Should You Invest in an IPO?

We like shiny new objects. For investors, the object is the initial public offering or IPO. Getting in on the ground floor of a hot offering is a huge draw. A few high-profile private companies are now publicly traded. Companies like UBER, Pinterest, Slack, Lyft, Chewy, Beyond Meat, Levi Strauss, Zoom Video, Smile Direct, and Peloton are now trading publicly. How have they performed?[1]

  • UBER = Down 24%
  • Pinterest = Up 11%
  • Slack = Down 41%
  • Beyond Meat = Up 110%
  • Lyft = Down 47%
  • Zoom Video = Up 28%
  • Chewy = Down 23%
  • Levi Strauss = Down 16%
  • Smile Direct = Down 13%
  • Peloton = Down 7%

According to CNBC, 120 IPOs have come public this year, and 57 are trading down, 48% of the issues are trading in negative territory.[2] Not all IPOs are bad, of course, as Coke, Pepsi, McDonald’s, Starbucks, Home Depot, Costco, Walmart, Amazon, Apple, and Google have performed well over time.

When a company issues shares to the public, the founders and early investors are cashing out. Companies hire investment banks like Goldman Sachs or Morgan Stanley to help sell and market their shares. The banks conduct roadshows to introduce the company to investors and receive indications of interests. If you’re lucky, your broker will give you a few shares of the offering. Once the deal closes, the stock will start trading on the open market where investors who weren’t able to get shares during the offering phase can now purchase the stock.

For Example, the IPO price for Beyond Meat was $25 per share. It started trading at $46 and quickly popped to $72.95 before closing at $65.75. The founders, owners, and early-stage investors were in well before the offering. Investors in the IPO received shares priced at $25. The public was able to buy it between $65.75 and $72.95. On the first day of trading Beyond Meat soared 192%! However, only early stage investors and IPO participants realized this gain. If you bought it at the top, you lost about 10% on the first day.

The IPO market is reeling because of the poor stock performance of Peloton, Uber, Lyft, Slack, and a few other high-profile names. As a result, We Work, and Endeavor Group Holdings canceled their offerings. Endeavor has sited “weak stock market demand” as a reason for suspending their IPO launch.[3] We Work, on the other hand, will be a Harvard Business School case study someday on how not to handle an IPO. Investors grew concerned with the company’s valuation, the CEO, and the lack of profitability. Since We Work announced they’re terminating their IPO, the CEO has stepped down and the company may lay off one-third of their workforce.

Mutual funds and large institutions are significant players in the IPO market, and some are speculating that they may forego investing in IPOs in the future because of the recent poor performance. Don’t hold your breath. Do you remember the Tech-Wreck? From April 2000 to October 2002, the S&P 500 fell 44% because of the extreme valuation in technology stocks, and the feeding frenzy with dot.com IPOs. Investors bid up the prices of Pets.com, eToys, and Webvan only to have them evaporate into thin air a few months later. Despite the disastrous performance of the IPOs in the early 2000s, large institutions are still investing in new offerings.

I worked at Morgan Stanley during the insane days of IPO listings and investors couldn’t wait to buy a new offering regardless of what the company did or where it would price. They didn’t care because their intent was to flip the stock as soon as possible and pocket big money. This strategy worked until it didn’t. Tulip Mania?

Should you invest in IPOs? Most brokerage firms have strict policies on who gets shares. You won’t be able to cherry-pick the best stocks and you’ll be forced to buy both good and bad names. And most allocations to retail investors are small. In a hot IPO like Peloton, you may only receive 25 shares. If you want to participate in this arena, limit your allocation to 3% to 5% of your investment capital.

Shiny objects eventually fade, but speculators will always be attracted to peddlers promising short-term gargantuan gains. If you’re late to the party, you could lose a significant amount of money.

Be careful. Do your homework. Invest wisely.

What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. ~ Ecclesiastes 1:9

September 27, 2019

Bill Parrott, CFP®, CKA® is the President and CEO of Parrott Wealth Management located in Austin, Texas. Parrott Wealth Management is a fee-only, fiduciary, registered investment advisor firm. Our goal is to remove complexity, confusion, and worry from the investment and financial planning process so our clients can pursue a life of purpose. Our firm does not have an asset or fee minimum, and we work with anybody who needs financial help regardless of age, income, or asset level.

