Schwab IMPACT Conference

A central focus of the Trump administration has been to reduce the U.S. trade deficit and to force our trading partners – mostly China – to eliminate what he claims to be unfair trade practices. Yet former Fed Chair Janet Yellen doesn’t understand what Trump is doing.

The conventional wisdom promoted by the developers of social networks was that they would provide immense benefits to society through faster and broader connectivity. That view was shattered by Niall Ferguson, who called services like Facebook and Twitter “crazy ideas gone viral, with deeply negative implications.”

Brian Smedley is Senior Managing Director and Head of Macroeconomic and Investment Research at Guggenheim Partners. In this interview, he discusses his outlook for the economy and the capital markets, and how the economy is likely to run into a recession in the first half of 2020.

At Schwab IMPACT, stop by the Guggenheim booth (620), to meet Brian Smedley, and see him present Forecasting the Next Recession on Tuesday 10/30, at 11:15 AM ET, Showcase Stage C.

Anthony Eames is a vice president of Eaton Vance Management and director of responsible investment strategy. In this interview, he discusses the emerging trends in ESG/SRI products and how advisors can better serve their clients with responsible investing solutions.

Stop by to see us at booth 300 in the exhibit hall, where you’ll have a chance to talk with our product representatives.

Jeremy DeGroot, CFA, is a principal and the chief investment officer of Litman Gregory, a boutique wealth management firm based in the San Francisco Bay Area. In this interview, he discusses the Litman Gregory Masters High Income Alternatives Fund, which seeks to generate a high level of current income from diverse sources, consistent with the goal of capital preservation over time. It was launched on September 28, 2018.

Stop by booth #610 at Schwab IMPACT® to learn more about the Litman Gregory Masters High Income Alternatives Fund (MAHIX).

Mike Van Wyk is a senior market research manager at American Funds, part of Capital Group. His research has revealed several secrets that high-net worth investors keep from their advisors, and what advisors can do to reveal them.

Visit us in the exhibit hall at booth 463 to learn about our latest research on high net worth clients and discover ways to serve them better. American Funds Distributors, Inc.

Di Zhou and Jim Gassman are co-managers of the Thornburg Better World International Fund (TBWIX), a global ESG fund. Since its inception on 9/30/15, through 9/30/18, the fund has earned an annualized rate of return of 10.96%, outperforming its benchmark, the MSCI ACWI Ex-US USD index, by 117 basis points. As of 9/30/18, the fund has been rated five stars by Morningstar.

Stop by to see us at booth #388 (near the Bear & Bull Pub) in the exhibit hall, where you’ll have a chance to talk with our product representatives and pick up our latest features in the Wall Street Transcript and Value Investor Insight.

Those looking for an optimistic forecast for U.S. equities can turn to Northern Trust. Bob Browne, its chief investment officer, identified six themes that will drive the capital markets over the next five years. Taken together, they translate to 5.9% annual returns for U.S. stocks over that period, which includes 2017.

Neil Hennessy is a portfolio manager and chief investment officer at Hennessy Funds. In this interview, he discusses the compelling opportunities in mid-cap and Japanese stocks, and what RIAs should be doing in advance of the next market correction.

The money to be made is in non-U.S. markets, according to Jeffrey Gundlach. For long-term investors, he recommends a specific ETF.

Greg Dunn is a portfolio manager for Thornburg Investment Management. He manages the Thornburg International Growth Fund (TINGX), which has outperformed its benchmark by 540 basis points over the last 10 years. In this interview, he discussed his investment philosophy and what drove that outperformance. Please visit Thornburg Investment Management at booth 123 at Schwab IMPACT.

Bob Rodriguez, FPA’s now-retired portfolio manager, earned many awards and distinctions during his 33-year career. In this interview, he talks about the role of the Fed in the price-setting mechanism. “When the markets finally do break, as they always have historically, ETFs and index funds will be destabilizing influences,” he says. Please visit FPA Advisors at booth 123 at Schwab IMPACT.

John West is a managing director and head of client strategies for Research Affiliates. In this interview, he discusses what assumptions advisors should use for capital-market returns over the next decade.

Robert Reich, a prominent Democrat, and Alan Simpson, a distinguished Republican, engaged in a friendly debate to discuss issues that they said were not addressed during this campaign season. But on crucial subjects, both relied on out-of-date and inaccurate reasoning.

The world will enter a geo-political “recession,” according to Ian Bremmer, resulting in a large list of failed states. The U.S. will be relatively insulated from that crisis, but faces its own challenges driven by globalization and wealth inequality.

The Fed will raise rates in December, as long as the election goes as expected and there are no surprises in the economic data, according to Rick Rieder. But, according to Rieder there are secular influences in the economy that are much more important than monetary policy.

Only two election scenarios are possible, according to Greg Valliere. Either Clinton will win by a modest 4-5% margin, or she will win by a blowout margin of 12-13%.

A recession is not imminent and investors should be skeptical of those who claim the market is vastly overvalued, according to Liz Ann Sonders.

Brian Yacktman is the son of the legendary investor, Don Yacktman, and the chief investment officer, portfolio manager and a principal of YCG Investments. In this interview, he discusses how he has melded a traditional value-oriented approach with the use of options to deliver risk-adjusted outperformance for his investors. Please visit YCG Investments at booth 123 at Schwab IMPACT.

Indiana-based SBAuer Funds launched its inaugural mutual fund in December of 2007, after having established a successful track record with a separately managed account business. I spoke with Bob Auer, who has employed the same stock selection system used by the fund for the last 25 years, over which time returns have averaged 25% annually.