INSIDER October 2026 In This Issue 2
Q3 2026: Balancing Opportunity with Market Risk
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Team News: Wedding Bells for Jack
4 Playing the Long Game: Planning for Life Beyond the Field 5 Team News: Meet Our Newest Team Member – Minh Tran 6
Practical and Safe Ways to Use Artificial Intelligence
Q3 2026: Balancing Opportunity with Market Risk Brandon Cawley, CFA®
Director of Investment Management Brandon.Cawley@MWAteam.com
Following the historic rally in Q2, U.S. equities largely consolidated during the quarter. Investors saw outsized returns in the energy, healthcare, and software sectors, despite six of the eleven major equity sectors declining. AI leaders found some footing in the second half of the quarter, but the July selloff was particularly tumultuous, with the market bottom marked by margin calls and the restructuring of a major hedge fund. Most AI infrastructure companies have yet to reclaim their June highs.
The key drivers of the market remain intact, but the environment has become more complex. The upcoming midterm elections in Q4, the resumption of the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate hiking cycle, and the possibility that 2026 represents a peak year for earnings growth among AI buildout beneficiaries all introduce additional uncertainty.
A Setback for the Interest Rate Environment The 10-year Treasury yield rose more than 75 basis points, ending the quarter at 5.2%, driven by persistent inflation, strong credit demand associated with AI investment, and a shift in the Federal Reserve’s policy stance. Despite calls from the Trump administration for lower interest rates, Chairman Warsh voted with the Federal Open Market Committee to raise the federal funds rate by 25 basis points at the September meeting. The Federal Reserve’s Summary of Economic Projections, along with market pricing, points to expectations for one to two additional rate hikes this year and potentially a third in the first quarter of 2026.
Peak Earnings Growth? S&P 500 earnings are now expected to increase 32% year over year in 2026, up from the 24% estimate prior to the Q2 earnings season. While this revision is encouraging, it also raises the possibility that earnings growth may moderate over the next year, potentially creating a more challenging market backdrop.
Over the past month, this environment has contributed to the outperformance of AI companies, supported by strong structural demand and earnings growth. By contrast, other areas of the real economy are increasingly confronting the reality of a “higher for longer” interest-rate environment.
Much of the growth has been concentrated in high-beta semiconductors, technology equipment, and industrial companies tied to the AI buildout. For these companies to sustain their momentum, they will likely need to deliver upside earnings surprises, or growth will need to broaden into other sectors where the macroeconomic environment is becoming increasingly challenging. The Magnificent 7 hyperscalers rallied following earnings season as investors gained evidence that their substantial AI investments were beginning to generate returns. While their equity performance has lagged year to date, these companies could provide meaningful support for the Continued on next page
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Q3 2026: Balancing Opportunity with Market Risk Continued from page 2
broader market if investors regain confidence that elevated capital expenditures are translating into stronger cash flow. Market breadth and narrow participation have increasingly become points of concern for investors. We believe, however, that strong leadership is an important characteristic of a sustained bull market. In the current cycle, that leadership has been concentrated among technology companies exposed to AI. If major indices are to reach new all-time highs, we believe these companies will need to continue leading the way.
Portfolio Implications As part of our tactical reallocation last quarter, we increased exposure to large-cap healthcare and energy. These positions have contributed positively to returns while also providing diversification relative to the broader indices.
Profitable small-cap equities have outperformed their unprofitable counterparts by more than 5% this year, and our portfolios are positioned consistent with that view.
Our small-cap managers have increased their exposure to the AI infrastructure theme, taking advantage of opportunities created during the July selloff. We continue to monitor AI exposure across our funds but remain comfortable with the current allocation. We selected these managers with the expectation that they would identify high-quality companies and sectors trading at attractive valuations.
We remain constructive on the structural drivers of AI while recognizing the importance of diversification amid increasingly concentrated equity indices. Maintaining discipline in periods of exuberance is critical to generating strong long-term returns, and we will continue to monitor market conditions and adjust portfolios accordingly.
