Did you know there are over 3,000 companies in the Nasdaq Composite, and that the index is market weighted—i.e. the biggest companies have the most impact? Apple, Facebook, Amazon.com, Microsoft, and Google comprise 40% of the index’s gains this year according to Birinyi Associates. And they combine to represent 29% of the index's market capitalization. That’s a lot of money in a handful of stocks. Owning an index of 3,000 stocks doesn’t always mean diversification. … [Read more...]
Investors Evacuating Big Hedge Funds in a Panic
This isn’t going to end well. The big money of pension investing that is. Imagine all of the money leaving hedge funds, and for indexing? It’s like everyone deciding to run from starboard to port aboard the same ship. Geoffrey Rogow details the hedge fund massacre taking place. Investors pulled nearly $7 billion from the largest publicly traded hedge-fund firm in the U.S. in the first four months of 2017, the latest sign of investor disillusionment with Wall Street’s most prominent money managers. Och-Ziff Capital Management GroupOZM -2.90% LLC said Tuesday that it received net redemptions … [Read more...]
“Great Song, Thanks Alexa”
I highly recommend the Amazon Echo Dot for your family. The sound quality is surprisingly good for something that basically has the look and size of a hockey puck. We have one hooked into the stereo system in our kitchen. Around dinnertime on Saturday night I pulled out the large wild caught shrimp we were having for dinner and said “Alexa, play Jimmy Buffett radio.” As I was in the middle of cleaning the shrimp a song came on that I hadn’t heard in forever. My hands were wet so instead of picking up my phone to Shazam the song, I simply asked "Alexa what song is this?" "Right Down the … [Read more...]
J’aime Paris, Crème Glacee, and Buy Gold
Who doesn’t like ice cream? On a recent trip to Paris we spent the early part of an afternoon on the Left Bank, walking along the eclectic Rue de Seine. If you want to get a feel for how Paris used to be, then Rue de Seine is for you. Standing at the corner where Rue de Buci meets Rue de Seine, outside Bar du Marche, a nice looking gentleman asked in a very friendly tone if he could help me find something (was it that obvious?). In response I asked if he could recommend an ice cream shop and he pointed us to Grom, a perfect place to get a crème glacee between lunch and a late … [Read more...]
Sell in May and Go Away? Not Vanguard GNMA
Work hard and play hard. My dad used to tell me that a lot. He still does. One year he and I drove down south to look at colleges and we stopped in Myrtle Beach to play golf. As we were eating breakfast I noticed his hair looked a little too shiny. One of the shampoo bottles in his travel kit had the sunscreen. Work and play in investing terms is called counterbalancing. Looking at the average annual return for the last ten-years it’s easy to overlook the years that can decimate a portfolio. Vanguard GNMA was up 4.36% and the S&P 500 was up 7.51% per year. But, did you know … [Read more...]
How to Buy Vanguard GNMA
Yesterday I wrote “Why Vanguard Works for You in 2017” and a reader asked: "E.J. I’m thinking about consolidating at Fidelity. Can I buy Vanguard GNMA?" Yes. You can buy any Vanguard fund at Fidelity. Your access to funds today at Fidelity or any custodian is incredible. Gone are the days where you can only buy the custodians' family of funds. … [Read more...]
Why Vanguard GNMA Works for You in 2017
It’s time to get your lazy money off the couch and back to work. You know the lazy money I’m talking about. The rainy day fund that’s turned into a big-screen TV, the matured CDs that took a cruise to the islands, and the emergency cash that’s betting on Apple. Let’s not forget where your safe money should safely be employed: At Vanguard GNMA. Did you know that over the last three-years, a time when investors worried about interest rates going up, up, up, GNMA had an average annual return of 2.6%? Today, just like three-years ago, that lazy money is sitting there, worried about the … [Read more...]
Who is the President Listening To?
Who is Donald Trump? Answer: The candidate who understood the anger in the question of “Where’s my bailout?” I hope he doesn’t forget that. Trump understood the “heartbeat” of America, even before he was elected. The Trump adviser who also understood and who helped Trump gauge that “heartbeat,” was Steve Bannon, now White House Chief Strategist. Bannon helped Trump formulate a policy system of “economic nationalism” that spoke to Americans who never got a bailout after 2008, and who would ultimately push Trump to victory in states like Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin where no … [Read more...]
A Boater’s True Companion
I’ve used the Eldridge Tide and Pilot book for years as a boater. It’s a great reference tool and an entertaining read while on the water. I thought you’d like this story in the Boston Globe. Over the last century, most New England fishermen and merchant sailors have gone to sea with a copy of the Eldridge Tide and Pilot Book on board. It boasts clean lines and uncluttered grids that can easily be read on a rolling vessel, and there’s a hole drilled into the top corner so it can be securely fastened with a nail or hook when the wind is howling. The iconic yellow nautical book has been in … [Read more...]
Tropical Greetings! From Steve Forbes and…
Is there anything better than a snow storm back home while you’re in sunny Florida, Arizona or St. Somewhere? How great is it looking at your iPhone weather app in flip-flops at cocktail hour smiling at the arctic blast settling in back home? Life is good, right? Makes one want to send a postcard home. On your way to the post office, you could also mail your tax-returns. In a perfect world--and yours is pretty good in this story--your taxes would be one flat rate; a postcard sized filing, simple enough that your big problem that morning is beating the piss out of your opponents in pickle … [Read more...]
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