Investing

The choice between traditional versus Roth 401(k) contributions could be trickier than you expect, experts say.
Many investors only weigh current versus future marginal tax brackets, which is the percentage paid on your last dollar of taxable income.
But investors should also consider their effective tax rate, or taxes paid as a percentage of total income.

Kira Hofmann | Photothek | Getty Images

When saving for retirement, you can often pick between traditional and after-tax Roth contributions — and determining the right choice may be trickier than you expect.
Traditional deferrals offer an upfront tax break, but you’ll owe regular income taxes on future withdrawals. The opposite is true for Roth contributions, which happen after taxes, but the balance grows tax-free. 

Many decide between traditional and Roth contributions by weighing current versus future tax brackets, but that can be a mistake, according to certified financial planner Cody Garrett, founder of Measure Twice Planners in Houston.
“People always talk in marginal rates, but lived experiences are [your] effective rates,” said Garrett, who is also co-author of the new book, “Tax Planning To and Through Early Retirement.”

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Stories for investors who are retired or are approaching retirement, and are interested in creating and managing a steady stream of income:

Marginal vs. effective tax rates

The U.S. federal income tax brackets are progressive, meaning tiers of earnings are subject to different rates. Your marginal rate is the percentage paid on your last dollar of taxable income. (You calculate taxable income by subtracting the greater of the standard or itemized deductions from your adjusted gross income.) 
By comparison, your effective tax rate is taxes paid as a percentage of your total income.
The difference between these numbers matters when making traditional versus Roth contributions because your effective rate in retirement may be much lower than you expect, Garrett said.

Garrett shared an example of marginal versus effective tax rates in a LinkedIn post last month.
Let’s say you’re single and 50 years old, with a gross income of $200,000. For 2025, your standard deduction is $15,750, which brings your taxable income to $184,250.

Breakdown of tax for each tier of taxable income:
$11,925 taxed at 10%: $1,192.50$36,550 taxed at 12%: $4,386$54,875 taxed at 22%: $12,072.50$80,900 taxed at 24%: $19,416Total tax: $37,067

Your highest marginal tax rate is 24%. But your effective tax rate is 18.5%, which is your total tax ($37,067) divided by $200,000 gross income.
However, you would need gross income above $326,900 for your effective rate to reach 24%, Garrett said.
Depending on your situation, pretax contributions could make sense if you’re expecting a much lower effective tax rate in retirement, he said.

Consider your lifetime tax bill

Advisors may have different opinions on traditional versus Roth contributions during your working years. But ultimately, you should weigh tax decisions from a multiyear perspective, experts say.
“Your goal is to pay tax when the rate is the lowest,” certified public accountant Jeff Levine previously told CNBC.
With no pretax savings, some retirees could miss future planning opportunities, such as Roth individual retirement account conversions during early retirement years. More

The New York Fed’s monthly Survey of Consumer Expectations found that fewer households expect to be better off a year from now.
As a wave of economic uncertainty takes hold, Americans are increasingly pessimistic about their financial future, other research also shows.

Americans are increasingly concerned about their financial situation amid expectations that inflation could pick up, according to a New York Federal Reserve survey released Tuesday.
The central bank’s monthly Survey of Consumer Expectations found that consumers expect inflation to be higher in the year ahead, and fewer expect their households’ financial situations to be better off a year from now.

Household spending growth expectations also declined, the New York Fed’s survey found.
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While many Americans have expressed worries about rising prices and the effect of President Donald Trump’s tariff policies, few have changed their spending habits yet. Up until now, experts say, that is what has helped the U.S. avoid a significant economic slowdown.
But Americans are having a harder time keeping up, other research shows. High food costs, in particular, make it more difficult to cover expenses in a typical month. Grocery prices rose by 2.7% in August from a year earlier, the fastest annual pace since August 2023, according to the latest consumer price index.
“Few things drive Americans’ perception of the economy more than grocery prices,” said Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst at LendingTree. “If people are convinced that those are just going to keep rising, it stands to reason that fewer people would think that their own household’s financial situation would be better off a year from now.”