Note: Investments are not guaranteed and do involve risk. Your returns may differ than those posted in this blog. PWM is not a tax advisor, nor do we give tax advice. Please consult your tax advisor for items that are specific to your situation. Options involve risk and aren’t suitable for every investor.

 

 

[1] YCharts

[2] CNBC, Carl Quintanilla Twitter @carlquintanilla, September 26, 2019 @ 10:54

[3] https://www.cnbc.com/2019/09/26/endeavor-pulls-plug-on-ipo-day-before-debut-wsj-reports.html, Riya Bhattacharjee, September 26, 2019

Want More Income?

Interest rates are falling, and investors are starving for income. Coupon rates on U.S. Treasuries are paying less than 2% except for the 30-Year U.S. Treasury bond, which is paying 2.25%. Corporate bonds, CD’s, and tax-free bonds aren’t paying much more. The Federal Open Market Committee recently lowered interest rates by a quarter of a point, and they’ll probably do it again at their next meeting. With rates falling, how is it possible to generate more income?

One strategy to incorporate is a systematic withdrawal plan (SWP). This approach allows you to receive income from your mutual funds while taking advantage of the long-term growth from the stock market. Your payout will be a combination of income, dividends, capital gains, and principal. For example, if you invest $100,000 in a globally diversified portfolio of mutual funds and instruct your advisor to send you a monthly check for $400, then your payout will be 4.8% of your principal.

Your payout can be fixed or variable. With a fixed payout you’ll receive the same dollar amount regardless of your account balance. A variable payout will pay you a percentage of your account balance annually, so if your account rises, you’ll earn more income.

Let’s look at a few real-world examples.

Since 1926, a 60% stock and 40% bond portfolio has produced an average annual return of 8.92% while inflation averaged 2.89%, so the real return was 6.03%.[1]  Starting an example in 1926 is not realistic, so let’s look at three different periods: 2000, 2007, and 2009.

Each example will begin with a value of $100,000 and an annual withdrawal rate of 4% of the account balance. The mutual funds are managed by Dimensional Fund Advisors, and they’ll be rebalanced annually. The asset allocation mix is 60% stocks, 40% bonds. Here is the list of funds:[2]

  • DFA Large Cap Value (DFLVX) = 20%
  • DFA Large Cap International (DFALX) = 20%
  • DFA Small Cap (DFSTX) = 5%
  • DFA International Small Cap (DFISX) = 5%
  • DFA Real Estate (DFREX) = 5%
  • DFA Emerging Markets (DFEMX) = 5%
  • DFA Intermediate Government (DFIGX) = 20%
  • DFA Two-Year Government (DFYGX) = 20%

Example 1: January 1, 2000 to December 31, 2010. During this stretch, the S&P 500 lost 14.4%. Your original investment of $100,000 grew to $106,667, and you received $66,471 in total income. The average annual return was 6.6%.

Example 2: October 1, 2007 to August 31, 2019. From October 2007 to March 2009, the S&P 500 fell 48% during the Great Recession, so your investment timing was horrible, one of the worst times to start investing in history. As a result of your poor timing, your $100,000 sunk to $77,640, but you received $58,512 in income. Your average annual return was 3.4%. Despite the initial drop, you still made money.

Example 3. March 1, 2009 to August 31, 2019. During this stretch, the S&P 500 soared 298% or 14.05% per year. As a result of your great timing, your $100,000 is now worth $137,036, and you received $90,071 in income. Your average annual return was 10.98% per year.

Example 4. January 1, 2000 to August 31, 2019. During this time, the S&P 500 averaged 2.25% per year. Your original investment of $100,000 is now worth $99,975, and you received $121,534 in total income. Your average annual return was 6.27%.

A globally diversified portfolio of low-cost mutual funds gives you an opportunity to receive above-average income. You probably won’t start investing at a market top, or bottom, so rather than trying to time the market or trade your way to wealth, focus on your long-term goals. A diversified portfolio will allow you to capture global market returns over time, and over time, stocks win.

Invest globally, receive locally.

Here is part of the tradeoff with diversification. You must be diversified enough to survive bad times or bad luck so that skill and good process can have the chance to pay off over the long term. ~ Joel Greenblatt

September 26, 2019

Bill Parrott, CFP®, CKA® is the President and CEO of Parrott Wealth Management located in Austin, Texas. Parrott Wealth Management is a fee-only, fiduciary, registered investment advisor firm. Our goal is to remove complexity, confusion, and worry from the investment and financial planning process so our clients can pursue a life of purpose. Our firm does not have an asset or fee minimum, and we work with anybody who needs financial help regardless of age, income, or asset level.

