Generated by All in One SEO v4.9.8, this is an llms.txt file, used by LLMs to index the site. # Steven Van Metre Financial News and Information by Steven Van Metre ## Sitemaps - [XML Sitemap](https://stevenvanmetre.com/sitemap.xml): Contains all public & indexable URLs for this website. ## Posts - [Portfolio Shield – June 2026](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2026/06/02/portfolio-shield-june-2026/) - I’m pleased to share an update on recent market developments and the strategic positioning of Portfolio Shield™ for June 2026. Over the past month, stocks continued their strong rally, validating the excellent timing of our April 1st decision to switch both the equity and bond allocations to a risk-on position. This move has positioned us - [Portfolio Shield – May 2026](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2026/05/01/portfolio-shield-may-2026/) - I’m pleased to share an update on recent market developments and the strategic positioning of Portfolio Shield™ for May 2026. Timing is everything. On April 1st, I made the decision to switch both the equity and bond allocations to a risk-on position, as the data supported a near-term reversal in the stock market. The timing - [Portfolio Shield – April 2026](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2026/04/01/portfolio-shield-april-2026/) - I’m pleased to share an update on recent market developments and the strategic positioning of Portfolio Shield™ for April 2026. The decision to hedge the equity allocation with short-term Treasuries proved beneficial in February. However, our subsequent move to switch the hedge to long-term bonds while shifting the bond allocation to intermediate-term bonds has proven - [Portfolio Shield – March 2026](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2026/03/02/portfolio-shield-march-2026/) - I’m pleased to share an update on recent market developments and the strategic positioning of Portfolio Shield™ for March 2026. Last month’s decision to hedge the equity allocation with short-term Treasuries proved beneficial, as both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 posted modest declines. The risks of a market correction continue to build as equity trends - [Portfolio Shield – February 2026](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2026/02/02/portfolio-shield-february-2026/) - I’m pleased to share an update on recent market developments and the strategic positioning of Portfolio Shield™ for February 2026. With earnings season for the Magnificent 7 now behind us, the market appears priced for perfection. The risk of a near-term correction currently outweighs the likelihood of an immediate breakout to new all-time highs. The - [Portfolio Shield – January 2026](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2026/01/05/portfolio-shield-january-2026/) - I’m pleased to share an update on recent market developments and the strategic positioning of your Portfolio Shield™ for January 2026. Following last month’s mild correction, equities rallied to new all-time highs before slightly pulling back in the final week of the year. Despite signs of a gradually slowing economy and a softening labor market, - [Portfolio Shield – December 2025](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2025/12/01/portfolio-shield-december-2025/) - I’m pleased to share an update on recent market developments and the strategic positioning of your Portfolio Shield™ for December 2025. Equities experienced a modest correction in November but recovered most losses by month-end. Despite signs of a gradually slowing economy and a softening labor market, Federal Reserve rate cuts continue to support strong risk - [Portfolio Shield – November 2025](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2025/11/04/portfolio-shield-november-2025/) - I’m pleased to share an update on recent market developments and the strategic adjustments to your Portfolio Shield™ for November 2025. The strategy continues to perform exceptionally well, driven by strong gains in equities. Despite a gradually slowing economy and weakening labor market, Federal Reserve rate cuts continue to fuel euphoria in stocks. However, risks - [Portfolio Shield – October 2025](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2025/10/01/portfolio-shield-october-2025/) - I’m pleased to share an update on recent market developments and the strategic adjustments to your Portfolio Shield™ for October 2025. The strategy continues to perform exceptionally well, driven by strong gains in equities, high-yield bonds, and intermediate-term bonds. Despite a gradually slowing economy and weakening labor market, Federal Reserve rate cuts continue to fuel - [Portfolio Shield – September 2025](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2025/09/02/portfolio-shield-september-2025/) - I'm pleased to share an update on recent market developments and the strategic adjustments to your Portfolio Shield for September 2025. Last month, the strategy performed exceptionally well, driven by strong gains in equities and high-yield bonds. Despite a gradually slowing economy, several factors support a positive outlook for equities. Corporate earnings exceeded expectations this - [Portfolio Shield – August 2025](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2025/08/01/portfolio-shield-august-2025/) - I’m thrilled to share an update on recent market developments and the refined adjustments we’ve made to your Portfolio Shield™ strategy for August. Last month, the strategy excelled, driven by strong rallies in equities and high-yield bonds. Intermediate-term bonds remained flat, neither enhancing nor detracting from overall performance. Despite a gradually slowing economy, several factors - [Portfolio