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IMPACTfolio - Quarterly Newsletter Thumbnail

IMPACTfolio - Quarterly Newsletter

IMPACT Investing Investment

There are so many positive things and people in this world, I consider myself blessed and fortunate.   However, we will all experience different challenges in our journey of life, and this past week our community experienced an incredible challenge.  

I struggle to understand the event that took place last week at STEM School Highlands Ranch.  Both of my children attend the school.  When I received notice that there was an active shooting at our school, I was in a state of shock and panic.  The few hours between learning of the event until holding my son in my arms were  excruciating.  Our family was fortunate no one was injured.  We are extremely thankful for the brave teachers, students, school security and first responders.  It was amazing to see the strength of our community react so quickly to such a horrible event.  #STEMstrong

Other families were not as fortunate as ours. If you would like to make a donation to help our STEM students and/or the family of Kendrick Castillo, the brave student who gave his life protecting his fellow classmates, here are two possible ways:

  • https://www.coloradogives.org/STEMstrong
  • Go to any Wells Fargo Bank and donate to the “Kendrick Castillo Memorial Fund”.  It is our understanding that this is the only fund authorized by his family for donations.

We created IMPACTfolio to be a financial force of good.  One of the ways we strive to achieve this goal is the way we invest both our and our clients’ money.  Through Impact Investing we use positive screens and negative screens to help our clients invest in companies that make a positive difference and achieve their financial goals.  One of the negative screens we use is the elimination of investing in any gun manufacturers and gun retailers.  We understand the issue of gun violence and school shootings is complex.  Limiting access to guns is just one of the many possible ways to make a difference.  To check any fund’s exposure to gun manufacturers or gun distributors, use this web site: https://weaponfreefunds.org/.

On the market front, we have seen a nice rebound in equity markets from the sell-off we experienced in the 4th quarter of last year.  We would not be surprised to see profit-taking or a pull-back over the summer months.  If the trade-war with China continues to escalate this could be the catalyst for a quick 5-10% pull back in both U.S. and International stock markets.  One of our favorite tools to see where the strength is in the markets is the Relative Strength Asset Class Comparison Chart.   The current chart below continues to show higher relative strength in U.S. and International Equities.  Our core strategic portfolios continue to slightly overweight equities, and our tactical ETF strategy is currently 80% in equities and 20% in fixed income.

To our clients, your quarterly reports are available in the Vault on your personal financial planning web site.  If you have any questions about your portfolio, please let us know.

Scott Arnold, CFP®, has been in the financial services industry since 1998. He is a co-founder of IMPACTfolio, a wealth management firm that specializes in IMPACT investing and holistic financial planning for one flat-fee.