Economic Update | Aug 07, 2026
Hosted by Andrew Toccaceli, RICP®, MRFC® and Coley Neel, CFA® | W.A. Smith Financial Group
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Thank you to everyone who joined us for our Q3 2026 Lunch & Learn. We covered a range of timely topics, from company and community updates to current market conditions and the importance of keeping your estate plan aligned with your life.
If you were unable to attend, or would like a refresher, here is a summary of what we discussed.
We opened the session with updates on upcoming events, community initiatives, and opportunities for clients to continue learning and staying involved throughout the year.
Our next Lunch & Learn is scheduled for Wednesday, October 28, 2026, in the Independence area. If there is an educational topic you would like us to cover in a future session, we welcome your input. You can share ideas by reaching out to Maddie at Maddie@WASmithFinancial.com.
We also highlighted our annual Wish Upon a Star: A Night of Hope & Wishes event, which was held Thursday, August 6, 2026 at Market Square at Crocker Park in Westlake, Ohio.
The event supported Make-A-Wish and its mission to create strength, hope, and transformation for children facing critical illnesses, as well as for their families and communities.
During the presentation, we shared research demonstrating the potential impact of a wish experience. Parents reported improvements in their child’s joy, emotional well-being, physical well-being, and willingness to comply with medical treatment.
Thank you to everyone who supported this meaningful event. If you were unable to attend but would still like to help make wishes possible, you can donate at WASmithWish.com.
The economic update focused on market performance during the first half of 2026 and several factors that may influence the economy and investment markets during the remainder of the year.
We reviewed the market’s performance during the first six months of 2026, including the continued influence of semiconductor companies and other large technology businesses.
While a relatively small group of companies had previously driven a significant portion of market gains, recent activity suggests that participation may be expanding into a broader range of sectors and companies.
The discussion highlighted the recent performance of the Equal Weight S&P 500 compared with the traditional market-cap-weighted S&P 500 and the group commonly referred to as the Magnificent Seven.
This shift suggests that market gains are becoming less concentrated in a small number of mega-cap technology stocks.
Areas showing increased participation include:
Broader market participation can be a constructive development because it may indicate that more companies are contributing to overall market performance.
We also discussed how weaker relative performance among some of the largest technology companies does not necessarily indicate that the broader market is declining.
Instead, it may reflect profit-taking, changing valuations, and investors rotating into other areas of the market.
The key takeaway is that diversification remains important. Market leadership changes over time, and a disciplined portfolio should not depend entirely on the performance of a small number of companies or sectors.
The update also addressed continuing inflationary pressures and the Federal Open Market Committee’s role in determining the direction of interest rates.
Inflation, economic growth, corporate earnings, and employment conditions may all influence future Federal Reserve decisions.
As always, the emphasis remains on maintaining a disciplined, long-term approach rather than reacting to short-term headlines or temporary changes in market leadership.
A significant portion of the session focused on estate planning and the importance of making sure your legal documents, beneficiary designations, and financial plan continue to reflect your current wishes.
An estate plan is not something that should be completed once and forgotten. As your family, finances, health, and priorities change, your plan may need to change as well.
We discussed several common estate-planning concerns, including the large number of Americans who do not have an estate plan and the number of existing plans that have not been reviewed in several years.
Many families also avoid discussing inheritance, estate wishes, or financial responsibilities with their adult children. This can leave loved ones uncertain about what to do when a medical emergency, incapacity, or death occurs.
Procrastination is another common challenge. Many people understand that they need a will or other estate-planning documents but simply have not gotten around to completing them.
A coordinated estate plan should help answer four foundational questions:
Answering these questions can provide greater clarity for you and reduce confusion for the people you care about.
Certain life events may signal that it is time to review or update your estate plan.
These may include:
As a general guideline, estate-planning documents should be reviewed every three to five years and after any major life event.
We reviewed several documents that commonly form the foundation of an estate plan:
Depending on a family’s needs and financial situation, additional planning may also involve:
The documents someone needs will depend on their personal circumstances, family structure, assets, goals, and state of residence.
We also discussed several mistakes that can create unnecessary complications for individuals and their families.
These include:
The key takeaway is that estate planning requires coordination. Legal documents, financial accounts, insurance policies, beneficiary designations, tax strategies, and family communication should work together.
We reviewed several ways clients may approach the estate-planning process.
One option is to work directly with a qualified estate-planning attorney. W.A. Smith Financial Group has relationships with estate attorneys located near each of our office locations.
Clients may also have access to estate-planning support through Wealth.com and W.A. Smith Financial Group’s Estate Planning Coordinator.
Available planning options may include assistance with wills, trusts, powers of attorney, healthcare directives, HIPAA authorizations, document coordination, printing, and in-office notarization.
Your advisor can help you understand the available options and determine which next step may be appropriate for your situation.
If any of the topics discussed here raised questions or prompted you to take another look at your financial or estate plan, our team is happy to help.
Whether you attended the event or are reviewing this recap for the first time, your advisor can help you consider how changing markets, family circumstances, beneficiary decisions, and estate-planning documents may relate to your personal situation.
You are always welcome to reach out to schedule a conversation or connect with our office for additional guidance.
