Insights matter.

The last month and a half has seen some historic moves in both equity and bond markets. Based off of daily closing prices on the S&P 500 Index, the average daily move in the S&P 500 Index over the last 40 years has been around +/- 0.75%. In the month of March, the average daily move on the S&P 500 Index was over 4%. This has happened two other times in the last 40 years—the first was during the Stock Market Crash of 1987, and the second was during the Global Financial

Overview As you are likely aware, the federal income tax filing due date has been automatically extended from April 15, 2020 to July 15, 2020. The automatic extension also applies to your 2020 first quarter estimated tax payments. A few things to know about this extension:   How Is Your Matter Team Proceeding? We are moving forward as we normally would by coordinating the flow of documentation and communication of relevant tax items to your preparer. While the timeline has adjusted, we are not delaying any of our activities in supporting your family’s tax process.  If we may ask, as you continue to share tax documents that

Over the last few weeks, we have all been processing a remarkable amount of change and information in our daily lives. One of these new sources of information has been our government’s assistance measures: there have been several meaningful pieces of legislation passed to support the country through the COVID-19 pandemic. On Friday, March 27th the third such piece of legislation, the CARES Act, was signed into law. The overall purpose of the CARES Act is to provide relief to individuals, corporations, small businesses, public

For the most part, economic data will show some level of lag depending on the data point and frequency. The Conference Board Leading Economic Index looks to provide some level of forward-looking insight by aggregating different data points which include manufacturing output, unemployment claims, stock market and credit conditions, and a handful of others. We look at a host of different data points, but below is a summary that might prove helpful:  Weekly unemployment claims, which are reported every Thursday morning, provide a relatively immediate read on the

While our initial thoughts are clearly on the human toll of this pandemic, we wanted to send some commentary as we systematically think through the current environment and what it means from an investment standpoint. Below is a summary of our thoughts, which will likely continue to evolve as we have more data to process.  General Market Commentary The volatility of the last few weeks is not unwarranted—the degree of the unknown here is significant and therefore the range of what it could mean to company earnings over

We are writing to put some context around the news that continues to evolve regarding the coronavirus outbreak. With stock markets having sold off materially earlier this week, the immediate impact to portfolios is tangible and warrants some communication. That being said, we want to be careful not to distance ourselves from the humanity of the world around us. Our thoughts are first and foremost with the families that have been impacted by this most recent outbreak.  We use a similar formula to think through this event as we would others like

As we kick off a brand new decade—and our 30th year of working with Matter families—we’re taking some time to reflect. Our investment committee has been reviewing the past 10 years to gain perspective on where we’ve come from, where we are now, and where we might be heading, economically and financially.   But, before we get too deep into the data, here’s some interesting context: in 2010, Apple unveiled the first iPad and the iPhone 4. We are now on the 7th generation of

What does it take to help Matter families thrive for generations? A talented team figures prominently in the equation. When we think about hiring, this means we have a lengthy interview process to help us bring in the right people to work with our families. But even more importantly, we are committed to helping each new person we bring in grow their career within the firm. This year, we are proud to promote an unprecedented 11 team members, and we are thrilled

When people think of taxes, they often cringe at the crunch leading up to April 15th. But for families with complex financial worlds, tax planning isn’t limited to the first quarter. It’s a year-round affair that requires families, wealth advisors, and CPAs to live in two worlds—prior year and current—and as summer draws to a close, the heat turns up on taxes. At Matter, we think of tax planning as an integral part of managing wealth opportunities and complexities. We

Matter families are familiar with our belief in the wisdom of long-term, strategic investments.  Amidst the noise, we repeat our mantra over and over: think and act strategically, focus on the long-run, and don’t let the irrationality of the markets sway your systematic and rational approach.  While we won’t fault those who might occasionally tire of this message or wonder if there is another way, we believe it’s the tried and true way to help families manage their financial capital.

Family meetings are invaluable to multigenerational success. They help families build trust and communication, provide a structure for information-sharing and decision-making, and create a format for introducing the rising generation to the opportunities and complexities of wealth. At Matter, we take an integrated, holistic approach to helping families thrive for generations, and facilitating family meetings is a critical part of that work. Over the years, we’ve learned a lot about how to help families prepare for meetings, set expectations, and

We are proud to announce that we have been named as one of the Top 10 Financial Advisors in the St. Louis Area by Advisory HQ in 2019. Please visit the Advisory HQ site to learn more about how top advisors are selected: http://www.advisoryhq.com/articles/best-rated-financial-advisors-in-st-louis-mo/ AdvisoryHQ developed a breakthrough “Top-Down Advisor Selection Methodology” that is based on a wide range of filters including fiduciary duty, independence, transparency, level of customized service, history of innovation, fee structure, quality of services provided, team excellence, and wealth of experience. Matter