Award-winning Guidebook Wins at 2012 International Book Awards
Highland, MI (PRWEB) June 04, 2012
ACA, the only community of fee-only financial planners focused on holistic planning strategies, announced that Moving Forward on Your Own: A Financial Guidebook for Widows, by Kathleen Rehl, Ph.D., CFP®, has received its tenth award.The Guidebook is the winner in the 2012 International Book Awards (IBA) in the Women’s Issues category and a finalist in the Business: Personal Finance category.
“I am so grateful for all the support and recognition this publication has received,” said Dr. Rehl.
The Guidebook integrates basic financial information with self-reflective exercises to encourage self-confidence about money issues. The format it is intended to serve as a catalyst to help women make progress after a spouse's death.
In addition to writing about the issues faced by widows, Dr. Rehl is also an active public speaker on the topic. She will deliver a presentation at the 2012 ACA Conference to help educate other advisors on how to work effectively with widows.
To further assist widows with their financial matters, Dr. Rehl partnered with her fellow ACA members to develop a network of qualified, ethical, fee-only financial planners who work with widows. Click on the following link to access this network.
Copies of the guidebook can be ordered by clicking here.
Dr. Rehl is the founder of Rehl Financial Advisors in Land O’Lakes, Florida. She has been an ACA member since 1996.
ABOUT ACA
ACA is a non-profit 501(C)6 organization providing continuing education and support to fee-only financial planners with a passion for holistic financial planning. Its collaborative community continues to develop the next generation of holistic planning concepts and strategies. Currently ACA consists of more than 160 members serving 45 states across the U.S.
Valerie Kriss
Alliance of Cambridge Advisors
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Tokyo stocks hit 28-year low as investors flee risky assets - ibtimes.co.uk
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And U.S. stock futures also pointed to more selling when investors wake up in North America, with S&P 500 futures down 0.7 percent in Asian trade.
"Investors are just fleeing risk assets," said ATI Asset Management chief investment officer Simon Burge.
"Bond yields are at an all-time low. Even in the global financial crisis we didn't see bond yields at the levels that they have reached now ... This is a flight from risk assets that is unprecedented," Burge said.
The benchmark 10-year Japanese government bond yield fell below 0.80 percent to its lowest since July 2003. Ten-year JGB futures prices jumped to a 19-month high.
U.S. and German government bond yields had both hit record lows on Friday, with 10-year German yields dipping to 1.127 percent and 10-year Treasury yields touching a historic low of 1.442 percent.
"The jobs number from the U.S. was shocking and Spain is now becoming a big worry. On top of that everyone who thought Q1 would be the bottom for the Chinese economy has realized that this is a real slowdown that could go on," said Larry Jiang, Hong Kong-based chief investment strategist at Guotai Junan Securities.
The CBOE Volatility index , which measures expected volatility in the Standard & Poor's 500 index over the next 30 days, jumped nearly 11 percent to its highest since mid-December on Friday, reflecting mounting risk aversion.
POLICY RESPONSES EYED
Analysts said the flight to bonds would continue until clarity emerged on issues such as the outcome of Greek elections due on June 17 and the recapitalisation of European banks, now in the shadow of a Spanish banking crisis.
"It's not an issue of risk-on or risk-off anymore, it's nervousness all over until a clear direction emerges on a long-term trend," said Hisamitsu Hara, chief foreign exchange manager at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ.
U.S. jobs growth braked sharply for a third straight month in May and the jobless rate rose for the first time in nearly a year, with 69,000 jobs added to payrolls last month, the least since May last year.
The weak data followed poor Chinese manufacturing and dismal European data on factory activity, rattling markets that had already been on edge over the deepening euro-zone crisis. The numbers fuelled speculation that the U.S. Federal Reserve would have to launch further monetary stimulus to shore up growth.
A Reuters poll of 15 primary dealers, which do business directly with the Fed, showed a 50 percent chance of a third round of quantitative easing.
The yen was off its Friday highs against the dollar and the euro. It stood at 78.13 yen to the U.S. dollar, off a 3-1/2 month high of 77.65 yen hit on Friday. It traded at 96.94 against the euro, having reached around 95.59 yen on Friday, its strongest level since December 2000.
