Moneywise Inc. Has $11.20 Million Position in Schwab U.S. Mid-Cap ETF (SCHM)

Moneywise Inc. cut its holdings in Schwab U.S. Mid-Cap ETF (NYSEARCA:SCHM) by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 204,021 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,198 shares during the quarter. Schwab U.S. Mid-Cap ETF makes up approximately 9.6% of Moneywise Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Moneywise Inc.’s holdings in Schwab U.S. Mid-Cap ETF were worth $11,199,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in Schwab U.S. Mid-Cap ETF by 73.8% during the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 6,886 shares of the company’s stock valued at $367,000 after acquiring an additional 2,924 shares in the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its position in Schwab U.S. Mid-Cap ETF by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 195,733 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,426,000 after acquiring an additional 2,705 shares in the last quarter. Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE boosted its position in Schwab U.S. Mid-Cap ETF by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter. Smithbridge Asset Management Inc. DE now owns 56,983 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,128,000 after acquiring an additional 1,315 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in Schwab U.S. Mid-Cap ETF by 17.6% during the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 21,163 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,127,000 after acquiring an additional 3,165 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Advocates Investment Management bought a new stake in Schwab U.S. Mid-Cap ETF during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $321,000.

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Schwab U.S. Mid-Cap ETF traded up $0.11, hitting $56.64, during trading hours on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. 277,997 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 327,007. Schwab U.S. Mid-Cap ETF has a one year low of $47.42 and a one year high of $56.76.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 27th were given a dividend of $0.1345 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 26th. This represents a $0.54 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%.

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James Investment Research Inc. Has $22.25 Million Position in ConocoPhillips (COP)

James Investment Research Inc. boosted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 8.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 319,545 shares of the energy producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 25,087 shares during the period. ConocoPhillips accounts for 0.9% of James Investment Research Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. James Investment Research Inc.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $22,246,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of COP. Augustine Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.9% in the second quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. now owns 38,754 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $2,698,000 after buying an additional 726 shares during the last quarter. Shufro Rose & Co. LLC raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 8.1% in the first quarter. Shufro Rose & Co. LLC now owns 10,650 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $631,000 after buying an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. SVA Plumb Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 14.6% in the first quarter. SVA Plumb Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,391 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $320,000 after buying an additional 816 shares during the last quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 29.0% in the first quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 3,635 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $211,000 after buying an additional 817 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HighPoint Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 9.8% in the first quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 9,228 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $641,000 after buying an additional 824 shares during the last quarter. 71.00% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Zacks Investment Research raised shares of ConocoPhillips from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $74.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, April 19th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of ConocoPhillips from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $66.42 to $68.00 in a report on Thursday, April 19th. Argus set a $76.00 price target on shares of ConocoPhillips and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 4th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $71.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 27th. Finally, ValuEngine raised shares of ConocoPhillips from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. ConocoPhillips presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $68.05.

Shares of ConocoPhillips stock opened at $70.01 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.86 and a quick ratio of 1.71. ConocoPhillips has a 1 year low of $42.26 and a 1 year high of $72.57. The firm has a market cap of $81.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 116.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.22.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 26th. The energy producer reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.22. ConocoPhillips had a negative net margin of 1.64% and a positive return on equity of 6.69%. The firm had revenue of $8.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted ($0.02) earnings per share. equities analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 4.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 4th. Investors of record on Monday, July 23rd will be issued a dividend of $0.285 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 20th. This represents a $1.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.63%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 190.00%.

ConocoPhillips announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, July 12th that permits the company to buyback $9.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the energy producer to buy up to 10.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

In related news, SVP Janet Langford Kelly sold 59,389 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.95, for a total transaction of $3,916,704.55. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 100,600 shares in the company, valued at $6,634,570. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Glenda Mae Schwarz sold 6,763 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.04, for a total transaction of $439,865.52. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 10,182 shares in the company, valued at approximately $662,237.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 284,052 shares of company stock valued at $19,491,534. 0.88% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

ConocoPhillips Company Profile

ConocoPhillips explores for, produces, transports, and markets crude oil, bitumen, natural gas, liquefied natural gas (LNG), and natural gas liquids worldwide. Its portfolio includes North American tight oil and oil sands assets in Canada; conventional assets in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia; various LNG developments; and an inventory of conventional and unconventional exploration prospects.