Team News Wedding Bells for Jack! Please join us in congratulating Jack and his wife, Alayna, who were married on June 20, 2026, in Taneytown, Maryland! The couple shared an amazing day surrounded by love, laughter, and the people closest to them. Jack and Alayna are thrilled to formally begin their life together and are excited for everything the future holds. Congratulations to the newlyweds, and we wish them a lifetime of happiness!
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Playing the Long Game:
Planning for Life Beyond the Field
Adam Kolarek
Planning Analyst Adam.Kolarek@MWAteam.com
When you’re chasing your dreams in professional sports, it’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of the present—especially when you’re in the prime of your career. But the reality of the game is that careers are relatively short, and they can end at any time with an unexpected injury or a routine roster move. As I got a bit older and settled into my late 20s, I started thinking more about what the future might look like. I knew that baseball wouldn’t last forever, and that simple awareness shaped how my wife and I decided to handle our finances as we looked ahead to raising a young family.
Choosing to Live Within Our Means Instead of changing our lifestyle to match my playing years, we made a deliberate choice to live well within our means. We didn’t buy the flashy cars or overextend on real estate. We looked at our income not as a permanent fixture, but as a finite window of opportunity to build a solid foundation for our future. By keeping our regular overhead low and saving consistently, we knew we were creating a safety net. Every dollar we managed to save while I was playing was a dollar that would give us stability and options whenever the time came for me to transition into a new career.
Steady Planning for the Big Milestones
• College Funds: Knowing how quickly kids grow up, we started setting money aside for future education expenses early on, letting time and compound growth do the heavy lifting while we had a steady income.
Because a baseball career has a natural expiration date, we just tried to be practical about mapping out our longterm goals ahead of time:
• Retirement Security: Athletes often leave the game in their 30s, which creates the need to plan for a much longer post-playing career. We structured our savings to ensure our long-term retirement baseline was protected, allowing me to focus on my next professional steps without unnecessary financial pressure.
• A Permanent Home: Knowing how unpredictable a playing career can be, we avoided rushing into a major home purchase during my active years. Instead, we focused on building up a solid down payment fund so that when the time was right, we could buy a home with a comfortable mortgage that fit our true baseline income.
A Smooth Transition Because we took a conservative approach early on, stepping away from the game didn’t feel like a sudden hardship. It simply felt like the next natural chapter for our family. Living modestly during my baseball years ultimately bought us peace of mind. Today, as I build a new professional foundation, I am grateful that I can focus on learning my new role and being fully present for my kids. The uniform changes, but the basic financial principles of discipline and looking ahead remain exactly the same.
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Team News Meet Our Newest Team Member – Minh Tran Tell me a little about yourself. I am originally from Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, and earned my bachelor’s degree from the University of Richmond in Virginia. Growing up with a mother who worked at the State Securities Commission of Vietnam, I was exposed to the world of finance at an early age and knew I wanted to build a career in business and financial services. Throughout college, I pursued a wide range of internships to explore different career paths (and make the most of the opportunities my parents worked so hard to provide obviously). These experiences included supporting a pharmaceutical factory launch project at a management consulting firm, integrating internal data with a live database to support a company’s credit rating process, assisting a local aquarium in Cape Town with community engagement efforts for its turtle rehabilitation program, and developing a Power BI-based cost management center for a lubricant manufacturing company. While these roles varied across industries and functions, they all shared a common theme: people. Whether solving operational challenges, improving processes, or supporting community initiatives, I found the most rewarding aspect of each experience was helping individuals and organizations achieve their goals. This realization ultimately led me to pursue a career in financial planning, where I can combine my passion for problem-solving, relationship-building, and helping others navigate important financial decisions. Hence, joining MWA as a Planning Analyst feels like a natural next step in my professional journey.
