“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities March 9th, 2009 was a monumental day at Modus Advisors. That was the day we opened our doors as a new company in Eden Prairie. The last two years have flown by. It was an exciting time with great opportunity, and I’m thankful to all of our wonderful clients who have shared these two years with us. March 9th, 2009 also signified the bottom of the stock market, ending the downturn that started in October 2007. The stock market, as measured by the S&P 500, had declined 57% from its peak, the largest percentage drop in the market since the Great Depression! Fear was everywhere, and it seemed like the world as we knew it was coming to an end. It is easy to look back now, with perfect hindsight, and see the great opportunity the stock market presented in March of 2009. Unfortunately, the opportunity wasn’t very clear back then, and the outcome was by no means certain. The dangers and risk were easy to see, but the opportunity wasn’t.
Although we jokingly say that it took the opening of Modus to turn the stock market around, we really had nothing to do with it. We are pleased to see the turnaround in the financial markets and the economy, but we also recognize the risks that still abound today. Our work in 2011 and the years to come will focus on balancing these two competing objectives; protecting you from financial risk while attempting to take advantage of the many opportunities that the financial markets present. * Past performance is not a guarantee of future results. * The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index is a capitalization-weighted index of 500 stocks designed to measure performance of the broad domestic economy through changes in the aggregate market value of 500 stocks representing all major industries. It is not possible to invest directly in an index. * Investing in stocks is subject to fluctuation such that, upon sale, shares may be worth more or less than the original cost.