Protective Investing: What Is It and Can It Work for Your Clients with Alex Rabinovich of Halo Investing

Chris King is the founder and CEO of Eaglebrook Advisors. Eaglebrook is a crypto investment platform that provides RIAs with direct access to bitcoin and digital assets. The firm operates one of the largest SMA Platforms in the crypto market. Eaglebrook's investment platform offers access to tax optimized Bitcoin and Ethereum separately managed accounts (SMAs) and third-party investment manager strategies held at an institutional qualified custodian. Eaglebrook is an SEC registered investment advisor that works with over 70 RIAs and has over 700 financial advisors using Eaglebrook’s Platform. The company is backed by leading wealth management executives and financial institutions including Castle Island Ventures, Brewer Lane Ventures and Franklin Templeton.

Key Takeaways

• [03:20] - Chris’ professional background and what drew him to digital assets specifically?
• [06:02] - What really drives Eaglebrook’s investment philosophy?
• [08:08] - What is the strategic, long term reason to own crypto?
• [12:40] - What is the investment thesis for Ethereum in particular?
• [14:30] - Chris’ shorter term, tactical outlook for Bitcoin.
• [19:54] - Why does Bitcoin halving take place and why is it so significant?
• [23:30] - Chris’ thoughts on the Bitcoin market cycles.
• [26:20] - How large might the market opportunity be for Bitcoin ETFs?
• [30:02] - Why are a lot of advisors  still choosing crypto SMAs over ETFs and what are the best use cases for each of these investment vehicles?
• [37:51] - What is the typical allocation to crypto and how has that changed in recent years, if at all?
• [39:08] - Are there any salient differences in what retail and institutional investors are doing with their Bitcoin allocations?
• [41:11] - Resource recommendations for those wanting to learn more about digital assets.
• [42:56] - Chris’ counsel for those who think that crypto is too volatile to invest in.
• [45:42] - What is currently Chris’ favorite investment idea?

Quote

[12:39] - “Moving on to the investment thesis for Ethereum – it is also an internet protocol, like Bitcoin, but it allows internet businesses to build applications on top of it. The analogy that I like to give is that Ethereum is like HTML. HTML is the internet protocol that companies like Amazon and Facebook built their businesses on top of." ~ Chris King

Links

• Chris King on LinkedIn
• Eaglebrook on LinkedIn
• Eaglebrook
• “No Rain” by Blind Melon

Connect with Us

• Meet Rusty Vanneman, Orion’s Chief Investment Officer
• Check Out All of Orion’s Podcasts
• Power Your Growth with Orion

Disclosure(s) ~ Orion Portfolio Solutions, LLC, an Orion Company, is a registered investment advisor. Wealth Management services are offered by Orion Portfolio Solutions, LLC d/b/a Brinker Capital Investments a registered investment advisor. Brinker Capital Investments and Orion Portfolio Solutions, LLC are both wholly owned subsidiaries of Orion Advisor Solutions, Inc. (“Orion”).

Compliance Code: 0548-OPS-3/5/2024

Today, Rusty and Robyn are joined by Nate Conrad, Head of LifeX at Stone Ridge. Nate formerly served as the Head of Markets at Stone Ridge and as the President of NYDIG. Prior to joining Stone Ridge in 2016, Nate worked at Goldman Sachs as a vice president in the Interest Rates Trading business. Nate received his BSE in Computer Information Science from the University of Pennsylvania.

Key Takeaways

• [02:53] - Nate’s professional background and career highlights.
• [04:18] - What differentiates Stone Ridge Asset Management as a firm?
• [06:38] - How does LifeX work and how might it be a game changer for financial advisors and investors?
• [08:30] - What is the concept of “longevity pooling” and how does it work to improve retirement outcomes?
• [12:48] - What are some of the unique implementations or use cases for LifeX?
• [15:57] - How might the aforementioned use cases drive higher investor confidence and better investor behavior?
• [17:40] - Who is LifeX most appropriate for and who might it not be appropriate for?
• [19:25] - When should an investor use LifeX and when should they use an annuity instead?
• [21:20] - What are the pros and cons of using LifeX vs. annuities?
• [24:20] - What are some of the most common investor concerns or questions that they get about LifeX?
• [26:55] - The tax treatment of LifeX distributions.
• [30:15] - How has LifeX been affected by falling interest rates?
• [34:33] - Rules of thumb for sizing the position of LifeX in one's portfolio.
• [36:08] - How can investors and advisors get access to these mutual funds?
• [37:15] - Nate’s favorite investment idea currently.

