Services Tags: Investment Consulting

Defined Contribution Plan Legislative Update – 4Q 2020

While legislators have been focused on negotiating the next round of stimulus and dealing with the implications of the recent election cycle, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), as the primary regulator of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), has been fairly active with issuing proposed changes and final rules that may impact many of our defined contribution plan clients in the past several months.

This legislative update covers recent communications regarding private investments in defined contribution plans, proxy voting guidelines, ESG considerations (an update to an earlier Proposed Rule), and 2021 contribution limits.

Read > 4Q 2020 DC Legislative Update

 

The opinions expressed herein are those of Marquette Associates, Inc. (“Marquette”), and are subject to change without notice. This material is not financial advice or an offer to purchase or sell any product. Marquette reserves the right to modify its current investment strategies and techniques based on changing market dynamics or client needs.

 

What Does the Biden Win Mean for Financial Markets?

On Saturday, November 7th, Joe Biden was declared the winner of the presidential election and will become the 46th president of the United States in January. Markets were surprisingly positive last week despite the uncertainty around results as multiple states were too close to call until all the votes had been tallied. While there is still pending litigation in certain states, it seems highly unlikely that these actions will reverse the election result. Thus, market participants have turned their attention to what the market can expect from a Biden-led White House coupled with a split Congress, while the coronavirus pandemic marches on.

In this newsletter, we tackle this question for each of the “traditional” asset classes: Fixed Income, U.S. Equities, and Non-U.S. Equities. The impact on alternative asset classes such as hedge funds, real assets, and private equity are more nuanced and will be covered in our 2021 market preview to be released in January.

Read > What Does the Biden Win Mean for Financial Markets?

 

The opinions expressed herein are those of Marquette Associates, Inc. (“Marquette”), and are subject to change without notice. This material is not financial advice or an offer to purchase or sell any product. Marquette reserves the right to modify its current investment strategies and techniques based on changing market dynamics or client needs.

Q3 2020 Market Insights Video

This video features an in-depth analysis of the third quarter’s performance, coinciding with our 3Q Asset Allocation Update newsletter reviewing risks and opportunities heading into the final quarter of the year.

Our Market Insights series examines the primary asset classes we cover for clients including the U.S. economy, fixed income, U.S. and non-U.S. equities, hedge funds, real estate, infrastructure, private equity, and private credit, with presentations by our research analysts and directors.

Sign up for research alerts to be notified when we publish new videos here.
For more information, questions, or feedback, please send us an email.

Dave Smith Speaking at Institutional Investor Virtual Roundtable 5/21

On Thursday, May 21st, Dave Smith, CFA will be speaking at a virtual roundtable hosted by Institutional Investor’s Institutional & Alternatives Investor Institutes.

Dave will be moderating a session focused on Endowments & Foundations: “For E&Fs, the Pandemic’s Effects Reach Far Beyond Portfolio Losses. What Does the Rest of 2020 Look Like?” As many endowments and foundations are facing operational variables on top of challenges in portfolio management, the panel will explore how E&Fs are thinking about the long term in the wake of coronavirus and how E&F investors might secure liquidity from a largely illiquid portfolio.

The Roundtable will bring together health care funds, endowments and foundations, public pension plans, and insurance investors to discuss how asset allocators and investment consultants are dealing with the disruption caused by COVID-19.

For more information, please visit the Institutional Investor Institute website.

Marquette Awarded Greenwich Quality Leader in Overall U.S. Investment Consulting

CHICAGO, April 29, 2020 – Marquette Associates, Inc. has been designated as a 2019 Greenwich Quality Leader within the large investment consultant category.

“More than ever, we remain dedicated to the highest caliber of client service and strive to be a trusted advisor to our clients for the long-term,” said Brian Wrubel, Marquette’s chief executive officer and president. “As an independent investment consultant, client interests are at the heart of everything we do – we are grateful for their recognition and will continue to make every effort to exceed their expectations in the years ahead.”

About the 2019 Greenwich Award
In the second half of 2019, Greenwich Associates conducted interviews with 1,100 senior professionals across nearly 900 institutional investors in the United States. Study participants were asked to provide quantitative and qualitative evaluations of their investment consultants, which were used by Greenwich Associates to calculate a score on the Greenwich Quality Index for each consultant named. Consultants with scores that top those awarded to competitors are named Greenwich Quality Leaders.
For more information about Greenwich Quality Leaders in U.S. Investment Consulting, please visit the Greenwich Associates website.

About Marquette Associates
Marquette Associates is a Chicago-based, independent investment consulting firm that guides investment programs with a focused client service approach and careful research. Marquette has served a single mission since 1986 – enable institutions to be more effective investment stewards. Marquette places client fiduciary duties first through complete independence and 100% employee ownership. The firm currently serves more than 415 clients with over $238 billion in assets – from public funds, unions, and corporations to endowments, foundations, and other non-profits.
For more information, please contact Brian M. Wrubel at 312.527.5500 or bwrubel@marquetteassociates.com.