The euro was at $1.2408, recovering from Friday's trough of $1.2288, its lowest in nearly two years. The Australian dollar, which is closely linked to risk appetite, staged only a meek recovery from eight-month lows hit on Friday.
"If the European situation worsens, then the global interest rate and policy solutions would require coordinated actions by the Bank of Japan and the Federal Reserve to assure access to U.S. dollar money markets, otherwise risk a contraction in global trade," said Richard Hastings, macro and consumer strategist at Global Hunter Securities.
COMMODITIES SLIDE
Analysts are eagerly awaiting the European Central Bank's policy decision on Wednesday and U.S. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's congressional testimony on Thursday, looking for clues on their responses to vulnerable global growth.
Spot gold edged 0.2 percent lower to $1,622.81 an ounce on Monday, largely holding its ground after recording its biggest one-day rally in more than three years on Friday.
U.S. crude futures fell 1.9 percent to $81.65 a barrel to its lowest in almost eight months, and Brent dropped 1.7 percent to $96.79, a 16-month low.
Worries about slowing global growth also pushed Shanghai copper down more than 3 percent to a new 2012 low of around 52,450 yuan ($8,200) a tonne.
Heightened risk aversion pushed up the cost of insuring against corporate and sovereign defaults in Asia, with the spread on the iTraxx Asia ex-Japan investment-grade index widening by 13 basis points. ($1 = 6.3690 Chinese yuan)
(Additional reporting by Victoria Thieberger in Melbourne and Vikram Subhedar in Hong Kong; Editing by Mark Bendeich)
Financial education often starts in the home - Wichita Falls Times Record News
According to the National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC) 2012 Financial Literacy Survey, 44 percent of Americans indicated they learned the most about personal finance from their parents or at home. By contrast, only 10 percent said they learned their financial skills at school.
Despite the home being the primary teaching ground, many have never stopped to connect the dots between their financial habits and their parent's. Confirming this concept is the NFCC's May online poll in which 44 percent of respondents admitted that as an adult they have never compared their financial habits to their parent's, suggesting that they are unaware of the potential impact their parent's actions might have had on their current financial behavior.
Of those who had contrasted their adult financial behavior against their parent's, 12 percent chose to embrace financial habits that were exactly opposite of their parent's, while nine percent admitted their habits were very similar. Thirty-five percent indicated their financial style was a blend of how their parents handled money and their own attitudes.
"Whether parents are astute money managers or woefully lacking in financial skills, their behavior influences what the children are learning, and likely impacting how they will handle their own finances as adults," said Gail Cunningham, spokesperson for the NFCC. "Understanding this dynamic should serve as an incentive for adults to improve their own grasp of personal finance, because like it or not, their actions in this area will speak loudly."
Although conversations about money can begin with children of preschool age, the NFCC provides the following 10 questions as ways to start a discussion with teenagers about money and create a teachable moment:
■ Do you think children should be paid to do household chores?
■ Could you live on the current federal minimum wage in America of $7.25 per hour?
■ If not, how could you convince your boss that your skill set is worth more than the minimum?
■ How many hours are you willing to work to pay for that new pair of tennis shoes you want?
■ How is a checking account different from a debit card?
■ Why do credit card issuers charge customers different interest rates?
■ If not compact disc, what do the initials CD stand for?
■ Could you save a dollar each day from now until Christmas?
■ If you received $100 for your birthday, what would you do with the money?
■ What's the difference between collision and liability car insurance?
"By improving their own financial skills, parents can make a positive impact on their children's financial futures, truly a gift that can last a lifetime," Cunningham said. "NFCC Member Agencies offer dozens of workshops on a variety of topics. Make a date with your teenager and take advantage of this free or low-cost financial education."
For more information, call 800-388-2227, (en Español 800-682-9832) or go online to www.nfcc.org.
Financial Engines Personalizes Better Retirement Plans with SAS ® - Business Wire
CARY, N.C.--()--Financial Engines, America’s largest independent investment advisor, needed a better way to analyze its massive database of 401(k) participant demographic information. Using software from SAS, the leader in business analytics software and services, the company will quickly and easily harness investment advisor analytics to more clearly understand what customers want and pinpoint drivers for service enrollment, ultimately resulting in more attractive retirement plan offers.