Shield – July 2025](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2025/07/02/portfolio-shield-july-2025/) - I’m delighted to provide an update on recent market developments and the strategic enhancements we’ve implemented in your Portfolio Shield™ strategy for July. Last month, the strategy delivered robust performance, capitalizing on synchronized rallies in both equities and bonds. In June, we shifted the equity allocation to a risk-on stance, fully deploying assets between the - [Portfolio Shield – June 2025](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2025/06/03/portfolio-shield-june-2025/) - I’m pleased to share an update on recent market developments and the adjustments we’ve made to your Portfolio Shield™ strategy for June. In April, we reduced equity exposure and added long-term bonds to hedge against a potential market downturn. We maintained this cautious approach in May, during which stocks rallied while long-term bonds declined. Despite - [Portfolio Shield – May 2025](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2025/05/01/portfolio-shield-may-2025/) - I’m pleased to update you on recent market developments and the adjustments we’ve made to your Portfolio Shield™ strategy for May. Last month, we reduced equity exposure and added long-term bonds to hedge against a potential market downturn. When stocks declined in early April, bond prices also dipped, but our strategy effectively limited losses compared - [Portfolio Shield – April 2025](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2025/04/01/portfolio-shield-april-2025/) - I’m writing to update you on recent market developments and the adjustments we’ve made to your Portfolio Shield™ strategy for April. In March, stocks continued their decline as institutional and professional investors sold off holdings. This was driven by uncertainty over tariff impacts and doubts about whether technology firms will see meaningful returns on their - [Portfolio Shield – March 2025](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2025/03/04/portfolio-shield-march-2025/) - I want to update you on recent market developments and the adjustments to your Portfolio Shield™ strategy for March. Last month, stocks reached a new all-time high, mainly due to optimistic sentiment among retail investors and active buying during market dips. However, this enthusiasm was short-lived, as significant price declines occurred in the last week - [Portfolio Shield - February 2025](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2025/02/03/portfolio-shield-february-2025/) - I want to update you on recent market developments and the adjustments to your Portfolio Shield™ strategy for February. As we entered the new year, stocks rallied to new all-time highs, driven largely by optimistic investor sentiment and aggressive buying during market dips. This enthusiasm is fueled by expectations of continued growth under President Trump’s - [Portfolio Shield – January 2025](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2025/01/02/portfolio-shield-january-2025/) - I want to update you on the recent developments in the market and the adjustments made to your Portfolio Shield™ strategy. After reaching all-time highs in December, we observed a pullback in stock prices. However, the overall trend remains positive, driven by several factors: robust corporate share buybacks, the expectation of a pro-business Republican government, - [Portfolio Shield – December 2024](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2024/12/02/portfolio-shield-december-2024/) - Stocks rallied last month as global investors bet big on growth and inflation to drive the price of U.S. equities higher. Except for November, when the strategy was hedged, we are pleased to see the equity allocation has performed well this year. Looking forward, the equity allocation is unlikely to be hedged again for the - [Portfolio Shield – November 2024](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2024/11/01/portfolio-shield-november-2024/) - Shortly after the strategy began hedging in October by reducing its equity allocation for a position in long-term bonds, the markets began pricing in a Republican sweep of both the White House and Congress. The market reaction, or “Trump trade”, was long stocks and short bonds as the market believed an all-Republican government may lead - [Portfolio Shield – October 2024](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2024/10/22/portfolio-shield-october-2024/) - We are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform well this year, particularly due to the continued strong performance of the S&P 500 that recently set a new all-time high. Due to the weak performance of small cap stocks and a rally in long-term bonds, the strategy met one of two qualifications to - [Portfolio Shield – September 2024](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2024/09/03/portfolio-shield-september-2024/) - Despite the recent pullback in stocks starting mid-July, we are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform well this year, particularly due to the continued strong performance of the S&P 500 that has rallied back near its all-time highs. Looking forward, the equity allocation is likely to remain unhedged until December which is - [Portfolio Shield – August 2024](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2024/08/01/portfolio-shield-august-2024/) - Despite the recent pullback in stocks starting mid-July, we are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform well this year, particularly due to the continued strong performance of the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100. Looking forward, the equity allocation is likely to remain unhedged until