What do you do on a typical weekend? I have been committed to practicing yoga since high school. On weekends, I either join Zoom classes with my favorite instructor in Vietnam or attend sessions at a local yoga studio. One of my favorite ways to relax afterwards is grabbing an iced matcha and taking a walk around Fells Point or the Inner Harbor. More recently, I picked up badminton as a new hobby and occasionally join friends at the University of Maryland for practice.
What is one thing about you that few people know? How much I love corn! I enjoy it in almost every form and dish imaginable, whether it’s steamed, butter-sautéed, in soup, tempura, or salad. My favorite vegetable even became the inspiration for my Senior Honors Thesis in Economics during my undergraduate studies. For my research, I collected and analyzed data to examine how recent transportation disruptions affected the corn futures market. If you’re interested, I can spare you the lengthy models and technical explanations and share the key takeaway: commodity futures are not merely financial instruments. Their pricing and behavior are closely connected to real-world transportation constraints, supply chain frictions, and broader market dynamics. Studying the economics behind something as simple as corn showed me how deeply interconnected financial markets are with the everyday movement of goods and people.
Three words to describe myself: Adventurous, Curious, Enthusiastic
Favorite part about working at Maller: The MWA family has been incredibly supportive and welcoming. In just my first three months with the firm, I have received tremendous support in my work, valuable guidance in life, and genuine care for my well-being. The level of thought, attention to detail, and dedication that the analysts and specialists put into serving each client inspires me and motivates me to continually grow both professionally and personally. 5
Practical and Safe Ways to Use Artificial Intelligence Kara Scott, FPQP™ Director of Administration Kara.Scott@MWAteam.com
Artificial intelligence may sound futuristic, but tools such as ChatGPT are already being used for surprisingly ordinary tasks. You do not need to be technically inclined or ready to hand your life over to a robot to benefit from them. Think of AI as a capable assistant: useful for brainstorming, organizing, explaining and providing a starting point. It can save time and help you ask better questions, but it should not replace your own judgment or the advice of a qualified professional. Here are a few approachable ways to experiment with AI. lists based on the location, season and planned activities. I have even taken photos of my toiletries and cosmetics to see if anything I planned on packing in my carry-on luggage seemed problematic.
Check Facts and Explore Questions AI can help you investigate a claim, compare information or identify questions that deserve a closer look. For example, you might ask whether something circulating online is accurate or request a summary of differing viewpoints.
The more specific you are, the more useful the response will be. You can mention your preferred pace, budget, mobility considerations, interests and anything you wish to avoid. Before booking, confirm prices, schedules, operating hours and travel requirements directly with the appropriate hotel, airline, attraction or government website.
However, AI can make mistakes, rely on outdated information or occasionally present incorrect information with impressive confidence. Ask it to verify current facts and provide reputable sources that you can review yourself. Consider it a research assistant, not the final authority.
AI is great for getting started, but details should be verified for accuracy before monetary commitments.
Make the Most of What Is in Your Kitchen
Plan a Trip
Not sure what to make for dinner? Tell an AI tool what ingredients you have or, when the tool permits, share a photograph of the contents of your refrigerator or pantry. It can suggest meals, ingredient substitutions and ways to adapt a recipe for dietary preferences.
AI is particularly helpful during the early stages of travel planning. It can suggest destinations based on your interests, organize a day-by-day itinerary, estimate how much time to allow between activities and create packing
For example, you might ask, “What can I substitute for buttermilk?” or “What can I prepare with X, Y, Z ingredients?” This really helped me out on Christmas Eve last year. I didn’t have a spice the recipe I was using called for. It was Continued on next page
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Practical and Safe Ways to Use Artificial Intelligence Continued from page 6
create a holiday-dinner timeline, build a packing checklist, suggest gifts, organize a home project or walk you through an unfamiliar phone setting one step at a time. It is often most valuable as a brainstorming partner. You remain the decision-maker; AI simply helps turn a blank page into a workable plan.
