Ritholtz Wealth Management, the $4 billion New York-based registered investment advisor, has named Callie Cox as its first chief market strategist. Most recently, Cox was an investment analyst at social investment platform eToro.
While Ritholtz already has several market gurus, including Director of Institutional Asset Management Ben Carlson, Managing Partner Michael Batnick and CEO Josh Brown, Cox will be the first fully dedicated to serving advisors. She will act as a liaison between the firm's investment committee and Ritholtz's 25 advisors.
“Josh, Ben and Michael have worn a ton of different hats, and in talking to Josh and Michael, we understand that there is a need for quality Wall Street research that can go to everyday investors,” Cox said. “My core job is advisor service — building a timely set of market content for advisors so they feel empowered to make the best decisions and educate their clients on what's going on.”
Cox will launch a weekly newsletter called “Cautiously Optimistic,” which will be publicly available through The Compound, the firm's numerous programs and podcasts. She will also become a member of The Compound.
“It's called ironically because you'll never hear me say 'too bullish' in a unique way,” Cox said. as 'cautiously optimistic'. Frankly, that kind of phrase doesn't tell you much. I'm committed to showing everyday investors how the markets work in a language they understand.”
Cox's current view of the market is that while she has heard the word “recession” often, the US is currently experiencing a bull market, with the S&P up 50% from its October 2022 low.
“It's time to start believing we're in a bull market, mainly because, as an everyday investor, it's expensive to miss bull markets,” she said. “You can look for value in certain pockets, you can try to outperform the market, but the lowest common denominator is that you have to stay invested when the economy is strong. This is how you build wealth.
“We think the selloff is buying opportunity, especially because we believe the Fed has inflation pretty much under control and it's likely that a rate cut could be coming soon.”
Prior to eToro, Cox held research roles at Ally, LPL Financial and First Citizens Bank. She began her career as a reporter at Bloomberg covering the US stock and options markets. She will be based in Ritholtz's Charlotte, NC office, which opened in July 2023.
This follows news in April that RIA opened a new office in Manhattan Beach neighborhood of Los Angeles. Senior Counsel Michelle Katzen and Counsel Jordan D. Hanson are leading the new Los Angeles office, having joined the firm 10 and three months ago, respectively.