Note: Investments are not guaranteed and do involve risk. Your returns may differ than those posted in this blog. PWM is not a tax advisor, nor do we give tax advice. Please consult your tax advisor for items that are specific to your situation. Options involve risk and aren’t suitable for every investor.

 

 

 

 

[1] Dimensional Fund Advisors Returns Web, 1/1/1926 – 7/31/2019.

[2] Morningstar Office Hypothetical, gross returns before taxes and fees.

Sex, Politics, and Religion

There’s no faster way to clear a room or make people feel uncomfortable than to talk about sex, politics, or religion. These subjects are taboo to most, and they offer no middle ground. They’re polarizing topics, and in a non-politically correct world, they’re guaranteed to upset at least half of the people in your network. However, an issue more forbidden than the big three is money.

The Bible has over 2,300 verses on money-related issues, more than any other subject. God knew we were going to idolize money. He knew it would challenge us, yet we hardly discuss the topic.

Sex, politics, and religion are taught, at some level, in school. Most people probably have a working knowledge of all three subjects, not so with money. Schools have limited resources to teach kids about money, and when they graduate, their knowledge of finance is low. Credit cards, car loans, mortgages, investments, and retirement accounts are foreign and confusing concepts, especially if you have never been taught how they work.

Most of Generation Z is concerned about money as 51% of them are afraid “money issues will stop them from doing things,” and 42% of them have “unanswered questions about finances.”[1] Three-quarters of this cohort believe classes about managing finances needs to be taught in high school.[2] Despite the need, only a quarter of the students have taken any financial education classes.[3]

Financial literacy is another concern. According to the National Financial Educators Council, 54% of college students had overdrawn bank accounts, and 81% underestimated how long it would take to pay off a credit card. 70% of parents are less prepared to talk about investing than they are about having the “sex talk.” [4]

Student loan debt is another sign students and parents don’t understand money-related issues. Currently, student loan debt stands at $1.5 trillion, so it appears several of you aren’t saving enough money to pay for college or discussing the pitfalls of accumulating debt.

Do you talk about money at your dinner table? Probably not. Most of what I know about money, banking, and finance I learned on my own through reading and life experiences. Children typically follow their parents lead when it comes to managing money. I couldn’t wait to purchase a T-Bill when I was older after making several trips to First Interstate Bank with my mom and seeing the advertisements for T-Bills. My dad lost money from a Ginnie Mae investment, and for the longest time, I had an aversion to recommending them to clients. You may have a similar story on how your parents invested their money and how it formed your future investment habits.

I received my first credit card as a student in college after signing my name to a limited application. It was a Citi card with a $500 line of credit, and this was my first experience with debt. After a few charges and payments, I was “rewarded” with a more significant credit line despite not having a job. During college, my friends and I took a trip to Las Vegas, and I quickly depleted my cash, but, no fear, I had my new credit card. I made a cash withdrawal from an ATM. I wasn’t aware of the high fee for the advance and that the charge would start accumulating interest immediately.  A late-night cash advance to play blackjack in Las Vegas – what could go wrong? My debt began to climb before I decided to control my spending.

The best time to start talking about money-related issues was yesterday and the second-best time is today, so here are a few ideas to get you started.

  • Open a savings account to save $1,000. When you’ve reached your goal, then aim to save 3 to 6 months of your household expenses.
  • Create a budget to review your spending patterns and habits. Once you establish your budget, review your spending weekly, and adjust as needed.
  • Identify your debt obligations – mortgage, credit cards, auto loans, and student loans. Start by paying off your credit cards, auto loans, and student loans.
  • Limit your total debt to 38% of your total gross income.
  • It’s okay to use a credit card if you pay it off every month. If you don’t have the cash to pay it off monthly, use a debit card, and only buy what you need. If you can’t afford it, don’t buy it.
  • Automate your payments and limit your subscription services.
  • If you have children, open a 529 education account or Uniform Trust to Minors Account to start saving for college. The current annual cost for a public college is $26,000. A private college will cost you twice as much, or $52,500.[5] The current inflation rate for college costs is 6%, three times the inflation rate for other goods and services.
  • If your time horizon is three years or more, buy stocks. A lump-sum deposit works best. Employ a dollar-cost averaging strategy if you don’t have money saved up to buy stocks. Saving a few hundred dollars a month will add up over time.
  • Contribute the maximum to your 401(k) plan. The maximum amount is $19,000. If you’re 50 or older, you can add another $6,000.
  • Contribute to an IRA. You can contribute $6,000 and if you’re over 50 or older, you can add another $1,000. Your income tax bracket will determine if you can contribute to a traditional IRA or a Roth.
  • Buy a home if your time horizon is more than seven years. Buying a home will create equity, and at some point, it will be paid off. If your home is paid off in retirement, you’ll have an asset with no monthly payment. Lifelong renters will have no asset or equity, but they’ll still have a monthly rent payment.
  • Give to others by donating 10% of your income to help those groups and organizations you support. In addition to donating your resources, consider giving your time. Working with those in need will provide you with perspective.

