What it is, why people opt for it.

Ever hear of critical illness insurance? This isn’t standard-issue disability insurance, but a cousin of sorts. With people living longer, it is a risk management option entering more people’s lives. (more…)

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Market Update – Assessing the Technical Damange

Jul 26, 2024

Key Takeaways

  • Volatility came back with a vengeance this week as selling pressure in the mega cap space dragged down the broader market. Counterbalancing weakness in these heavyweight names poses a challenge for the rest of the market.
  • Overbought conditions can also be blamed for the recent weakness. The S&P 500 reached a 14.9% premium to its 200-day moving average (dma) last week, marking the highest level since 2011. Historical comparisons point to momentum continuing over the next year, but not on a linear path.
  • Technically, the S&P 500 violated a short-term uptrend yesterday as momentum indicators turned bearish. While there is a growing risk the current pullback continues lower, there is plenty of support before the longer-term uptrend is challenged. Furthermore, longer-term breadth metrics and overall market leadership remain bullish.

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More Insights

Jul 9, 2025

Few terms in personal finance are as important, or used as frequently, as “risk.” Nevertheless, few terms are as imprecisely defined. Generally, when financial advisors or the media talk about investment risk, their focus is on the historical price volatility of the asset or investment under discussion.

Jul 7, 2025

As Americans get their grills and beach chairs ready for the July 4th holiday, the stock market and the weather across much of the country have both been on heaters. Stocks and bonds continue to effectively navigate a complex policy landscape shaped by evolving trade dynamics, geopolitical tensions, and fiscal stimulus. The market’s resilience in … Continue reading “Market Update – America Gets Record High Stock Prices for Its Birthday”

Jun 20, 2025

Birthdays may seem less important as you grow older. They may not offer the impact of watershed moments such as getting a driver’s license at 16 and voting at 18. But beginning at age 50, there are several key birthdays that can affect your tax situation, health-care eligibility, and retirement benefits.

Jun 18, 2025

During times like these when geopolitical headlines can be unsettling for investors, we at LPL Research like to remind ourselves of one of our key investing principles. Markets have always faced challenges —ranging from geopolitical conflicts and economic downturns to natural disasters, political upheaval and health crises. These events often trigger short-term volatility and shake … Continue reading “Why Long Term Investing Beats Selling in Volatile Times”

Jun 16, 2025

Are you concerned about the inheritance taxes your heirs may have to pay? Then you may want to consider creating charitable lead trusts.

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