“We chose SAS because we needed a secure, best-in-class solution for managing our customer data”
“We chose SAS because we needed a secure, best-in-class solution for managing our customer data,” said Mike Ault, Director of Investor Communications at Financial Engines. “SAS was both easy to implement and scalable, giving us plenty of room to grow.”
SAS will help Financial Engines save considerable time in data manipulation, processing and analysis. In addition to increased efficiencies, the analysis provides a more comprehensive user view. “With more information and engagement, we can create solutions that meet client needs while growing our business,” said Ault.
“Since our services are available to more than 8 million 401(k) participants nationwide, we can learn a great deal about what influences participant retirement choices,” said Ault. “SAS helps us gather that intelligence efficiently, enabling us to quickly adapt and improve user experience.”
About Financial Engines
Financial Engines is the largest independent investment advisor, committed to providing everyone the trusted retirement help they deserve. The company helps investors with their total retirement picture by offering personalized retirement plans for saving, investment, and retirement income. To meet the needs of different investors, Financial Engines offers both online advice and professional management. Co-founded in 1996 by Nobel Prize-winning economist Bill Sharpe, Financial Engines works with America's leading employers and retirement plan providers to make retirement help available to millions of American workers. Financial Engines Advisors LLC is a subsidiary of Financial Engines Inc. (NASDAQ: FNGN).
For more information, please visit financialengines.com.
About SAS
SAS is the leader in business analytics software and services, and the largest independent vendor in the business intelligence market. Through innovative solutions, SAS helps customers at more than 55,000 sites improve performance and deliver value by making better decisions faster. Since 1976 SAS has been giving customers around the world THE POWER TO KNOW®. SAS and all other SAS Institute Inc. product or service names are registered trademarks or trademarks of SAS Institute Inc. in the USA and other countries. ® indicates USA registration. Other brand and product names are trademarks of their respective companies. Copyright © 2012 SAS Institute Inc. All rights reserved.
Stocks Mostly Lower In Mid-Day Trading - U.S. Commentary - NASDAQ
(RTTNews.com) - While selling pressure has remained relatively subdued, stocks have moved mostly lower over the course of the trading day on Monday. Renewed worries about the outlook for the U.S. economy continue to weigh on the markets.
The major averages are currently posting moderate losses but are off their worst levels of the day. The Dow is down 38.19 points or 0.3 percent at 12,080.38, the Nasdaq is down 10.06 points or 0.4 percent at 2,737.42 and the S&P 500 is down 6.08 points or 0.5 percent at 1,271.96.
The weakness on Wall Street comes as traders continue to digest last Friday's much weaker than expected jobs data, which triggered a substantial sell-off.
The report, which showed the weakest job growth in a year, has added to concerns about whether the U.S. economic recovery will be able to hold up in light of the ongoing European debt crisis and slowing growth in China.
Adding to the worries, the Commerce Department released a report this morning showing an unexpected drop in new orders for U.S. manufactured goods.
The report showed that factory orders fell by 0.6 percent in April following a revised 2.1 percent drop in March. The decrease surprised economists, who had expected orders to edge up by 0.1 percent.
Excluding an increase in orders for transportation equipment, factory orders fell by even steeper 1.1 percent in April.
In corporate news, Salesforce.com (CRM) is down by 1.6 percent after announcing an agreement to acquire social media marketing platform Buddy Media for $689 million in cash and stock. The transaction is expected to be completed during salesforce.com's fiscal third quarter.
Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY) is also posting a modest loss after announcing a deal to buy Linen Holdings for about $105 million in cash. The company said the acquisition will not have any effect on its first quarter results.
Meanwhile, shares of Charming Shoppes (CHRS) are seeing modest strength even though the apparel retailer reported weaker than expected first quarter earnings and revenues.
Sector News
Housing stocks have moved sharply lower over the course of the trading day, dragging the Philadelphia Housing Sector Index down by 2.3 percent. With the loss, the index has fallen to its lowest intraday level in over four months.