Quotes

[08:28] - "So, longevity pooling…[is] this idea that you take a bunch of people, you pool them together…each individual in the pool, they don’t know how long they are going to live…but if we pool a bunch of people together of the same age and gender, our ability to predict the lifespan of that group, on average, is incredibly precise. " ~ Nate Conrad

[20:48] - "If you look back to…the adoption of index funds over time, it took about 50 years from, you know, the birth of the ideas behind index funds to the first index fund hitting a billion dollars. I hope we’ll go faster than 50 years and…really kind of evolving the way we approach retirement in our industry and we’re trying to do our part to help it along. " ~ Nate Conrad

Links

• Nate Conrad on LinkedIn
• “Under Pressure” by Queen
• Wade Pfau White Paper
• Stone Ridge on LinkedIn
• LifeX Funds
• Stone Ridge

Connect with Us

• Meet Rusty Vanneman, Orion’s Chief Investment Officer
• Check Out All of Orion’s Podcasts
• Power Your Growth with Orion

Compliance Code: 0217-OPS-1/29/2024

Disclosure(s)

Orion Portfolio Solutions, LLC, an Orion Company, is a registered investment advisor.

The LifeX Funds are not annuities or other types of insurance contracts, and the distributions provided by the LifeX Funds are not guaranteed or otherwise backed by an insurance company or by any third party. 

The investment objective of the LifeX Funds is to achieve income and a high level of reliable monthly distributions while maintaining the safety of the principal amount of each fund’s investments. For more information about LifeX, please visit www.lifexfunds.com.  The LifeX Funds are sold to persons of a single gender who were born in a particular calendar year specified in the relevant prospectus. Before making an investment/allocation decision, investors should (i) consider the suitability of this investment with respect to their investment objective and individual situation and (ii) consider factors such as their net worth, income, age and risk tolerance. Investment should be avoided by those with very serious or life-threatening health problems.

You should consider the investment objectives, risks and charges and expenses of the LifeX Funds carefully before investing; the prospectuses contain this and other information. Prospectuses for the LifeX Funds may be obtained by calling 855-609-3680. Alternatively, you may click the links below:  

LifeX Income Funds: here.  

LifeX Inflation-Protected Income Funds: here.  

Investing involves risks. Principal loss is possible. 

The LifeX Funds are distributed by Foreside Global Services, LLC. 

Distribution rates discussed herein are based on estimated initial purchase prices in the funds’ prospectuses as revised January 10, 2024.

In this episode, Rusty Vanneman and Robyn Murray are joined by Fritz Folts from 3EDGE Asset Management. Fritz has over 20 years of experience at the investment committee level in the investment management industry. He was one of the co-founders of 3EDGE Asset Management, where he serves as the Chief Investment Strategist and Member of the Investment Committee.

Prior to 3EDGE, Fritz was one of the first team members at Windward Investment Management, a pioneer in constructing globally diversified portfolios utilizing index Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs). After the acquisition of Windward by Charles Schwab in 2010, the name of the firm was changed to Windhaven Investment Management. Fritz became responsible for distribution of Windhaven's investment solutions throughout the entire Charles Schwab nationwide retail branch network. He and his team raised over $15 billion in new assets under management. Later, Fritz was named Chief Investment Strategist at Windhaven. He began his career at The Boston Company, where he ultimately served as Vice President, and Director of Global Funding for the then-newly-formed Boston Safe Deposit & Trust Co. (U.K.) Ltd., in London, England.

Fritz received his B.A. with a major in Political Science from Connecticut College and his MBA from IESE (Instituto Estudios Superiores de la Empresa), a bilingual Spanish - English MBA program in Barcelona, Spain. He is the former Chair of the Board of Trustees at Connecticut College and now serves as an Emeritus Trustee. In addition, Fritz currently serves on the Investment Committee for the Connecticut College endowment fund and the Investment Committee for the Umbrella Center for the Arts in Concord, MA.

Fritz and his wife Cathy live in Concord, Massachusetts.

