By now we all know that the Federal Reserve’s suggestion of “tapering” its massive bond-buying program, aka quantitative easing (QE), has caused the return of volatility in both the equity and bond markets. Since Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke implanted the tapering bomb into the market‘s cortex on May 22, the markets have gyrated wildly, not just here at home, but also in Japan and… Read More

By now we all know that the Federal Reserve’s suggestion of “tapering” its massive bond-buying program, aka quantitative easing (QE), has caused the return of volatility in both the equity and bond markets. Since Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke implanted the tapering bomb into the market‘s cortex on May 22, the markets have gyrated wildly, not just here at home, but also in Japan and emerging markets around the world. #-ad_banner-# The hint that QE could soon be DOA also has caused a massive decline in one market segment that’s thought of largely as a slow, safe asset. That market segment is Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities, or TIPS. TIPS are basically just government bonds with a built in mechanism that allows them to rise along with the most widely followed inflation metric, the Consumer Price… Read More

Among the 100 wealthiest investors in the world, Ray Dalio cuts an iconic figure in the sometimes cookie-cutter arena of hedge funds and finance.  Not only does he manage the world’s biggest hedge fund, Bridgewater Associates, with approximately $140 billion under management, he is also a big-game bow hunter, meditation practitioner, and firm believer in radical honesty. Dalio didn’t earn his $12 billion net worth by following anyone but himself, and now you can discover the Ray Dalio Investment Strategy for yourself.#-ad_banner-# Ray Dalio’s Biography Dalio wasn’t… Read More

Among the 100 wealthiest investors in the world, Ray Dalio cuts an iconic figure in the sometimes cookie-cutter arena of hedge funds and finance.  Not only does he manage the world’s biggest hedge fund, Bridgewater Associates, with approximately $140 billion under management, he is also a big-game bow hunter, meditation practitioner, and firm believer in radical honesty. Dalio didn’t earn his $12 billion net worth by following anyone but himself, and now you can discover the Ray Dalio Investment Strategy for yourself.#-ad_banner-# Ray Dalio’s Biography Dalio wasn’t born with a silver spoon and was far from a gifted student, but he learned from an early age to work for what he wanted. The son of a jazz musician and a stay-at-home mom, he knew he wanted spending money. His first jobs were the mundane employment of many suburban youths: He ran a paper route, shoveled snow, and washed dishes in a restaurant. When he was 12 years old, his life took a turn that would place him on the road to vast wealth: He started working as a golf caddy. Carrying… Read More

In recent years, investors have been steadily pouring billions into exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The appeal of investing in an industry or thematic style is a simpler approach than stock-picking for many… Read More

As any investor can attest to, things are not always what they seem. Take volatility in the market. It’s bad, right? Not necessarily. There is an often-misunderstood index that tracks the market’s volatility called the… Read More

An official with the Securities and Exchange Commission — an agency not given to hyperbolic statements — said this $3.7 trillion market is facing an “Armageddon.”  In June alone, $5.4 billion flooded out of this market — more than was invested in all of 2012. Rising interest rates will likely depress the value of this market over the next few years. Not only that, but President Barack Obama wants some investors in this market to face an unprecedented penalty. Why should… Read More

An official with the Securities and Exchange Commission — an agency not given to hyperbolic statements — said this $3.7 trillion market is facing an “Armageddon.”  In June alone, $5.4 billion flooded out of this market — more than was invested in all of 2012. Rising interest rates will likely depress the value of this market over the next few years. Not only that, but President Barack Obama wants some investors in this market to face an unprecedented penalty. Why should you give it even a cursory glance? In 2012, this market finished a two-year run with an average 20% gain, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch. It is one of the most trustworthy places to put your money, especially if you’re a retiree.#-ad_banner-# I’m talking about U.S. municipal bonds. Municipal bonds are issued by non-federal governmental entities to build roads, schools, hospitals and the like. In 2012, 6,600 tax-exempt municipal bonds financed more than $179 billion worth of infrastructure… Read More

If you’d like us to answer one of your investing questions in our weekly Ask The Expert Q&A column, email us at editors@investinganswers.com. (Note: We will not respond to requests for stock picks.) Question: Does being an investing contrarian actually work? Will I make money going against the market? — Jim S., Chicago, IL Contrarian investing carries a special… Read More

If you’d like us to answer one of your investing questions in our weekly Ask The Expert Q&A column, email us at editors@investinganswers.com. (Note: We will not respond to requests for stock picks.) Question: Does being an investing contrarian actually work? Will I make money going against the market? — Jim S., Chicago, IL Contrarian investing carries a special attraction for many investors. Not only does being a contrarian frequently present an opportunity to produce outsize gains, it can also be a thrill and big boost to the ego to bet against the masses and go against the grain. Adding greater allure to the attraction of being a contrarian are the escapades of legendary hedge-fund billionaires scoring huge gains executing contrarian strategies. That includes John Paulson’s $12 billion profit in 2007 after bucking popular opinion and making huge bets against housing. Fellow hedge-fund billionaire David Einhorn… Read More

