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April 1, 2018

by | Apr 1, 2018 | Quarterly Letters

Dear Client: Returns for the major stock indices for the first quarter of 2018 and the current bond market yields are as follows:   Index YTD 2018 Dow Jones Industrial Average -2.49% S&P 500 -1.22%   Fixed Income Yields 1 year 5 year 10 year 30 year Municipals 1.55% 2.07% 2.48% 3.01% US Treasuries 2.08% 2.56% 2.74% 2.97%   The equity markets are off to a bumpy start in 2018.  After a blistering January, continuing the unprecedented, non-stop (15-month in a row) rise since the presidential election, the market experienced one of the fastest 10% declines (January 26th to February 8th or nine trading days) in history.  The markets have not recovered back to the highs of January as we have just logged our first down quarter since the third quarter of 2015.  We could write at length about algorithmic trading, tariffs and other noise associated with short-term market declines but won’t because we do not believe them to be relevant to long-term investors and do not want to give merit to this type of short-term dialogue.  As long-term investors, we know the markets regularly correct and we understand that the uneasiness associated with market volatility is the price we must pay to be long-term investors.  However, we will always continue to seek perspective, humility and assurance. The primary objective of our quarterly letters is to highlight our most relevant thoughts on our outlook for the current markets.  Despite recent market turbulence, we continue to remain positive on the equity markets for 2018 for many reasons.  The following indicators we highlighted from one year ago are still in place...