The best time to invest is when others won’t. Now appears to be one of those times. Stocks, by at least one historical yardstick, appear cheap. Specifically, the stocks that comprise the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index are trading at 13.7 times profits; that is a terrific number when compared to the historical average of [...]
I thought I couldn’t be shocked anymore with stories about mis-deeds in the financial world. But this article really set me back on my heels. Matthew Hutcheson is, or perhaps I should say – was – a man I respected greatly. He has been a highly visible leader in the fight to protect employees from [...]
A type of investment known as stable-value funds are available only in tax-deferred plans. As implied by the name, these funds are meant for conservative investors. They can often be a good choice, and many 401(k) plans have them on the menu. While money market funds are currently offering almost nothing in terms of interest [...]
Do you know the names Bruce Berkowitz, Kenneth Heebner or Bill Miller? Unless you’re a mutual fund geek, you don’t. But to people like me who live in that world, those gentlemen are stars in the fund manager universe. Each has been singled out, over the years, for posting some pretty spectacular performance numbers. Which [...]
In general, financial journalists at the major newspapers do a decent job. In general. But every once in a while they come to a misguided conclusion. Ron Lieber, in his New York Times column of 5/13/11, made a case that index funds should be on the menu of all 401(k) plans. Most plans do not [...]
Most people, if they see a problem with the media, frame it in terms of perceived bias to the left or right. To me, it’s more a matter of smart vs. dumb. In our narrow world of investments, there are a few good financial reporters out there, and then there are the rest of them. [...]
Maybe not. Jason Zweig’s column in the October 31, 2010 edition of The Wall Street Journal contained some sobering news about my colleagues in the money management business. It appears that the professionals, who get paid in part for giving objective advice, seem to fall prey to the same herd mentality as regular folks. Advisors [...]
Every poll I see that takes the pulse of investor sentiment says that the average investor is still shell-shocked by the all-too-recent Great Recession. “Cash is king” has become the mantra of too many former stock market investors. And if not cash (meaning, money market mutual funds) then bonds or bond mutual funds are seen [...]
Specialists are better than generalists. Almost always. Whether for home repair, medical needs or legal advice, the person or firm that specializes is more likely to give satisfaction than the jack-of-all trades. It’s the same in my profession. Here’s an on-line ad I came across. I’ve seen similar ads many times, in many places, and [...]