When I received my MBA 20 years ago, I thought I was pretty well versed in the world of finance. But when I got to Wall Street that summer, I was quickly overwhelmed. A litany of phrases were tossed out that I never read about in my finance textbooks. Here’s just a small sample of investing phrases that they never talked about in b-school. “I’m looking for the stock to consolidate from here.”… Read More

When I received my MBA 20 years ago, I thought I was pretty well versed in the world of finance. But when I got to Wall Street that summer, I was quickly overwhelmed. A litany of phrases were tossed out that I never read about in my finance textbooks. Here’s just a small sample of investing phrases that they never talked about in b-school. “I’m looking for the stock to consolidate from here.” Translation: I expect this stock to start falling and wouldn’t want to buy it. This is a similar sentiment to a Wall Street downgrade from “buy” to “neutral” or “hold.” Such downgrades actually mean a stock is very unappealing and bound to fall in price. Analysts use that code to avoid the dreaded “sell” rating, which can alienate them from the companies they follow.     “I smell a secondary.” A… Read More

Corporate raiders are economic assassins. They strike fear into the hearts of company executives. And T. Boone Pickens has been one of the best.  The oilman turned corporate raider was one of the pioneers of the leveraged buyout craze of the 1980s, producing huge gains for his investors while becoming one of the richest people in America with a net worth of $1.4 billion. As a legendary oilman, investor… Read More

Corporate raiders are economic assassins. They strike fear into the hearts of company executives. And T. Boone Pickens has been one of the best.  The oilman turned corporate raider was one of the pioneers of the leveraged buyout craze of the 1980s, producing huge gains for his investors while becoming one of the richest people in America with a net worth of $1.4 billion. As a legendary oilman, investor and corporate raider, Pickens has a knack for two things: knowing when to strike and when to play big. #-ad_banner-#T. Boone Pickens’ Biography Pickens showcased his lethal business smarts at an early age. At age 12, he expanded his paper route from 28 to 156 papers. In 1956, after graduating with a degree in geology from Oklahoma A&M and working for Phillips Petroleum for three years, Pickens founded the company that would eventually become Mesa Petroleum. By the early 1980s, Mesa had grown into one of the largest independent gas and oil companies in the world, transforming Pickens into… Read More

Corporate raiders are economic assassins. They strike fear into the hearts of company executives. And T. Boone Pickens has been one of the best.  The oilman turned corporate raider was one of the pioneers of the leveraged buyout craze of the 1980s, producing huge gains for his investors while becoming one of the richest people in America with a net worth of $1.4 billion. As a legendary oilman, investor… Read More

Corporate raiders are economic assassins. They strike fear into the hearts of company executives. And T. Boone Pickens has been one of the best.  The oilman turned corporate raider was one of the pioneers of the leveraged buyout craze of the 1980s, producing huge gains for his investors while becoming one of the richest people in America with a net worth of $1.4 billion. As a legendary oilman, investor and corporate raider, Pickens has a knack for two things: knowing when to strike and when to play big. #-ad_banner-#T. Boone Pickens’ Biography Pickens showcased his lethal business smarts at an early age. At age 12, he expanded his paper route from 28 to 156 papers. In 1956, after graduating with a degree in geology from Oklahoma A&M and working for Phillips Petroleum for three years, Pickens founded the company that would eventually become Mesa Petroleum. By the early 1980s, Mesa had grown into one of the largest independent gas and oil companies in the world, transforming Pickens into… Read More

The S&P 500 index rose another 3% last week, continuing a winning stretch that began last fall.  Since Nov. 7, the S&P has risen 22%. That works out to be a roughly 35% annualized gain. Trouble is, the rally is increasingly due to a perception by individual investors that stocks can only move in one direction: up. In its most recent survey, the American Association of Individual Investors… Read More

The S&P 500 index rose another 3% last week, continuing a winning stretch that began last fall.  Since Nov. 7, the S&P has risen 22%. That works out to be a roughly 35% annualized gain. Trouble is, the rally is increasingly due to a perception by individual investors that stocks can only move in one direction: up. In its most recent survey, the American Association of Individual Investors (AAII) noted that the percentage of investors who are currently bearish is now less than 20%. That’s the lowest reading in 18 months, yet as legendary fund manager Sir John Templeton once noted, “The time of maximum pessimism is the best time to buy, and the time of maximum optimism is the best time to sell.”#-ad_banner-# I’ve already researched one half of that maxim. Back in 2010, I noted that stocks tend to rally when that AAII survey finds few bullish… Read More