‘A complex set of uncertainties’

Despite the cautious Fed outlook, a separate report by KPMG shows consumer spending is set to increase heading into the peak shopping season at the end of the year.
“The consumer is spending like a poker player with a small chip stack,” Duleep Rodrigo, KPMG’s U.S. consumer and retail leader, said in a statement.
“They know they can’t play every hand but are willing to go ‘all in’ on a promising hand with a high emotional payoff,” he said of projections that holiday spending will increase compared to last year.
“There’s also a psychological element where the consumer is managing a complex set of uncertainties,” Rodrigo said. More

ETF Strategist

ETF Street
ETF Strategist

The S&P 500 index has continued to hit fresh highs.
For investors who have exposure to that large-cap index, that has meant big gains.
Yet experts say it’s best to be diversified in case that momentum stops.

d3sign | Getty

The S&P 500 had a record close on Monday and continued to climb during Tuesday morning trading.
While headlines that the large-cap index has notched a new high have become the norm, some investors may wonder if a pullback is coming.

“The S&P 500 is broken,” said Michael DeMassa, who is a certified financial planner and chartered financial analyst, and the founder of Forza Wealth Management in Sarasota, Florida.
Many investors assume investing in the S&P 500 index — through ETF ticker symbols SPY, VOO or IVV — is synonymous with diversification, DeMassa said.

Yet that sense of safety is an illusion, he said, since the market capitalization-weighted index means companies with bigger allocations may drag down the fund if their performance suffers. Or the index’s heavy concentration in the technology sector may prompt volatility to ripple through the entire index, DeMassa said.
If you can invest in the S&P 500 index for a long time, you will probably do well, said Deva Panambur, a CFP and CFA, and founder of Sarsi LLC in West New York, New Jersey.
But occasionally the index suffers long periods of underperformance, he said. For example, between 2000 and 2008, the S&P 500 was down by more than 30%.

Wall Street forecasts generally see the index continuing to go up for the foreseeable future.
Still, experts say it’s best to choose a broader investment mix in case there is a pullback.

Other funds may offer broader exposure, experts say

For investors who are seeking a simple approach, it may make sense to opt for a total market index fund instead of an S&P 500 index fund, according to Brendan McCann, associate manager research analyst at Morningstar.
Unlike S&P 500 index funds, total market funds also provide exposure to small- and mid-cap stocks in addition to large-cap companies.
Alternatively, investors may opt to broaden the exposure an S&P 500 index fund already provides in their portfolio. One example may be a fund that tracks a total market index that excludes S&P 500 index stocks, or the Vanguard Extended Market ETF, according to McCann.
The trick with that strategy is to buy the funds in the right proportion, McCann said.

More from ETF Strategist:

Here’s a look at other stories offering insight on ETFs for investors.

For investors who don’t want to worry about changing their asset allocations over time, buying a total market index fund may be a better approach, according to McCann. Switching to a total market index fund strategy may be particularly attractive for investors who don’t have to worry about the tax implications of changing funds, such as 401(k) investors, he said.
Other experts have recommended opting for equal-weighted S&P 500 index funds, which hold an equal proportion of each stock. However, the downside with those strategies is that there may be more transaction costs when rebalancing, McCann said.

Watch for overlapping funds that can add risk

When the S&P 500’s returns were down between 2002 and 2009, areas like small cap, value, international and even bonds performed better than that index, Panambur said.
Today, the portfolios he creates for clients have allocations to those areas.
“When I look at the overall allocation, my goal is to make sure it’s more balanced than the S&P 500,” Panambur said.
The set-it-and-forget-it S&P 500 strategy was intended to provide broad market exposure. “That’s no longer the case,” DeMassa said.

As investors seek to diversify, it is important to pay attention to the holdings of each of the funds they own, he said.
If a portfolio has funds tracking both the S&P 500 and Vanguard Growth indexes, for example, the exposure to large-cap technology names will be increased rather than limited, he said. More

IRS leadership changes have sparked concerns among some policy experts and consumer advocates. 
Frank Bisignano, who currently serves as Commissioner of the Social Security Administration, has also been appointed to CEO of the IRS.
Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent will continue his role as acting IRS Commissioner.