See Also: Understanding Price to Earnings Ratio (PE)

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Hold Hindustan Unilever; target of Rs 1550: JM Financial

JM Financial's research report on Hindustan Unilever

HUL delivered another strong quarter but that is somewhat par for the course now, considering its recent results delivery plus the stock��s heady valuation (59x NTM EPS). There was no massive surprise element this time round, though, to drive another leg of decisive upmove from an already elevated level, in our view. The stock had rallied 8-10% each after 2Q-3QFY18 results and up a massive 16% between 4QFY18 report and now - we expect reaction to be more lukewarm this time round, given that there was nothing in 1QFY19 report to prompt another round of earnings-upgrade. Key numbers: 12% volume growth (base volume was flat implying 2-year volume CAGR of 5.8% vs 7.4% for 4QFY18; 3QFY18 was 3.2%), 16% comparable sales growth and 100bps of ��comparable�� margin expansion.

Outlook

Growth was more broad-based this time round with double-digit volume growth across divisions but Home-care was again the key performance driver (6th consecutive quarters of >25% EBIT growth) while Personal Care underperformed relatively (LTL margin down for the 4th quarter running). Delivery-engine remains well-oiled but stock is priced for perfection.

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Read More First Published on Jul 18, 2018 05:02 pm

NuStar Energy (NS) Given New $25.00 Price Target at Barclays

NuStar Energy (NYSE:NS) had its price target upped by Barclays from $23.00 to $25.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday morning. They currently have an equal weight rating on the pipeline company’s stock.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on NS. ValuEngine lowered NuStar Energy from a sell rating to a strong sell rating in a report on Monday, July 2nd. Zacks Investment Research upgraded NuStar Energy from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a report on Tuesday, April 24th. Mizuho restated a hold rating and issued a $24.00 target price on shares of NuStar Energy in a report on Wednesday, April 11th. Citigroup cut their price target on NuStar Energy from $27.00 to $22.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a neutral rating and set a $25.00 price target (down from $27.00) on shares of NuStar Energy in a report on Tuesday, March 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. The stock has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $28.00.

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NuStar Energy opened at $23.59 on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.35. NuStar Energy has a fifty-two week low of $19.22 and a fifty-two week high of $47.60. The stock has a market cap of $2.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.86 and a beta of 1.54.

NuStar Energy (NYSE:NS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 26th. The pipeline company reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, missing the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $1.19 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $475.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $446.15 million. NuStar Energy had a net margin of 11.99% and a return on equity of 10.87%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.49 EPS. equities analysts forecast that NuStar Energy will post 1.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

In other news, Director William E. Greehey acquired 413,736 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 26th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $24.17 per share, for a total transaction of $9,999,999.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,486,869 shares in the company, valued at approximately $84,277,623.73. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 4.10% of the company’s stock.

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Catawba Capital Management VA bought a new stake in NuStar Energy in the second quarter valued at $214,000. RMB Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of NuStar Energy during the first quarter worth $201,000. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of NuStar Energy during the fourth quarter worth $317,000. Kovack Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of NuStar Energy by 74.0% during the first quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 11,974 shares of the pipeline company’s stock worth $244,000 after purchasing an additional 5,094 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Two Sigma Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of NuStar Energy during the fourth quarter worth $373,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.32% of the company’s stock.

About NuStar Energy

NuStar Energy L.P. engages in the terminalling, storage, and marketing of petroleum products in Texas. The company also engages in the transportation of petroleum products and anhydrous ammonia. It operates through three segments: Pipeline, Storage, and Fuels Marketing. The Pipeline segment transports refined petroleum products, crude oil, and anhydrous ammonia.

Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC Invests $214,000 in Stoneridge, Inc. (SRI)

Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Stoneridge, Inc. (NYSE:SRI) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 7,757 shares of the auto parts company’s stock, valued at approximately $214,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. raised its position in shares of Stoneridge by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 2,033,351 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $46,481,000 after buying an additional 54,287 shares in the last quarter. Schwab Charles Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Stoneridge by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Schwab Charles Investment Management Inc. now owns 123,070 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $2,814,000 after buying an additional 4,901 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its position in shares of Stoneridge by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 797,800 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $18,238,000 after buying an additional 39,700 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG raised its position in shares of Stoneridge by 184.8% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 83,414 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $1,904,000 after buying an additional 54,126 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stone Ridge Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Stoneridge in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $713,000. Institutional investors own 86.83% of the company’s stock.