around December which is the first possibility the strategy - [Portfolio Shield - July 2024](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2024/07/22/portfolio-shield-july-2024/) - We are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform well this year, particularly due to the continued strong performance of the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100. Looking forward, the equity allocation is likely to remain unhedged until around October which is the first possibility the strategy may begin hedging. To hedge, the strategy will - [Portfolio Shield – June 2024](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2024/06/03/portfolio-shield-june-2024/) - We are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform well this year, particularly due to the continued strong performance of the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100. Looking forward, the equity allocation is likely to remain unhedged for the foreseeable future unless there is a major shift in the markets. Given all the factors, we - [Portfolio Shield – May 2024](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2024/05/01/portfolio-shield-may-2024/) - We are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform well this year, particularly due to the continued strong performance of the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100. Looking forward, the equity allocation is likely to remain unhedged for the foreseeable future unless there is a major shift in the markets. Given all the factors, - [Portfolio Shield – April 2024](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2024/04/01/portfolio-shield-april-2024/) - We are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform well this year, particularly due to the continued strong performance of the S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100. We are also pleased that the bond allocation continues to perform well since implementing the new momentum-based formula for the bond allocation. The Federal Open Market Committee continues - [Portfolio Shield – March 2024](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2024/03/01/portfolio-shield-march-2024/) - We are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform well this year, particularly due to the continued outperformance of the Nasdaq-100 relative to the broad market. We are also pleased to see the bond allocation is performing well as the Fed is indicating they may cut rates three times next year. Looking forward, - [Portfolio Shield – February 2024](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2024/02/01/portfolio-shield-february-2024/) - We are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform well this year, particularly due to the continued outperformance of the Nasdaq-100 relative to the broad market. We are also pleased to see the bond allocation is performing well as the Fed is indicating they may cut rates three times next year. Looking forward, - [Portfolio Shield – January 2024](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2024/01/02/portfolio-shield-january-2024/) - We are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform well this year, particularly due to the continued outperformance of the Nasdaq-100 relative to the broad market. We are also pleased to see the bond allocation is performing well as the Fed is indicating they may cut rates three times next year. Looking forward, - [Portfolio Shield – December 2023](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2023/12/01/portfolio-shield-december-2023/) - We are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform well this year, particularly due to the continued outperformance of the Nasdaq-100 relative to the broad market. Looking forward, the equity allocation is likely to remain unhedged until February 2024 unless there is a major shift in the markets. Last month the strategy recommended - [Portfolio Shield – November 2023](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2023/11/01/portfolio-shield-november-2023/) - We are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform well this year, particularly due to the continued outperformance of the Nasdaq-100 relative to the broad market. Looking forward, the equity allocation is likely to remain unhedged for the next three months unless there is a major shift in the markets. Last month the - [Portfolio Shield - October 2023](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2023/10/03/portfolio-shield-october-2023/) - We are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform well this year, particularly due to the recent outperformance of the Nasdaq-100 relative to the broad market. Looking forward, the equity allocation is likely to remain unhedged for the next three months unless there is a major shift in the markets. Last month the - [Portfolio Shield – September 2023](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2023/09/01/portfolio-shield-september-2023/) - We are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform extremely well this year, particularly due to the recent outperformance of the Nasdaq-100 relative to the broad market. Looking forward, the equity allocation is likely to remain unhedged for the next three months unless there is a major shift in the markets. Last month - [Portfolio Shield - August 2023](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2023/08/01/portfolio-shield-august-2023/) - We are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform extremely well this year, particularly due to the recent outperformance of the Nasdaq-100 relative to the broad market. Looking forward, the equity allocation is likely to remain unhedged for the next three months unless there is a major shift in the