WrapManager's Wealth Management Blog

Fred Alger's Fall 2012 investment commentary focuses on corporate earnings and where they see opportunities moving forward. "We are encouraged to see companies either start paying dividends or increase dividends. Many companies are also buying back stock at an aggressive rate. The result, we believe, is to put a fundamental floor on the U.S. stock market. We are highly encouraged by what we’ve seen in corporate fundamentals and market reactions. Regulators across the world are raising the rhetoric about slowing economic growth and in many parts of the world, such as China and Brazil, policies are clearly moving to a stimulative stance. In other parts, like Europe, it’s mostly rhetoric that is supporting equity market gains, but we increasingly think stimulus from policymakers is likely. We maintain that it is not time to sell equities as some suggest. Rather, it is time to buy if you have a time horizon that goes beyond a year, and buy more on market dips if you already own equities. During this back to school season, it is time to embrace equities and the rigorous work of conducting in-depth, fundamental research that we believe can find attractive opportunities. And it’s time to diversify away from a likely losing asset class that is offering historically low yields: U.S. Treasuries." Click here to read Fred Alger’s Full Commentary. Get Free Research Reports about Fred Alger [+] Read More

International money manager Wenthworth Hauser's fall investment commentary focuses on the international equity markets and economies. "The global economy is slowing due to a deepening recession in Europe, tepid U.S. growth and slower growth in several developing economies including China. The developed countries of the world are battling large budget deficits and expanding sovereign debt. Unless the legislative and executive branches of government in the U.S. take action, a combination of spending cuts and tax increases effective at the beginning of 2013 will likely send the domestic economy into a downturn. On a more positive note, corporate profits are near a record level, corporate balances sheets are strong and consumers are repairing their balance sheets. Central banks around the world are flooding the system with liquidity which should help support asset prices and defer sovereign default and deflation." Download Full Commmentary Here Get Free Research Reports about Wentworth, Hauser & Violich [+] Read More

Charles Schwab recently announced that it agreed to purchase money manager ThomasPartners for $85 million. The move comes as Schwab is trying to expand its money manager offering to clients. ThomasPartners dividend-growth strategy was particularly attractive, with $2.3 billion in the strategy. Charles Schwab's other high profile acquisitions was Windhaven Investments in late 2011. Get Free Research Reports about Thomas Partners [+] Read More

In their September commentary for the Strategic Value Dividend portfolio, Federated Investors summarizes what they see for the final quarter in 2012. "As the fourth quarter of 2012 begins and the broad market focuses on issues such as the upcoming election, the persisting debt crisis in Europe, etc., the Strategic Value Dividend portfolio will continue to stay above the fray and remain rooted in its unwavering dedication to provide its investors with a high and rising dividend cash stream. By investing in companies that have both the ability and the inclination to pay and increase their dividends, the Strategic Value Dividend portfolio also seeks to position itself well to achieve superior long-term total returns for its investors, since history has shown dividend yield and dividend growth to be the primary drivers of historical total returns in equities. The portfolio is further complemented by the natural lower downside risk features of its high quality, high yielding holdings. All of these factors may make the Strategic Value Dividend portfolio a viable strategy for a wide array of investors, and demonstrate the benefits of investing in high quality, well-established companies that pay large and rising dividends to their investors." Download Full Commmentary Here Get Free Research Reports about Federated Investors Inc [+] Read More

Louis Navellier expects a flight to quality after the 10% surge in the S&P 500 during the summer. "Stocks were off fractionally last week, but we closed the summer months (June 21 to September 21) up 10.2% in the S&P 500 and +11.2% in NASDAQ. I don’t think we’ll match those gains in the autumn months - due to new global uncertainties, an election that seems too close to call, and a potential decline in third-quarter earnings - but the silver lining is that there should be a "flight to quality."" Download Full Commmentary Here Get Free Research Reports about Navellier & Associates, Inc. [+] Read More

The SEC has charged Ray Lucia and his “Buckets of Money” investing strategy for spreading misleading information at several investment seminars. Ray Lucia claimed that his strategy, which attempts to provide inflation adjusted income and portfolio protection, had been back tested extensively. The SEC found that the actual back testing consisted of a two two-page spreadsheets. Read the full story here. WrapManager believes this highlights how important it is for investors to conduct proper due diligence before investing with a money manager. As this is often difficult to do, WrapManager actively conducts due diligence on several money managers and their strategies. If you would like to research a money manager, simply search our Money Manager Directory and request the information. Get Free Research Reports about Ray Lucia's Bucket Strategy [+] Read More

Paul Lobosco, President of Forward Capital Management, shares his latest thoughts on the economy, markets, European events and more in his August newsletter. "Markets behave so differently today than they did 10 or 20 years ago. I am in awe of the pace of change and the volatility. This earnings season - the 2nd quarter of 2012 - has been the craziest I have ever seen. Seriously. From the European roller coaster to the Sandy Weill comments to the constant triple-digit Dow moves. There's so much to talk about. I thought I'd refer to some important topics via bullet points." Click here to read Forward Capital’s Full Commentary Get Free Research Reports about Forward Capital Management [+] Read More

Lord Abbet's Milton Ezrati examines the situation in Greece and its membership within the Euro. "German politicians seem to have lost patience with Athens. Blustering about throwing good money after bad, they have shown a new eagerness to throw Greece out of the currency union, at least a rhetorical one. They are not alone. Similar sentiments have surfaced in Austria, Finland, the Netherlands, even in Estonia. Understandable as such talk is, an expulsion of Greece is not so easy as these naysayers seem to believe, and would almost surely cost the eurozone more than further accommodation would, a lot more. On the assumption that politics will follow at least vague cost-benefit calculations, likelihoods, then, suggest that Europe, for all the tough talk, will find a way to keep Greece in the currency union." Get Free Research Reports about Lord Abbett Company Llc [+] Read More

Lord Abbett's Milton Ezrati looks to the municipal markets and examines a few of the positives taking shape. "State and local government finances remain precarious. The degree of trouble varies from place to place, of course, but generally it will take decades for states and cities to put their finances in anything like good order. It is, in fact, a good bet that no middle-aged person today will live to see such an event. One wag has suggested that the yet unborn will not live to see such a day. But if such cynicism carries truth, the immediate outlook can nonetheless anticipate some modest relief, at least enough to ease some of the strains under which state and local governments have labored and enough to improve investment performance in the area as well as on the overall economic picture." Get Free Research Reports about Lord Abbett Company Llc [+] Read More