Update 3-16-2020

The stock market opened down more than 10% on Monday making for an almost 29% decrease from the all-time high on February 19th. We have seen some buying on today’s dip but no one knows where the market will go today. What I do know is that a majority of investors are not invested 100% in the S&P 500 or the Dow Jones 30 Index but instead have a diversified portfolio of stocks from many different asset classes and cash and bonds. This has greatly lessened the impact from a down market. See below for a chart of 5 different portfolios ranging from Conservative to Aggressive compared to the S&P 500 index.

Diversification across different equity asset classes and across stocks and bonds is what most financial advisors advocate to investors. Having some of your investments in less risky asset classes such as bonds and cash might not always produce the highest returns but will tend to lessen the valleys. Below is a chart showing how over the last 4 years what different types of portfolios would have done. As you can see, even after the recent market downturn, all the portfolios are still positive over the last 4 years. This includes the Aggressive portfolio that is 100% invested in stocks.

Long-term investing requires making a plan and sticking to that plan. Sometimes the hardest thing to do is nothing. If you are uncertain if your current portfolio allocation matches your goals and risk tolerance, please feel free to call or email me.

Steve Conkin, MBA, ChFC, CFP

President - Conkin Financial Group

405-348-6200

Steve.conkin@conkinfianncial.com