Do you follow the 80/20 rule? During the past century this simple ratio has developed into one of the most useful concepts and tools of modern-day routine. In a moment, I’ll show you how you can use a version of the 80/20 rule to help take your portfolio to a whole other level. First, some background …#-ad_banner-# The 80/20 rule assumes that most of the results in any situation — sales, finance and even personal relationships — are determined by a… Read More

Do you follow the 80/20 rule? During the past century this simple ratio has developed into one of the most useful concepts and tools of modern-day routine. In a moment, I’ll show you how you can use a version of the 80/20 rule to help take your portfolio to a whole other level. First, some background …#-ad_banner-# The 80/20 rule assumes that most of the results in any situation — sales, finance and even personal relationships — are determined by a small number of events. The notion of the “vital few” has its origins in 1906 in Italy, where economist Vilfredo Pareto observed that 80% of the wealth was controlled by 20% of the population. Pareto reportedly developed the principle after observing similar scenarios in everyday life, including the fact that 80% of the peas in his garden came from only 20% of the pea pods. Then came Joseph Juran, a quality… Read More

Anyone with a dime invested knows about the emotional aspect of financial markets.#-ad_banner-# A recent investor behavior study by research firm Dalbar shows that the average equity investor has seen a return of just 2.3% annually over the past 20 years, underperforming the S&P 500 by an annual average of 4.3%. The culprit? About half of the shortfall in returns — 45% to 55% — is due to psychological factors like fear of loss and following the herd, according to the… Read More

Anyone with a dime invested knows about the emotional aspect of financial markets.#-ad_banner-# A recent investor behavior study by research firm Dalbar shows that the average equity investor has seen a return of just 2.3% annually over the past 20 years, underperforming the S&P 500 by an annual average of 4.3%. The culprit? About half of the shortfall in returns — 45% to 55% — is due to psychological factors like fear of loss and following the herd, according to the study. Individual investors are notorious for emotional investing like irrational exuberance or panic selling. In fact, in 2012, investors trying to time the market guessed right just 42% of the time — worse odds than a coin flip. But investing in bonds is different, right? Many investors follow stocks passionately while the fixed-income portion of… Read More

Anyone with a dime invested knows about the emotional aspect of financial markets.#-ad_banner-# A recent investor behavior study by research firm Dalbar shows that the average equity investor has seen a return of just 2.3% annually over the past 20 years, underperforming the S&P 500 by an annual average of 4.3%. The culprit? About half of the shortfall in returns — 45% to 55% — is due to psychological factors like fear of loss and following the herd, according to the… Read More

Anyone with a dime invested knows about the emotional aspect of financial markets.#-ad_banner-# A recent investor behavior study by research firm Dalbar shows that the average equity investor has seen a return of just 2.3% annually over the past 20 years, underperforming the S&P 500 by an annual average of 4.3%. The culprit? About half of the shortfall in returns — 45% to 55% — is due to psychological factors like fear of loss and following the herd, according to the study. Individual investors are notorious for emotional investing like irrational exuberance or panic selling. In fact, in 2012, investors trying to time the market guessed right just 42% of the time — worse odds than a coin flip. But investing in bonds is different, right? Many investors follow stocks passionately while the fixed-income portion of… Read More

Income-starved investors are faced with bleak prospects. Stocks in the S&P 500 index might only reward investors with a dividend yield of 2% or so over the next 12 months. As an alternative, investors could consider 10-year Treasury notes, but those pay even less. Based on history and very long-term charts, stocks do seem like the better choice. Prior to 1951, stocks offered investors more income than bonds. Read More

Income-starved investors are faced with bleak prospects. Stocks in the S&P 500 index might only reward investors with a dividend yield of 2% or so over the next 12 months. As an alternative, investors could consider 10-year Treasury notes, but those pay even less. Based on history and very long-term charts, stocks do seem like the better choice. Prior to 1951, stocks offered investors more income than bonds. As you can see in the chart below, something changed in 1951, and bond yields topped dividend yields for the next 60 years. In November 2011, the relationship reverted back to its historical alignment, and stock market yields have been at least slightly above bond yields ever since. This relationship is important to income investors because asset allocation rules have been developed based on the data. Many retirement investors have learned that a balanced portfolio should be 60%… Read More

Income-starved investors are faced with bleak prospects. Stocks in the S&P 500 index might only reward investors with a dividend yield of 2% or so over the next 12 months. As an alternative, investors could consider 10-year Treasury notes, but those pay even less. Based on history and very long-term charts, stocks do seem like the better choice. Prior to 1951, stocks offered investors more income than bonds. Read More

Income-starved investors are faced with bleak prospects. Stocks in the S&P 500 index might only reward investors with a dividend yield of 2% or so over the next 12 months. As an alternative, investors could consider 10-year Treasury notes, but those pay even less. Based on history and very long-term charts, stocks do seem like the better choice. Prior to 1951, stocks offered investors more income than bonds. As you can see in the chart below, something changed in 1951, and bond yields topped dividend yields for the next 60 years. In November 2011, the relationship reverted back to its historical alignment, and stock market yields have been at least slightly above bond yields ever since. This relationship is important to income investors because asset allocation rules have been developed based on the data. Many retirement investors have learned that a balanced portfolio should be 60%… Read More