A view of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) building in Washington, D.C., U.S., February 16, 2025. 
Annabelle Gordon | Reuters

‘Lack of stability’ amid major tax law changes

When asked on Tuesday about the agency’s leadership decision, former IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel told CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” “I think right now it’s crunch time at the IRS.”
Six individuals have served as IRS Commissioner or acting IRS Commissioner since inauguration day in January, among them President Donald Trump’s nominee Billy Long, who the Senate confirmed in June. Trump removed Long from the role in August and replaced him with Bessent.

There is currently no Deputy Commissioner managing day-to-day operations, said Werfel, who served under the Biden administration from 2023 to 2025. 
“That’s a lot of volatility at the top of a very complex process and organization. And so steps needed to be taken now” to make sure the agency is ready for the opening of tax season in January, Werfel said.
Still, Bessent and Bisignano need to be accessible to IRS staff for decisions as problems arise. Otherwise, “it’s the taxpayers waiting in line that will pay the price,” he said.

Meanwhile, the agency has been racing to implement tax law changes enacted via Trump’s “big beautiful bill,” including some provisions that apply to 2025, which will impact returns filed in 2026.
Recent IRS staffing cuts could harm taxpayer service, according to a September report from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. The agency has lost 17% to 19% of workers covering “key IRS functions” needed for the filing season, the report found.
“This arrangement doesn’t sound like stability at the IRS,” said Alex Muresianu, senior policy analyst at the Tax Foundation, a nonprofit tax policy think tank. “To me, this seems like yet another sort of odd, unusual interim arrangement.” 
“That lack of stability at the top is concerning at this time, as the IRS has to worry about the coming filing season and some major tax changes,” he said. 
The Treasury Department did not respond to CNBC’s request for comment.

An ‘unprecedented’ dual role

Frank Bisignano, President Donald Trump’s nominee to be commissioner of the Social Security Administration, appears at his Senate Finance Committee confirmation hearing in Washington, D.C., March 25, 2025.
Kevin Dietsch | Getty Images News | Getty Images

Bessent’s nomination of Bisignano to lead IRS’ day-to-day operations points to the “incredible” work that has been done under his leadership so far, including technology and process management updates, an SSA agency spokesperson said.
Bisignano, the former CEO of fintech and payments company Fiserv, will still lead SSA and will continue to rely on the strong executive leadership team he has built in the five months since his confirmation, the spokesperson said.
Yet Social Security advocates worry about what the unprecedented move to have one leader at both agencies may mean for the approximately 74 million individuals who rely on the SSA for Social Security or Supplemental Security Income benefits.
“The reason it’s never happened in the history of the country is because there are two separate positions for very good reasons,” said Nancy Altman, president of Social Security Works, an advocacy organization for expanding Social Security.

Both SSA and the IRS hold sensitive information that must be kept separate, she said. For example, SSA employees cannot see how their neighbors manage their taxes, and IRS workers cannot see someone’s medical records and whether they have a disability.
When merging leadership of the agencies, it will be crucial to make sure there is no commingling of that data, Altman said.
There is also the concern that one leader for both agencies may be spread thin, which could slow decision-making and hurt the quality of the agency’s services, Altman said.
The new CEO role at the IRS would not require the Senate to confirm Bisignano, she said.
A nomination has been submitted for Arjun Mody, a former Republican Congressional staffer, to serve as deputy commissioner of SSA. The Senate would have to confirm that nomination.

Another advocacy organization, the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, said the administration’s move to tap Bisignano to also lead the IRS is both “unprecedented” and “unwise.”
This year, SSA has already cut staff and implemented new rules, such as new restrictions around direct deposit changes, that affect access to benefits, Max Richtman, president and CEO of the National Committee said in a statement.
“This agency is too important to have a part-time leader,” Richtman said. “Seniors, people with disabilities, and their families deserve a full-time Social Security Commissioner.”
The White House did not respond to a request for comment by press time. More

Legendary investor Peter Lynch joined “The Compound and Friends” podcast to discuss artificial intelligence, his biggest investing lessons and the benefits of investing today.
Lynch averaged a 29.2% return in his 13 years managing the Magellan Fund at Fidelity from 1977 until 1990

Peter Lynch, Fidelity Funds Advisory Board Member.

