Like many of you, Don and I and our families had a wonderful time celebrating the Fourth of July holiday weekend. When I was growing up, the Fourth seemed mostly about barbeques, friends, hanging out at the pool, and fireworks. It was also always the end-of-season...
Investors Are Human, Too
In 1981, the Nobel Prize-winning economist Robert Shiller published a groundbreaking study that contradicted a prevailing theory that markets are always efficient. If they were, stock prices would generally mirror the growth in earnings and dividends. Shiller's...
Mid-Year 2016: An Investment Reality Check
Market volatility is alive and well in 2016. Low oil prices, China's slowing growth, the prospect of rising interest rates, the strong U.S. dollar, global conflicts--all of these factors have contributed to turbulent markets this year. Many investors may be tempted to...
Common Financial Wisdom: Theory vs. Practice
In the financial world, there are a lot of rules about what you should be doing. In theory, they sound reasonable. But in practice, it may not be easy, or even possible, to follow them. Let's look at some common financial maxims and why it can be hard to implement...
April 2016 Monthly Insight: Recession or No Recession?
Recently, the focus for investors has been all over the map. This is not an all-inclusive list but it adds up to a whole host of worries investors are grappling with in the short term: Oil prices Corporate earnings The global economy China's economy China's currency...
March 2016 Monthly Insight: Lessons From Buffett’s Shareholder Letter
Warren Buffett, chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, is one of America’s great investors—arguably, the greatest ever. Over the last 50 years, Buffett (now 85) and his partner Charlie Munger (91) have executed one of the greatest allocations of capital in history....
February 2016 Monthly Insight: The January Barometer
"As January goes, so goes the year." At least that is the case according the old adage made popular by the Stock Trader’s Almanac. This phenomenon is also known as the "January Barometer." It simply means that January’s market’s performance, as measured by the S&P...
December 2015 Monthly Insight: The Clouds Part
Bernard Baruch is not a household name, so a quick background is in order. He was a financier, a stock investor, a philanthropist, and an economic advisor to Presidents Woodrow Wilson and Franklin Roosevelt. Baruch once quipped, “The main purpose of the stock market...
November 2015 Monthly Insight: Budget Bill Changes Social Security Strategies
October was a wild month for the markets—and for many baby boomers who planned for retirement income by synchronizing and coordinating their timing for claiming Social Security benefits. The last week in October saw Congress put an end to two Social Security filing...
October 2015 Monthly Insight: Volatility is a Natural Part of the Market
Last month's letter talked about preparing yourself for major market moves, especially downward moves, by conducting "lifeboat drills" in order to dampen your "startle response", which might result in an inappropriate decision that would derail your long-term...