Key Takeaways

• [03:06] - Fritz’s professional background and what drove him to 3EDGE.
• [04:25] - The 3EDGE model is “human plus machine,” which powers their investment research process. How did they decide on this model and what really sets them apart as a firm?
• [08:30] - For advisors and clients looking at their year end reports, how should investors consider their portfolio performance considering the state of the  2023 market?
• [09:31] - What is 3EDGE’s baseline scenario, bull case and bear case for 2024?
• [15:05] - Is it reasonable for investors to focus so much on The Federal Reserve and how much does 3EDGE factor this into their decision making process?
• [17:30] - How should investors be thinking about the upcoming presidential election and how can they prepare for it, if at all?
• [21:05] - What might it take for international stocks to outperform and how should investors be allocating to non-US equities?
• [27:25] - Tips on how to size the positions of diversifying asset classes, such as  alts and real assets.
• [31:26] - What is currently Fritz’s favorite investment idea for 2024?

Quotes

[07:45] - "I do think that investors were probably disappointed in the performance of their portfolios, because we had a market that was driven by…these Magnificent 7 mega cap technology funds, and you are not going to keep up with that when that is driving the entire market. If I look at investors, I would say…‘it’s okay, that’s not normal…you just have to realize, it wouldn’t be realistic to keep up with an index where 7 stocks are driving the majority of the performance.’” ~ Fritz Folts

[21:56] - "I think the best chance for the non-US equities to take a leadership position, for an extended period of time, will only be after there is a material correction in the US market.” ~ Fritz Folts

Links

• Fritz Folts on LinkedIn
• “Everything's Coming Our Way” by Santana
• 3EDGE Asset Management

Connect with Us

• Meet Rusty Vanneman, Orion’s Chief Investment Officer
• Check Out All of Orion’s Podcasts
• Power Your Growth with Orion

Compliance Code: 0280-OPS-2/6/2024

Disclosure(s) ~ Orion Portfolio Solutions, LLC, an Orion Company, is a registered investment advisor.

In this episode, Rusty Vanneman and Robyn Murray are joined by Ron Ahluwalia, Mili Rosen and Will Girton from Brinker Capital’s award winning due diligence team. Ron Ahluwalia is a Vice President, Senior Portfolio Manager at Brinker Capital, an Orion Company. In this role, he is responsible for the portfolio management, strategy planning, and communication of multi-asset class portfolios for high net worth clients and institutions. Ron has over 18 years of industry experience. Mili Rosen works on the Investment Due Diligence team as a Senior Investment Analyst covering a variety of managers on the firm's OPS/Brinker Capital platforms. Asset class coverage includes domestic and international equities, fixed income, real assets, alternatives, and private equity across various vehicles (i.e., SMAs, ETFs, Mutual Funds, LPs). Will Girton is an Investment Analyst on Brinker’s award winning Due Diligence team.

Key Takeaways

• [07:12] - How many managers, strategies and research reports does the entire Brinker due diligence team take on each year?
• [08:16] - Why is money manager due diligence so important to building out investment portfolios?
• [09:40] - How often do they uncover “a snake in the attic,” so to speak, while doing due diligence?
• [10:48] - How do the due diligence requirements differ when you are building out a “supermarket of strategies?”
• [12:52] - How do they go about finding new managers? Are there certain characteristics they screen for?
• [16:51] - How does Brinker Capital’s due diligence approach differ from other firms?
• [23:27] - In the current environment, where is advisor demand and what are the strategies that people want?
• [25:42] - Favorite money managers they’ve encountered over the years and why did they like them so much?
• [31:15] - Advice for those wanting to enter the investment management profession?
• [33:31] - Three characteristics that Ron looks for when hiring a due diligence analyst.
• [35:55] - What investment ideas are looking particularly attractive to the team right now?

Quotes

[18:05] - "We really treat due diligence as an endogenous cycle. It never really stops, it’s not a ‘set it and forget it’ mentality, so [while] performance is very important…just focusing on performance is a very quick way to fail.’” ~ Mili Rosen

[35:03] - "I think communication skills are something that are very important. The ability to relate to people, particularly when you are serving clients on the outside [is so important].  Just the ability to find common ground and have a true, meaningful conversation that isn’t totally buttoned up…[and] having that ability to…have people lower their guard with you, I think that is a critical aspect as well.” ~ Ron Ahluwalia

Links

• Brinker Capital

Connect with Us

• Meet Rusty Vanneman, Orion’s Chief Investment Officer
• Check Out All of Orion’s Podcasts
• Power Your Growth with Orion

Disclosure(s) ~ Orion Portfolio Solutions, LLC, an Orion Company, is a registered investment advisor.

