Sean Latimer at The Bahnsen Group

09/04/2026

AI may be one of the most transformative technologies of our time, but investors still have to ask a very traditional question: Will the profits ultimately justify the capital being invested?

This week’s Dividend Cafe looks beyond the excitement around AI and focuses on the financial side of the story—capital spending, financing, cash flow and return on invested capital.

A thoughtful reminder that a great technology and a great investment are not always the same thing.

08/31/2026

The Fed remains one of the biggest stories for markets, but today’s Monday Dividend Cafe offers a good reminder that the headline reaction and the underlying message aren’t always the same thing.

Chairman Warsh’s Jackson Hole speech did not produce a major move in stocks or bond yields.

Yet his emphasis on price stability, his assessment of a healthy labor market, and his continued concern about inflation caused markets to reassess the possibility of another rate hike.

There are several other interesting pieces in today’s update as well, including housing data, energy developments and a look at what September has historically meant for markets during midterm-election years.

As always, the value is less about predicting the next headline and more about understanding the different forces investors are navigating.

A comprehensive Monday briefing on markets, inflation, midterm dynamics, energy news, and key takeaways from Jackson Hole.

08/29/2026

One question I think more consumers should feel comfortable asking their insurance professional is:

“How are you paid?”

That question isn't an accusation.

It's part of understanding the incentives behind the advice you're receiving.

This week's Thoughts on Money provides an interesting look at several insurance sales models and how compensation can influence the products an agent is incentivized to recommend.

Insurance can play an important role in a comprehensive financial plan.

The goal isn't to avoid products simply because someone earns a commission—it's to understand how the recommendation was reached and whether the solution is truly appropriate for your needs.

If you're evaluating insurance as part of your financial plan, this is worth a read.

Learn how insurance agents are paid, how commissions, captive models, and broker incentives can influence the financial advice you receive.

08/28/2026

Dividend growth investing has its critics, and this week’s Dividend Cafe takes several of the most common objections head-on.

What about stock buybacks? Are dividends inefficient because they are taxable?

Doesn’t paying a dividend make a company less valuable? And why not simply pursue aggressive growth while you’re young and switch to dividends when you retire?

What I like about the piece is that the discussion keeps coming back to a more fundamental question:

What should a profitable company actually do with its profits?

The article makes the case that dividends aren’t simply about generating income today.

They can also tell us something about capital allocation, business quality, discipline and how shareholders participate in the economics of the companies they own.

Explore why dividend growth—and the discipline of profiting from real company profits—offers investors a durable path through market noise.

08/25/2026

Interest rates remain one of the most important variables for investors, businesses and households—and today’s Dividend Cafe offers an interesting look at what happens when policymakers try to influence them directly.

The Treasury Department has begun buying long-term Treasury bonds while financing those purchases with shorter-term debt, with the goal of putting downward pressure on longer-term rates.

What I found particularly interesting, though, is the broader discussion around why long-term yields have moved higher in the first place. David explores everything from liquidity in the 30-year Treasury market to a surge in corporate debt issuance from large AI companies.

It’s a good reminder that market movements rarely have one simple explanation.

Today’s Dividend Cafe is worth a read for anyone trying to better understand what’s happening beneath the interest-rate headlines.

A normal around-the-horn, but there is a needed focus on Secretary Bessent's announcement about Treasury interventions into the bond market.

08/22/2026

I have conversations with investors about gold more often than you might expect.

The reasons for owning it can sound compelling: inflation protection, currency concerns, diversification, geopolitical uncertainty, or simply having an asset that's been viewed as a store of value for thousands of years.

But I think there's another question worth asking: What do we actually expect an investment to do for us?

This week's Thoughts on Money takes a deeper look at gold—not to dismiss the arguments for owning it, but to put those arguments alongside the importance of cash flow, compounding, valuation, and long-term wealth creation.

If you've ever wondered whether gold deserves a place in your portfolio, I think you'll find this one interesting.

Is gold a good investment? Explore its role as an inflation hedge, portfolio diversifier, and store of value versus cash-flowing assets.

08/21/2026

One question I think is always worth asking as an investor is deceptively simple: Where do I expect my return to come from?

Markets will always move based on expectations, sentiment, and countless other variables.

But over a long investment horizon, I believe it’s important to remain focused on the underlying economics of the businesses we own.

That distinction is at the center of this week’s Dividend Cafe and makes for a worthwhile discussion about how we think about long-term investing.

I encourage you to give it a read.

This week's edition explains the philosophy behind Dividend Cafe and David's new book on dividend growth investing.

08/17/2026

There’s rarely one data point that tells us everything we need to know about the economy or markets.

Today’s Dividend Cafe is a good example. Retail sales came in weaker than expected, significant tariff refunds have flowed back into the private sector, interest rates remain elevated, and questions continue around both Federal Reserve policy and the enormous amount of capital being committed to AI.

Taken individually, each can generate a headline. Taken together, they provide a much more interesting picture.

For investors, I think that broader context is far more useful than trying to react to any single day’s market move.

Today’s Dividend Cafe offers plenty to consider.

A look at the stock market, AI-driven growth, Federal Reserve policy, retail sales, and public policy shaping the economic outlook.

08/15/2026

Could owning a second home in New York City soon become significantly more expensive?

The proposed pied-à-terre tax would apply differently depending on the type of property, with condos and co-ops potentially entering the taxable pool at much lower assessed values than one-, two-, and three-family homes.

This week’s Thoughts on Money unpacks what property owners should understand—and why this may be part of a much larger trend in how cities think about property taxation.

Explore NYC’s pied-à-terre tax, who may be affected, surcharge rates, exemptions, legal challenges, and financial planning considerations.

08/14/2026

This week's Dividend Cafe isn't really about markets.

David Bahnsen wrote a letter to his daughter as she prepares to leave for college.

Yes, there's some classic dad advice, but there's also a broader message about something that applies at every stage of life: personal agency.

We can't control everything that happens to us. But our responses, decisions, attitudes, resilience, and the way we choose to move forward remain profoundly important.

That idea has implications for our careers, our relationships, our finances, and certainly the way we approach investing.

For parents who have experienced a milestone like this—or anyone navigating a new chapter—I think this week's Dividend Cafe will resonate.

As I send my daughter off to college, I share life lessons I hope she carries with her on responsibility, resilience, and living well.