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Several brokerages have commented on SRI. Buckingham Research began coverage on shares of Stoneridge in a research report on Wednesday, June 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $37.00 price objective for the company. Barrington Research set a $35.00 price objective on shares of Stoneridge and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 1st. CL King began coverage on shares of Stoneridge in a research report on Monday, April 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $34.00 price objective for the company. ValuEngine downgraded shares of Stoneridge from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 2nd. Finally, Stephens upgraded shares of Stoneridge from an “equal” rating to a “weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $31.40.

In other Stoneridge news, CAO Robert J. Jr. Hartman sold 6,393 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.86, for a total transaction of $178,108.98. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 37,281 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,038,648.66. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jonathan B. Degaynor sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.90, for a total transaction of $897,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 79,122 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,365,747.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 4.40% of the company’s stock.

Shares of Stoneridge opened at $34.42 on Thursday, according to Marketbeat. Stoneridge, Inc. has a one year low of $15.05 and a one year high of $37.69. The company has a market cap of $1.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.92, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 2.19 and a quick ratio of 1.65.

Stoneridge (NYSE:SRI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 2nd. The auto parts company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.02. Stoneridge had a net margin of 5.89% and a return on equity of 20.81%. The business had revenue of $225.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $213.94 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.38 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. sell-side analysts anticipate that Stoneridge, Inc. will post 2.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Stoneridge

Stoneridge, Inc designs and manufactures engineered electrical and electronic components, modules, and systems for the automotive, commercial, motorcycle, off-highway, and agricultural vehicle markets. It operates through three segments: Control Devices, Electronics, and PST. The Control Devices segment provides sensors, switches, valves, and actuators that monitor, measure, or activate specific functions within a vehicle.

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Gaia Inc (GAIA) Expected to Announce Earnings of -$0.42 Per Share

Wall Street analysts expect that Gaia Inc (NASDAQ:GAIA) will announce earnings per share (EPS) of ($0.42) for the current fiscal quarter, Zacks Investment Research reports. Two analysts have issued estimates for Gaia’s earnings. Gaia also reported earnings of ($0.42) per share during the same quarter last year. The business is scheduled to issue its next quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 6th.

According to Zacks, analysts expect that Gaia will report full year earnings of ($1.65) per share for the current year, with EPS estimates ranging from ($1.75) to ($1.58). For the next year, analysts anticipate that the firm will post earnings of ($1.21) per share, with EPS estimates ranging from ($1.37) to ($1.13). Zacks’ EPS calculations are a mean average based on a survey of sell-side research firms that follow Gaia.

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Gaia (NASDAQ:GAIA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.39) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.53) by $0.14. Gaia had a negative return on equity of 26.84% and a negative net margin of 72.00%. The firm had revenue of $9.62 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.41 million.

Several research firms recently issued reports on GAIA. B. Riley upped their target price on Gaia to $26.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 7th. Dougherty & Co began coverage on Gaia in a research report on Wednesday, March 28th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $22.00 target price on the stock. Roth Capital upped their target price on Gaia from $22.00 to $25.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 22nd. BidaskClub downgraded Gaia from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 28th. Finally, ValuEngine raised Gaia from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 2nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Gaia has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $23.25.

Shares of GAIA opened at $20.45 on Friday. Gaia has a 12 month low of $10.35 and a 12 month high of $22.75.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. grew its position in Gaia by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 776,008 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,623,000 after purchasing an additional 6,882 shares during the period. Suntrust Banks Inc. acquired a new stake in Gaia during the 4th quarter worth about $136,000. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Gaia by 35.1% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 138,771 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,720,000 after purchasing an additional 36,047 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG grew its position in Gaia by 14.1% during the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 91,628 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,134,000 after purchasing an additional 11,343 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its position in Gaia by 82.8% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 55,656 shares of the company’s stock worth $690,000 after purchasing an additional 25,202 shares during the period. 41.85% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gaia Company Profile

Gaia, Inc operates a digital video subscription service and online community that caters underserved subscribers worldwide. The company has a digital content library of approximately 8,000 titles available to its subscribers on Internet-connected devices. Its subscribers have access to a library of films, documentaries, interviews, yoga classes, transformation related content, and others for digital streaming.