Legendary investor Peter Lynch built a reputation for routinely beating the market while overseeing Fidelity Magellan Fund in the 1980s. Decades later, he has some advice for the next generation of investors.
The artificial intelligence boom has dominated the market for the past three years, but Lynch, who averaged a 29.2% annual return in his 13 years at the helm of Magellan until 1990, has been happy to watch from the sidelines.

“I have zero AI stocks,” Lynch said on “The Compound and Friends” podcast with investor Josh Brown . “I literally couldn’t pronounce Nvidia until about eight months ago.”
Lynch, who famously claimed that at one time 1 out of every 100 Americans had a stake in Fidelity Magellan, on the podcast addressed his career, the lessons he’s learned along the way and, yes, today’s craze for everything tied to artificial intelligence. Here are five of the biggest takeaways:
Sitting out AI
Megacap tech stocks have skyrocketed since the introduction of ChatGPT in late 2022, leading many on Wall Street to question if the AI trade is reminiscent of the dot-com bubble in the late 1990s. Asked if investors have chased the AI trade too far, Lynch said he had “no idea.”
Lynch said he doesn’t understand technology enough to have an informed opinion on the market’s optimism toward AI.
“I’m the lowest tech guy ever,” he said. “I can’t do anything with computers. I just have yellow pads.”

Lynch declined to discuss his current portfolio or the stocks he likes at the moment, citing rules from Fidelity.
Why you don’t ‘play the market’
Lynch has long advocated that investors have a deep understanding of the companies they invest in. It’s a core tenet of his book “One Up on Wall Street.”
“I have this expression: ‘Know what you own,”’ Lynch said. “If you don’t understand what you own, you’re toast.”
Lynch said people will spend hours researching flights to ensure they get the best price. But when it comes to investing, he said “they’ll put $10,000 in some crazy stock they heard on the bus.”
He described the phrase “play the market” as “awful” and “dangerous.” Instead, Lynch said people should buy good companies and have an awareness of what they do.
Lynch said that the average variation in a typical New York Stock Exchange security in any given year is 100%, so investors need to know what to do when big moves happen.
Entering after the first inning
While the conventional wisdom is to buy stocks before they take off, Lynch cautioned against scorning all investment ideas just because a security has already rallied.
“Sometimes, you don’t have to be in the first inning,” Lynch said.
As an example, Lynch pointed to McDonald’s, which he was told long ago had already seen rapid domestic growth. The hamburger chain went on to see strong growth when it expanded internationally.
“People said ‘McDonald’s is done,'” Lynch said. “They just simply didn’t think it through.”
Investment advantages today
Today’s investors have “cushions” that didn’t exist before the Great Depression and the New Deal, according to Lynch.
Lynch named unemployment insurance, Social Security benefits and the creation of the Securities and Exchange Commission helping everyday people over time. He also highlighted the active role of the Federal Reserve in recent decades.
Investors today benefit from “so many things that are better,” Lynch said, noting more market and economic “buffers” than existed in the past.
Lynch said investors have frequently braced for an economic collapse on the order of the 1930s. But none of the market tests since then, even the Global Financial Crisis in 2008-2009, have had the same downward intensity.
“We had many opportunities to have a ‘big one,'” Lynch said. “We’ve had some probably bad presidents, some bad congresses, we’ve had bad economists, and we’ve made it through.”
Future of work
Lynch reassured workers who wonder if they will lose their jobs to AI.
In the early 1980s,about one million people worked for AT&T alone at a time when the entire labor force stood at about 100 million. Even as the telecom sector has grown, Lynch said the leading companies today employ about 400,000 workers.
Today, the U.S. workforce itself has swelled past 160 million jobs. Americans can probably count on expansion in some sectors to help offset elimination tied to technological advances or automation in others.
Lynch’s comments come as executives at companies ranging from Walmart to Accenture have warned that artificial intelligence will drastically reshape their workforces.
“It’s a great country. We’re creative,” Lynch said. “America creates, China duplicates, and Europe legislates.”
(Follow Josh Brown’s take on the best stocks in the market right now, including his investment outlook and where he sees opportunities next.)
(Learn the best 2026 strategies from inside the NYSE with Josh Brown and others at CNBC PRO Live. Tickets and info here.) More

The Trump administration has restarted student loan forgiveness under a program that’s been partially paused since July.The U.S. Department of Education said this summer it was temporarily not cancelling the debt of student loan borrowers enrolled in the Income-Based Repayment plan while it responded to court orders.
Now IBR forgiveness has resumed, advocates and a trade group for the federal student loan servicers tell CNBC.