Bring money issues into the open and don’t shy away from talking about financial matters. If you’re not comfortable tackling money topics with your family, schedule a meeting with a Certified Financial Planner™ who can help you explain the issues to others.

Money is a powerful tool; use it wisely.

And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. ~ Philippians 4:19

September 24, 2019

Bill Parrott, CFP®, CKA® is the President and CEO of Parrott Wealth Management located in Austin, Texas. Parrott Wealth Management is a fee-only, fiduciary, registered investment advisor firm. Our goal is to remove complexity, confusion, and worry from the investment and financial planning process so our clients can pursue a life of purpose. Our firm does not have an asset or fee minimum, and we work with anybody who needs financial help regardless of age, income, or asset level.

Note: Investments are not guaranteed and do involve risk. Your returns may differ than those posted in this blog. PWM is not a tax advisor, nor do we give tax advice. Please consult your tax advisor for items that are specific to your situation. Options involve risk and aren’t suitable for every investor.

 

 

[1] https://www.cnbc.com/2019/09/10/your-kids-dont-think-your-money-skills-measure-up.html, Sarah O’Brien, 9/10/19

[2] Ibid

[3] Ibid

[4] https://www.financialeducatorscouncil.org/financial-literacy-statistics/, website accessed 9/15/19

[5] Money Guide Pro

Certainty

We want certainty in an uncertain world. We want to know the weather report, and what’s for dinner, and where we’ll spend our vacation, and how our stocks will perform. If given a guaranteed chance of receiving $100 or a 50% chance of receiving $200, most of us will opt for the certain payout of $100.[1]

This past Saturday Saudi Arabia’s Abqaiq oil processing facility was attacked. The world’s largest oil field can produce close to 10 million barrels of oil per day, and this attack could knock out 50% of the kingdom’s production.[2] Because of the attack, West Texas intermediate crude oil spiked 14%.[3] How do you plan for a strategic strike on the world’s largest oil exporter? You can’t.

In 2016 Dennis Gartman said oil would not trade above $44 “in my lifetime.”[4] Crude oil closed at $61.56 on Monday. He was certain in his prediction.

Last year, Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JP Morgan Chase & Co, predicted the 10-year U.S. Treasury would hit 5%. It currently yields 1.79%.[5] He’s now preparing for 0% interest rates. Mr. Dimon has his pulse on the economy as the CEO of the world’s second-largest bank, and if he can’t predict the direction of interest rates, let alone the level, who can?

I feel sorry for analyst and experts who are forced to give price targets or predictions because it’s an impossible task. However, investors and the media want answers. If an analyst provides a price target, they must know something we don’t. But they don’t. It’s an educated guess. It gives us a false sense of security because we want the assurance that somebody somewhere knows something.

I worked for Morgan Stanley for several years, and after Dean Witter merged with Morgan Stanley, I was talking to an analyst about stock research reports. He said institutional clients focus on the depth of the research while retail investors look to the price target. Retail investors are looking for certainty.

Certainty is safety. If you bought a U.S. T-Bill and held it to maturity, you would never lose money because they offer a guaranteed return. T-Bills have generated an average annual return of 2.3% for the past 15 years while inflation averaged 2%. Stock market returns are uncertain and not guaranteed. The S&P 500 has returned 6.8% annually for the past 15 years, despite a 56% drop during the Great Recession. Certainty and lower returns are linked.

How can you plan for certainty in an uncertain world? Here are a few suggestions.

