Help Desk: How our behavior can hinder our investment returns
The eminently quotable Mike Tyson once said, “Everyone’s got a plan until they get punched in the face.” (In fact, he recently field tested this theory with an unruly fellow airline passenger.) This year, the market has been throwing vicious combinations at investors, including the war in Ukraine, a persistent global pandemic and rising interest rates.
Ukraine: Plan to Stay the Course
As you’re likely aware, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has begun. While we don’t claim to know more than the experts on the ground, we thought it would be helpful to provide some historical perspective on comparable events in the past and the impact they had on markets. As surprising as it may seem, geopolitical conflict doesn’t always translate into…
Help Desk: Why now may be the time to consider alternative investments
British explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton once said “A man must shape himself to a new mark directly [after] the old one goes to ground.” While the investment landscape doesn’t resemble the fractured Antarctic ice that trapped Shackleton and his crew, investors would do well to heed his advice about being open to change. Why? Due to…
Help Desk: Don’t wait any longer to start your succession planning
Travis Bickle, played by Robert DeNiro in “Taxi Driver,” Martin Scorsese’s gritty portrait of 1970s New York, said that “one of these days, I’m going to get organiz-ized,” quoting a humorous poster popular at the time. Add procrastination to the long list of reasons not to emulate Mr.Bickle…
Help Desk: Four financial lessons to carry forward after the pandemic
At a recent virtual meeting of the Financial Planning Association of Maryland, Comptroller Peter Franchot offered his best- and worst-case scenarios for the Covid-19 pandemic and the state’s economy. If things go poorly, he said, new variants of the virus could…
2020
Contribution Limits
2020 Contribution Limits Disclosure: Cornerstone Advisory, LLC, is registered as an investment adviser with the SEC. The firm only transacts business in states where it is properly registered, or is excluded or exempted from registration requirements. Registration does not constitute an endorsement of the…
How Will The New SECURE Act Affect You?
On January 1, 2020, the Setting Every Community up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (SECURE Act) went into effect putting many changes in place for retirement planning. 1) Age for IRA Required Minimum Distributions Raised Previously, individuals were...
IRS Raises Retirement Fund Contribution Maximum
Beginning in 2019, employees may contribute $19,000 per year to their 401(k) and 403(b) plans. Please reach out to your portfolio manager, if you would like to discuss your financial retirement plans. As always, if you have any questions or would like to...
Q&A with
Mike Gill, Jr.
Wealth Management had the opportunity to interview Mike Gill, Portfolio Manager, and the investment committee of Cornerstone Advisory. Wealth Management: What do you see as the key themes in today’s wealth management business…
“Cornerstone targets $1 billion in assets through planned merger”
Baltimore wealth management firm Cornerstone Advisory LLP plans to double its assets under management and move to new offices in 2017. Thomas N. Biddison III, a partner at the boutique downtown firm, said Cornerstone will complete a merger with Arnold-based…
Hedges in a Portfolio: Always be Prepared
Anyone who has spent any time on a boat understands the importance of preparedness. Nobody likes to spend their money on life preservers, flares, vhf radios, lifeboats or any of the other safety equipment because they likely will never be used. Calm seas and blue...
The Biddison Leave a Legacy to UM St. Joseph Medical Center
"Tom Biddison, co-founder of Baltimore wealth management company, Cornerstone Advisory, LLP, has always counseled his clients about the power of philanthropy. His advice took a very personal turn in 2007 when his daughter, Katelyn, was diagnosed as having Type I...
Mid-Atlantic Credit & Hedge Fund Investor Forum
Thomas N. Biddison, III, Principal and Portfolio Manager of Cornerstone Advisory, LLP, was a featured on a panel at the Mid-Atlantic Credit & Hedge Fund Investor Forum in Washington D.C., discussing structured credit and fixed income strategies…
“Baltimore-based firm adopts structured note strategies”
Cornerstone Advisory have started using structured note strategies that allowed them to create scenarios for growth, said Tom Biddison, principal at the Baltimore-based boutique wealth management firm, which last year launched a private placement…
“Cornerstone Advisory seeks investors for hedge fund”
The Baltimore wealth management firm is looking for up to 99 investors willing to put a potential minimum of $250,000 to $500,000 into the 3(c)(1) or private placement fund. The fund will create contracts with large banks that guarantee investors…
“Two and a half minutes with Thomas N. Biddison, III”
Thomas N. Biddison III, 38, is a principal with Cornerstone Financial LLP, an 18-employee, Baltimore-based financial planning, asset management and executive benefits firm. Cornerstone, which was founded in 1947, works with business owners and high net worth...
Combining Shaped and Linear Investments for Total Return
As investors, we all want to “buy low and sell high.” That’s easy to understand in principle, but very difficult in practice. Why is this so difficult? The answer is simple. For the average investor, 80% of investment decisions are based on emotion. As human beings,...
Generating Income In Today’s Low Interest Rate Environment
Talking heads and financial people love to espouse their knowledge of when to buy and sell in the stock and bond markets. Unless their crystal ball is working better than ours, we remain skeptical of their consistent success. Investing in stocks and bonds does not...
“Financial firm stakes out corner in market”
Financial firm Thomas Associates has been growing quietly for a long time. Eventually, the company wanted to grow its visibility, too. So Thomas Associates bought a building at the corner of Charles and Franklin streets in Mount Vernon to serve as its headquarters....