 

DISCLOSURE:

The Greenwich Quality Leaders Awards are conducted by Greenwich Associates, a third-party firm that has no affiliation with Marquette Associates, Inc. (“Marquette”), and are based on quality ratings provided by clients of investment consultants. Between July and October 2019, Greenwich Associates conducted interviews with 1,100 senior professionals at 896 of the largest tax-exempt funds, 11 of whom reported retaining Marquette in the United States. These organizations included corporate and union funds, public funds, endowments and foundations, insurance general accounts, and healthcare organizations, with either pension or investment pool assets greater than $150 million. Consultants like Marquette receive the study results in exchange for providing Greenwich Associates with evaluations of investment managers. Marquette did not pay Greenwich Associates any compensation for inclusion in this study. Study participants were asked to provide quantitative and qualitative evaluations of their investment consulting providers. Based on those responses, Greenwich Associates calculates a score on the Greenwich Quality IndexSM for each consultant named. Consultants with scores that top those awarded to competitors are named Greenwich Quality Leaders. Three consulting firms, including Marquette, were recognized as Quality Leaders for large investment consultants in the U.S. The rankings presented are not necessarily representative of any single client’s experience, but rather represent the collective views of Marquette’s sampled clients. Rankings do not represent an endorsement of Marquette. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. For more information on Greenwich Associates and the study, please visit www.greenwich.com.

Aimee O’Connor Quoted on RIA Services

On May 14, Aimee O’Connor, CFP®, was quoted in a FundFire article on the growth of Registered Investment Advisor (RIA) service offerings in the investment consulting industry.

In the article, Consultants’ Latest Target? RIAs in Need of Investment Help, Aimee commented on the area as being a competitive market and added that, “The more consultants try to swim in the private client, high-net-worth area, the easier it is to leverage what they already have internally. It’s a natural extension.” Marquette began servicing RIA clients in 2017; for more information, please reach out to Aimee or by using our contact page.

To read the article, visit the Fund Fire website (subscription required).

How Will the 2020 Election Affect the Markets?

The 2020 presidential election is fast approaching on November 3rd and key election issues pertaining to the economy will be viewed with respect to a backdrop of crisis and uncertainty more than ever. Curbing the spread of COVID-19 is at odds with reopening the economy while racial injustice remains a focal point. A potential Biden presidency and Democrat-controlled Senate could result in tax increases aimed at stimulating the economy through public projects and providing a social safety net. In contrast, a second term with Trump would likely mean more of the status quo in terms of keeping the 2017 tax cuts, further trade negotiations with China, and his attempt to nullify Obama’s Affordable Care Act.

In this newsletter, we assess the platforms of both Biden and Trump with a focus on Biden’s proposed tax policies and a perspective on how they are expected to affect the economy and markets. We next examine the historical effect of politics on the markets such as equity performance based on which party controls the White House, Senate, and House of Representatives. Lastly, we take a look at 2020 election expectations based on recent polls and markets.

Read > How Will the 2020 Election Affect the Markets?

 

The opinions expressed herein are those of Marquette Associates, Inc. (“Marquette”), and are subject to change without notice. This material is not financial advice or an offer to purchase or sell any product. Marquette reserves the right to modify its current investment strategies and techniques based on changing market dynamics or client needs.

Kweku Obed Featured on eVestment Podcast

On May 12, managing director Kweku Obed, CFA, CAIA was featured on eVestment’s The Source podcast.

Kweku spoke about Marquette’s manager search process, including our four-phased approach to manager evaluation and how Marquette sources and uses both quantitative and qualitative data to make recommendations for customized client portfolios. Kweku also discussed Marquette’s philosophy toward various investing strategies for clients such as active vs. passive management, the role of alternatives and private equity in portfolios, and ESG/SRI factors.

To listen to the podcast, please visit the eVestment website.

 

We’ve Come So Far, but Maybe It Was Too Fast

It had been smooth sailing in equity markets since the first quarter’s bear market. The S&P 500 index eclipsed the February 19th all-time high and in August the volatility index grazed lows not seen since the beginning of the year. However, over the past week, equity markets have been in turmoil with the S&P 500 falling nearly 7.0% and the NASDAQ 100 falling into correction territory, declining 10.9% in the last three trading days.¹ The turmoil has been concentrated in the most unlikely place: growth stocks.

In this newsletter, we provide a recap of recent volatility in the U.S. equity markets and assess the sources of ongoing investor uncertainty.

Read > We’ve Come So Far, but Maybe It Was Too Fast

 

The opinions expressed herein are those of Marquette Associates, Inc. (“Marquette”), and are subject to change without notice. This material is not financial advice or an offer to purchase or sell any product. Marquette reserves the right to modify its current investment strategies and techniques based on changing market dynamics or client needs.