Gurus’ ‘Sure Things’ For 2016
Every year, I like to keep track of the predictions that “gurus” and other market observers make for the upcoming year, specifically the ones that they say are “sure things.” It seems like no one in the financial media holds...
Keep Calm And Step Forward
A good friend, Sherman Doll, related the following story. Sherman has been a two-line sport kite flier for years. While not a pro, he has learned a few tricks from observing the flying behavior of these kites. He told me...
High Yield Rewards Underwhelming
Investors have now been faced with a long period of very low yields on high-quality bonds. As a result, and as a consequence of the Federal Reserve’s easy monetary policy, many investors have chosen to pursue higher yields by taking...
Avoid Investment Depression
As the holidays conclude and the calendar turns into a new year, depression can become an all-too-real possibility. After all, the daylight hours are shorter, and what seems like the longest and coldest (at least in some places) stretch of...
The Truth About Credit Premiums
Interest rates, which have sat at or near historical lows during the past seven years, have led many investors to seek additional yield in the form of credit risk. The recent trend, and its popularity, gives us an opportunity to...
A Perfect Storm For Low Returns
Today’s investors may have drawn the proverbial “short straw.” From an investment perspective, they are confronting what might be considered a “perfect storm” creating strong head winds against higher expected returns. We’ll begin by discussing the three main factors conspiring...
Look Abroad For Higher Returns
Previously, we examined three main factors conspiring against investors seeking higher expected returns. These factors can combine to generate a “perfect storm,” at least from an investment perspective, facing today’s investors. We then turned to the four most effective ways...
Why Index Investing Wins
J.B. Heaton, Nick Polson and J.H. Witte recently authored a nice short paper—it’s all of four pages—entitled “Why Indexing Works.” In it, the authors developed a simple stock selection model to explain why active equity fund managers tend to underperform...
Using Factors To Lower Risk
Many investors today are confronting what could be considered a “perfect storm” that is creating strong head winds against the pursuit of higher expected returns. So far, we have discussed the main factors currently working against investors, as well as...
Avoid ‘Bad & Ugly’ Strategies
Over the past week, we’ve taken an in-depth look at why today’s investors are facing a “perfect storm” of factors that, when combined, can significantly hinder the pursuit of higher expected returns. In taking on this problem, we have so...
