Over the weekend my kid’s asked for some money for ice cream. I gave them $20 and didn’t get much change. Who says there’s no inflation? … [Read more...]
Warning! Pension Funds Continue to Swing for the Fences
You really can’t make this stuff up. Pension funds refuse to read the writing on the wall: We are living in a reduced return world. It’s as simple as that. Yet instead of taking their lumps, and I’m not even talking about funding what they should have paid years ago into the plan, they are reaching for returns. If you’ve learned anything from my posts to you about investing, it’s that you cannot “hope” for the market to do something for you. You do not want to “reach” for returns. And yet that’s what pensions are doing. It’s not teachers, firemen, and policemen doing this. They leave it to … [Read more...]
Retirement State: Which States have the Highest Estate or Inheritance Tax?
There’s a lot of reasons for New Englanders to retire to Florida or New Hampshire. From the Tax Foundation: In addition to the federal estate tax of 40 percent (which is fourth highest in the OECD), many U.S. states levy their own estate and inheritance taxes. Estate taxes are charged against the estate regardless of who inherits the assets, while inheritance taxes are levied on the transfer of assets to heirs, based on the relationship of the inheritor to the deceased. In the case of inheritance taxes, spouses, children, or siblings often have different exemptions and experience … [Read more...]
Meet the One Person Every Business in the World Needs
Happy Memorial Day Weekend. Time for remembrance. Time for summer. Time to get to work. When I was a kid I had three different jobs: a paper route, cutting lawns, and scooping ice-cream. One person I met at all three was, “the customer.” At the first job, the paper-route, I didn’t see the customer every day, but I would if I missed a house, got bit by their dog, was late, or needed to collect money. At the second job, cutting lawns, I’d see them if I missed a spot, got stung by a bee from their bee box or needed to collect money. And at the third-one, scooping ice-cream, there was a never … [Read more...]
Jimmy Buffett’s: A Pirate Looks at 40
Make sure you have a chance to appreciate where you’re going and where you’ve been. Jimmy Buffett put on a pop-up show Monday in Austin, TX in preparation for his summer tour “I Don’t Know”. A client of mine is driving up to Nashville, TN for tonight’s sold-out show at the Ascend Amphitheatre. Here’s a great video of Buffett and Jerry Jeff Walker. Walker (Mr. Bojangles) was the person who gave Buffett refuge in Coconut Grove, FL after he fled Nashville. It was in Walker’s Packard that they drove to Key West for Buffett’s first visit. It was there where they met Phil Clark, the “Pirate” in … [Read more...]
Hedge Funds Fail
This week it was reported that Tudor Investment Corp., one of America’s most expensive hedge funds, will be cutting its very high fees from 2.75% of assets and 27 percent of profits to a still very high 2.25% and 25% respectively. Still much higher than most of the confiscatory fees one will find among hedge funds. After hearing this I recalled what Dick Young wrote in his Intelligence Report a couple months ago, Hedge Funds Fail. Hedge Funds Fail Given the above, it was with some astonishment that I read Tim Martin and Rob Copeland's recent Wall Street Journal exposé "Investors Pull Cash … [Read more...]
Joseph’s Garage Featured in Babson Magazine
You will love this story about the Joseph brothers featured in Babson Magazine Spring 2016. They run a third-generation business in Norwell, MA started by their grandfather in 1928. It reminded me of a family run gas station in Newport that closed not too long ago. Just like Cheers everybody knew your name, your kids’ names, and always had a dog treat handy. Technology can’t replace everything. The Joseph brothers don’t bother having business meetings. Many times, they can come to a decision without even saying a word to each other. Art and John, both ’84, are the third-generation owners … [Read more...]
Existing Home Prices Red Hot
The average prices paid in sales of existing homes is nearing it 2006 high (12 month moving average). Historically low Federal Reserve rates and unprecedented quantitative easing have nearly achieved creating a complete rebound in existing home prices. The 12 month moving average of the sales price measure is only 1% below its all-time high. … [Read more...]
Sorry, The Game is O-V-E-R for these 2 Mutual Funds
The game is over for the Putnam Capital Spectrum and Equity Spectrum funds. Sorry to be so harsh. But that’s simply the way I see it. Not to pat my own back but I’ve pointed out in the past how Putnam has been guilty of being more of a marketing machine than a Prudent-Man oriented asset management firm. After reading this excellent blog by Jason Zweig in his WSJ Intelligent Investor column, I feel even stronger about Putnam's focus on marketing over Prudent-Man-type asset management. Zweig points out that these funds hold close to three-quarters of their assets under management in their top … [Read more...]
Looking Back at a Random Walk Down Wall Street
Burton Malkiel has released a new edition of his book A Radom Walk Down Wall Street. In it he recommends substituting a part of a bond portfolio with high-yielding stocks. This is rotten advice and will likely get his followers into some trouble down the road. Yes, bond yields are low, but bonds should always be in your portfolio. I’ve called out Mr. Malkiel in the past on his tendency to offer up poor recommendations while talking up his book. For example when he talks about China: But, a couple of years ago, in late 2010, Malkiel recommended overweighting China. The following year, … [Read more...]
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