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Author:

Paul Schatz, President, Heritage Capital

2022 Fearless Forecast – Patience & Quality

Each and every year, I spend some time in Q4 collecting my thoughts about how I see the next 12 months unfolding in the financial markets, economy, etc. Given how much media I did in Q4, most of my forecast is already in the public domain. I am happy to say that this is among the earliest I have actually put it all together in one place. Yeah me! While I do really enjoy looking into my super secret crystal […]   Read More
Date: January 6, 2022

Bulls Should Begin 2022 With a Win

Here we go. 2021 is in the rear view mirror and 2022 begins. The last few minutes of 2021 did not end well for the stock market and it certainly looked like the computer programs were responsible for all of the movement. I fully expect that last woosh lower on the far right side of the chart below to be recovered early on Monday morning. The first trading day of the new year is seasonally very strong by a number […]   Read More
Date: January 3, 2022

NASDAQ The Beast Today – This Is It!

To end 2021 I am going to join Fox Business’ Making Money at 2:55pm today with Ashley Webster in for Charles Payne to discuss what I am doing at year-end and if any of us in the business can perform like Nancy Pelosi’s portfolio. As Kenny Loggins famously said in his song, “This is it! Make no mistake where you are”. I have quoted Loggins dozens of times over the years and my friend, Michael Saul, always gets annoyed by […]   Read More
Date: December 31, 2021

Is Everyone in Aspen or Still in the Hamptons?

In August “everyone” is supposedly in The Hamptons. Where are they supposedly now? Aspen? Vail? Florida? Vermont? The islands? It’s such a crock. I don’t know a single portfolio manager who literally takes off in August or at the end of the year without working.  I can tell you this. “Everyone” was in the all hands on deck mode in 2018 for the entire month of December. And let’s not even begin to list all of the big moves we […]   Read More
Date: December 29, 2021

Behavioral Finance: Why Kevin, Janet, Bruce and Carrie Made the Investment Decisions (and Mistakes) They Did

I recently attended a workshop where I had the opportunity to speak with several investors. Four stand out in my memory for the mistakes they made. Do any of them sound a bit like you?   Kevin: Aversion to Risk Kevin, in his mid-50s, had always been afraid of the stock market. Most of his retirement money was tied up in fixed income securities, predominantly a mutual fund composed of Treasury bonds and notes. He did invest a little (about […]   Read More
Date: December 27, 2021

Bulls Step Up and Continue Delivering -That Was Fun

I hope you enjoyed a nice three-day holiday weekend and everyone who observed had a great Christmas! Although many Jews head for Chinese food and the movies we have been fortunate enough to be included with Vermont friends and their Christmas feast. This year definitely did not disappoint as I was full after cocktails and appetizers and then had to scarf down my fair share of prime rib and a cornucopia of desserts that would make any foodie drool. I […]   Read More
Date: December 26, 2021

Stock Market Bottom Hammered In – Year-End Rally SUPPOSED To Run

Well, well, well. Just when the bulls got to the point of no return, not really but it sounds good, they staved off a losing battle with the bears. Funny how that happens sometimes. If you watched my interviews on Yahoo Finance or TDA Network, I was pretty firm that I still thought stocks were bottoming right now and the year-end rally would still come albeit in an underwhelming fashion. And that how I played it with portfolios as we […]   Read More
Date: December 22, 2021

Stock Market Not Doing What It Is “Supposed” To Do

The stock market ended last week on a sour note and looks to begin the new week on an equally sour note. For weeks I have written that something just ain’t right. I still feel that way although I still believe a low will be forged, well, right about now for a year-end rally. Small cap stocks are basically at their lowest point since Q1 2021 and mid cap stocks aren’t that far behind. I didn’t think this would happen […]   Read More
Date: December 20, 2021

Why Mike’s Conservative Investment Strategy Can Be Very Risky

A new client, whom I’ll call “Mike,” recently came to me with questions about his investments. In his mid-forties, Mike had always been wary of losing money in the stock market. Apparently, he would rather have avoided losing $1 than making $5. But Mike knew something was wrong, as the value of his portfolio had remained stagnant for almost 10 years.  He and I had a long talk. We identified several defects in his investment “strategy” that prevented him from […]   Read More
Date: December 20, 2021

Fed Trend Shines But I Have Concerns

The worst kept secret was that the Fed was going to speed up its plan to taper asset purchases and that was announced on Wednesday. Jay Powell conducted the perfect press conference for the stock market and the bulls went home with huge smiles on their faces. I tweeted a few times and posted here that the FOMC trend was as strong as it ever gets for buying -.50% weakness in the morning and selling at the close. That tidy […]   Read More
Date: December 16, 2021