Edward Jones - Financial Advisor: Megan Burke

04/21/2025

Stock markets were broadly lower this past week – driven once again by tariff uncertainty. We outline two different tariff scenarios and examine the impacts on key economic and market variables: https://ow.ly/5QAT50VERJ2

02/05/2025

Tax season can be stressful enough without the worry of falling prey to scams, but that’s the reality taxpayers face. Learn common tax scams and how to help protect yourself this tax season.

A solid strategy can help safeguard you from these increasingly frequent crimes.

02/05/2025

At Edward Jones, we want our clients have the right tools to make informed decisions. We've created a resource for any federal employees affected by the deferred resignation program to help answer questions. Don't hesitate to reach out for support.

Learn what options federal employees have with the latest deferred resignation program entitled \\\"Fork in the Road\\\" and what you should consider if you're impacted.

05/28/2024

May 29 is National 529 Day – a great chance for families to learn more about their options to save for a child's (or an adult's!) future education. Feeling overwhelmed trying to learn the ins and outs on your own? Don't stress. I can help tailor a strategy to work toward your education goals.

Saving money for college

02/22/2024

Relevant today.

How do markets perform when the Fed pauses?
• Over the past 40 years the Fed has paused seven times after concluding a tightening cycle. Following the final rate hike, policymakers held rates steady for about six months on average (ranging from a month to a little over year) before proceeding to cut rates to stimulate the economy.
• Stocks performed strongly in five of these instances, while they declined only modestly the other two. Investment-grade bonds also experienced above-average returns, as yields peaked a couple of months before the last rate hike.
• Likely benefiting from the easing in yields and financial conditions, technology was the best-performing sector, with the exception of the Fed pause in 2000 that coincided with the tech bubble bursting.
• History suggests that a Fed pause can be a catalyst for lower bond yields and higher equity valuations. This is consistent with our view that balanced portfolios, like a 60/40 stock-bond mix, are poised for a rebound after a historically tough year.

03/30/2023

Could this be the right option for you? Here's how it works and potential issues to consider.

Backdoor Roth IRA an option for high earners

03/16/2023

Here are three things to know about recent bank failures and the implications for the market outlook.

3 things to know

02/21/2023

The February jobs report indicated that the U.S. unemployment has fallen to 3.4%, the lowest in 50 years, which is categorically positive for consumers and the economy. However, we think it's premature to conclude that there will be no economic slowdown or recession ahead. While a stronger labor market does support our view that a potential downturn should be mild, we also think this complicates the Fed's job ahead. This sweet spot of strong job gains and historically low unemployment, alongside moderating wage growth, will not likely persist indefinitely. We suspect the former will give and we'll see some softening of the labor market ahead.

Nonetheless, any periods of volatility could provide opportunities for investors (especially those who perhaps hadn't fully participated in the last month) to position for a more sustainable recovery ahead.

02/14/2023

Financial strategy for two, coming right up! Send me a message and let’s talk through you and your partner’s joint financial goals.

02/09/2023

How do markets perform when the Fed pauses?
• Over the past 40 years the Fed has paused seven times after concluding a tightening cycle. Following the final rate hike, policymakers held rates steady for about six months on average (ranging from a month to a little over year) before proceeding to cut rates to stimulate the economy.
• Stocks performed strongly in five of these instances, while they declined only modestly the other two. Investment-grade bonds also experienced above-average returns, as yields peaked a couple of months before the last rate hike.
• Likely benefiting from the easing in yields and financial conditions, technology was the best-performing sector, with the exception of the Fed pause in 2000 that coincided with the tech bubble bursting.
• History suggests that a Fed pause can be a catalyst for lower bond yields and higher equity valuations. This is consistent with our view that balanced portfolios, like a 60/40 stock-bond mix, are poised for a rebound after a historically tough year.

01/23/2023

• Evidence continues to build around moderating inflation. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) trajectory over the past three months, together with the signal from leading indicators of inflation (like the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) prices paid for inputs by manufacturing and services firms), indicates that core inflation could fall to 3% by year-end.
• The path of disinflation is unlikely to be a straight line and will require the labor-market tightness to ease. But even with the ongoing strength in job creation and historic low unemployment, wage pressures have started to moderate.

This graph (Bloomberg, Edward Jones calculations) shows the decline in prices paid by manufacturing and services firms as reported by the ISM Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) suggesting that inflation could drop towards 3% by the end of the year.

Please let me know if you have any questions!