Well, it’s over. The stock market is officially closed for 2016.
All told, it was a successful year for me. My firm increased its assets under management by a good chunk, and my returns for the year were solid. My Dividend Growth portfolio absolutely crushed the S&P 500, and I took first place in InvestorPlace’s Best Stocks for 2016 contest with a whopping 53% return in Energy Transfer Equity (ETE).
Source: InvestorPlace. Past performance no guarantee of future results.
But as I enjoy this moment, I’m also reminded how fragile all of this can be. I lost two good friends and mentors this year, gentlemen who had a lot of faith in me at a time when no one else did. I will profoundly miss both of them, and I regret that I’ll never be able to repay the debt of gratitude I owe them. My practice would have never gotten off the ground without them.
So while I’m a little deflated this New Year’s Eve, I’m going to celebrate the end of a good year and look forward to the start of another one because I am all too aware that it can all come screeching to a halt tomorrow.
Happy New Year, and may 2017 be your best year yet.
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