Global QE is running out of runway. Debt has increased, not decreased. 20 countries have cut interest rates in 2015. We are in a global race to debase. Click here for more on this week’s On My Radar Feb 27 2015
Archives for February 2015
Troubling High Margin Debt
By Steve Blumenthal, CEO, CMG Capital Management Group
I thought about margin debt when I read a quote this week from David Stockman. David is a former businessman and U.S. politician who served as a Republican U.S. Representative from the state of Michigan (1977–1981) and as the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (1981–1985) under President Reagan.
Blumenthal Writes About Debt in Forbes
CMG Capital Management Group CEO Steve Blumenthal takes a sobering look at debt across the globe in his latest Forbes article Creative Destruction And Managing The Risk of Global Debt. Excerpt:
How To Build Trust With Your Clients
Michael F. Sciortino, Sr. Executive Vice President, Managing Director, Head of Distribution, CMG
As an advisor, you garner trust by having a belief system that enhances your client’s lives and demonstrates a genuine hopefulness for your client. Trust matters today more than ever. Why? Think about what the key considerations your clients have prior to making a buying decision? At the top of most lists is trust.
What influences who they trust? While it’s a personal preference based on their experiences, one thing is certain, advisors earn trust through openness, integrity and the consistency of their actions.
When I think of the process of cultivating trust, I think of the saying, “it’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon.” Earning trust requires diligent effort over time.
We’ve all heard that clients do business with people they like and trust. As an advisor, why not make trust your competitive advantage?
Who Benefits From Lower Gas Prices?
And in Case You’re Wondering Who’s Benefiting From Lower Gas Prices – It’s Restaurants
By Steve Blumenthal, CEO, CMG Capital Management Group
Put this chart in the “curious” category. CNBC has been asking CEO after CEO if lower gas prices are showing up in sales. The consensus answer is no. In fact, the latest retail sales data shocked to the downside. I continue to believe the overriding problem is too much debt.
With gas savings on everyone’s mind, I found this chart in an NDR research report titled, Are Consumers Eating Their Gas Savings? Anyway, if you were wondering, like me, who might be seeing a pickup in sales it looks to be the restaurant industry (especially domestic restaurants).
How You Can Cultivate The Heart Of A Champion
Michael F. Sciortino, Sr. Executive Vice President, Managing Director, Head of Distribution, CMG
Destiny is not a matter of chance, but a matter of choice. It is not a thing to be waited for. It is a thing to be achieved. -William Jennings Bryan
Throughout the last Olympics, I really enjoyed the stories about the athletes. The sacrifices and choices they made in order to achieve their dreams. In more than one case, they overcame many obstacles. The commitment they made to their sport was inspiring. The contribution to their team was amazing. They demonstrated perseverance and a relentless and contagious spirit. Most impressive of all was the way they nurtured their mindset. They achieved because they believed they could. As Abraham Lincoln said, ” Let no feelings of discouragement prey upon you, and in the end you are sure to succeed.”
OAAS Webinar Notes
The CMG Capital Management Group Webinar on the Opportunistic All Asset Strategy (OAAS) was well attended by advisors who seek tactical portfolio solutions for their clients. OAAS is a broadly diversified tactical investment solution for global asset allocation.
The CMG Capital Management Group Opportunistic All Asset Strategy is a fully diversified tactical portfolio with a defined risk management process. The goal is to capture broad bull market gains, with the flexibility to reduce the risk in bear markets.
The CMG Opportunistic All Asset Strategy is a quantitative investment strategy that analyzes a broad universe of mutual funds or exchange traded funds (ETFs) to determine a portfolio allocation with the goal of generating positive returns over multiple market cycles.
Blumenthal On Price Momentum In ETF.com
CMG Capital Management Group CEO Steve Blumenthal was interviewed by Cinthia Murphy of ETF.com at the Inside ETFs Conference in Hollywood, Florida. Here’s an excerpt of the story.
Price Momentum Key For Tactical ETF Investor
Oil has declined in a way no one saw coming. The trajectory of bond yields has surprised most for some time now. U.S. equity valuations are rich by most measures and suggest returns ahead will be muted at best. What’s an investor to do in an environment mired with curveballs?
Stephen Blumenthal, founder and CEO of CMG Capital Management Group, says going tactical is the only way to invest today, and that for a tactical investor, opportunities abound.
SB: “With oil, energy has not been in the leadership realm for some time. I had no idea oil would decline 50 percent; I don’t think anybody did. But what we did know was that it wasn’t the asset class to be in. There were better choices to be in that were exhibiting good performance and good leadership. REITs have been phenomenal. Utilities had a very good period. Consumer discretionary, although it hasn’t shown up yet at the top relative to our collection of assets, is doing OK.”
Read the rest of the story in ETF.com here.
3 Keys To An Impactful Story
Michael F. Sciortino, Sr. Executive Vice President, Managing Director, Head of Distribution, CMG
Years ago, one of my earliest mentors shared with me an idea that has proved invaluable in my career. He said, “Never forget, facts tell but stories sell!”
Wow was he right on target! Facts satisfy the analytical part of our brain but stories touch your client’s hearts. Storytelling is one of the oldest and most effective forms of communication. Stories are the way we explain things. Stories are gifts we share. Every story generally has a goal. Like pieces in a puzzle, stories connect you to your clients.
As John Steinbeck said, ” If a story is not about the hearer, he (or she) will not listen.”
Blumenthal On Bloomberg ETF Report
CMG Capital Management Group CEO Steve Blumenthal was interviewed by Bloomberg Radio’s Catherine Cowdery at the Inside ETFs Conference in Hollywood, Florida, last week. The segment was just posted on Bloomberg Business.
Bloomberg Business launched last month to deliver business and markets news, data, analysis, and video to the world, featuring stories from Businessweek and Bloomberg News.
ETF Report Podcast. Hosted by Catherine Cowdery.