‘Sure Things’ That Didn’t Pan Out
Each January, I put together a list of predictions that financial “gurus” have made for the upcoming year—sort of a consensus of “sure things.” I then keep track of whether or not these “sure thing” predictions have actually come to...
As Bad A Strategy I Can Think Of
One of my favorite films is “Moonstruck.” It contains a great scene—one I often use when discussing investment strategies I’m asked to review in my role as the director of research for The BAM ALLIANCE, because it makes an excellent...
Don’t Play The Loser’s Game
Recently, a blog post by Chris Marx, a senior portfolio manager for equities at New York-based AllianceBernstein (AB), came to my attention. In it, Marx commented on a March 9, 2015 article in The Wall Street Journal that highlighted the...
UK Exceeds US In Common Sense
Recent events have led me to conclude that, at least in some ways, the U.K. is ahead of the United States when it comes to investing. The first—and by far the most important—reason I have for drawing such a conclusion...
The One-Page Financial Plan
If you’re like most Americans, you may be confused, or even paralyzed, when it comes to developing a financial plan. In fact, most investors I’ve met—including many of those who have a relationship with a stockbroker—don’t have a written investment...
Excuses For Active Managers
As sure as the sun rises in the east, the start of each year brings with it a fresh wave of assurances from the “gurus” who appear in the financial media that this year will be a stock picker’s year....
A Tipping Point For Hedge Funds
In 2014, the HFRX Global Hedge Fund Index lost 0.6 percent, underperforming the S&P 500 Index by 14.3 percentage points. And while the index outperformed foreign equities, which generally lost between about 2 and 5 percent, it underperformed virtually riskless...
Take A Quiz On Who Said What
An overwhelming amount of evidence exists to clearly demonstrate that, in aggregate, active management is a loser’s game. And this is true regardless of whether markets are efficient or inefficient, or whether they are in a bull or bear phase....
Be Leery Of Hedge Funds
The investment successes of the Yale Endowment led many other endowments, foundations and even high-net-worth individuals to consider adopting the so-called “Yale Model.” The model included a focus on alternative investments and attempts to capture the liquidity premium available in...
A Factor Focused Book To Read
Although not for novice investors, Andrew Ang’s new book, “Asset Management: A Systematic Approach to Factor Investing,” represents a comprehensive, clearly written and accessible review of the latest thinking in modern financial theory. It provides some important lessons that investors...
