Investment Insights

Greenspring Advisors Investment Planning Insights

The Active Passive Powerhouse

For years it has been assumed that you have to be either an active or passive investor. It is also assumed (depending on which camp you're in) that one is better than the other. In my opinion, the argument over active vs. passive management can be put squarely to bed. And the answer to which investing strategy we use is...Both. This is called evidence-based investing, and it is a strategy used by a company whose funds we are extremely fortunate to use on our clients' behalf ---Dimensional Fund Advisors (DFA).
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“Sixty Percent Of The Time, It Works Every Time”

You may recognize the quote in the title from the movie Anchorman. This can be a lot like stock pickers, pundits, and TV personalities. You should run from anyone who is using prediction for the basis of advice.
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Greenspring Advisors Investment Planning Insights

The Smartest Person in the World Can Still Be a Terrible Investor

Have you ever felt intimidated by the markets? Thought that investing was only for brilliant people?  Maybe you hear jargon like “beta,” “derivatives,” or “standard deviation,” and it just goes over your head? Contrary to what you may think, you can be the smartest person in the world and still be a terrible investor.
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Is Relying On Stock Markets For Economic Signals A Mistake?

If we had signals that told us with certainty what direction the economy was headed, we might have an edge in our investment strategy; we would know when it was a good time to invest when to proceed with caution or put the brakes on.
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How Many Clients Does Your Advisor Work With?

How Barron's Top 1,200 financial advisors effectively serve 521 clients? We have clients from these firms coming to our firm every month looking for a better solution.
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Four Points to Keep in Mind in a Down Stock Market

After more or less a flat year in 2015, the broad U.S. stock market is down, as of mid-March in 2016. But that's no reason to throw up your hands in despair. Instead, this is a time to remember that disciplined investing is what matters most. It's easy to stay invested when the market's going great guns. What takes discipline is staying the course when things get rough—instead of making rash moves that may actually cut into your long-term investment returns.
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Greenspring Advisors Investment Planning Insights

How Long Does It Take To Say For Certain Your Investment Manager’s Performance Isn’t Just Luck?

I find it interesting that consultants and advisors in our industry tend to talk about a manager's skill after a period of outperformance.  After several years of outperformance, consultants conclude that this manager is not merely lucky but skillful.
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Greenspring Advisors Investment Planning Insights

The Dirty Little Secret About Index Funds

If you read this blog regularly, you know that we advocate a passive, low-cost, diversified investment portfolio.  Most people equate that to index funds.  For the majority of investors, index funds are a great alternative to their actively managed counterparts.
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Greenspring Advisors Investment Planning Insights

Stock Market Predictions Are Worthless

I am not sure what our fascination with predictions is all about.  Whether it is political elections, sports, or the financial markets, everyone seems to be willing to stop and listen to someone willing to make a prediction.  Rarely do we ever go back to evaluate how those predictions pan out?
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