  • Financial Plan. Your plan will account for uncertainty, chaos, and disorder. The Monte Carlo simulation outlines several outcomes – some good, some bad. Money Guide Pro financial planning software will run 1,000 different scenarios to provide you with a range of possible results. John Maynard Keynes said, “I would rather be vaguely right than precisely wrong.” A Monte Carlo analysis will give ranges that will be vaguely right.
  • Short-term bonds will give you predictability and liquidity. When the world erupts in bedlam, short-term bonds provide a high degree of safety. Bonds and stocks are inversely correlated, so when one rises, the other falls.
  • A cash reserve will give you access to your money without having to sell your stocks when they are down and out. Cash levels vary depending on your situation. A recommended amount is three to six months’ worth of your household expenses. If you’re about to retire, I suggest holding three years’ worth of cash in a money market fund or investing in short-term bonds.
  • A globally balanced portfolio will give you exposure to thousands of securities scattered around the world.
  • Embrace uncertainty. Chaos and disruption allow you to purchase stocks and other risk assets at deep discounts. Buy low and sell high. When others are panic selling, you can buy great companies that should eventually rebound.

The only certainty is uncertainty.

“What you should learn when you make a mistake because you did not anticipate something is that the world is difficult to anticipate. That’s the correct lesson to learn from surprises: that the world is surprising.” ~ Danny Kahneman, Nobel Laurette – Economic Sciences (2002)

September 18, 2019

Bill Parrott, CFP®, CKA® is the President and CEO of Parrott Wealth Management located in Austin, Texas. Parrott Wealth Management is a fee-only, fiduciary, registered investment advisor firm. Our goal is to remove complexity, confusion, and worry from the investment and financial planning process so our clients can pursue a life of purpose. Our firm does not have an asset or fee minimum, and we work with anybody who needs financial help regardless of age, income, or asset level.

Note: Investments are not guaranteed and do involve risk. Your returns may differ than those posted in this blog. PWM is not a tax advisor, nor do we give tax advice. Please consult your tax advisor for items that are specific to your situation. Options involve risk and aren’t suitable for every investor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[1] https://www.gsb.stanford.edu/insights/why-uncertainty-makes-us-less-likely-take-risks, by Dylan Walsh, June 1, 2017

[2] https://www.cnbc.com/2019/09/16/aramco-saudi-arabia-attacks-on-oil-supply-wipes-out-spare-capacity.html, by Huileng Tan, 9/15/2019

[3] https://www.cnbc.com/2019/09/15/dow-set-to-fall-on-fears-spiking-oil-will-slow-the-global-economy.html, By Fred Imbert, 9/15/2019

[4] https://finance.yahoo.com/news/dennis-gartman-best-contrarian-indicator-165610794.html, By Wayne Duggan, June 8, 2016

[5] https://www.marketwatch.com/story/jamie-dimon-warns-of-5-treasury-yields-but-sees-stock-run-lasting-a-few-more-years-2018-08-06, by Rachel Koning Beals

A Weekly Budget

While playing football, my coaches corrected my behavior If I made a mistake. They’d stop me in my tracks to point out what I did wrong. The feedback was instantaneous. If they had waited months or years to highlight my error, it wouldn’t have been useful. Because of their enthusiastic shouting, I usually didn’t make the same mistake twice. Correcting behavior needs to be consistent and immediate.

You may need help in correcting a bad habit, like poor budgeting. If you’re like most people, you might check your balance once or twice per year – if at all. As a result, you probably don’t have a good idea of how you’re spending your money.

To improve your cash flow and spending patterns, consider reviewing your budget weekly. This small change in behavior will help you identify spending issues sooner rather than later. It will allow you to make changes to your spending patterns.

To simplify your budgeting process, consider automating it with an app like Every Dollar from Dave Ramsey: https://www.daveramsey.com/everydollar. Another great resource is Mint from Intuit: https://www.mint.com/. These apps will make it easier for you to reign in your finances. And, if it’s easy, you’re more likely to stay with it.

Consumers must get a handle on their spending because debt is spiraling out of control. Mortgage debt is $9.4 trillion, student loan debt is $1.5 trillion, and auto debt is $1.3 trillion.[1] Unfortunately, our government is not good at budgeting either. The budget deficit recently surpassed $1 trillion, and our national debt is north of $22 trillion.

How much debt is appropriate? Your total debt should be less than 38% of your total monthly gross income. If your gross income is $10,000, then your debt should be less than $3,800.

What about spending? According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics[2], here’s how much people are spending on certain items as a percentage of their gross income. How do you compare?

