Investing & Savings
To achieve any goal in life you need to be disciplined. Similarly, saving and investing requires discipline. A disciplined approach helps you to remain focused on your financial goals. Formulate a plan and review it periodically to ensure that you are on the right track.
“What I Learned From Tracking My Spending for a Month.” NYT20181128
Tracking expenses my not be as difficult as you thought. The benefits justify the investment of time.
“Almost Zero: Why You’re Still Not Making Much on Your Bank Account” 20180413 NYT
“Warren Buffett Isn’t a Fan of Bonds. But They May Be Good for You” 20180413 NYT
“The Market Is High. Beware of Portfolio Drift” 20170826 NYT
[“Rebalancing is more a risk-control measure than a return-generator”]
“SEC Investor Bulletin: Be Cautious of SAFEs in Crowdfunding” 20170509 SEC
“After a Year of Faulty Predictions, 3 Approaches to Investing” 20161230 NUT
My favorite is “The Control Approach” Focus on your plan and re-balance.
“The Stock Market Looks Awfully Expensive Since the Trump Rally” 20161219 NYT
Keep alert, things might not meet expectation.
“Forecasts That Are Bullish, and Often Wrong” 20161216
“Forecasting markets for a calendar year is notoriously difficult, if not impossible, to time accurately and consistently.”
“Zen and the Art of 401(k) Maintenance” 20160806 NYT
Making investment changes based on market activity or current events, rather than your own plan, can be hazardous to your investment returns.
“Dividends, Wall Street’s Battered Status Symbol” 20160213 NYT
Is the choice based on the expected reaction to the stock price?
“No. 1 Stock Over 30 Years? You Will Never Guess” 20160130 WSJ
“In the long term, capturing the full upward sweep of a supper stock requires enduring several near-death experiences…” “for most people, index funds make superior sense.”
“Robo-Advisers for Investors Are Not One-Size-Fits-All” 20160122 NYT
You need to know what services you are looking for to determine if this approach fits your needs.
“Target-date retirement funds may miss the mark for investors” 20160111 MW
Keep informed on the allocation changes in your-target date fund. These are not investments that should be set and forgotten.
“7 reasons to dump your mutual fund now” 20160112 MW
The 7th item should NOT be ignored. Check to see if you are reacting a drop in the market. Reactive selling often results in buying high and selling long. Review funds based on your long-term plan.
“How to Feel Safe in Stocks When the Market Seems Dangerous” 20160115 WSJ
Jason Zweig’s article is timely and insightful.
“Mutual funds run by stockpickers fall short in 2015, extended losing streak” 20160104 R
“Happy New Year…Now What?” 20160103 WSJ
Do not expect answer to the question. “Take Wall Street’s collectives wisdom, and expect something different.”
“This Simple Way Is the Best Way to Predict the Market” 20151225 WSJ
John C. Bogle continues to champion simplicity over complexity.
“Intelligent Investor: It costs What to Trade a Bond?” 20151023 WSJ
It is important to know what it really costs to trade (buy or sell) corporate bond.
Eleven Ways to Help Yourself Stay Sane in a Crazy Market
“Why Morning Is the Worst Time to Trade Stocks” WSJ 20150914
Are you over-paying for your securities?
“New Widows have Another Concern: Their Finances” NYT 20150904
The planning issues apply to everyone. There are additional factors when there is a spouse or partner.
“Five Things: What Investors Shouldn’t Do Now” WSJ 20150821
“The genius of Warren Buffet in 23 quotes” MW 2015 0819
“Use REITs to Invest Like a Property Mogul” 20150619 WSJ
“Being a landlord can be challenging, but owning REITs can make it relatively simple for investors with reasonable expectations to enjoy some of the benefits.”
“Bond Liquidity: Factors to Consider and Questions to Ask” 20150715 FINRA
This alert is for those that buy individual bonds.
“Beware the Stock-Buyback Craze” 20150619 WSJ
“Whether or not you think buybacks are a good idea, other investors clearly do—and that is what drives prices, at least in the short-term.”
“The High Cost of Investing Like a Daredevil” 20150606 NYT
Few articles discuss how luck is confused with skill.
“Stock Buybacks That Hurt Shareholders” 20150605 NYT
This is an example when the media information can be misleading. Relying on the media may result in an assumption that all stock buybacks are goof.
“This Time It’s Different for Investors? No-and Yes” 20150508 WSJ
It is hard to compare current financial markets to past financial markets. The economy, the companies and other factors change over time.
“Are You Hot or Not? for Investors, It’s Hard to Tell” 20150417 WSJ
When investments are going up people become more confident that tend will continue.
“The Best (and worst) investments They Ever Made” 20141226 WSJ
Wisdom, humor, philosophy from a variety of Luminaries in one WSJ article.
“Is It Too Late to Join the Muni Rally?” 20141114 WSJ
“What’s That? A Guide to Wall Street’s Jargon” 20141103 WSJ
“Six-Figure Incomes-and Facing Financial Ruin” 20140905 WSJ
“How to break the cycle”
“Making Peace With The Market: 7 Habits of Successful Investors” 20140603 F
“Who Routinely Trounces the Stock Market? Try 2 Out of 2,862 Funds” 20140719 NYT
“Five Popular-but Dangerous-Investments for Individuals” 20140711 WSJ
Picking an investment based on its popularity may not be a reliable approach to investing.
“Give your Portfolio a Midyear Checkup” 20140612 M
“Even if you’re feeling fine, you still visit the doctor now and then to make sure everything’s all right.”
The Best of Times, the Worst of Times, and 2013
“In Fund Expenses, Tenths of a Point Mean a Lot” 20140110 NYT
” … if the goal is to stack the odds in your favor, a cheap fund is the way to go.”
Exchange Traded Funds (ETF) 20140103
ETFs continue to evolve. Examples include: new ETFs introductions, changes in the indexes used have changed, and expenses have been reduced in many offerings.
“Is ‘Tactical’ a Good Strategy?” 20130920 WSJ
” Though their recent performance has been less than stellar, the number of such funds is growing.”
“The Dark Side of Higher Yields” 20130809 WSJ
Investors should perform their due diligence before investing in Master Limited Partnershpis (MLP) and MLP funds.
“Here Comes the Next Hot Emerging Market: the U.S.” 20131419 WSJ
An argument that the U.S. is beginning an industrial revitalization.
Hedge Fund Definition
SEC describes: Hedge funds pool money from investors and invest in securities or other types of investments with the goal of getting positive returns. Hedge funds are not regulated as heavily as mutual funds and generally have more leeway than mutual funds to pursue investments and strategies that may increase the risk of investment losses. Hedge funds are limited to wealthier investors who can afford the higher fees and risks of hedge fund investing, and institutional investors, including pension funds.
“Balancing your inner bull and bear” 20130308 MW
Timely discussion about balancing fear and greed.