US President Donald Trump signs executive orders relating to higher education institutions, alongside US Secretary of Education Linda McMahon (R), in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on April 23, 2025.
Saul Loeb | Afp | Getty Images

The Trump administration has resumed forgiving student debt for some borrowers enrolled in a program that’s been partially paused since July.
Now, borrowers who’ve been in repayment for decades and are eligible for debt cancellation under the Income-Based Repayment plan, or IBR, are getting notices that they will soon receive the relief.

The U.S. Department of Education did not respond to a request for comment on the loan forgiveness actions. A CNBC reporter’s email to a spokesperson at the agency was met with an automated message, saying, “I will respond to emails once government functions resume.”
But Scott Buchanan, executive director of the Student Loan Servicing Alliance, a trade group for the federal student loan servicers, confirmed to CNBC that IBR discharges have resumed.
Consumer advocates also tell CNBC they have heard from borrowers on IBR who received notices of forgiveness. Persis Yu, deputy executive director and managing counsel at Protect Borrowers, and Betsy Mayotte, president of The Institute of Student Loan Advisors, both said they know of borrowers who’ve been approved for the relief.

Loan forgiveness paused since July

Over the summer, the U.S. Department of Education announced that it would temporarily stop forgiving the debt of borrowers enrolled in IBR. According to the plan’s terms, IBR concludes in debt erasure after 20 years or 25 years of payments, depending on the age of a borrower’s loans.
IBR will be one of only a few repayment options left to many federal student loan holders after recent court actions and the passage by Congress of President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill.” That legislation phases out several existing student loan repayment plans.

The pause put many student loan borrowers who’ve been in repayment for decades and were eligible for forgiveness in an especially frustrating bind, said higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz. That’s because IBR is the only income-driven repayment plan still available that leads to loan erasure, Kantrowitz said.
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The Education Department told CNBC in July that it had paused loan forgiveness under IBR while it responds to recent court actions involving the Biden administration-era SAVE, or Saving on a Valuable Education, plan.
The department said that the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision in February, which blocked the SAVE plan, had other impacts on student loan repayment. Under the rule involving SAVE, certain periods during which borrowers postponed their payments would count toward their forgiveness timeline. With SAVE blocked now, borrowers no longer get credit during those forbearances.
The department said it had paused the relief while it assessed the correct payment counts for borrowers, and that anyone who made payments after becoming eligible for forgiveness would get a refund when the discharges continued.

IBR relief central in recent lawsuit

The paused IBR loan forgiveness became a central issue in the American Federation of Teacher’s legal battle with the Education Department, Yu said. The teacher’s union, which represents some 2 million members, filed its lawsuit against the Trump administration in March, accusing it of depriving student loan borrowers of their rights. Protect Borrowers is serving as AFT’s legal counsel.

Still, the department’s recent actions do not resolve the AFT litigation, Yu said. She said many other borrowers are still waiting for debt cancellation, including tens of thousands of people who believe they’re eligible for Public Service Loan Forgiveness. PSLF offers debt cancellation to those who’ve spent a decade working for certain not-for-profits or the government.
As of Aug. 31, there’s a 74,510-person backlog of borrowers waiting for their PSLF determination. Some of the borrowers CNBC has spoken with had submitted their requests for loan forgiveness over half a year ago or more. More

In this photo illustration, the Brookfield Infrastructure Partners company logo is seen displayed on a smartphone screen.
Piotr Swat | Lightrocket | Getty Images

Fears about the impact of a government shutdown, a slowing labor market, and elevated stock valuations are weighing on investor sentiment. Given the ongoing uncertainty, investors looking for stable returns can consider adding dividend stocks to their portfolios.
Top Wall Street analysts’ recommendations can help investors pick stocks of dividend-paying companies that have strong fundamentals to support consistent dividend payments.  