Food = 12.9%

Housing = 32.9%

Transportation = 16%

Healthcare = 8.1%

Utilities = 6.5%

Entertainment = 5.6%

Cell Phones = 1.9%

Pets = 1.1%

Are you ready to start working on your weekly budget review? Here are a few steps to help you get started.

  • Gather your bank and credit card statements from the past six months.
  • Input the data to Excel to Identify amounts and patterns. Most financial institutions will allow you to import the data directly to Excel, saving you a few hours of number crunching.
  • Automate your bill-paying to avoid late payment fees.
  • If you’re no longer using a service, turn off the automatic payment.
  • Download an app to track your spending.
  • Review your budget weekly.
  • Eliminate or reduce unnecessary expenses.
  • Use the extra savings to reduce your debt.
  • If your debt level is low, then set up an automatic investment plan.

A Certified Financial Planner™ can help you with your budgeting and planning needs. They’ll review your spending to help you develop a budget. They can also meet with you quarterly to evaluate your progress and hold you accountable, like a coach – without yelling!

A budget will bring you financial peace, and you can spend your money without guilt or worry.

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. ~ Matthew 6:21

September 14, 2019

Bill Parrott, CFP®, CKA® is the President and CEO of Parrott Wealth Management located in Austin, Texas. Parrott Wealth Management is a fee-only, fiduciary, registered investment advisor firm. Our goal is to remove complexity, confusion, and worry from the investment and financial planning process so our clients can pursue a life of purpose. Our firm does not have an asset or fee minimum, and we work with anybody who needs financial help regardless of age, income, or asset level.

Note: Investments are not guaranteed and do involve risk. Your returns may differ than those posted in this blog. PWM is not a tax advisor, nor do we give tax advice. Please consult your tax advisor for items that are specific to your situation. Options involve risk and aren’t suitable for every investor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[1] YCharts

[2] https://www.bls.gov/home.htm

Construction Project

My neighborhood is in the middle of an enormous construction project. It’s chaos. Dump trucks and bulldozers are moving massive amounts of dirt to expand our roads and intersections to handle more traffic. A new retail shopping center and access road are also under construction. Commuters are challenged with lane closures, lane shifts, and traffic jams.

Our neighborhood is cluttered with barricades and orange pylons. It doesn’t look good. It may be this way for another year or two, but when it’s finished, it will look amazing.

Projects of this size require years of planning, vision, persistence, and grit. Developing a financial plan and building an investment portfolio also requires imagination and perseverance.  Initially, your plan is a dream, and it will only take shape after you commit your goals to paper. The foundation for a successful investment experience is a financial plan. Your plan is your blueprint. Can you imagine construction workers working without a plan? I can’t.

A plan can take years, sometimes decades, to see it come to fruition. It’s challenging to plan for a retirement that’s more than 45 years away. Likewise, retirees might find it hard to rely on investments to generate a steady stream of lifetime income.

The construction projects succeed because electricians, plumbers, and masons have different specialties. Similarly, a successful investment portfolio requires investments scattered around the globe. Large, small, and international stocks deliver long-term growth. Bonds provide income and safety. Cash offers liquidity.

A general contractor coordinates and oversees the project and workers to keep it moving forward. A Certified Financial Planner® is your general contractor. He guides your steps to keep you focused on your goals and make appropriate adjustments.

Regular maintenance on buildings, lights, and sprinklers will keep the area looking good and functioning correctly for generations.  Your portfolio will also need regular maintenance to weather market and economic cycles. Rebalancing your portfolio will keep your asset allocation and risk tolerance in check. Your financial plan needs reviewing annually to keep you focused on your goals. A monthly savings program should help your account grow.

A good plan doesn’t matter if you don’t implement it and follow the instructions. It’s imperative to put your plan into action so you can enjoy the fruits of your labor.

“Plans are worthless. Planning is essential.” ~ Dwight D. Eisenhower 

September 9, 2019

Bill Parrott, CFP®, CKA® is the President and CEO of Parrott Wealth Management located in Austin, Texas. Parrott Wealth Management is a fee-only, fiduciary, registered investment advisor firm. Our goal is to remove complexity, confusion, and worry from the investment and financial planning process so our clients can pursue a life of purpose. Our firm does not have an asset or fee minimum, and we work with anybody who needs financial help regardless of age, income, or asset level.

Note: Investments are not guaranteed and do involve risk. Your returns may differ than those posted in this blog. PWM is not a tax advisor, nor do we give tax advice. Please consult your tax advisor for items that are specific to your situation. Options involve risk and aren’t suitable for every investor.