markets. The new - [Portfolio Shield - July 2023](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2023/07/03/portfolio-shield-july-2023/) - We are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform extremely well this year, particularly due to the recent outperformance of the Nasdaq-100 relative to the broad market. Over the past two months, the long-term bond hedge in the equity allocation had a negative contribution to returns but it was more than offset by - [Portfolio Shield - June 2023](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2023/06/03/portfolio-shield-june-2023/) - We are pleased to see the equity allocation continues to perform extremely well this year, particularly due to the recent outperformance of the Nasdaq-100 relative to the broad market. Over the past month, the long-term bond hedge in the equity allocation had a negative contribution to returns but it was more than offset by the - [Portfolio Shield - February 2022](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2022/02/03/portfolio-shield-february-2022/) - Portfolio Shield remains hedged for January. I am pleased to report the Simplify funds reduced some of the downside risks in the equity market. However, the long-term bond hedge remains a slight drag on returns.Several of you have expressed a valid concern about the ability of the hedging mechanism to hedge risk because it hasn’t - [Portfolio Shield - November 2022](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2022/11/01/portfolio-shield-november-2022/) - After putting in a strong performance for September, Portfolio Shield™ began hedging further downside risk into October. A late October stock rally and a further decline in bonds saw the strategy give back some of its hard-earned gains from the prior month. Early-stage Bear markets are very difficult for momentum strategies. Momentum strategies perform optimally - [Portfolio Shield - May 2023](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2023/05/04/portfolio-shield-may-2023/) - We are pleased to see the equity allocation has been performing extremely well this year and that the changes in the bond allocation are having a positive contribution to the returns. For the past year, stocks have trended sideways which signifies a lack of market direction and uncertainty. The lack of significant positive or negative - [Portfolio Shield - April 2023](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2023/04/04/portfolio-shield-april-2023/) - Even though the stock market appears to be moving on from the banking crisis, the bond market was never fooled. The inverted yield curves suggested something bad was likely to happen and now that the curves are steepening, they are indicating a recession, despite what the equity markets indicate, is nearly a sure thing. The - [Portfolio Shield - March 2023](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2023/03/13/portfolio-shield-march-2023/) - Jeff and I continue to believe that stocks are likely to rally over the next several months as the stock market historically moves based on the anticipated direction of the Federal Funds Rate rather than the underlying economic fundamentals. Our base case remains that stocks are likely to go higher when the market believes the - [Portfolio Shield - January 2023](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2023/01/06/portfolio-shield-january-2023/) - Jeff and I continue to believe the most likely path is a rally in stocks and longer-term bonds over the next several months, especially should the Fed slow the pace of rate hikes. We will know more on February 1 when the Federal Open Market Committee announces its latest policy statement. Portfolio Shield™ is positioned - [Portfolio Shield - February 2023](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2023/02/03/portfolio-shield-february-2023/) - Jeff and I believe that stocks and long-term bonds are likely to rally over the next several months especially if the market believes the Fed is soon to stop raising the Federal Funds Rate. Portfolio Shield™ is currently positioned to take advantage of a rally in stocks and a decline in interest rates. Our view - [Portfolio Shield - December 2022](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2022/12/03/portfolio-shield-december-2022/) - Last month Portfolio Shield™ removed its bond hedge and Jeff and I both agreed to remove the additional downside hedging on the equity funds to allow the strategy to run with the Bulls. At the same time, we implemented an additional momentum overlay on the bond allocation which added a position in high-yield bonds. We - [Portfolio Shield - October 2022](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2022/10/05/portfolio-shield-october-2022/) - Looking back over the last month, Portfolio Shield™ performed very well relative to the broad market. The additional downside convexity in the Simplify ETFs added excess Alpha to the returns by reducing the downside move in the equity market.I recently spoke with Paul Kim, the CEO, and co-founder of Simplify to get an update on - [Portfolio Shield - April 2019](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2019/04/08/portfolio-shield-april-2019/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month. At that time, any new monies are invested according to the model strategy you are invested in. If you have any questions or would like to - [Portfolio Shield - May 2019](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2019/05/15/portfolio-shield-may-2019/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month. At that time, any new monies are invested according to the model strategy you are invested in. If you have any questions or would like to - [Portfolio Shield - June 