Learning Center

Market forecasters capitalize on our desire to know the unknowable. Tim Maurer, Director of Personal Finance, The BAM Alliance Just for fun, Google the words “market pullback.” There are over 2.2 million results–most of them market predictions–and the first page of results is dominated by calls for an imminent market reversal that the simple desk...

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New research shows that “portfolio pumping” still occurs at mutual fund families. Larry Swedroe, Director of Research, The BAM Alliance Portfolio pumping—also known as “painting the tape” or “leaning for the tape”—is a market-manipulative strategy that mutual fund and hedge fund managers use to mark up their holdings at the end of the quarter by...

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Manisha Thakor hosts Catherine Collinson of TCR Studies on the MoneyZen podcast. Manisha Thakor, Director of Wealth Strategies for Women, The BAM Alliance Manisha Thakor and Catherine Collinson of the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies examine the state of Americans’ retirement preparedness, as well as data on risks and trends facing workers, in this MoneyZen...

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Investment factors are shrinking alpha, but that’s actually great news for investors. Larry Swedroe, Director of Research, The BAM Alliance Alpha historically has been thought of as the return from active management (that is, from stock picking and market timing). However, it’s also possible alpha can come from a source (common characteristic) that isn’t associated...

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Tim Maurer on five reasons why a non-digital time management system could be more productive. Tim Maurer, Director of Personal Finance, The BAM Alliance As technological innovation marches forward in so many aspects of life, there is a movement gaining momentum to return to the past in search of something important that progress may have...

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Larry Swedroe puts the current CAPE 10 ratio in context, and explains why higher stock market valuations don’t necessarily signal overvaluation. Larry Swedroe, Director of Research, The BAM Alliance With the Shiller CAPE 10 near 30 (29.7 as I write this), it’s likely you have been reading articles that quote gurus who claim the market is on...

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Larry Swedroe tallies mid-year hits and misses for 2017’s “sure thing” predictions. Larry Swedroe, Director of Research, The BAM Alliance At the start of each year, I compile a list of predictions that gurus have made for the upcoming year, along with some items I frequently hear from investors—sort of a consensus of “sure things.”...

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Fewer stocks today may mean stock picking is dying, but will it doom factor premiums as well. Larry Swedroe, Director of Research, The BAM Alliance Jason Zweig, financial columnist for The Wall Street Journal, is one of the truly “good guys” in the world of financial media (by which I mean that he looks out...

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