Stocks Are Risky – This is Not the New Normal, It is The Normal The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) has dropped hundreds of points and has recently created alarming news headlines. This has not made any investor that I know feel good, but was this “The Normal?” Yes, this is a reference to “The … More The Normal
Recently, I noticed a Tweet from Josh Brown (like me, a Reformed Broker) and a follow-on note from Dan Egan, who I had the pleasure of working with in the past at a brokerage firm (maybe he should be called the Reformed Behaviorist). Both focused on how incentives and stimuli can influence investor behavior. It … More Pavlov’s Brokers
Are you ready for the big game? The poised Boston champion Pats vs. City of Brotherly Love, Rocky-like underdog Eagles. Beyond the entertainment of the Super Bowl, the NFL runs a business that generates exceptional returns. If marketing is your game, you could do a lot worse than to follow the lead of the NFL. … More Don’t Let Your Portfolio Get Sacked – Version LII
“Rogue Federal Agency” or “Watchdog Too Good At Its Job”? Above are two headlines from the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times that give two sides of a growing debate about the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (please see the links at the bottom of the this post and click through). Having spent most … More Strong Consumer Watchdog or Rogue Federal Agency?
Beware of Hedge Fund Holy Grail Quests and Their “Shadow” Costs A lot has been written about hedge fund fees and their relatively poor performance (click here for the latest from Warren Buffett), but not much has been written about other “shadow” costs of adding what are often pitched as holy grail like risk reducing … More Would Hedge Fund Investors Be Wise To Remember The Sage Wisdom of Monty Python?
Are Wall Street, and even Federal Reserve, forecasts often about as accurate as April Fool’s Day jokes? Unfortunately, yes, sometimes the might make you smile. This week I was fortunate enough to attend a private reception and then a lunch with Janet Yellen at the Economic Club of New York. The experience and debate of … More April Fool’s Day Forecasts?
When will investors learn? Complex investment bets often don’t end well. To highlight this point, a new study by the Pioneer Institute states that the Boston based MBTA transit system’s use of financial derivatives was “reckless.” Yes, a strong word, but unfortunately it might be well deserved. According to the report, “Despite warnings by the state auditor … More Boston’s MBTA Use of Wall Street Derivatives “Reckless”