MidSouth Week in Review:
March 19, 2018

Weekly Update from Fund Manager Buzz Heidtke, MidSouth Investment Fund

Mar. 19, 2018 | RedChip Companies


The S&P 500 closed down 1.4% for the week.  This weeks volatility came on the uncertainty of a trade war with China as the Trump administration mulls implementing tariffs on Chinese imports.  U.S. consumer confidence hit a 14 month high as lower-income households are feeling more optimistic of the economy.  The jobless rate hit a 17 year low of 4.1%.  Most economist believe that will continue to fall to 3.5% by the end of year.  Have a great weekend!

Buzz Bits

Expensive – The FANG stocks are selling at an average price earnings ratio (PE) of 153:  Facebook (34), Amazon (259), Netflix (253), Google (64).  Stocks that carry PE’s above 50 historically underperform - Buzz

Student Debt – According to a recent study by LendEDU, 62% of parent cosigners said their credit scores have been negatively affected by cosigning on private student loans, and 40% said cosigning has hurt their ability to qualify for a mortgage, auto loan or other type of financing – Wall Street Journal

Money Savers – Buy gift cards at a discount through websites such as: GiftCardGranny.com, GiftCardBin.com, Cardpool.com, RetailMeNot.com and CardFlip.com.  Recent savings: Ann Taylor, 30% below face value, Carmike Cinemas 21%, P.F. Chang’s 20.5%, Krispy Kreme 20%, AMC Theaters 19%, Regal Entertainment 17%, McCormick & Schmick’s 15%, Cabela’s 14%, Pier 1 Imports 12%, Cheesecake Factory 10%.  Warehouse clubs also are good sources of discount gift cards – BottomLine

Tax Returns – Out of approximately 137 million 2017 tax returns filed, 46.5 million were itemizing.  As a result of the 2018 limitation deduction on state or local taxes and a doubling of the standard deduction, only 19.3 million U.S. taxpayers are expected to file itemized returns in the 2018 tax year – Tax Policy Center

Death of Paper News – During the 2016 election, fewer than three percent cited print as their most important source of campaign news – New York Times

Alimony – After Dec. 31, 2018 alimony will no longer be deductible.  As a result, most matrimonial lawyers say they anticipate negotiations will “become more acrimonious,” because alimony payers will have less of a tax incentive to be generous with their former spouses.  Battles will ensue! – Ben Steverman, Bloomberg …. Prenups – If one party has substantially more assets than the other, advisors may raise the issue of a prenuptial agreement.  That’s especially true if it’s a second marriage and one or both individuals have adult children – Wall Street Journal

Long-Term Care – One in three people who live until at least 65 will reside in a nursing home at some point.  Once they settle in, most will be short on money.  Medicaid covers at least part of the bill for 62 percent of people who live in a nursing home – Kaiser Family Foundation ….. Adults 65 and older spend almost $46,000 a year.  The number of people who expect to retire broke (have less than $10,000 saved for retirement) fell to 42%, according to a survey by GoBankingRates – New York Times

High School Test Scores (ACT & SAT) - Students who scored in the top 1% at the age of 13 were twenty years later, on average, very highly accomplished, with high incomes, major awards and career accomplishments that would make any parent proud.  Yet, even within that group, higher scores mattered.  Those in the top quarter of the top 1% were more likely than those merely at the bottom quarter of the top 1%.  Test prep are more on the order of 5 to 20 points and not the 100 to 200 points claimed by some test prep companies – The Wall Street Journal

Widowed Women vs. Men – A study that followed 1,500 Californians for eight decades found that widowed women tended to thrive and live longer than the still-married women.  They built social networks, herded their kids, did all the things they put off when their husbands were ill.  Widowed men, on the other hand, tended to go quickly – Friedman and Martin

Auto Loans – If you are looking to purchase a new vehicle, shop around for your car loan first.  Try to line up financing from a bank or credit union before you visit a dealer.  That will let you remove pressure and let you focus on negotiating – Susan Tompor, Detroit Free Press

Video Of The Day: Child Prodigy Is An Amazing Artist  -  https://biggeekdad.com/2018/02/child-prodigy-amazing-artist/

 

buzz@msifund.com

 

 

This material was prepared by MidSouth Investment Management LLC, and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party, nor their affiliates.  This information has been derived from sources believed to be accurate.  Please note – investing involves risk, and past performance is no guarantee of future results.  The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services.  If assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional.  This information should not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice and may not be relied on for the purpose of avoiding any Federal tax penalty.  This is neither a solicitation nor recommendation to purchase or sell any investment or insurance product or service, and should not be relied upon as such.  This material represents an assessment of the market environment at a specific point in time and is not intended to be a forecast of future events, or a guarantee of future results.  Investments will fluctuate and when redeemed may be worth more or less than when originally invested.  All economic and performance data is historical and not indicative of future results.  Market indices discussed are unmanaged.  Investors cannot invest in unmanaged indices. 


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