Dr. Richard Baker, AIF®, is the CEO and executive wealth advisor at Fervent Wealth Management.   First, we pray for the safe return of our service men and women stationed in the Middle East who are taking part in this military operation.   Oil Oil prices have surged 14% in the first few days as Iranian strikes on ships around the narrow Strait of Hormuz have driven energy prices into the conflict. Though natural gas prices have stabilized, we have seen concerned investors mov

Dr. Richard Baker, AIF®, is the CEO and executive wealth advisor at Fervent Wealth Management.   My personal motto is “consistency, no room for errors,” which drives my kids and wife crazy. I try to find what works and stick with it. I don’t need restaurant menus because I’m going to order the same thing every time. Investors do the same thing. U.S. stocks almost always outperform the global market, so they stick with what works. Well, things are starting to change on that fr

There are additional factors that could be contributing to the market's broadening. Investors have their fingers crossed that the Fed will become more cooperative after Chairman Powell's term ends in May.

Stocks had another strong year in 2025, enjoying their third straight year of double-digit returns.

Dr. Richard Baker, AIF®, is the CEO and executive wealth advisor at Fervent Wealth Management.   My wife is a little disappointed. We are recent empty-nesters, and for the first time in years, there is no one home to look forward to her Advent calendar full of little notes and candy. Still, her disappointment isn’t anything like the disappointment that Europeans are feeling this winter.   For years, European leaders told their citizens that if they went all in on the green en

Dr. Richard Baker, AIF®, is the CEO and executive wealth advisor at Fervent Wealth Management.   I was pheasant hunting in South Dakota with my boys this last weekend, and we frequently found ourselves on roads with deep mud holes. If it weren’t for our four-wheel drive, we would have been in a mess. Broadening traction is good for mud and even better for the market. Right now, the market advance is expanding across multiple sectors, which is a big positive.   Markets have re

Dr. Richard Baker, AIF®, is the CEO and executive wealth advisor at Fervent Wealth Management.   The neighboring town near where I grew up has an old Missouri Pacific railroad roundhouse. It was already out of use when I was a boy, but it still fascinated me that big steam engines would be driven onto a turntable and rotated around to change directions. There are more tracks today, so it’s easier to turn trains around, but changing directions is still a big deal, maybe even m

There is wisdom in having international holdings in your portfolio. It gives you diversification because global stocks and other governments are not in lockstep with the U.S.

These single-stock varieties have become popular among investors who tend to be gamblers. They have the potential for high returns but also huge losses.

Dr. Richard Baker, AIF®, is the CEO and executive wealth advisor at Fervent Wealth Management.   I was recently speaking with one of my best friends, who is a pilot, about flight turbulence. He said there are two kinds of turbulence: natural turbulence caused by weather (wind) and pilot-induced turbulence, which happens when a pilot makes a mistake.   We are beginning to see some increased turbulence (market volatility), but is it a change to overall maket conditions or is it

Dr. Richard Baker, AIF®, is the CEO and executive wealth advisor at Fervent Wealth Management.   I read recently that a young Australian Shepherd dog was missing after a traffic accident, and everyone was to be on the lookout. Though he was a pet, his breed's original job was to herd sheep. Another great shepherding tool was the use of a bellwether, where the farmer put a bell around the neck of the lead sheep, causing the rest of the flock to stay grouped around him.    Inve

The Fed sets the overnight banking rate, which is used as a baseline for other loans, but is not used for mortgage rates.

It was the kind of milestone that made both politicians and investors consider the fiscal health of the world’s leading economies, and they probably didn’t like what they saw.

Dr. Richard Baker, AIF®, is the CEO and executive wealth advisor at Fervent Wealth Management.   Tariffs have become a pawn in America’s...

On Tuesday, August 19, the Nasdaq Composite, the U.S. stock market's main technology index, had its biggest loss in weeks.

Dr. Richard Baker, AIF®, is the CEO and executive wealth advisor at Fervent Wealth Management.   My daughter and her husband were on a...