Blog

Weekly Market Insights: Wall Street Flips the Script & Enjoys a Rally.

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Monday, October 24, 2022

A positive start to a new earnings season and late-week hopes for a near-term easing in Fed rate hikes lifted investors’ spirits and powered stocks to gains for the week.The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 4.89%, while the...

Weekly Market Insights: Volatility Reigns; Inflation Remains Unchecked.

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Monday, October 17, 2022

Stocks were mixed last week amid wide intra- and inter-day price swings, as technology shares bore the brunt of the downdraft.The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1.15% for the week. Meanwhile, the Standard & Poor’s 500...

Weekly Market Insights: Boost Early in Week Keeps Markets Ahead

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Monday, October 10, 2022

A powerful two-day stock rebound cemented a positive week for investors as a new trading month began.The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.99%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 added 1.51%. The Nasdaq Composite index increased 0...

Weekly Market Insights: U.S. and U.K. See Financial Turbulence

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Monday, October 3, 2022

Rising recession fears and uncertainty in the bond and currency markets sent stocks to new 2022 lows last week.The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 2.92%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 slumped 2.91%. The Nasdaq Composite...

Weekly Market Insights: Fallout From Powell Comments Continues

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Monday, September 26, 2022

Last week, Fed Chair Powell said the U.S. would not tame inflation without economic pain. This week heightened recession fears and sent stocks broadly lower.The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 4.00%, while the Standard &...

Weekly Market Insights: White Hot Inflation Report Alarms Investors

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Monday, September 19, 2022

A hotter-than-expected inflation report sent stocks sharply lower last week as investors faced the prospect of more aggressive interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve for perhaps a longer period.The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell...

Weekly Market Insights: Markets Upbeat, Despite Gloomy Inflation Talk

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Monday, September 12, 2022

In a holiday-shortened week of trading, stocks posted healthy gains despite more tough talk on monetary policy from Fed officials.The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 2.66%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 gained 3.65%. The...

Weekly Market Insights: Markets Sag, Job Numbers Soar

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Tuesday, September 6, 2022

The overhang of Fed Chair Powell’s Jackson Hole speech the previous week carried over into last week as investors recalibrated stock valuations amid a seemingly more assertive monetary policy stance.The Dow Jones Industrial...

Weekly Market Insights: Powell comments spur sell-off on Wall Street

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Monday, August 29, 2022

A comprehensive sell-off on Friday following comments by Fed Chair Jerome Powell drove stocks to losses for the week.The Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 4.22%, while the Standard & Poor's 500 dropped 4.04%. The Nasdaq Composite...

Weekly Market Insights: Markets Tap Brakes, But Hold Fast Against Downbeat News

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Monday, August 22, 2022

Stocks tumbled on Friday, sending stocks to a weekly loss after an otherwise quiet August week of trading.The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped -0.16%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 lost 1.21%. The Nasdaq Composite index...

Weekly Market Insights: Stocks Have Warmer Week as Inflation Cools

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Monday, August 15, 2022

An improving inflation outlook buoyed investors’ spirits last week, helping lift stocks to solid gains.The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 2.92%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 rose 3.26%. The Nasdaq Composite index...

Weekly Market Insights: Mixed Week For Markets; Jobs On The Rise

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Monday, August 8, 2022

Stocks turned in a mixed performance last week as investors struggled with headlines suggesting that the Fed was unlikely to soon ease up on its current monetary tightening policy.The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.13%, while...

Weekly Market Insights: Markets Rally; Earnings Better Than Expected

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Tuesday, August 2, 2022

Undaunted by another Fed rate hike and news of a contracting economy, the stock market rallied last week on better-than-expected corporate earnings.The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 2.97%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500...

Weekly Market Insights: Markets React to Dim Forecast, 2Q Reports

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Monday, July 25, 2022

Stocks rallied last week as investor spirits lifted thanks to a better-than-expected start to the second-quarter earnings season.The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1.95%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 added 2.55%. The...

Weekly Market Insights: Friday Rally Stems Week of Losses

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Monday, July 18, 2022

A record-high inflation report, the prospects of a more aggressive Fed, and growing recession fears sent stocks lower– though losses were pared by a Friday rally.The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.16%, while the Standard...

Weekly Market Insights: Stocks Rally Despite Mixed Data

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Monday, July 11, 2022

In a holiday-shortened trading week, stocks rallied despite mixed economic data and vacillating energy prices and bond yields.The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 0.77%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 rose 1.94%. The...

Weekly Market Insights: Stocks Rally, Despite Recession Concerns

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Tuesday, June 28, 2022

Prospects of cooling inflation powered a rally in stock prices last week despite growing recession concerns.The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 5.39%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 climbed 6.45%. The Nasdaq Composite index...

Weekly Market Insights: Fed Rate Hike Triggers Market Dip

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Tuesday, June 21, 2022

Stocks moved lower last week as recession fears deepened following a Fed hike in interest rates and weak economic data.The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 4.79%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 dropped 5.79%. The Nasdaq...

