Contributed by: Nicholas Boguth
Hurricane Irma, one of the strongest and longest-lasting hurricanes ever recorded, recently passed leaving a long path of destruction behind it. People from the Caribbean to Florida prepared for the beast of a storm prior to labor day weekend, but there is only so much that could be done before its 180+ mph winds tore through the Virgin Islands on Wednesday the 6th, Cuba on Friday, and finally Florida and Georgia by Sunday. Entire islands were left in shambles across the Caribbean, Florida and Georgia sustained major damage, and millions of people are left without power and water.
How did the market respond?
We are constantly reminded that the markets do not like uncertainty, and this rings true when you look at short periods of volatility, but look at all of the uncertainty that we’ve seen in the past 15 years. Since ’02, we’ve had 3 presidents from republican, to democrat, back to republican, Congress party control flipped multiple times, we’ve seen 2 major wars, devastating natural disasters, massive oil spills, major business and even city bankruptcies, and a “Great Recession”. What did the S&P 500 do over the past 15 years? It is up about ~9% annualized, which is right on par with the average return of the S&P over the past 100 years.
Reminder: be a long term investor. Do not try to time the market, and if you ever have any questions – we are here to help!
Nicholas Boguth is an Investment Research Associate at Center for Financial Planning, Inc.® and an Investment Representative with Raymond James Financial Services.
The information contained in this blog does not purport to be a complete description of the securities, markets, or developments referred to in this material. The information has been obtained from sources considered to be reliable, but we do not guarantee that the foregoing material is accurate or complete. Any opinions are those of Nick Boguth and not necessarily those of Raymond James. Expressions of opinion are as of this date and are subject to change without notice. There is no guarantee that these statements, opinions or forecasts provided herein will prove to be correct. Investing involves risk and you may incur a profit or loss regardless of strategy selected. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index of 500 widely held stocks that is generally considered representative of the U.S. stock market. Keep in mind that individuals cannot invest directly in any index, and index performance does not include transaction costs or other fees, which will affect actual investment performance. Individual investor's results will vary. Past performance does not guarantee future results.