Wealth Management services are offered by Orion Portfolio Solutions, LLC d/b/a Brinker Capital Investments a registered investment advisor. Brinker Capital Investments and Orion Portfolio Solutions, LLC are both wholly owned subsidiaries of Orion Advisor Solutions, Inc. (“Orion”).

Compliance Code: 0414-OPS-2/23/2024

As DoubleLine’s Deputy Chief Investment Officer, Jeffrey Sherman oversees and administers DoubleLine’s Investment Management sub-committee coordinating and implementing policies and processes across the investment teams. He also serves as lead portfolio manager for multi-sector and derivative-based strategies. Mr. Sherman is a member of DoubleLine’s Executive Management and Fixed Income Asset Allocation Committees. He can be heard regularly on his podcast “The Sherman Show” (Twitter @ShermanShowPod, ShermanShow@Doubleline.com) where he interviews distinguished guests, giving listeners insight into DoubleLine’s current views. In 2018, Money Management Executive named Jeffrey Sherman as one of “10 Fund Managers to Watch” in its yearly special report. Prior to joining DoubleLine in 2009, Mr. Sherman was a Senior Vice President at TCW where he worked as a portfolio manager and quantitative analyst focused on fixed income and real-asset portfolios. He was a statistics and mathematics instructor at both the University of the Pacific and Florida State University. Mr. Sherman taught Quantitative Methods for Level I candidates in the CFA LA/USC Review Program for many years. He holds a B.S. in Applied Mathematics from the University of the Pacific and an M.S. in Financial Engineering from the Claremont Graduate University. Mr. Sherman is a CFA® charterholder.

Key Takeaways

• [3:45] - Jeff’s professional background and career highlights.
• [07:06] - Jeff helped found DoubleLine in 2009 – what were some of the joys and challenges they faced while starting the company and what sets them apart as a firm?
• [10:20] - How long might the Goldilocks economy be able to last?
• [14:22] - What is DoubleLine’s view on inflation and how might this impact what The Fed does and longer term interest rates?
• [20:55] - Why not just buy treasury bills and chill?
• [23:45] - How should investors be thinking about the upcoming presidential election and how might they be better prepared for the outcome?
• [26:05] - How concerned is Jeff about the deficit and what might it mean for the economy and the markets?
• [29:50] - How should investors be thinking about their fixed income allocations?
• [35:30] - Jeff’s current thoughts on the dollar and also investing overseas.
• [38:25] - Jeff’s thoughts on fixed income ETFs and the future of the ETF industry in general.
• [41:35] - How might the Bitcoin ETFs affect the ETF industry and Bitcoin itself?
• [44:32] - How have skill sets needed to change, if at all, for new people entering the industry?
• [49:56] - Jeffs’s favorite investment idea for 2024.

Quotes

[12:25] - “So, when I look at the economy right now, it’s hard to see it being derailed without the labor market. Now, are there signs of cracks in the economy? Absolutely, we can talk about that, but ultimately I think that the recession at this stage has been delayed a bit." ~ Jeff Sherman

[25:08] - “From our standpoint, we don’t see a lot of election risk in markets unless it’s some exogenous policy that we can’t see at this point, and by definition, you can’t play for that. So, are you going to give up on the market just because you think your party isn’t going to win the election?" ~ Jeff Sherman

Links

• Jeff Sherman on LinkedIn
• DoubleLine
• “Real American” by Rick Derringer
• A Real American Music Video
• DoubleLine Round Table

Connect with Us

• Meet Rusty Vanneman, Orion’s Chief Investment Officer
• Check Out All of Orion’s Podcasts
• Power Your Growth with Orion

Compliance Code: 0306-OPS-2/8/2024

Disclosure(s) ~ Orion Portfolio Solutions, LLC, an Orion Company, is a registered investment advisor.

