Strategy/Allocation |

That sinking feeling

In an economy based on debt and financial shenanigans, of course the market can't go up without the leadership from the poster-children, namely the financials themselves.Viewing the remainder of this article requires a Subscription

Tags: financials, JPM

Strategy/Allocation | | May 18, 2012 10:41 am | Comments Off

Opportunity on the horizon

While the US is looking to the Facebook (FB) IPO as the biggest story of the day, it's nice to know that the rest of the world recognizes it as just another hyped IPO with no real impact for our daily lives. On the other hand, JPM blowing up DOES matter. Greece blowing up DOES matter.Viewing the remainder of this article requires a Subscription

Tags: burma, myanmar

Strategy/Allocation | | 10:24 am | Comments Off

Early can hurt

I was early on the euro - initially going short in November 2009. Got out with a nice gain and now staying away, mostly because the vehicles to implement such a volatile trade a difficult to hold. I was early on natural gas - originally going long when it was around here.Viewing the remainder of this article requires a Subscription

Tags: contrarian investing, DWX, europe

Strategy/Allocation | | May 16, 2012 3:52 pm | Comments Off

Diversify your Diversification

If you're still investing in your dad's portfolio (60/40), you're going to be in trouble.Viewing the remainder of this article requires a Subscription

Tags: asset allocation

Strategy/Allocation | | May 15, 2012 1:55 pm | Comments Off

JPM and Rating Agencies

The Whale (Bruno Iksil) was outed weeks ago, and of course, the market has a way of smelling large, levered, market-breaking trades and moving against them (anyone around for LTCM?). Actually, if anything, this might be the time to get into Bruno's trade as he gets squeezed out.Viewing the remainder of this article requires a Subscription

Tags: banks, credit rating, financials, JPM

Strategy/Allocation | | May 11, 2012 6:20 pm | Comments Off

Good enough for Slim, but not for you?

The Financial Times reports that Carlos Slim is increasing his stake in Dutch telecom KPN.

The America Movil [Carlos Slim] offer represents a premium of more than 23 per cent over KPN’s share price as of Monday. From here.

Here's why I bring this up: The world's richest man is paying a 23% premium to purchase/increase his stake in a European telecom, the worst performing sector in a badly performing market, in a hazardous region.Viewing the remainder of this article requires a Subscription

Tags: behavioral finance, Carlos Slim, contrarian, europe, KPN

Strategy/Allocation | | May 8, 2012 12:36 pm | Comments Off

“Where is everybody?”

Josh Brown, famous for his Reformed Broker blog and new book, Backstage Wall Street has a response to the NY Times article on the disappearing trading volume.Viewing the remainder of this article requires a Subscription

Tags: HFT, reformed broker, volume

Strategy/Allocation | | May 7, 2012 2:30 pm | Comments Off

Testing the Magic Formula

I love Joel Greenblatt's Magic Formula. The pursuit of perfection is really the pursuit of simplicity (paraphrasing someone much smarter than I), and so, a two-factor value model that beats everyone and everything is beauty incarnate.Viewing the remainder of this article requires a Subscription

Tags: behavioral finance, greenbackd, greenblatt, magic forumla, market psychology, Montier

Strategy/Allocation | | 1:28 pm | Comments Off

Hugh Hendry has been making the rounds

I really like Hugh Hendry. For starters, he brings a historical context that is deep and broad. Then, he's OK with putting himself out there by making bold contrarian calls. Lastly, he doesn't pander to investors or the media.Viewing the remainder of this article requires a Subscription

Tags: eclectica, europe, hugh hendry, USD

Strategy/Allocation | | May 2, 2012 11:59 am | Comments Off

The devaluation of everything

The Economist has a nice summary of panflation:

Inflation of all kinds devalues everything it infects. It obscures information and so distorts behaviour.

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Tags: facebook, psychology, Technology

Strategy/Allocation, Technology | | April 23, 2012 10:04 am | Comments Off

China, China, China

When everyone was expecting outsized growth numbers, they were also muttering under their breath that the numbers can't be trusted.Viewing the remainder of this article requires a Subscription

Tags: China

Strategy/Allocation | | April 12, 2012 11:05 pm | Comments Off

Do You Still Want That?

A funny thing happens to investors the world over: One day they wake up and something looks off. Sure, you know exactly why you added each individual position,you know your analysis was perfect, you are sure you caught it just right, etc.Viewing the remainder of this article requires a Subscription

Tags: asset allocation, portfolio

Strategy/Allocation | | 10:50 pm | Comments Off

Radio Appearance

Last week I was interviewed on The Wall Street Shuffle: Listen Here Viewing the remainder of this article requires a Subscription

Tags: radio, wall street shuffle

Strategy/Allocation | | April 9, 2012 12:32 pm | Comments Off

Jobs report

Ending the week on a low economic note:

Nonfarm payroll employment rose by 120,000 in March, and the unemployment rate was little changed at 8.2 percent.

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Tags: Bernanke, inflation, us dollar, volatility

Strategy/Allocation | | April 6, 2012 8:35 am | Comments Off

Position updates

Hedging hedges is a never ending game, so sometimes you just need to clean up the portfolio. When managing a portfolio, there is often the danger of adding positions piecemeal.Viewing the remainder of this article requires a Subscription

Tags: allocation, asset allocation, portfolio management, tactical asset allocation

Strategy/Allocation | | April 5, 2012 1:58 pm | Comments Off

Category: Strategy/Allocation