Quote of the week
““The individual investor should act consistently as an investor and not as a speculator””
2022 Tax Reporting Schedule
Tax season is quickly approaching, so we wanted to set expectations on when you could receive your tax forms. Please keep in mind that all tax forms will be generated at Raymond James headquarters. Your 1099(s) will be delivered based on the document delivery method you have selected. You can view and change your delivery method in our Client Access portal. You can also view tax forms instantly when they are released through the Client Access Portal. Here is the 1099 Raymond James mailing date schedule:
1/31: 1099-R for retirement accounts / 529 tax forms
2/15: 1099 for retail accounts start to distribute. Accounts holding mutual funds may be delayed due to income reallocation.
2/28: Raymond James begins mailing Amended and delayed original 1099s.
3/15: Raymond James begins mailing the remaining original 1099s.
Federal Reserve raises interest rates 0.25%
On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve raised rates another quarter of a point. The federal funds rate now sits in a range between 5.4% and 4.75%. The raise was expected, but Chairman Powell tells a more insightful story. While he is happy with the disinflation and economic tightening in some areas, 56% of the index is still not in disinflation. He also mentioned "the labor market remains out of balance", which is true. The unemployment rate is at a record low. When prompted, Powell said that the Fed's greatest risk is not doing enough and seeing inflation reaccelerate. We agree, but we'll have to wait until March to see what the Fed is thinking about its terminal interest rate. Until then, let's keep a pulse on economic data to see how it progresses.
Unemployment rate decreases to 3.4%
January's job report surprised to the upside on Friday, with the US adding 517,000 jobs and the unemployment rate decreasing to its lowest reading in more than 53 years. The decrease in unemployment comes during a month when we saw big technology companies lay off a portion of their workforce.
Meta shares skyrocket after earnings report
Meta, formerly known as Facebook, saw its shares rise by more than 18% in after-hours trading after showing signs of recovery. According to the Wall Street Journal, Meta announced it will buy back an additional $40 billion in shares this year, reduced its cost estimates, and said revenue would exceed $28.5 billion in the first quarter. For comparison, that would beat Meta's earnings from Q1 in 2021. Click here to read the full piece in the WSJ.
Any opinions are those of Barry McCall, Steve Alverson, and Austin Coley and not necessarily those of RJFS or Raymond James. The information contained in this report does not purport to be a complete description of the securities, markets, or developments referred to in this material. There is no assurance any of the trends mentioned will continue or forecasts will occur. The information has been obtained from sources considered to be reliable, but Raymond James does not guarantee that the foregoing material is accurate or complete. Any information is not a complete summary or statement of all available data necessary for making an investment decision and does not constitute a recommendation. Investing involves risk and you may incur a profit or loss regardless of strategy selected. This is not a recommendation to purchase or sell the stocks of the companies pictured/mentioned.