On the podcast today, Rusty Vanneman and Robyn Murray are joined by Ron Temple. Ronald Temple is the Chief Market Strategist for Lazard’s Financial Advisory and Asset Management businesses. In this role, Ron provides macroeconomic and market perspectives to Lazard’s investment teams on a firm wide basis and works closely with Lazard’s Geopolitical Advisory group to assess economic and market implications of key geopolitical issues globally. Ron also advises clients of Lazard’s Asset Management businesses regarding macroeconomic and market considerations that are important to achieving their objectives.Ron has an MPP from Harvard University and graduated magna cum laude with a BA in Economics & Public Policy from Duke University. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, The Bretton Woods Committee, the Economic Club of New York, the CFA Society New York and is the chair of Duke University’s Graduate School Board of Visitors.

Key Takeaways

• [02:33] - Ron’s professional background and what drives him.
• [04:05] - How do Ron’s extracurricular involvements inform his work at Lazard?
• [05:50] - For advisors and clients looking at their year end reports, what is Ron’s guidance on how to consider 2023? What were some of the key highlights of last year and how should investors consider their portfolio performance considering the state of the  2023 market?
• [07:40] - What is Ron’s outlook on inflation and how might this affect both short-term and long-term interest rates?
• [12:00] - What’s Ron’s current thinking about economic growth?
• [15:20] - How might corporate earnings look in 2024?
• [16:58] - What will be the catalyst for small cap stocks to finally outperform?
• [19:25] - How should investors be thinking about  non-US markets in both developed and emerging markets?
• [25:00] - What are some of the major risks to Ron’s overall economic outlook?
• [31:15] - What were some of the highlights of Ron’s recent report on “Top Geopolitical Trends in 2024?”
• [35:50] - How should investors be thinking about Artificial Intelligence and Biotech?
• [39:41] - What is currently Ron’s favorite investment idea for 2024?

Quotes

[09:38] - "There are two things to know about The Zillow Index. Number one - it only tracks asking rents, not what people agree to pay, so it tends to overstate rent inflation. Number two - it only tracks new leases, it does not include renewals, so it probably overstates the volatility of rent inflation…and number three, because of those factors, it tends to lead the CPI by a year.” ~ Ron Temple

[28:55] - "This is a year where the geopolitics are really important. I know the average American does not wake up every day fretting over whether NATO is going to be fine, but you know what, maybe we should be…These things do determine the long-term trajectory of peace and stability, and I think that matters. ” ~ Ron Temple

Links

• Ron Temple on LinkedIn
• “Don’t Stop” by Fleetwood Mac
• Top Geopolitical Trends in 2024
• An Immense World by Ed Yong
• Lazard Asset Management

Connect with Us

• Meet Rusty Vanneman, Orion’s Chief Investment Officer
• Check Out All of Orion’s Podcasts
• Power Your Growth with Orion

Compliance Code: 0266-OPS-2/5/2024

Disclosure(s)

Orion Portfolio Solutions, LLC, an Orion Company, is a registered investment advisor.

Alex Rabinovich, CFA has a diverse range of work experience in the finance industry. Alex is currently the Head of Enterprise Sales at Halo Investing, a position they have held since January 2023. Prior to that, Alex worked at Russell Investments for almost a decade. Their roles at Russell Investments include Head of Strategic Accounts, where they led a team focused on expanding distribution with national intermediary partners and was responsible for planning and executing business plans. Alex also served as Director of Strategic Accounts, where they initiated and launched new strategic relationships with top broker dealers/distributors. Additionally, Alex worked as a Senior Strategic Account Executive at Russell Investments, collaborating with senior-level contacts at partner firms to grow market share and lead partner-focused initiatives. Before joining Russell Investments, Alex held roles at Morningstar as Vice President of National Accounts and Director of National Accounts, and at AssetMark Investment Services as a Regional Consultant. Alex began their career as a Financial Advisor at John Hancock. Overall, Alex's work experience demonstrates their expertise in strategic account management, sales, and leadership in the finance industry.

Key Takeaways

• [03:18] - Alex’s professional background and career highlights.
• [04:41] - What is “protective investing” in particular?
• [06:30] - How do Defined Outcome products help clients achieve their financial goals?
• [07:35] - Are the terms “Defined Outcome Investing” and “Protective Investing” synonymous?
• [08:30] - How does Alex feel like the Defined Outcome landscape is changing?
• [10:56] - How are advisors using structured products to really differentiate and grow their practices?
• [14:18] - What exactly are structured notes and what are some of their use cases?
• [16:52] - Why did structured notes often have a bad reputation in the past and was this reputation deserved?
• [18:56] - How does Alex see structured notes fitting into broader portfolio allocations? 
• [22:49] - Why are structured notes more popular in Europe and how is the adoption of structured notes going in US markets?
• [27:04] - Alex’s favorite investment idea for 2024.