Income-starved investors are faced with bleak prospects. Stocks in the S&P 500 index might only reward investors with a dividend yield of 2% or so over the next 12 months. As an alternative, investors could consider 10-year Treasury notes, but those pay even less. Based on history and very long-term charts, stocks do seem like the better choice. Prior to 1951, stocks offered investors more income than bonds. Read More

Income-starved investors are faced with bleak prospects. Stocks in the S&P 500 index might only reward investors with a dividend yield of 2% or so over the next 12 months. As an alternative, investors could consider 10-year Treasury notes, but those pay even less. Based on history and very long-term charts, stocks do seem like the better choice. Prior to 1951, stocks offered investors more income than bonds. As you can see in the chart below, something changed in 1951, and bond yields topped dividend yields for the next 60 years. In November 2011, the relationship reverted back to its historical alignment, and stock market yields have been at least slightly above bond yields ever since. This relationship is important to income investors because asset allocation rules have been developed based on the data. Many retirement investors have learned that a balanced portfolio should be 60%… Read More

Income-starved investors are faced with bleak prospects. Stocks in the S&P 500 index might only reward investors with a dividend yield of 2% or so over the next 12 months. As an alternative, investors could consider 10-year Treasury notes, but those pay even less. Based on history and very long-term charts, stocks do seem like the better choice. Prior to 1951, stocks offered investors more income than bonds. Read More

Income-starved investors are faced with bleak prospects. Stocks in the S&P 500 index might only reward investors with a dividend yield of 2% or so over the next 12 months. As an alternative, investors could consider 10-year Treasury notes, but those pay even less. Based on history and very long-term charts, stocks do seem like the better choice. Prior to 1951, stocks offered investors more income than bonds. As you can see in the chart below, something changed in 1951, and bond yields topped dividend yields for the next 60 years. In November 2011, the relationship reverted back to its historical alignment, and stock market yields have been at least slightly above bond yields ever since. This relationship is important to income investors because asset allocation rules have been developed based on the data. Many retirement investors have learned that a balanced portfolio should be 60%… Read More

Income-starved investors are faced with bleak prospects. Stocks in the S&P 500 index might only reward investors with a dividend yield of 2% or so over the next 12 months. As an alternative, investors could consider 10-year Treasury notes, but those pay even less. Based on history and very long-term charts, stocks do seem like the better choice. Prior to 1951, stocks offered investors more income than bonds. Read More

Income-starved investors are faced with bleak prospects. Stocks in the S&P 500 index might only reward investors with a dividend yield of 2% or so over the next 12 months. As an alternative, investors could consider 10-year Treasury notes, but those pay even less. Based on history and very long-term charts, stocks do seem like the better choice. Prior to 1951, stocks offered investors more income than bonds. As you can see in the chart below, something changed in 1951, and bond yields topped dividend yields for the next 60 years. In November 2011, the relationship reverted back to its historical alignment, and stock market yields have been at least slightly above bond yields ever since. This relationship is important to income investors because asset allocation rules have been developed based on the data. Many retirement investors have learned that a balanced portfolio should be 60%… Read More

Income-starved investors are faced with bleak prospects. Stocks in the S&P 500 index might only reward investors with a dividend yield of 2% or so over the next 12 months. As an alternative, investors could consider 10-year Treasury notes, but those pay even less. Based on history and very long-term charts, stocks do seem like the better choice. Prior to 1951, stocks offered investors more income than bonds. Read More

Income-starved investors are faced with bleak prospects. Stocks in the S&P 500 index might only reward investors with a dividend yield of 2% or so over the next 12 months. As an alternative, investors could consider 10-year Treasury notes, but those pay even less. Based on history and very long-term charts, stocks do seem like the better choice. Prior to 1951, stocks offered investors more income than bonds. As you can see in the chart below, something changed in 1951, and bond yields topped dividend yields for the next 60 years. In November 2011, the relationship reverted back to its historical alignment, and stock market yields have been at least slightly above bond yields ever since. This relationship is important to income investors because asset allocation rules have been developed based on the data. Many retirement investors have learned that a balanced portfolio should be 60%… Read More

Income-starved investors are faced with bleak prospects. Stocks in the S&P 500 index might only reward investors with a dividend yield of 2% or so over the next 12 months. As an alternative, investors could consider 10-year Treasury notes, but those pay even less. Based on history and very long-term charts, stocks do seem like the better choice. Prior to 1951, stocks offered investors more income than bonds. Read More

Income-starved investors are faced with bleak prospects. Stocks in the S&P 500 index might only reward investors with a dividend yield of 2% or so over the next 12 months. As an alternative, investors could consider 10-year Treasury notes, but those pay even less. Based on history and very long-term charts, stocks do seem like the better choice. Prior to 1951, stocks offered investors more income than bonds. As you can see in the chart below, something changed in 1951, and bond yields topped dividend yields for the next 60 years. In November 2011, the relationship reverted back to its historical alignment, and stock market yields have been at least slightly above bond yields ever since. This relationship is important to income investors because asset allocation rules have been developed based on the data. Many retirement investors have learned that a balanced portfolio should be 60%… Read More