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Peter Babilla brings 40 years of experience in investment management and fiduciary* financial consulting to Vertex Planning Partners, LLC.
Pete graduated from Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana with a Bachelor’s of Science in Finance.
He began his career in 1983 with a focus on institutional fixed-income portfolio management, primarily working with community banks. After a decade serving institutional clients, Pete shifted his focus to working with individuals, families and business owners, providing guidance and education in all areas of Wealth Management. Among his areas of focus are accumulation and retirement planning, investment management, risk management, and estate and wealth transfer.
Pete’s planning philosophy allows him to create a personalized program for clients, based on their own unique goals and circumstances. The extensive investment and planning platform offered by Vertex enables him to create a highly customized program, tailored to each individual client.
Pete and his wife Suzanne have two children, and have resided in Wheaton, Illinois for the past 30 years. He enjoys golf, reading, and traveling with his family. Pete gives back as a past Board Member of the Epilepsy Foundation of Greater Chicago, where his focus is on improving the lives of those living with epilepsy.
Pete works as fiduciary for his clients and holds the CERTIFIED FIANANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP®) designation and the Chartered Retirement Plan Specialist (CRPS®) designation.
Justin D’Agostino joined Vertex Partners in 2019 and serves a select group of business owners and affluent families. He specializes in investments, financial planning, and succession planning. His interest and knowledge in providing comprehensive financial planning and wealth management services to clients was sparked when he worked at a boutique tax and wealth management firm in Michigan. He has nine years of experience in the financial services industry, and his mission is to provide every client with targeted, comprehensive financial advice and to help them implement customized strategies designed to move them closer to accomplishing their unique goals.
Justin attended Hillsdale College where he earned his BA in Accounting and Financial Management and was a member and captain of the football team. Justin is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Professional, and holds the Tax Planning Certified Professional®, Chartered Financial Consultant® and Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor™ designations.
Justin and his wife, Alexandra, reside in Chicago, Illinois. He is an avid sports fan and enjoys golfing, playing soccer and spending summer weekends with his family.
Scott Sandee brings over 20 years of experience to his role as Managing Partner of Vertex Planning Partners, leading the firm’s efforts to assist middle-market business owners and eight and nine-figure families in comprehensive planning. We enable clients to achieve their financial goals by tailoring solutions to their unique aspirations and situations. Leveraging his experience in sophisticated investment techniques and financial strategies with privately held family businesses, supported by extensive post-graduate education focused on exit planning, wealth management, estate planning, investment analysis, insurance planning, risk management, and tax optimization, he:
Scott guides successful entrepreneurs and wealthy families through the transfer of ownership of their privately held companies.
Designations: Certified Financial Planner® Certified Private Wealth Advisor® Certified Investment Management Analyst® Certified Exit Planning Advisor Certified Merger & Acquisition Advisor
Julie Hupp, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional, has worked in the accounting and corporate finance field since 1987. She began her career as a CPA with Deloitte & Touche, specializing in the financial needs of small businesses. Then spent the next 13 years in corporate financial planning and business development at Baxter and TAP Pharmaceuticals. Recognizing her passion for personal financial planning, Julie started her business in 2006 where she focuses on comprehensive financial planning strategies and implementation.
Julie graduated from University of Illinois with a BS in Accountancy. She received her Master’s in Management with a concentration in Finance from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management in 1994.
Outside the office, Julie is the co-founder of the 12 Oaks Foundation, which has merged with Cal’s Angels, and is a former Board member. Julie enjoys cooking, reading, running, triathlons and doing almost anything outdoors. A great weekend is spending time with her husband and two adult kids boating at their lake house in Wisconsin.
Steven P. Franzen, CPA, PFS, CGMA is a public accountant and consultant with more than 23 years of experience helping individuals and businesses reduce their tax liability. He began his career under the guidance of Patrick M. De Sio, CPA, CGMA and in 1996 became Mr. De Sio’s partner in De Sio, Franzen & Associates, Ltd. Steve’s expertise include entity design, complex tax strategies and multigenerational wealth transfer. As Managing Partner, Steve conducts his practice under the philosophy that the client’s investment in their CPA should yield a return on that investment – most of the time that return is realized when working with clients on planning for their future. In an effort to increase the planning capabilities of the firm, Steve formed Vertex Accounting Partners, LLC to ensure their guiding philosophy will continue well into the future.
Steve is a certified public accountant and has earned the professional designations of Personal Financial Specialist and Chartered Global Management Accountant. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Illinois CPA Society. Steve earned a B.S. degree in accounting from Millikin University. He and his wife Kristie live in Sugar Grove, IL with their three children.
Greg Benner advises high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth business owners, individuals and families on advanced tax, risk management, retirement, estate planning, and wealth strategies.
As a co-founder of Vertex Planning Partners, he works closely with clients, families, and their professional advisors—CPAs, attorneys, and business stakeholders—to implement thoughtful, durable planning strategies. His approach prioritizes clarity, coordination, and disciplined execution.
For twenty-four years, Greg’s work has focused on designing and coordinating multi-factor, integrated plans involving:
Drawing from his own experience as a founder, business and real estate investor, and multi-generational family business member, he understands some of the challenges that can arise for business owners as they consider an exit. Multi-disciplinary, intentional planning with stakeholder communication creates structure, mitigates risk, addresses tax implications, and preempts issues that can arise.
Greg holds a Master of Science in Taxation, a graduate program that deepened his technical training in federal income taxation, partnership and corporate taxation, estate and gift tax, and tax procedure. This academic work enhances his ability to help families and business owners navigate complex tax environments and align their financial and estate-planning objectives across generations.
