Who’s Custodian for Your Money?
You can see the hubris. As the bankruptcy of MF Global unfolds, customers are still looking for their money. That money should have been segregated and not part of the bets the firm was making with its own money. So far, $1.2 billion in client funds is missing. Where did it go? From Vanity Fair’s... Read the full story
Don’t Let This Mutual Fund Mistake Cost You Thousands
What mutual fund mistake am I talking about? This mistake is so common, chances are you have committed it yourself—before you became a savvy, successful investor, of course. If you have ever purchased a mutual fund solely on the basis of past performance, you have made this mistake. Buying yesterday’s... Read the full story
Netflix: The Risk of High Expectations
Most of you are no doubt familiar with Netflix—the leading DVD and video-streaming rental business in America. Up until recently, Netflix was a high flyer—a momentum stock. From year-end 2009 to June 2011, the shares rose over 375%—the highest return in the S&P 500. During the company’s 18-month... Read the full story
3 Reasons Dividends Trump Buybacks
In September, Warren Buffett announced that the Berkshire Hathaway board authorized a multibillion-dollar share-buyback program. Berkshire shares soared as much as 12% on the news. The market’s reaction to the buyback announcement is common. When companies announce buyback plans, their stocks often... Read the full story
Coping with Manic Markets
The S&P 500 leapt higher by 3.4% today on yet another plan-to-make-a-plan out of Europe and on news that the Chinese government will boost its stake in the nation’s largest banks. The benchmark index closed above its 50-day moving average for the first time since July. In the span of only five... Read the full story
Goldman Calls it Quits
Goldman Sachs is closing up shop at its flagship Global Alpha hedge fund. Global Alpha is one of the best-known quantitative hedge funds in the world. In its heyday the fund managed $12 billion. But after a series of bad bets, assets tumbled over 90% to $1 billion. The fund’s downfall started in 2007... Read the full story
Is Your Money Fund Safe?
You really have to be careful what you read these days. There is loads of misguided advice pumped out of the financial press. I recently came across an article in one of the leading personal finance magazines that offered especially appalling advice. The article was about money funds and whether or not... Read the full story
A $65-Billion Bet
I was listening to Bloomberg radio the other day and Carly Fiorina was on as a guest. Carly is the former CEO of Hewlett Packard. She led a controversial acquisition of Compaq that turned HP into the world’s largest PC maker. Carly was on to talk about Hewlett Packard’s recently announced decision... Read the full story
Your Worst Payday
Should you have more invested in the stock market? The Dow has almost doubled from its March 2009 low. And over the last ten months, the index has gained 26%. Oil prices have started to pull back, the euro-area debt crisis is being addressed (at least temporarily) and some U.S. economic data has come... Read the full story
Investing in Your Food Supply
You may want to start thinking and investing like a farmer. As a group, farmers’ average age continues to rise. And as their numbers decline in the coming years, the quality of our food is likely to follow suit, given the notion that more processing will pick up the slack. That’s why it’s so important... Read the full story