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For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

One Big Retirement Lie... And What You Need To Know About It

&l;p&g;Over the last few decades, retirement planning, and even the very essence of what it means to be &a;ldquo;retired,&a;rdquo; has dramatically changed. And while some of the &a;ldquo;old&a;rdquo; rules of retirement still apply, those looking to enjoy a comfortable retirement in today&a;rsquo;s world often need to buck old trends .

Case in point... in the past, the old adage was that, in general, during your working years you should put as much money as possible into your 401(k) and tax-deductible IRA to save for retirement and lower your tax bill. The idea was to get a deduction during your working years, when your tax rate was higher, and to later take that money out of your tax-deferred accounts in retirement, when your tax rate was lower. For some, that&a;rsquo;s certainly still true today, but for many others, the reality is that retirement will bring with it a &l;em&g;higher &l;/em&g;tax rate. In such situations, old-school tax-deferral strategies are less effective, and may even be detrimental to your long-term retirement success.

There are a number of reasons your tax rate might be higher in retirement than it is today. Take, for instance, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, passed last December, which temporarily lowers taxes for most Americans through 2025. If no changes occur before then, however, we&a;rsquo;ll see a reversal of that trend, and many Americans will see higher taxes in 2026, even if their income remains the same.

Another reason you might see your taxes increase in retirement is that there are certain &a;ldquo;taxes&a;rdquo; in retirement that don&a;rsquo;t exist earlier in life. The word &a;ldquo;taxes&a;rdquo; is in quotations there, because not all of the income-related costs you might incur in retirement are technically &a;ldquo;taxes&a;rdquo;. But who cares what it&a;rsquo;s called? If the cost goes up as your income does, it goes down as a tax in my book!

One example of this is the Medicare Part B (and D) premiums you typically begin paying at 65. If your income is high enough, you&a;rsquo;ll be assessed with something called an income-related monthly adjustment amount, or IRMAA for short. This is just a complicated way of saying you pay a higher premium because of your income. In 2018, married couples filing a joint return begin to be impacted by the IRMAA at $170,000 of modified adjusted gross income (MAGI), and single filers are impacted with MAGI half that amount. The top IRMAA level for 2018 takes effect at $320,000 of MAGI for joint filers (half that amount for single filers), and can increase a married couple&s;s combined Medicare costs by nearly a whopping $9,000!

Other income-related costs (taxes) that you might be subject to in retirement, and aren&a;rsquo;t applicable earlier, include taxes on Social Security benefits, which generally can&a;rsquo;t be claimed until as early as 62. The formula to determine the taxation of Social Security benefits is particularly complex and failing to understand those complexities could be costly. For instance, thanks to an oddity that&a;rsquo;s been nicknamed the &a;ldquo;tax torpedo&a;rdquo; by some, it&a;rsquo;s often &l;em&g;less&l;/em&g; tax efficient to pay tax on IRA distributions at a 10% rate &l;em&g;after&l;/em&g; beginning to receive Social Security benefits than it is to pay tax on IRA distributions at the higher 12% rate &l;em&g;before&l;/em&g; beginning to receive Social Security benefits. If that doesn&a;rsquo;t make any sense, don&a;rsquo;t worry. It&a;rsquo;s not supposed to. We&a;rsquo;re talking taxes here, after all.

There are plenty of other reasons to believe that both your &a;ldquo;taxes&a;rdquo; and your taxes might be higher in retirement too. Consider the potential cost of losing out on lower property tax rates that are sometimes available to seniors with more modest incomes in some jurisdictions. And remember that at 70 &a;frac12; you must generally begin to take distributions from your pre-tax retirement accounts &a;ndash; whether you want to or not - which can quickly drive up your taxable income. And what tax rate will you pay then? Who knows?! It could depend on which way the political winds are blowing at the time.

All of this, again, is to make the point that just because you&a;rsquo;ve always been told you&a;rsquo;ll be in a lower tax bracket in retirement doesn&a;rsquo;t necessarily make it so . This trap has caught many off-guard over the years, leading to needless taxation. Don&a;rsquo;t let it happen to you. By looking ahead and planning now, you can take proactive steps to maximize the efficiency of your income in retirement, such adjusting deferrals to 401(k) and similar plans to utilize (at least in part) the Roth options, when available, exploring Roth IRA conversions, considering the built-in tax efficiency of Social Security benefits relative to most other income streams, and re-evaluating asset location plans.&l;/p&g;