Key Takeaways It will likely take some time before the economy fully heals itself, with debt levels remaining high. The market appears to be currently priced for perfection and is focused on improvements, not challenges. Through ongoing stimulus, the government is keeping this economy – and market – afloat. With the likelihood of ongoing volatility,...Read More

While the coronavirus pandemic roller-coaster continues, the markets have seen a significant rebound – in fact, the past 90 days (through the end of June) earned the title “the best quarter since 1998.” What were the events that led to this historic upswing? JNBA Director of Investment Management David Webb and Senior Advisor-Investment Strategist Michael...Read More

Last Friday’s employment report was a true shocker by showing a gain of 2.5M jobs (estimates were for 7M losses), which may have revealed that our nation has reached an important inflection point much sooner than anticipated. Following the incredibly strong labor report, the S&P 500 officially had clawed back all its year-to-date losses on...Read More

After nearly 11 years, the historic bull market that emerged from the ashes of the last financial crisis abruptly ended in February as the coronavirus took root in developed markets. Since then, the global pandemic has not only upended life for many households – as economic activity was put on pause – but also has...Read More

While the pandemic continues to spark uncertainty in the financial markets and across many aspects of our lives, there is one thing we can control: our response to the crisis. JNBA Financial Advisors is relying on its disciplined process and tools – including asset allocation, rebalancing and tax loss harvesting – as we put our...Read More

Since bottoming in late March, the market has entered a rally phase and has risen by more than 20%. In fact, it has retraced nearly half its 35% loss since its mid-February peak and remains down about 15% year-to-date. Fortunately, many individual investors have performed better than the broad market average thanks to diversified portfolios that...Read More

It’s no secret that the daily impact of COVID-19 continues to move the markets drastically and rapidly. As our clients review their first-quarter portfolio statements for the year, we are reminded again of the direct blow to the economy and investments these past several weeks. Yet, a lot of market movement has continued even since...Read More

This past quarter was both awful and one for the record books. The first global pandemic in over 100 years brought an end to the longest bull market in U.S. history with declines so sharp they triggered multiple exchange trading halts. The S&P 500 took just 16 days to enter a bear market, its quickest 20%...Read More

In the latest episode of JNBA’s podcast, CEO and Chairman Richard S. Brown sat down on March 26 with colleagues on JNBA’s Investment Committee – virtually, from remote locations – to talk about where we are with the markets’ response to the COVID-19 pandemic and what could be next. Richard, along with Director of Investment...Read More

After the worst week on record since 2008 and with the S&P 500 down roughly 30% since the start of the year, many investors are asking themselves (and/or us), “Is it time to get out of the market?” We hope to provide some perspective in trying to answer that question. Where do we stand? We...Read More