Here are three dividend-paying stocks, highlighted by Wall Street’s top pros as tracked by TipRanks, a platform that ranks analysts based on their past performance.

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners

First on this week’s dividend list is Brookfield Infrastructure Partners (BIP), a global infrastructure company that owns and operates diversified, long-life assets in the utilities, transport, midstream, and data sectors. BIP paid a dividend of 43 cents per unit on Sept. 29, reflecting a 6% year-over-year increase. At an annualized dividend of $1.72 per unit, BIP stock offers a dividend yield of 5.2%.
Following the recently held Investor Day event, BMO Capital analyst Devin Dodge reiterated a buy rating on Brookfield Infrastructure stock with a price forecast of $42. The 5-star analyst stated that the presentations by management at the event reflected the robust underlying organic growth trends across BIP’s portfolio, which he expects to become more evident in the upcoming quarters.
Dodge highlighted that the number of high-growth platforms in BIP’s portfolio continues to increase, and there are significant investment opportunities across most of its sectors. In particular, he mentioned the robust digital infrastructure investment opportunity. With hyperscalers’ capital spending estimated to increase by 50% this year, there is a strong growth potential for BIP’s data center platforms over the intermediate term.
The analyst pointed out that BIP’s funds from operations per unit (FFO/unit) growth is nearing an inflection point. He noted that over the past five years, BIP’s FFO/unit has increased at a compound annual growth rate of about 10% despite foreign exchange headwinds and high interest rates. However, Dodge expects these challenges to ease in the near term, which could drive visible FFO growth.  

“As FFO/unit growth shifts higher, we believe there are positive implications for distribution growth and valuation,” said Dodge. Interestingly, TipRanks’ AI Analyst has a “neutral” rating on BIP stock with a price target of $33.
Dodge ranks No. 377 among more than 10,000 analysts tracked by TipRanks. His ratings have been successful 73% of the time, delivering an average return of 13.2%. See Brookfield Infrastructure Statistics on TipRanks.

Ares Capital

We move to Ares Capital (ARCC), a specialty finance company that provides direct loans and other investments to private middle-market companies. Ares pays a quarterly dividend of 48 cents per share. At an annualized dividend of $1.92 per share, ARCC stock offers a yield of 9.4%.
In an update on business development companies, RBC Capital analyst Kenneth Lee reiterated a buy rating on Ares Capital stock with a price target of $24. Interestingly, TipRanks’ AI Analyst has an “outperform” rating on ARCC stock with a price target of $25.
In the current scenario, Lee prefers ARCC, Blackstone Secured Lending Fund (BXSL), and Sixth Street Specialty Lending (TSLX) stocks. “ARCC has a long track record of successfully managing risks through cycles,” noted Lee.
The 5-star analyst specified that ARCC is a market-leading BDC with scale. He believes that the company’s access to the Ares global credit platform is one of its major competitive advantages. Lee is confident about Ares Capital’s potential to generate above peer-average return on equity.
Lee views Ares Capital’s experienced senior management team as one of its key strengths. He also pointed out that ARCC’s dividends are backed by the company’s core earnings per share generation and potential net realized gains.
Lee ranks No. 59 among more than 10,000 analysts tracked by TipRanks. His ratings have been profitable 72% of the time, delivering an average return of 16.7%. See Ares Capital Ownership Structure on TipRanks.

