Gil’s
Musings
Protecting Gains? It’s Complicated.
Clients generally understand how our low-turnover methodology equates to better returns over time. For example, with enough tax deferral, an 8% return can be augmented to a 10% return (in…
Stick with Energy
Segment’s strategies have been overweight to energy since the collapse in prices drew us in back in 2020. We did trim some positions earlier this year as oil prices got…
Roth Conversions
Roth conversions remain one of the most underutilized tax planning strategies around. Imagine the limited benefits of continued tax deferral for a 90-year-old retiree with a $500,000 IRA and an…
Estate Taxes & IRAs – Collision Course
There are very few tax issues more complicated than the intersection of estate taxes, income taxes, and IRAs. Very few couples exceed the $24million exemption amount to begin with, and…
Frankenstein Tax Policy
Mr. Biden’s new tax policy has proposed yet another angle to get more tax revenue from the “millionaires and billionaires.” This time he’s circling back to see if he can…
Recession on the Horizon
In my last musing, I wrote about the current odd situation where the 30-year Treasury bonds yields 2.58%, but inflation is running at 8% annualized. Who would loan their money…
ESG? Not So Fast.
Gil penned a piece on ESG Investing in Financial Advisor Magazine! Do well by doing good. That’s the trendy, feel-good mantra of ESG (environmental, social, governance) investing proponents. It’s much the…
Russian Surprises
As the tragedies in Ukraine and other Russian surprises have unfolded, I was most amazed by how unprepared the Russian army seems and that a ragtag team of civilians defending…
Oil Politics and Energy Prices
It is surely apparent by now that a confluence of events is causing energy prices to spike like none seen before. In 2008, when oil prices breached $140, the recession…
Long Live Volatility
For those who know me well, you then know about my family’s long-term friendship with Walter Thomas. Walter has worked for my family since 1963 when he was 16, and…
Figures Don’t Lie, But Liars Do Figure
A new study released in October 2021 revealed the sneaky behavior of mutual fund managers in selecting their comparative benchmarks. The SEC requires mutual funds to illustrate how fund performance…
Tax Loophole
There’s much wisdom in exercising caution when stirring up things long undisturbed. Politicians often run amok in efforts to garner “points” with their constituents. In this case, Mr. Biden ought…
Percentage Returns Are Not Created Equal
There is nothing more mesmerizing than eye-popping percentage returns. While investors equate high returns to transactional intelligence, studies routinely show that randomness and luck are the far more likely explanations….
Direct Indexing: “New” Trend We’ve Been Doing for Decades
Segment’s strategies are grounded in decades of experience of dealing with things as they are and not as we wish them to be. Sometimes this puts us twenty years ahead…
Tax Rule Changes: Build Back Better Act
Through tax rule changes, President Biden and his allies in Congress are taking aim at high earners and the wealthy in general. Their tax increase proposal is being called the…
Profound Power Of The Unrealized Gain
Gil published a piece in Forbes Council titled, “The Profound Power Of The Unrealized Gain.” Unrealized gains have a benefit that doesn’t show up in percentage return. “Money managers and…
Segment Ranked by HBJ among Houston’s Top Wealth Management Firms
For the eighth consecutive year, Segment has been included among the Largest Houston-Area Wealth Management Firms by the Houston Business Journal. For 2021, Segment ranks 15th among the largest firms…
Habits of Behavioral Finance
Since early 2020, the stock market has made headlines with its unexpected ebbs and flows. This prompts people who otherwise had their money invested elsewhere to try their hand at…
Inflation? Yes, Then No.
Twenty-five years ago, I had an archery deer lease in Refugio County, Texas. One time, I headed down there after a long day at work and arrived at Two-J’s Restaurant…
Advisory Practice Evolution
Gil penned a piece on Advisory Practice Evolution in Financial Advisor Magazine! “Many advisors get stuck in the path of least resistance methods and never evolve to scale.” “Over my…
Predictably Irrational Investing
The field of economics has long assumed that people make decisions that optimize their own utility, and to derive the greatest benefit for themselves. However, psychological studies show that we…
Don’t Overvalue Dividends
Gil published a piece in Advisor Perspectives entitled “Don’t Overvalue Dividends.” “My advisory firm is a big fan of stocks that pay dividends. Segment’s tax-efficient rising dividend portfolio is…
Implications of Biden’s Proposed Tax Changes
Gil published a piece in Forbes Council titled, “The Implications of Biden’s Proposed Tax Changes.” “Investors are understandably concerned about President Biden’s plans for additional tax revenue. In my experience,…
The Great Inflation Debate
Signs of inflation abound with chip shortages, car shortages, and sky-high lumber prices, among others. Many forecasters are predicting 70s style inflation or even stagflation. Given the similarities in Jimmy…
Death and Taxes
Everybody has heard the old saying that nothing is certain in life except death and taxes. But not everyone knows how death and taxes are inextricably linked.