A Few Important Safety Rules As with any online service, use thoughtful precautions: • Do not enter passwords, Social Security numbers, account numbers, tax documents or other sensitive financial information. • Avoid sharing confidential business information or personally identifiable information about yourself or others. • Verify important facts through reliable, current sources. • Consult the appropriate professional before acting on medical, legal, tax, insurance or investment guidance.
the eleventh hour with no time to spare. I took a picture of my spices and asked if anything could be subbed. I got a great suggestion with a revised measurement suggestion.
• Review AI-generated emails, documents and recommendations before using or sharing them. • Be cautious with AI-generated images, voices and messages. If an unexpected request involves money or personal information, verify the person’s identity through a trusted method.
Make Complicated Information Easier to Understand AI can translate technical language into plain English. You can ask it to explain a general concept, define an unfamiliar term or help you prepare a list of questions for your doctor, attorney, accountant or financial professional.
AI is neither magic nor inherently intimidating. Used carefully, it can be a convenient tool for research, planning and everyday problem solving. Start with something small and low risk. Ask it to create a packing list, explain an unfamiliar term or suggest dinner from what you already have at home or a local restaurant based on what you are in the mood to eat.
This can help you feel better prepared for an important conversation. It should not, however, diagnose a medical condition, provide individualized legal advice or make financial decisions for you.
You may find that the best introduction to artificial intelligence is not especially futuristic at all. It is simply helpful.
Organize Everyday Life AI is also quite good at helping with the small projects that somehow consume an entire afternoon. It can
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Connect With Us Phone 410-771-5560 Fax 443-589-0330 www.mallerwealthadvisors.com www.linkedin.com/company/mallerwealthadvisors/ www.Facebook.com/MallerWealthAdvisors
How to Reach Us Wealth Advisory Services Matthew Aversa, ChFC®, BFA™, CWS® – Managing Partner, Financial Planner | Matthew.Aversa@MWAteam.com Devon G. Gluck, CFP®, CIMA® – Partner, Financial Planner | Devon.Gluck@MWAteam.com John E. Layug, MBA, CFP®, AEP® – Partner, Financial Planner | John.Layug@MWAteam.com Steven Blevins – Planning Analyst | Steven.Blevins@MWAteam.com Brandon Cawley, CFA® – Director of Investment Management | Brandon.Cawley@MWAteam.com Luke Charlton – Planning Analyst | Luke.Charlton@MWAteam.com Adam Kolarek – Planning Analyst | Adam.Kolarek@MWAteam.com Cristina “Tina” Kothari, MBA, CDFA™ – Associate Director | Tina.Kothari@MWAteam.com John “Jack” Lombardo, CFP® – Senior Planning Analyst | Jack.Lombardo@MWAteam.com Minh Tran – Planning Analyst | Minh.Tran@MWAteam.com Zellie Wothers, CRPS®, CFP® – Associate Director/401k Specialist | Zellie.Wothers@MWAteam.com
Operations and Scheduling Mary Goles, FPQP™, aPHR® – Director of Operations | Mary.Goles@MWAteam.com
Administrative Support and Implementation Kara Scott, FPQP™ – Director of Administration | Kara.Scott@MWAteam.com Jennifer Schepers – Implementation Specialist | Jennifer.Schepers@MWAteam.com Deletha Chiu – Implementation Specialist | Deletha.Chiu@MWAteam.com
Securities and investment advisory services offered through Osaic Wealth, Inc, member FINRA/SIPC. Osaic Wealth is separately owned and other entities and/ or marketing names, products or services referenced here are independent of Osaic Wealth. Osaic Wealth and its representatives do not provide legal or tax advice. You may want to consult a legal or tax advisor regarding any legal or tax information as it relates to your personal circumstances. Branch address: 201 International Circle, Suite 100, Hunt Valley, MD 21030 Opinions expressed are those of Maller Wealth Advisors and not necessarily those of Osaic Wealth. Forward looking statements may be subject to certain risks and uncertainties. Actual results, performance, or achievements may differ materially from those expressed or implied.
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