2019](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2019/06/07/portfolio-shield-june-2019/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies are invested according to the model strategy you are invested in. If you have any questions or would like - [Portfolio Shield - July 2019](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2019/07/05/portfolio-shield-july-2019/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family. Even though Treasury bonds rallied over the last six months, the three equity indices in the strategy had a higher six-month price return, meaning the U.S. Treasury bond hedge was removed from the strategy for July. As a reminder, all strategies - [Portfolio Shield - August 2019](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2019/08/09/portfolio-shield-august-2019/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family. Portfolio Shield™ reinstated its hedging program this month by adding long-term U.S. Treasury bonds to the allocation. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies are invested - [Portfolio Shield - September 2019](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2019/09/06/portfolio-shield-september-2019/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family. Portfolio Shield™ reduced its allocation of long-term U.S. Treasury bonds for the month of September, but remains hedged against downside risks. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any - [Portfolio Shield - October 2019](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2019/10/04/portfolio-shield-october-2019/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family. There were only slight changes to the strategy for October, but Portfolio Shield™ remains hedged against downside risks. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies are - [Portfolio Shield - November 2019](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2019/11/08/portfolio-shield-november-2019/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family. There were only slight changes to the strategy for November, but Portfolio Shield™ remains hedged against downside risks. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies are - [Portfolio Shield - December 2019](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2019/12/06/portfolio-shield-december-2019/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.Due to the strong performance of equities relative to Treasuries over the past six months, Portfolio Shield™ has removed the U.S. Treasury Bond fund hedge from all the models for the month of December. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on - [Portfolio Shield - January 2020](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2020/01/09/portfolio-shield-january-2020/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.There was a slight reduction in risk for the month of January. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies are invested according to the model strategy you - [Portfolio Shield - February 2020](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2020/02/10/portfolio-shield-february-2020/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.Portfolio Shield™ reinstated its hedging program this month by adding long-term U.S. Treasury bonds to the allocation across all models. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies - [Portfolio Shield - March 2020](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2020/03/06/portfolio-shield-march-2020/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.Portfolio Shield™ increased its allocation to long-term U.S. Treasury bonds across all models for March. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies are invested according to the - [Portfolio Shield - April 2020](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2020/04/03/portfolio-shield-april-2020/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.Portfolio Shield™ increased its allocation to long-term U.S. Treasury bonds across all models for April. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies are invested according to the - [Portfolio Shield - May 2020](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2020/05/08/portfolio-shield-may-2020/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.Portfolio Shield™ increased its allocation to long-term U.S. Treasury bonds across all models for May. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies are invested according to the - [Portfolio Shield - June 2020](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2020/06/05/portfolio-shield-june-2020/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.Portfolio Shield™ held its allocation to long-term U.S. Treasury bonds across all models for June. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies are invested according to the - [Portfolio Shield - July 2020](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2020/07/06/portfolio-shield-july-2020/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.Portfolio Shield™ increased its allocation to long-term U.S. Treasury bonds across all models for July. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies are invested according to the - [Portfolio Shield - August 2020](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2020/08/07/portfolio-shield-august-2020/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.Portfolio Shield™ slightly increased its allocation to long-term U.S. Treasury bonds across all models for August.Due to the very slight change to the allocation, many accounts did not change their holdings from last month. