Yahoo Finance’s Alexis Christoforous and Brian Sozzi discuss what investors can do amid market uncertainty during today’s market uncertainty with Liz Weikes, JP Morgan Securities Managing Director & Financial Advisor.

Video Transcript

BRIAN SOZZI: Investors are watching for any stimulus and keeping their eyes on political drama. As the 2020 election nears and coronavirus cases continue to surge, that's our focus in today's Financial Advisor Corner presented by PIMCO. Let's bring in Liz Weikes, Managing Director and Financial Advisor at JP Morgan Securities to discuss how to prepare your portfolio during the uncertainty.

Liz, good to see you this morning. So what are you telling clients right now?

LIZ WEIKES: Thanks, Brian, for having me. You know, this has been a roller coaster of a year, for sure, in 2020. I think as an advisor, I've worked harder this year than any other year. So I applaud all the advisors out there. It's certainly been a very tough 2020.

Really preparing client portfolios, it really depends on-- on the overall client. For someone like myself, I have clients that are all over the country. So really, the pandemic has affected their portfolios in so many different ways. For clients that could have been in New York City-based or, say, West Coast-based, they've really been hit hard by the pandemic. But then clients that have wealth in pockets of the country, whether it be Missouri, Wisconsin, Texas, all over, it really has affected them differently and their overall businesses and really how they've really seen the pandemic.

So in terms of preparing the portfolios, these have been ongoing conversations from March all the way through now coming up to the election. We've really had to pivot from March where the discussion around the portfolios was really about the pandemic and their overall health. Now, it's pivoted about what's happening with the volatility of the election, the stimulus package, and economic factors. So in terms of preparing the portfolios, we've certainly seen a shift from equities more into the fixed income markets, and we are certainly raising cash across all of our client portfolios.

ALEXIS CHRISTOFOROUS: Great. I'd love for you to talk more about that, Liz, these trends that you're seeing among your clients. What are some other things they're doing? Are they getting more defensive when they are staying in stocks?

LIZ WEIKES: Yes, certainly. I think, you know, right now there's that whole discussion about value versus growth and really what that means for the portfolios. And it all ultimately comes down to the individual investor and really their risk tolerance at the end of the day and certainly their time horizon. But overall, clients are certainly getting more defensive in their overall equity portfolios. I think even clients that have taken enormous amount of risk in their equity portfolios are certainly pulling back here.

They're also taking the opportunity to raise cash, because if there is going to be another opportunity to step into the markets, they want to be ready and be there. So I think you're seeing both sides of the investor really-- really being a little more defensive. One, being more defensive in terms of their overall-- their overall portfolio. And then the others wanting to be able to step in when that timing happens.

BRIAN SOZZI: Liz, you can attest to this, so much focus right now on the markets is the potential for a blue wave come the presidential election. You work with a lot of high-net-worth clients. How concerned are they about their taxes going up if we do, in fact, get that blue wave? And what moves are they making today in advance of that?

LIZ WEIKES: This is the discussion that's happening all day, every day, from morning until night with all clients. It certainly is on the minds of everybody, even ultra-high-net-worth clients that I focus on, but, you know, in terms of regular investors as well. It's something that we have to prepare for.

But at the end of the day, there will be a president elected come November. I think there's less-- you know, two weeks ago we thought more that this could be a contested election. Now, we're thinking that we may have a president on election night. Either way, there will be a president elected. And in this country, there will be a president in place on January 20.

So with that, you know, there's so much happening from an economic standpoint in this country weighing on the stimulus and what's to come even post that, we really have to get this country back on solid ground from a health care perspective more than anything. And with that, clients are certainly focused on from a tax perspective. But even if it is a Biden presidency, I truly believe that there is so much at stake right now in terms of fixing this country, I don't know that taxes are going to be the first thing on the agenda.

But it is something that we're certainly concerned about in the ultra-high-net-worth space and certainly concern from, you know, municipal debt standpoint as we look at that in terms of portfolios. But even more so now, I think the clients are really focused from an estate standpoint really putting their estates in place because not only from a health care perspective, but from the standpoint of what-- what this future presidency could mean for their overall estate and inheritance for their families.

BRIAN SOZZI: Well said. Liz Weikes, Managing Director and Financial Advisor at JP Morgan Securities. Good to see you.

LIZ WEIKES: Thanks. Thanks, Brian.