Hovnanian Enterprises (HOV) has helped to lead the housing sector lower, with the homebuilder falling by 6.9 percent to a nearly five-month low.
Significant weakness is also visible among airline stocks, as reflected by the 2.2 percent loss being posted by the NYSE Arca Airline Index. Delta Air Lines (DAL) and US Airways (LCC) are turning in two of the sector's worst performances.
Oil service stocks have also come under pressure even though the price of crude oil has recovered from early weakness. Financial, railroad, and gold stocks are also posting notable losses, while some telecom stocks are bucking the downtrend.
Other Markets
In overseas trading, stock markets across the Asia-Pacific region came under pressure on Monday following Friday's sell-off on Wall Street. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index tumbled by 1.7 percent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index plummeted by 2 percent.
Meanwhile, the major European markets turned in a mixed performance on the day, with the French CAC 40 Index edging up by 0.1 percent, while the German DAX Index fell by 1.2 percent. The U.K. markets were closed for a public holiday.
In the bond market, treasuries have given back some ground after moving sharply higher in recent sessions. Subsequently, the yield on the benchmark ten-year note, which moves opposite of its price, is up by 4 basis points at 1.507 percent.
For comments and feedback: contact editorial@rttnews.com
8 stocks to watch during the downturn - MSN Money
By Mike Cintolo, Cabot Market Letter
The concept of eggs and tennis balls helps us form our watch list during market downtrends. The idea is simple. The key to finding winners is to look for stocks that bounce back quickly. We call those tennis balls.
Conversely, it's usually best to avoid the names that can't get off their knees even after the market lifts its head, as their inability to bounce resembles eggs that have splattered on the floor.
The reason we like tennis balls is history. Time and again, the stocks that either hold up best during a decline and/or bounce back the quickest most often become future leaders.
Too often we see investors buying up a bunch of eggs once the market confirms a new uptrend.
Some of that is due to bargain hunting -- "If it was a good buy at $50, it should be a really good buy at $40!" -- while some of it involves bias, as many investors go back to an old leader because of its name, even though the stock may have lost its luster.
While every now and then eggs will go on to be good performers, most of the dynamic performers are tennis balls that show their hands during the market's bottom-building process.
Now, you need to wait for a new market uptrend before stepping into a potential leader in any big way, because good stocks can still go bad in a hurry in a downtrending market.
But the more you focus on resilient stocks, the better the chance you'll land a big winner when the bulls retake control.
There remain plenty of resilient stocks, though a bit more time would be nice, giving them a chance to round out launching pads. Here's a watch list of stocks we're following closely:
Amazon.com (AMZN). The Wal-Mart of the Internet, Amazon has $50 billion in annual revenue but is still growing at 30%-plus clips. A huge investment spree could be near an end, leading to a big increase in earnings.
Athenahealth (ATHN). We've always liked the story of this company's billing, collections and electronic health record software that's increasingly popular. ATHN's revenues are consistently up 30% or more. The stock trades thinly, but it's formed a tight 10-week zone south of 80.
Buffalo Wild Wings (BWLD). We were shaken out of BWLD a few weeks back, but the stock has been etching a decent base since. Wing prices (and, hence, profit margins) remain an issue, but the company is hiking prices in response, and its big-picture cookie-cutter story remains enticing.
LinkedIn (LNKD). The Facebook of the "business" community, LinkedIn is monetizing its millions of users by allowing companies to search for the best talent -- whether they're looking for a job or not. The company sports triple-digit sales and earnings growth.
Salesforce.com (CRM). The more we study Salesforce.com, the more it looks like the Microsoft of the cloud generation. Its quarterly report two weeks ago was another blockbuster. The stock has been basing since December 2010, and a couple more weeks of consolidation could set the stage for its next leg up.
SourceFire (FIRE). Network security is growing more complex, and SourceFire is a small company ($181 million in sales) that has some of the best products in the industry. Sales and earnings growth are accelerating, and the stock is acting well.
SXC Health Solutions (SXCI). SXC has morphed from a small, regional pharmacy benefit manager to a national provider, thanks to rapid growth and a few acquisitions. The most recent (of Catalyst Health) could be a game changer. The stock has traded tightly during the market's correction and is near new-high ground.