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on - [Portfolio Shield - September 2020](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2020/09/04/portfolio-shield-september-2020/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.Due to the strong performance of equities relative to U.S. Treasuries, Portfolio Shield™ removed the U.S. Treasury Bond fund hedge from all models for September. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at - [Portfolio Shield - October 2020](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2020/10/05/portfolio-shield-october-2020/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.Portfolio Shield™ reduced its allocation to the Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) and increased its allocation to the Russell 2000 (IWM) across all models for October. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, - [Portfolio Shield - November 2020](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2020/11/06/portfolio-shield-november-2020/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.Portfolio Shield™ reduced its allocation to the Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) and increased its allocation to the Russell 2000 (IWM) across all models for November. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, - [Portfolio Shield - December 2020](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2020/12/04/portfolio-shield-december-2020/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.Portfolio Shield™ reduced its allocation to the Russell 2000 (IWM) and increased its allocation to the Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) and S&P 500 (SPY) across all models for December. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month - [Portfolio Shield - January 2021](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2021/01/08/portfolio-shield-january-2021/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.There were no changes to the Portfolio Shield™ allocation for January. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies are invested according to the model strategy you are - [Portfolio Shield - February 2021](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2021/02/03/portfolio-shield-february-2021/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.There were very slight changes to the Portfolio Shield™ allocation for February. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies are invested according to the model strategy you - [Portfolio Shield - March 2021](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2021/03/03/portfolio-shield-march-2021/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.There were very slight changes to the Portfolio Shield™ allocation for March. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies are invested according to the model strategy you - [Portfolio Shield - April 2021](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2021/04/03/portfolio-shield-april-2021/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.There were very slight changes to the Portfolio Shield™ allocation for April. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies are invested according to the model strategy you - [Portfolio Shield - May 2021](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2021/05/05/portfolio-shield-may-2021/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.There were very slight changes to the Portfolio Shield™ allocation for May. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies are invested according to the model strategy you - [Portfolio Shield - June 2021](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2021/06/03/portfolio-shield-june-2021/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.There were slight changes to the Portfolio Shield™ allocation for June. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month and at that time, any new monies are invested according to the model strategy you are - [Portfolio Shield - July 2021](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2021/07/06/portfolio-shield-july-2021/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.The allocation in the Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) was reduced slightly and the allocation in the Russell 2000 (IWM) was increased slightly across all Portfolio Shield™ models for July. As a reminder, all strategies are rebalanced on the first trading day of each month - [Portfolio Shield - August 2021](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2021/08/05/portfolio-shield-august-2021/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.The allocation to the Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) and the Russell 2000 (IWM) were reduced to increase the allocation to the S&P 500 (SPY) across all Portfolio Shield™ models for August.Several have inquired when Portfolio Shield™ may begin hedging its equity exposure. To provide as - [Portfolio Shield - September 2021](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2021/09/05/portfolio-shield-september-2021/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.Portfolio Shield™ began hedging the equity allocation this month. It reduced its allocation to the S&P 500 (SPY) and the Nasdaq-100 (QQQ) by 17% to add long-term U.S. Treasury bonds (TLT) to the equity allocation across all models.Hedging Expectations:For the next several - [Portfolio Shield - Improvements](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2021/09/24/portfolio-shield-improvements/) - I’m very excited to share with you how Portfolio Shield™ is going to get even better!Simplify Asset Management and I have formed a strategic partnership to improve the original design of Portfolio Shield™. By replacing the existing ETFs with ETFs from Simplify and making a slight change to the allocation the strategy will improve significantly.The - [Portfolio Shield - October 