Designations:
Licenses:
Greg is deeply committed to lifelong learning and continuous professional development in the areas of tax, estate planning, and private-wealth strategy.
Michael D. Bellis, CFP®, CLU® began his career as a financial planning professional in 1994. His practice is centered on holistic financial planning, astute risk management strategies and empirical, research-driven portfolio construction. He began his career in partnership with his father under the name Bellis & Associates. Together, their practice and reputation for excellence dates back more than 40 years and includes multiple generations of the same families. After his father’s retirement several years ago, Mike continued to build a client-centric, consultative practice before forming Vertex.
Mike holds the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ certification and is also a Chartered Life Underwriter. He has been an active member of both the Society of Financial Services Professionals and the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors. He earned a B.S. in Business & Marketing from Illinois State University. Mike is a lifelong resident of Naperville, Illinois. He and his wife Tanja have three children.
Portfolio Perspectives: Tech Stocks, IPOs, and Higher Interest Rates
The S&P 500 recently surpassed 7,500 for the first time, marking another milestone in a year that has seen many new all-time highs. This is positive for investors, especially because several sectors have contributed to this rally. These trends have also fueled enthusiasm for IPOs, particularly ones related to artificial intelligence, after years of relatively few companies going public.
This is occurring despite ongoing concerns over inflation, high oil prices, and hopes for a peace deal in Iran that has not yet materialized. In contrast to the stock market, these challenges have weighed on the bond market, pushing long-term interest rates higher. The 30-year U.S. Treasury yield, for instance, briefly reached a nearly 20-year high before settling back toward 5%. Since headlines like these can create uncertainty for markets, maintaining perspective and balance are more important than ever.
Technology stocks continue to support market performance
What has supported the market rally is not just positive sentiment, but also strong fundamentals. S&P 500 earnings growth has been running well above its historical average, and many of these large companies have continued to deliver positive earnings surprises. Current consensus earnings estimates suggest that the Information Technology and Communication Services sectors could grow earnings by 35.8% and 17.3%, respectively, over the next year.1 Other sectors, including Materials and Energy, are expected to experience above-average growth as well.
That said, valuations have also climbed alongside prices. The S&P 500 forward price-to-earnings ratio currently sits near 21x, above the historical average of 16x. Technology stocks specifically trade at a forward P/E around 24x.2 While elevated valuations do not predict short-term market moves, they are an important consideration for long-term investors thinking about asset allocation. Maintaining balance across sectors, sizes, and styles can help manage risk while also benefiting from market trends.
IPO activity is returning to public markets
This is one reason why the opportunity set available to investors today looks different than it did even a decade ago. For example, while the FT Wilshire 5000 was originally designed to include roughly 5,000 publicly traded U.S. companies, today it contains only about 3,400 components.3 This reflects a long-term trend of companies staying private for longer.
Recently, headlines have focused on a number of high-profile companies that are reportedly considering public offerings, including SpaceX, Anthropic, OpenAI, and others.4 Many of these are large businesses that have grown primarily through venture capital and private investment rather than public markets. From that perspective, these potential IPOs are positive because they make shares of these companies available to a broader set of investors. Stock market indices automatically incorporate new public companies as they grow, meaning that long-term investors gain exposure to successful IPOs over time without needing to invest in them directly at the time of offering.
Of course, what captures the attention of many investors are the headlines and excitement surrounding IPOs. For some, it is natural to wonder whether participating in an IPO is an opportunity for early gains. However, this is not always the case. For instance, it’s often the institutional investors and company insiders that truly participate in the IPO itself, and many have often been invested for years before the public offering. Additionally, these company insiders are often subject to lock-up periods, commonly 180 days, during which they cannot sell their shares. When these periods expire, additional selling pressure can weigh on the stock price, sometimes catching investors by surprise.
IPO activity tends to come in waves, often occurring during strong economic periods when investment capital is plentiful and market enthusiasm is high. The dot-com boom of the late 1990s is perhaps the most famous example, but there are many other periods as well. For example, the post-pandemic market recovery experienced a jump in Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) activity, which is one way some companies can go public. This wave was relatively short-lived, demonstrating the importance of maintaining a longer-term perspective.
Long-term interest rates have remained elevated
Beyond the technology sector, higher interest rates have implications across the economy and markets. Mortgage rates have moved up, with the 30-year fixed rate now around 6.5%, above the long-term average of 6.02% since 1990. This affects housing affordability and broader real estate activity. Higher rates also influence the cost of capital for businesses and the discount rate applied to future earnings, which can affect stock valuations, particularly for growth-oriented companies whose value depends heavily on future cash flows.
At the same time, higher interest rates mean that bonds are now offering more meaningful income than they have in many years. Investment grade corporate bonds yield 5.3%, compared to a long-term average of 3.8%. Treasurys yield 4.4%, well above their historical average of 2.2%.5 For investors, this creates more attractive opportunities in fixed income, which can play a more meaningful role in diversified portfolios going forward.
The bottom line?
While the stock market has reached new milestones this year, rising interest rates serve as a reminder that the broader economic environment may present future challenges. For long-term investors, the best approach is to maintain a balanced portfolio that can benefit from market growth as well as higher interest rates.
References
Content in this material is for general information only and not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual. All performance referenced is historical and is no guarantee of future results. All indices are unmanaged and may not be invested in directly.
All investing involves risk, including loss of principal. No strategy assures success or protects against loss. The economic forecasts set forth in this material may not develop as predicted, and there can be no guarantee that strategies promoted will be successful.
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