TripAdvisor (TRIP). TripAdvisor is the world's most visited travel information site, with 60 million reviews and opinions. The stock was spun off from Expedia last December, but it's well-traded ($90 million a day) and recently hit new highs.
More from The Stock Advisors
Stocks with Strong Financial Metrics (NYSE: GPK) - takeoverchatter.com
Graphic Packaging Holding Company (GPHC) is a provider of packaging solutions for a variety of products to food, beverage and other consumer products companies.
US stocks open higher as calm returns to market - The Guardian
DANIEL WAGNER
AP Business Writer= U.S. stocks are opening higher as calm returns to global markets after a spasm of fearful selling last week.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose modestly in early trading Monday, starting from its lowest opening value since December.
Bond investors appeared less concerned about the finances of some troubled European countries. Bond yields fell for Italy and Spain, meaning that they appear less likely to default.
Stocks in Europe were mixed. Asian shares had closed sharply lower, extending a selloff from Friday caused by a surprisingly grim report on U.S. job creation in May.
The Dow is up 23 points at 12,141. The Standard & Poor's 500 index is up 4 at 1,282. The Nasdaq composite index is up 22 at 2,769.
Stocks sag again on growth worries - MSN Money
Updated: 1:20 p.m. ET. Stocks can't catch a break right now. The market opened modestly higher today on reports that European leaders were considering a master plan to bring budgets, banking and political systems under tighter control.
But the rally was snuffed out by the realization that considering a plan doesn't mean it's going to happen any time soon. Then, the government said April factory orders were weaker than expected, and a report from the Institute for Supply Management's New York Chapter showed activity pulling back.
There were some bright spots. Utility stocks were mostly higher. Sodastream International (SODA) shares were up $1.52 to $31.76. Chesapeake Energy (CHK) shares were up 49 cents to $16.07 after the company said it will replace four directors, a nod to activist shareholder Carl Icahn, who owns a 7.6% stake in the company.
German stocks closed lower, but French stocks were a bit higher. British markets were closed to as the United Kingdom commemorates Queen Elizabeth II's 60 years on the throne.
At 1:20 ET, the Dow Jones industrials ($INDU) were down 80 points to 12,038. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index ($INX) was off 10 points to 1,268, and the Nasdaq Composite Index ($COMPX) was off 18 points to 2,729. The Nasdaq-100 Index ($NDX) was off 11 points to 2,447. The index is heavily influenced by Apple (AAPL), which was off $8.78 to $552.21.
Article continues below.
"It is difficult to argue for owning the stock today," wrote Bernstein analyst Carlos Kirjner in a research report today.
A near-term slowdown in sales growth will fuel investor concerns about full-year 2013 sales, Kirjner wrote. The deceleration may "prove to be a temporary setback if, over time, Facebook manages to improve monetization of its inventory, both PC- and mobile-based, and maximize the value of social advertising," Kirjner said.
Facebook is developing tools to let children younger than 13 years old use the site with parental supervision, a move that may rekindle privacy concerns, the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday.
The jobs report unhinges the market
JPMorgan Chase (JPM), Caterpillar (CAT) and General Electric (JPM) are the laggards among the 30 stocks. Home Depot (HD) is the leader.
JPMorgan is lower because of European concerns and because of a report in The New York Times that a group of investors warned the banking giant a year ago that its risk controls were weak.
The Dow is down for a fourth day in a row. It's off 0.5% for the year. The S&P 500 is now fully in a correction, popular defined as a 10% decline from a recent peak. In this case, the index is off 10.6% from is April 2 closing high.
The Nasdaq is down 12.6% from its peak on March 26.
Crude oil, gold move lower
Crude oil (-CL) was unchanged at $83.23 a barrel in New York. Brent crude was off 77 cents to $97.66 a barrel. The retail price of regular unleaded gasoline was averaging $3.585 a gallon, according to AAA's Daily Fuel Gauge Report.
Gold (-GC) was off $8 to $1,614.10 an ounce. Silver (-SI) also was lower. Copper (-HG) was up slightly.
The 10-year Treasury yield was up slightly from Friday at 1.49%.
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