2021](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2021/10/05/portfolio-shield-october-2021/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.With the rebalance to the new allocation is complete I want to address a question that has come up about the daily tracking of SPD and QQD. One aspect that makes the Portfolio Shield™ strategy great is its ability to control risk - [Portfolio Shield - November 2021](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2021/11/05/portfolio-shield-november-2021/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.When I designed Portfolio Shield™ I wanted a strategy that attempted to anticipate volatile or bear markets by reducing risk before a large move lower occurs rather than a reactionary strategy that adjusts after stock prices start to plunge. While Portfolio Shield™ - [Portfolio Shield - December 2021](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2021/12/03/portfolio-shield-december-2021/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.Based on how the markets are performing, I anticipate Portfolio Shield™ will remain hedged into early next year, which I think is good. From a return perspective, the strategy hedging has been effective.With the additional downside protection through the use of Simplify - [Portfolio Shield - January 2022](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2022/01/05/portfolio-shield-january-2022/) - Linked below are the latest Morningstar® Investment Detail Reports for the Portfolio Shield™ family.Portfolio Shield™ maintained the same percentage to its long-term bond hedge (TYA) for January. There were only very slight changes between the two equity positions (SPD & QQD) for the month.Due to the very slight change this month, you may not see - [Portfolio Shield - Update](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2022/01/06/portfolio-shield-update/) - Several people have reached out to me expressing concerns about the returns over the past couple of weeks as we have seen both stocks and bonds decline in value. For strategies such as Portfolio Shield™ which invests in both stocks and bonds, this hurts returns in the short run.I think it’s important to understand why - [Portfolio Shield - March 2022](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2022/03/03/portfolio-shield-march-2022/) - Portfolio Shield™ remains hedged for March. I am pleased to report the Simplify funds continue to reduce some the downside risks in the equity market and the long-term bond hedge has started mitigating some of the downside move in technology stocks.The underperformance in the portfolios with an allocation to AGG has largely been due to - [Portfolio Shield - April 2022](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2022/04/05/portfolio-shield-april-2022/) - Since January, we’ve all watched how volatile equities have been. Portfolio Shield™ is a long-equity strategy that hedges with long-term bonds during such volatile or Bear markets. Because equity volatility has now subsided, Portfolio Shield™ formulas removed the bond hedge (TYA) for April.Despite the bond hedge hurting returns, it is important to understand Portfolio Shield™ - [Portfolio Shield - May 2022](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2022/05/04/portfolio-shield-may-2022/) - Last month I mentioned I felt Portfolio Shield™ was likely to reimplement its hedge within the next three months. By an overwhelming majority of the underlying signals in the formula, Portfolio Shield™ has decided to hedge again for May. The formulas were designed to hedge during periods of heightened volatility or severe equity market weakness, - [Portfolio Shield - June 2022](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2022/06/03/portfolio-shield-june-2022/) - It appears the long-anticipated Bear market rally has finally arrived. This type of market rally is associated with periods when rapidly rising equity prices occur during the early stages of a Bear market.Most retail investors buy at the top of a Bull market. It’s no surprise then when stock prices begin to fall as central - [Portfolio Shield - August 2022](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2022/08/03/portfolio-shield-august-2022/) - The good news is all models rose in July. However, as I mentioned in last month’s note and prior month’s notes, should equities rally we would lag to the upside due to the strategy’s dual hedging. And we did.Due to the relative outperformance of equities in July and over the lookback period, the strategy decided - [Portfolio Shield - July 2022](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2022/07/05/portfolio-shield-july-2022/) - Last month I wrote that it appeared we were at the beginning stage of a big Bear market rally. Investors and money managers were extremely bullish, and money poured into stocks.After a brief move higher, stocks reversed direction and headed lower. Not even quarter-end rebalancing and a flood of corporate share buybacks before the blackout - [Portfolio Shield - September 2022](https://stevenvanmetre.com/2022/09/06/portfolio-shield-september-2022/) - Looking back over the last month, Portfolio Shield™ correctly identified that momentum was on the side of equities and dropped its bond hedge for August.While both stocks and bonds were down the last month, stocks were down the least.The Bear market rally that started in mid-July appears to have ended in mid-August. When Bear market ## Pages - [Contact](https://stevenvanmetre.com/contact/) - Steven Van Metre is the President of Steven Van Metre Financial. He has more than 20 years of experience in the financial services industry, including the design and management of Portfolio Shield™. 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