Market Commentary

U.S. Exceptionalism and What It Means for Your Portfolio

Over modern U.S. history, we’ve hardly gone a moment without hearing predictions of America’s imminent downfall. In that sense, you might say that declinism is one of the great American past times. During his 1960 Presidential campaign, John F. Kennedy painted a scary picture of a Russian enemy well on its way to world domination […]

Market Commentary

U.S. Exceptionalism and What It Means for Your Portfolio

Over modern U.S. history, we’ve hardly gone a moment without hearing predictions of America’s imminent downfall. In that sense, you might say that declinism is one of the great American past times. During his 1960 Presidential campaign, John F. Kennedy painted a scary picture of a Russian enemy well on its way to world domination […]

U.S. Exceptionalism and What It Means for Your Portfolio

Over modern U.S. history, we’ve hardly gone a moment without hearing predictions of America’s imminent downfall. In that sense, you might say that declinism is one of the great American past times. During his 1960 Presidential campaign, John F. Kennedy painted a scary picture of a Russian enemy well on its way to world domination […]

David Y. Lin, CFA

Insuring Your Home Against the Unexpected

The devastating Los Angeles wildfires at the start of the year serve as a sobering reminder of the role insurance plays in protecting against major financial loss. Without adequate coverage, you could be forced to draw from savings, retirement funds, or other investments to cover unexpected losses. At Clifford Swan, while we are not insurance […]

Jennifer I. Maqueda

Message from the CEO: March 2025

This year marks a milestone as Clifford Swan celebrates its 110th year. Established with the visionary idea of providing independent investment advice, we remain committed to our founders’ timeless values —client-first focus, highly personalized service, attention to detail, and delivering financial success. As we celebrate this anniversary, we reflect on key moments that shaped our […]

Peter J. Boyle, CFA

Message from the CEO: November 2024

The holidays have come early at Clifford Swan, as we’ve received the gift of new team members. Given our people are a key component of what makes Clifford Swan strong, we are excited to share a few team updates. Early in 2024, we identified a need to expand our operations team to free up capacity for high-impact technology projects and deliver the best possible operational support to our client-facing teams. We’ve fulfilled this need through the promotion of Diane Riveros and the addition of Jesse Cortes as Operations Specialists.

Peter J. Boyle, CFA

Wrap up 2024 on a High Note: Year-end Checklist to Boost Your Wealth and Lower Your Tax Bill

As the year winds down, it’s the perfect time to pause and take a close look at your financial goals. Even if you’ve reached some big milestones, there still could be a few valuable moves you can make before year-end. With IRS deadlines approaching, now’s the moment to make some proactive choices that could leave you […]

Carlota B. Venegas, CFP®, CDFA®

Protect Your Assets from Phishers

We’ve written before about protecting yourself from financial fraud and encourage you to keep this threat in mind. As technological advances have improved our lives in many ways, an unfortunate side effect is technology’s role in helping cybercriminals construct more sophisticated financial scams. Recently, some of our clients have experienced more advanced phishing attempts that […]

Clifford Swan

Rate Cuts and Your Bond Portfolio

After several years of low interest rates, bond yields have been attractive for the past few years. While a recent turning point in central bank policy has slightly lowered yields, today’s bond market offers a unique combination of capital preservation and income in an increasingly complex economic landscape. Our current fixed income investment strategy is […]

Murcy Huang, CFA

Quarterly Insights: October 2024

The U.S. economy and capital markets performed well in the third quarter of 2024. It’s hard to predict whether this strength will continue as we face a mixed bag of signals. No matter the environment, our focus on high-quality investments both provides protection during turmoil and participation in the market’s growth. The domestic economy is […]

Clifford Swan

Summer Internship Program Successfully Completes 9th Year

Rising junior Dhruv Saraf and rising senior Luke Garlick participated in the firm’s ninth summer internship program. Through their six weeks with Clifford Swan, they touched every aspect of the business including fundamental securities research and trading, portfolio management software, inheritance planning, client service, operations, marketing, compliance, and IT.   Dhruv majors in Economics and […]

Clifford Swan

A Stock-Picker’s Market

As of early-August, US stocks, as measured by the S&P 500, are up about 12% in 2024. A first-half rally wasn’t supposed to happen for a number of reasons. Entering the year, the market traded at over 19x forward earnings – not particularly cheap. The Fed Funds rate had exceeded 5% since Summer 2023, putting […]

Daniel J. Mintz

Finalized Inherited IRA Regulations

Since the SECURE Act was passed in 2019, it has been clear that those who inherited IRAs after 2020 needed to draw them down within 10 years, what hadn’t been finalized was whether annual RMDs were required.  On July 18, 2024, the IRS released final regulations confirming the requirement for Non-Designated Beneficiaries of IRAs to […]

George E. Hasbun, CFP®

Finding Peace of Mind with a Well-Ordered Financial Household

As Investment Counselors, my colleagues and I are immersed in the world of financial rules and systems. Whether we are studying the investment markets and accessing trading platforms, dealing with our custodial partners, connecting with our clients’ banking providers, or strategizing with related professionals from the legal, accounting and insurance fields, we coordinate this complex […]

Kathleen Gilmore, CFP®

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