ONE Gas

Finally, let’s look at ONE Gas (OGS), a 100% regulated natural gas utility that provides affordable energy to over 2.3 million customers in Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. At a quarterly dividend of 67 cents per share (annualized dividend of $2.68 per share), OGS stock offers a dividend yield of 3.3%.
Recently, Mizuho analyst Gabe Moreen upgraded OGS stock to buy from hold and increased his price forecast to $86 from $77, citing several reasons, such as the benefits from the Texas HB 4384 legislation (enables recovery of certain costs associated with a gas utility’s plant, facilities, or equipment placed in service) and lower interest rates. Meanwhile, TipRanks’ AI Analyst has a “neutral” rating on OGS stock with a price target of $81.
Moreen sees the possibility of HB 4384 generating a full-year benefit of about 18 cents in incremental EPS in fiscal 2026. He added that this benefit is not one-time in nature, and will grow with ONE Gas’ yearly Texas capital spending. It is worth noting that Texas constitutes about 32% of OGS’ rate base. “We believe this will place a floor under OGS’ growth outlook at the higher-end of its 4-6%,” said Moreen.
The top-rated analyst noted that elevated short-term interest rates were one of the reasons that forced OGS to revise its guidance in 2023 and 2024. He expects the Federal Reserve’s interest rate cuts to benefit the company, as they will ease relative interest expense from prior periods.
Additionally, Moreen highlighted notable growth opportunities for OGS, thanks to the growing natural gas demand from data centers and advanced manufacturers. He believes that all these catalysts, along with a growing customer base and a solid balance sheet, make OGS stock an attractive pick at the current valuation. In fact, Moreen expects OGS to rebound to its historical premium valuation levels, at which the stock traded before the company restated its guidance in 2023 and 2024.
Moreen ranks No. 142 among more than 10,000 analysts tracked by TipRanks. His ratings have been successful 75% of the time, delivering an average return of 13.3%. See ONE Gas Technical Analysis on TipRanks. More

President Donald Trump’s “big beautiful bill” made tax changes that could impact your year-end charitable giving.
Starting in 2026, there’s a new charitable tax break for non-itemizers, worth up to $1,000 for single filers and $2,000 for married couples filing jointly.
The charitable deduction will also be reduced for some higher earners beginning in 2026.

New Year celebration concept. Front view. Close-up
Anna Efetova | Moment | Getty Images

President Donald Trump’s “big beautiful bill” added trillions of dollars of tax breaks, some of which could impact your deduction for charitable giving.
U.S. individual giving grew to $392.45 billion in 2024, up by about 5%, including inflation, from the previous year, according to Giving USA’s annual report released in June.

But as the calendar winds down, your 2025 year-end giving strategy could look different than that of previous years, financial experts say.
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When planning for charitable giving, investors should consider a “multi-year approach,” especially after the latest tax law changes, according to Dianne Mehany, who leads the private tax group of EY’s national tax department in Washington, D.C.
Here is a breakdown of some of the key changes — and how they could impact your year-end donations.

This is a ‘no-brainer’ for smaller gifts

When filing taxes, you claim the greater of your itemized tax breaks or the standard deduction. For 2025, the standard deduction is now $15,750 for single filers and $31,500 for married couples filing jointly.

But 90% of filers don’t itemize, according to the latest IRS data, which prevents most filers from claiming the charitable deduction.
This will soon change thanks to Trump’s legislation. Starting in 2026, there’s a new charitable tax break for non-itemizers, worth up to $1,000 for single filers and $2,000 for married couples filing jointly.

With the change happening in 2026, it could make sense to delay smaller, year-end gifts if you typically don’t itemize deductions, experts say.
“It seems like a no-brainer to just do it in January and capture a little benefit that you wouldn’t otherwise achieve,” certified financial planner Edward Jastrem, chief planning officer at Heritage Financial Services in Westwood, Massachusetts, previously told CNBC.

There’s a ‘double hit’ for top earners

Trump’s legislation could also shrink the charitable deduction for some higher earners in 2026, experts say.
Starting in 2026, there’s an itemized charitable deduction “floor,” which only permits the tax break once it exceeds 0.5% of your adjusted gross income. Plus, the new law caps the benefit for filers in the top 37% income tax bracket, also beginning in 2026.
“You’re essentially reducing your benefit to 35% instead of 37%,” which “feels like a double hit,” when combined with the 0.5% deduction floor, said Mehany from EY.

With the charitable deduction reductions for 2026, “there’s some benefit to accelerating [donations] this year,” said certified public accountant Sheneya Wilson, founder and CEO of Fola Financial in New York.
One option to frontload gifts in 2025 could be using a so-called donor-advised fund, which works like a charitable checkbook.
You receive an upfront charitable deduction on transferred assets by “bunching” multiple years of gifts into a single year. Then, you can invest and potentially grow the balance while choosing grants for public charities later. 
Sharon Epperson contributed to reporting for this story. More