Chicken Fried and Cold Beer on a Friday Night

Can Investors Learn A Few Things From A Country Song? Those of you who know me well know that I am from Alabama and that I still have some Southern boy in me. Those of you who know a little country music may also recognize that the title of this post is based on a … More Chicken Fried and Cold Beer on a Friday Night

Disconnected or Connected?

If you look up the definition of “disconnected,” you will find the word “incoherent” among its synonyms. Being “disconnected” sounds negative and, in fact, people are often ridiculed for not being “connected.” In keeping with the title of my website blog, I’m posting this provoking question. Are we more coherent when we are disconnected? I … More Disconnected or Connected?

Stop It

The title of this piece comes from a recent Josh Brown article titled, Delusions and Entitlement (he deserves full credit for this quip). In his post, Josh said the following: “There’s this idea floating around out in the ether that, for some reason, public equity markets are expensive but private market valuations will serve as an … More Stop It

The Good Story

“Honey, I need to go.” When I woke up my wife to tell her this, it was still dark outside early in the morning on Sunday, September 14, 2008. I had finally gotten at least a little sleep, after many calls and emails on Saturday had given me at least a little hope that my … More The Good Story

Fake News?

Are some investors placing votes in favor of private equity based on returns that might be considered fake news? According to a recent McKinsey & Company Global Private Equity Review, in 2017 private investment managers raised a record sum of nearly $750 billion globally. A few factors are driving this, but one is the strong … More Fake News?

The Economy Has Improved but Many Have Been Left Behind

We all hear stories about growing economic inequality, but pictures do indeed speak a thousand words. Light colors represent counties in the U.S. that are growing. Darker colors illustrate those falling behind. Red highlights parts of the country that new research says are economically “distressed.” The chart above was published today at Axios and comes … More The Economy Has Improved but Many Have Been Left Behind

Fiduciary Commitment and Why It Matters

Strong Fiduciary Commitment – Why It Matters to Both Investment Firms and Investors In a sad follow-up to a previous post, it seems like the somewhat two-faced arguments of the investment industry have for now, won the regulatory day. With the death of Department of Labor Fiduciary Rules, my sad bet is that confusion is … More Fiduciary Commitment and Why It Matters

Are We Spending Too Much Time Selling Alpha?

An article in the NY Times titled “The Oracle of Omaha, Lately Looking a Bit Ordinary”, got me thinking. Are the words in the image above what really adds value to relationships? The NY Times story, by Jeff Sommer, highlights research by Salil Mehta, on his blog Statistical Ideas, about the virtues of index investing. … More Are We Spending Too Much Time Selling Alpha?