Weekly Market Insights: Stocks Dip on Inflation Report

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Monday, June 13, 2022

A higher-than-expected inflation report triggered a sell-off on Friday, leaving stocks in the red for the week.The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 4.58%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 dropped 5.05%. The Nasdaq Composite index...

Weekly Market Insights: Stocks Slip on Mixed Economic News

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Monday, June 6, 2022

In a holiday-shortened week of volatile trading, stocks surrendered some of the previous week’s strong gains.The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.94%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 declined 1.20%. The Nasdaq Composite...

Weekly Market Insights: Confidence in Fed Helps Spark Market Rally

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF® CPFA® NQPA®

Tuesday, May 31, 2022

Stocks posted solid gains for the week, buoyed by the release of Fed meeting minutes and upbeat earnings from mid-size and discount retailers.The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 6.24%, while the Standard & Poor’s 500 advanced...

Climate action is front and center for both the Biden administration and many of the world’s largest companies. Read my latest Markets in a Minute for a look at the opportunities and obstacles in the race to a clean-energy future and...

Retirement Times - August 2018

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF®

Wednesday, August 15, 2018

Collective Investment Trusts — The Fastest Growing Investment Vehicle Within 401(k) Plans. For almost a century, collective investment trusts (CITs) have played an important role in the markets. They were originally introduced in...

Retirement Times - July 2018

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF®

Sunday, July 15, 2018

What is an Exchange?An exchange is a turnkey solution for businesses that allows you to provide the benefit of a retirement plan while offloading much of the administrative and fiduciary responsibilities at a potential cost reduction....

Retirement Times - June 2018

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF®

Monday, June 18, 2018

Are You Prepared for an IRS Audit? The Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS’s) Employee Benefit Audit Program is used to audit and enforce. The IRS’s emphasis, with respect to defined contribution plans is on compliance...

Retirement Times - May 2018

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF®

Tuesday, May 15, 2018

Have You Conducted a Fee Equalization/Levelization? Fees in defined contribution (DC) plans can be complicated. Historically, fees have not been fully and simply disclosed, but the industry is changing towards greater and more...

Retirement Times - April 2018

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF®

Sunday, April 15, 2018

In our research, late deposit of contributions is a frequent error made by plan sponsors and is a key priority of the Department of Labor (DOL). In every plan audit conducted by the DOL, the investigator looks to see if contributions...

Retirement Times - March 2018

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF®

Thursday, March 15, 2018

This month the Retirement Time blog will focus in on Target Date Funds and their growing popularity as a qualified default investment alternative (QDIA). We hope that this article is informative and applicable.

Retirement Times - February 2018

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF®

Thursday, February 15, 2018

Navigating the obligations and duties of being a Retirement Plan Sponsor can be challenging. We hope that this month's edition of our Retirement Times Newsletter will provide you with meaningful insights and we hope you have a great...

Market Volatility

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF®

Wednesday, February 7, 2018

This week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped in a way that it never had before. Monday, the benchmark fell 1,175 points, taking the greatest tumble in its long history. At one point, it was down 1,500 points during...

Retirement times - January 2018

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF®

Monday, January 15, 2018

Navigating the obligations and duties of being a Retirement Plan Sponsor can be challenging. We hope that this month's edition of our Retirement Times Newsletter will provide you with meaningful insights and we hope you have a great...

How Insurance Can Help You Retire in Comfort When we think about retirement, we usually think about our IRAs, our 401(k), social security, and other savings vehicles. But one essential component to retirement savings that often gets...

Retirement Times: December 2017

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF®

Friday, December 15, 2017

Navigating the obligations and duties of being a Retirement Plan Sponsor can be challenging. We hope that this month's edition of our Retirement Times Newsletter will provide you with meaningful insights and we hope you have a great...

Retirement Times: November 2017

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF®

Wednesday, November 15, 2017

The November 2017 edition of our Retirement Times Newsletter will discuss the expanding definition of employee benefits packages. November 2017 - Retirement Times

Retirement Times: Newsletter for Plan Sponsors

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF®

Sunday, October 15, 2017

Navigating the obligations and duties of being a Retirement Plan Sponsor can be challenging. We hope that this month's edition of our Retirement Times Newsletter will provide you with meaningful insights regarding Automatic Participant...

2017 Five Star Wealth Manager

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF®

Friday, October 6, 2017

In conjunction with The Washington Post Magazine, Five Star Professional has recognized Walter Ziffer with the 2017 Five Star Wealth Manager award. Check out Walter’s Five Star Professional listing at http://publications...

The Equifax Data Breach

Walter L. Ziffer, AIF®, CBC

Thursday, September 21, 2017

The Equifax Data Breach Have you been affected? If so, how can you try to protect yourself? Provided by (k)RPG On September 7, credit reporting agency Equifax dropped a consumer bombshell. It revealed that cybercriminals had gained...