The Lost Art of the Handwritten Note
Gil recently wrote a piece for Adivsor Perspectives on The Lost Art of the Handwritten Note. Here’s a snippet… you can read the entire article on Advisor Perspectives, at the…
2021 Tax Law Changes and Strategy
By now, you’ve likely heard that the Biden administration is angling for more of our hard-earned cash. Clearly, low tax rates are wonderful for the economy, but politics often drive…
The Math of Buying the Dips
Segment is a big advocate of buying market exposure on dips. However, an investor must use this strategy within a certain context; otherwise, the tail can wag the dog. Buying…
Segment Ranked in Barron’s Top Financial Advisors
We are proud to be ranked once again on Barron’s “Top 1,200 Financial Advisors List” for 2021, and as one of the Top 50 Advisors in Texas! Segment is dedicated…
Ego Rush of Short-Term Investment Victories
Back in the pre-Covid glory days, when you could have charity golf tournaments, I played in the LifeHouse tournament at Carlton Woods. I’m not much of a golfer, and because…
Hedge Funds Comeuppance
Hedge fund managers are far and away the wealthiest and most powerful operators on Wall Street. This is despite producing some of the worst overall results for investors. Their periodic…
Odds-On Favorite Stock For 2021
Whatever you are doing that’s working, stop it. The cyclicality in investing is profoundly impactful. Unfortunately, most investors misread the signals and misplay their hand. They look for trends that…
Playing the Stock Market Long Game
2020 was certainly an interesting year for stocks. We are glad it ended on a high note in the face of very challenging economic conditions. One reason for the divergence…
Dividend Payers’ Worst Year Yet?
Segment’s business model is focused on compressing client costs and taxes and letting the market do its work. We operate this way because taxes and costs are controllable to a…
Staying Power of Investing
When you’ve been in the investment business for 36 years, you tend to get the same sort of questions over and over again. One that I hear repeatedly surrounds how…
Investor Trendspotting
One of the greatest misconceptions investors have embedded in their psyche is the assumption that predictions about the future are accurate or even valuable. I struggle with it too. To…
Smart Money? Maybe. Brilliant Money? Never.
Like all industries, there is a pecking order in the investment arena, a hierarchy if you will. At the top of the financial pyramid are the hedge fund and private…
Investing is All About Perspective
As investors attempt to navigate choppy waters, we often come to realize how difficult it is to predict the future. Most tend to project today into tomorrow and more dangerously,…
Emotional Investing Mistakes
This year marks my 36th as an investment advisor. While I have memorized in great detail many of the curveballs the market has thrown my way in the last four…
Making Lemonade with Roth IRAs
Recent large stock market swings bring about possible benefits by revising our personal tax strategies. For investors with large stock holdings in an IRA, the brutal market reset could make…
Why Long Term Investing Pays Off
Hopefully you’re not tired of reading my blog posts about why long term investing pays off and why short term events are irrelevant. Surely they are not irrelevant to your…
Confidence: COVID-19 vs Economy
In times of crazy market gyrations, there are always reasons. Those reasons seem imperative at the time and often portend a terrible fate. Yes, there have been some dark times,…
The Gut Instinct of Investing
One of the most difficult parts of investment decision making is just how much to trust your gut instinct. Every day presents a new set of variables, so there is…
Confounded by COVID Fears
Stock prices have been plunging for the last three weeks as coronavirus fears shut down many swaths of the global economy. Conferences and festivals are getting cancelled and surely cruise…
Bernie and the Coronavirus
Yesterday was a complicated day in the stock market. It was dealing with coronavirus fears, along with coming to grips with Bernie’s surge in the Nevada primary and what a…
SECURE Act Changes IRA Rules
Happy New Year to all! While most of us were busy this holiday season preparing gifts to exchange with our loved ones, Congress was busy giving us “gifts” by adjusting…
Free Trades? They’ll Still Get Paid
When I was just a kid, my dad showed me how to catch a Chameleon lizard with my hands. The technique is to slowly wiggle your fingers closer and closer…
Annuities: World’s Misunderstood Vehicle
With annuities boasting one of the most lucrative commissions in the investment sales world, you can imagine why meals at the local eatery while listening to the pitch are “free.”…
China Trade War
The Dow Jones market index fell 3% yesterday on news that the China trade war is escalating. President Trump is hiking tariffs on China in round two, with China responding…
Using IRA’s for Charity
The ability to use an IRA for charitable giving is the result of several recent rule changes. Originally introduced in 2006, it was a political volleyball until gifting IRA’s was…
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