FAQ 4

HAS TRENDCALC’s VIEW OF INVESTING EVOLVED OVER THE YEARS?

We have always considered ourselves great active investment advisors, but there have been periods (mostly short-term in nature) where our “activeness” might have a tendency to underperform.  This is not a surprise (nor a concern) as we have always recognized that all strategies, even great ones, will have ebb-and-flow periods of underperformance and outperformance.  Although we recognized that periods of underperformance tended to be followed by periods of over-performance (the natural ebb-and-flow economies and market cycles), it can be a bit frustrating in the short-term to patiently wait for things to improve.  

The Great Passive/Active Strategy Debate  

Many years ago, as a professional challenge, we set out to find qualified answers to the passive/active strategy debate.  In doing our own research, it was fairly easy to see that both, passive and active, have their strategy benefits and shortcomings.  

Depending on the present economic environment (domestic and worldwide) and the various capital market conditions, both had periods where they were the strategy of the day, performing much better than the other. But both also had periods where they, not only underperformed, but were outright losers for investors.  This is that expected ebb-and-flow of under- and over-performance. 

So, what started as a quest for an “either/or” answer to the passive vs. active conundrum, concluded with an “and/all” multidimensional strategy solution. Instead of being entrenched in one-side of the passive/active debate and defending it as THE only Strategy of merit, we saw that there are great benefits in combining various passive and active strategies into a series of standalone portfolios that could take advantage of the benefits of passive and active investing.  We believe these strategies are some of the best in the business and should always position client portfolios and total wealth for much better grow-and-preserve, risk-vs-reward outcomes. 

We meticulously adhere to a disciplined buy-hold-sell methodology in a skilled, investment market professional manner.  This allows our portfolios to enjoy both exceptional risk management controls and great performance success. 

If at any point we cannot find investments that meet our buy-hold-sell discipline, we can, and more importantly will, patiently wait for more favorable conditions. We do not time markets, but we can reduce risk exposure when the math and probabilities are not favorable.