Links

• Alex Rabinovich on LinkedIn
• Halo Investing
• “It’s a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock ‘N’ Roll)" by AC/DC
• The Ancients Podcast
• The Fund by Rob Copeland
• The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel

Connect with Us

• Meet Rusty Vanneman, Orion’s Chief Investment Officer
• Check Out All of Orion’s Podcasts

Compliance Code: 0178-OPS-1/24/2024

Disclosure(s) Orion Portfolio Solutions, LLC, an Orion Company, is a registered investment advisor.

Phil Toews is Chief Executive Officer of the Toews Corporation and a Portfolio Manager of Toews Asset Management. His management strategies focus on creating “investor friendly” products designed to meet investors’ economic and behavioral needs. Phillip is the founder of the Behavioral Investing Institute, an organization devoted to helping advisors manage investor behavior through market challenges. Learn more at orion.com.

Key Takeaways

• [03:55] - Phillip’s personal and career background.
• [04:58] - What really sets Toews apart from other asset management firms?
• [06:43] - Will this coming year be a case of the bears eating the “Goldilocks market?”
• [08:58] - What are the odds that a recession is on the horizon?
• [10:47] - Can we expect subsequent waves of inflation, as history might suggest?
• [12:47] - Why is global debt a problem and what should investors be doing about their portfolios because of it?
• [15:10] - What market scenarios do the terms “bezzle,” “bezzle fizzle” and “bezzle burst” describe?
• [18:44] - What does Phil’s term “BFT” mean and how does it apply to investing?
• [21:36] - How would Phil contrast a tactical strategy from a hedged strategy?
• [24:48] - Are there any rough rules of thumb that Phil recommends for the respective portfolio weights for both trend following strategies or hedge strategies?
• [28:42] - Words of wisdom for how financial advisors can properly utilize trend following and hedge strategies?
• [31:30] - What is “National Investment Risk Day” and why did Toews help start this?
• [37:11] - What is Phil’s  favorite investment idea currently?

Quotes

[20:55] - "...People just are sort of not into the word ‘tactical’ anymore, and I think what’s happened over the years is that there are people out there that are trying to predict the markets and they haven’t done so well, and so I think it has gotten a little bit of a bad name…so we migrated that over to ‘trend following strategies.’" ~ Phil Toews

[32:32] - "Now Bitcoin is, or Cryptocurrencies are, the trifecta of dumb. No assets, no income or no projected income, so forget about a meme stock that potentially actually earns something one day - there’s nothing. [Yet] it has appreciated 18 million percent in the last 20 years, and only because [of that]...everyone says like…’I think this could be a legitimate thing, this could be a legitimate investment.’" ~ Phil Toews

Links

• Phil Toews on LinkedIn
• Toews Corporation
• “Remember Me” by Blue Boy
• Record Global Debt - Phil Toews on Weighing the Risks
• National Investment Risk Day Webinar
• “Space Oddity” by David Bowie
• “Kooks” by David Bowie

Connect with Us

• Meet Rusty Vanneman, Orion’s Chief Investment Officer
• Check Out All of Orion’s Podcasts
• Power Your Growth with Orion

Compliance Code: 0131-OPS-1/17/2024

Disclosure(s)

Orion Portfolio Solutions, LLC, an Orion Company, is a registered investment advisor.

As we move into the New Year, we take a closer look at the market’s historic year, offer a preview on the year to come, look at bond predictions, global investing and much more. Today on the podcast, Rusty and Robyn are joined by Jeff DeMaso - editor and founder of The Independent Vanguard Adviser. Jeff was previously the co-editor and research director of The Independent Adviser for Vanguard Investors. He also served as Portfolio Manager, Director of Research and the interim CIO at Adviser Investments, LLC—a leading investment advisory firm. He has been quoted in Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, InvestmentNews and Kiplinger, to name a few. Citywire named him a Rising Star of manager research in 2019. Jeff graduated magna cum laude from Tufts University with a B.A. in economics in 2006 and holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

