How about a round of applause for Wall Street? Once again, they've managed to sell the dream, and are failing to deliver. Hedge Funds—unregulated mutual funds—have been the talk of the town for years. That is, of course, until their hyper-aggressive, no-fear strategies hit a market that was...volatile?
I've said it before: More risk usually means greater losses. When you focus on short-term results instead of the fine print or the strategy, don't be surprised when you can't protect your portfolio from harm. There's a new scandal brewing on Wall Street—hedge fund investors may not be able to pull their money out. I smell losses, lawsuits, and new regulation. Still, investors are to blame.
» Continue readingI believe that 401k plans, in theory, are phenomenal. I also believe that Wall Street F-ed them up so bad and use them as tiny, recurring profit centers to ignore the "little guy" and sell their mutual funds. Oh, they'll call you when you're ready to roll over your old 401k; still, don't expect much help or support when you're socking away $500 a month—you're small potatoes on Wall Street and they have investment banking deals to tend to.
So, what is one to do?
» Continue reading401k plans seemed like a good idea at the time. Individualized retirement plans. Personalized portfolios to replace the stogy old pension. Real growth for young, aggressive investors; safety for senior employees facing retirement.
Many years ago, there was no 401k—it simply didn't exist. Companies had pensions—giant pools of money conservatively invested to provide employees with lifetime incomes after they retired. It was a wonderful system if for no other reason than accountability.
» Continue reading| Excel 2007 | | | Excel 2003 |
| (ZIP, 168kb) | (ZIP, 138kb) |
Thu @ 3:33PM | View comment
MinorityStakes said,
A couple comments regarding BBEP's latest communication with shareholders:* 2009 production just about equaled 2008 production even though capex was...
BreitBurn Energy: Playing the Commodities Crash
Sun @ 11:09AM | View comment
Eric T said,
Instead of inventory turnover, I use the cash conversion cycle, or CCC.It is more accurate for companies that manufacture and...
Understanding the True Profit Margin
Sun @ 5:48AM | View comment
Diversification said,
well it all depends on the correlation between the stocks you have choosen many big mutual funds are having the...
The Dangers Of Overdiversification
Sun @ 4:46AM | View comment
sandesh trivedi said,
Very well explained joe. i believe one must also take into account the nature of the product being manufactured while...
Understanding the True Profit Margin
Sat @ 10:19AM | View comment
Ron said,
Hi Joe,Is there a rule of thumb of percentage of net shares sold by insiders where we should start to...
When To Watch Out For Insider Selling
Sun @ 9:46AM | View comment
trading for a living said,
I really like this blog post, it has some great info. Thank you and keep up good work.
A Glance At Sharper Image