You could almost see the trouble coming at Double Line Capital’s largest bond fund Total Return. Actually I did as I wrote to you back in 2014. Turns out chasing performance has a shelf life. Investors are taking on more risk—and are doing it in a major way. Bond funds, which should be your anchor-to-windward money, are loading up on junk. The below investment grade waste piling up in the 10 largest bonds funds is shocking. We’re not talking small potatoes here. These are the big dogs. “Who wants an index fund that yields 2%?” said Jeffrey Gundlach, manager of the Total Return … [Read more...]
How an Introvert and DARPA Revolutionized Autonomous Vehicles
David Hall, CEO of Velodyne, created what is probably the most important piece of technology in the self-driving vehicle business, LiDAR. Short for "light distance and ranging," LiDAR is found on all the automated vehicles you have seen. The sensor tells the vehicles' brains about their surroundings, giving them the data they need to react. In a Forbes profile, written by Alan Ohnsman, the story of how a DARPA contest drove Hall to build LiDAR is explained. At one end there's a barn-size industrial shed where Hall and a team of engineers are perfecting one of his latest obsessions: a … [Read more...]
Are State-Run Savings Plans a Good Idea?
Of course this sounds like a great idea, because saving early and often is the best way to secure a comfortable retirement. However, there are some drawbacks to a savings system with the government so closely involved. Anne Tergesen writes at The Wall Street Journal: Opponents—including some company owners, a trade group for small businesses and the main mutual-fund trade association—have lined up against the state initiatives. They argue that state-run programs may encourage companies to scrap 401(k) plans. They also say that lower-income workers who participate may wind up in worse … [Read more...]
iHollywood: Are You Ready for Apple Shows?
Apple is gearing up to produce or acquire its own video content. The company is looking for around ten TV shows to finance. The $1 billion effort might seem small compared to the scale of Apple's market cap of over $830 billion, but the effort could have a big effect on competitors like Netflix, Amazon and HBO. The market for internet delivered original video content is still young, and a big new entrant like Apple could upend its balance. Tripp Mickle explains the effort by Apple, writing: The budget will be in the hands of Hollywood veterans Jamie Erlicht and Zack Van Amburg,poached … [Read more...]
Are Apple and Facebook Stock Finally Losing Their Luster?
For years now hedge funds, institutions, and retail investors have been loading up the shares of a very small sliver of the stock market. The shares I'm referring to are the so-called FAANG stocks, and others like them. FAANG stands for Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix and Google (now known as Alphabet). As the valuations of these stocks have pushed their company market shares ever higher, they have become a disproportionately large slice of the various indices they are included in. (Read more here and here). But now it appears that some hedge funds have tired of buying the FAANGs and … [Read more...]
Amazon is Killing Malls, Here’s How They’re Fighting Back
America's malls are dying. Malls built around antiquated big box retailers are fighting for their lives. The big retail stores are having their lunch eaten by Amazon.com. For malls looking to reinvent themselves, experiences matter. Malls offering movie theaters, gyms, arcades, and better dining options are finding more success. AFP reports: Yet mall developers dismiss talk of their demise despite today's retail industry travails. "I will tell you, it's not a very fun environment," David Simon, chief executive of the real estate investment trust Simon Property Group, said recently … [Read more...]
My Concerns with the Vanguard Effect on Your Family’s Survival
You gotta love low prices. Look at what Amazon has done to retail with my Bezos Law. Look at what Vanguard has done to lower investment fees, a revolution known as the “Vanguard effect.” The Vanguard Effect drove down prices on index funds, making them much more affordable than actively managed funds. With interest rates set by the Federal Reserve so low, and stock prices climbing with seemingly no end, index funds have been racing higher in price. The high valuations on index funds could leave investors and their families in trouble after a bear market correction. Low fee … [Read more...]
Thinking of Moving for Retirement? Check This Out
Guess who needs the most of your dollars to survive? You guessed it, Washington D.C. If you're a retiree who has been living and working in Washington D.C. for your entire career, you would without a doubt stretch your dollars further if you moved to a less expensive locale. Washington D.C. is the most expensive place to live in the continental United States. As the Tax Foundation map below makes clear, for $100 of spending in Washington D.C., a consumer only receives about $85.47 worth of goods when compared to the national average. How does a 15% haircut on all your purchases sound … [Read more...]
What Investors Tell Me in 17 Seconds Without Saying a Word
You may be surprised by this, but one of the most common things I hear from prospective clients of Richard C. Young’s investment firm is this: “I’ve been reading him for years and I have no debt.” I have no debt. And with that I know I’ve found someone I can work with. Over the past 19 years of talking with thousands of prospective clients, it often takes me about 17 seconds to know if we’re going to have a happy relationship. It’s simply something I’ve figured out over the years. It’s not scientific. It’s not an algorithm. It’s more a feeling. I guess it’s more about one’s … [Read more...]
RAGE Gauge: Is This the Calm Before the Storm?
Is this the calm before the storm? Why bother getting into the prediction business when you can safely navigate these waters with a well crafted plan? It begins with you. Are you protecting your money as well as you can? Now is the time to look out into the ocean and think long and hard about what you're doing. Remember, when the storm warnings come you need to have the discipline and conviction to ride it out. Having spent many an hour sailing the local sea of Newport, Buzzards Bay, and Vineyard Sound, storms turn seconds into minutes and minutes into hours. You hope it will end … [Read more...]
- 1
- 2
- 3
- …
- 82
- Next Page »