Key Takeaways

• [03:04] - Jeff’s research, professional background and what drives him.
• [05:57] - What really motivates Jeff’s newsletter, The Independent Vanguard Adviser?
• [07:40] - What were some of the biggest events for Vanguard in 2023 and which are the ones that investors should care about the most?
• [09:30] - What does Jeff like best about Vanguard and where does he think they could improve?
• [11:02] - Vanguard’s latest thoughts on ESG strategies.
• [13:55] - The top highlights and lowlights for the 2023 market.
• [15:58] - Jeff’s  economic and market outlook for 2024.
• [19:00] - Jeff’s view on the healthcare sector moving forward.
• [21:00] - How should investors be treating their bond allocations these days?
• [22:35] - Are many of Jeff’s readers asking if they should move their investment funds to money market accounts? If so, how is he addressing this with them?
• [24:23] - Jeff’s take on  non-US stocks, both strategically and tactically, in balanced portfolios.
• [26:17] - What is his favorite investment idea, currently, for 2024?

Quotes

[04:18] - "That’s going to be my career hack…find the person you can learn the most from and go work with them as closely as possible. Ask questions, don’t be afraid to make mistakes and just keep learning." ~ Jeff DeMaso

[10:15] - "...Vanguard’s service in tech…continues to fall short of its competitors, and I cannot wait for the day when I get to write the article that says ‘Hey, Vanguard has really stepped up their game and their service is  firing on all cylinders’ - today is not that day." ~ Jeff DeMaso

Links

• Jeff DeMaso on LinkedIn
• The Independent Vanguard Adviser
• Aloe Blacc - The Man (Explicit)
• Just One Thing Podcast
• Morgan Housel Podcast

Connect with Us

• Meet Rusty Vanneman, Orion’s Chief Investment Officer
• Check Out All of Orion’s Podcasts
• Power Your Growth with Orion

Compliance Code: 0031-OPS-1/5/2024

Disclosure(s)

Orion Portfolio Solutions, LLC, an Orion Company, is a registered investment advisor.

As 2023 comes to a close, this episode looks at what may be in store for the year ahead and covers things that investors and financial advisors should be considering going into 2024. Kim speaks to the state of the US market going forward and the outlook for international markets in the coming year. In addition, we take a closer look at why Kim views actively managed ETFs as superior, more tax efficient vehicles to mutual funds for investors. Lastly, we learn more about Main Management’s firm culture and how Kim, and his partners, have created such a sticky culture there.

Key Takeaways

• [02:52] - Kim’s professional background and career highlights.
• [04:32] - What makes Main Management really stand out as a firm?
• [06:13] - Kim’s current thoughts on the economy and  his outlook for 2024.
• [08:02] - Kim’s view on interest rates and how investors should be treating their bond allocations.
• [09:26] - Advice for income oriented advisors who want to stick their investment dollars into money markets.
• [10:30] - The state of the US market going forward and the argument for staying diversified.
• [11:55] - Kim’s philosophy around sector rotation and what sectors look attractive to him now.
• [13:43] - Council for investors concerned with income generation and de-risking their equity allocation.
• [15:23] - The outlook for international markets in 2024.
• [17:01] - How Main Management helps mitigate the tax burden for their clients.
• [19:31] - Why Kim views the ETF as a superior vehicle to mutual funds for investors.
• [21:46] - The importance of firm culture and how Kim has excelled in this area.
• [25:00] - Kim’s favorite investment idea currently.

Quotes

[04:34] - "When we founded the firm 21 years ago, we wanted to build the strategies using liquid, transparent ETFs, which for all intents and purposes had really just started at that point. There were only one hundred, there are thousands of them today…but what we wanted to deliver, the why for the business, was we wanted to have a client first, exceptional service and deliver on expectations." ~ Kim Arthur

[12:00] - "…Out of the eleven industry sectors that build up and make up the S&P 500, we typically overweight four of those. I’d love to be able to tell you ‘hey, every year all four of those are at the top of the price performance chart,’ but it usually does not end up that way. There’s typically a split of two of them up at the top and two of them at the bottom…[so] I like to say they’re ‘seasoning.’ " ~ Kim Arthur

Links

• Kim Arthur on LinkedIn
• Main Management
• “Surrender” by Cheap Trick
• Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson

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Disclosure(s)

Orion Portfolio Solutions, LLC, an Orion Company, is a registered investment advisor.