Lance on Dec 10 2008 | Filed under: Domestic Equities, Valuation
Over at dshort.com there is an interesting look at valuation and regression to the mean (click image to link to larger version)
The peak in 2000 marked an unprecedented 160% overshooting of the trend, which is double the overshoot in 1929. The index has been above the trend for 17 years. We also see that the [...]
Lance on Nov 20 2008 | Filed under: Domestic Equities
Doug Short has a bunch of interesting charts on bear markets (click permalink for larger, easier to read version of chart)
You can take a look at what the bottoming process has looked like for all the bear markets since WWII here. Hat tip: Calculated Risk.
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Lance on Nov 18 2008 | Filed under: Asset Allocation, Domestic Equities, Valuation, indexes
Yes, but they are supposed to be if you want reasonable returns for the risk, which is one more reason the Fed Model is wrong. Compared to the past however not that cheap. Jim Hamilton takes a look:
We’re currently at a P/E around 14, a bit below the historical long-run average P/E of 16.3, meaning [...]
Lance on Aug 25 2008 | Filed under: Asset Allocation, Commodities, Developing Markets, Domestic Equities, Domestic Fixed Income, Emerging Markets, Energy, Federal Reserve, Global Equity, Global Fixed Income, Housing Market, Metals, Risk, Valuation, economy, real estate
Hedge Fund manager Doug Kass has some questions that clients should ask of their advisors. I should point out that everybody has a bad year, I assume we will have a point where we will have to ask these questions in a harsher light of ourselves. However, these questions can separate those who you might [...]
Lance on Aug 14 2008 | Filed under: Domestic Equities
Back in February of 2007 we began to scrub our portfolio’s of all exposure to financials, which wasn’t very high at that point anyway. Needless to say, instant alpha.
Of course, the follow on question I get repeatedly, especially those who have been investing with Bill Miller and Legg Mason Capital all the way down, is [...]
Lance on Jul 28 2008 | Filed under: Domestic Equities, Economics, Great Investors, Housing Market, Risk, economy
I apologize ahead of time if this post is a bit intemperate.
Buried around a truism, the New York Times has produced a misleading and rather silly piece on the value of “predictions.”
The thrust of the piece is that predicting the markets and the economy, especially in the short term, is fraught with peril. True enough. [...]
Lance on Jul 07 2008 | Filed under: Asset Allocation, Domestic Equities, Domestic Fixed Income, Economics, Risk, economy
Heavier hitters than myself are slowly lining up to put out estimates of the total losses from the credit crisis more in line with my thinking. Welcome aboard!
Using far more “off the cuff” methods than Nouriel Roubini, the IMF, Jeremy Grantham, John Hussman, UBS, John Paulson or Goldman Sachs, I have been expecting the starting [...]
Lance on Apr 07 2008 | Filed under: Domestic Equities, Economic Indicators, Economics, Housing Market, Latest data, economy
Personally I think we have been negative since November. Given the large positive number in the third quarter, the barely above break even number in the fourth quarter virtually guarantees that the economy went negative sometime in November and December. However, if we are not, it is highly likely coming. Here is a graphic which [...]
Lance on Feb 24 2008 | Filed under: Asset Allocation, Domestic Equities, Risk, Valuation
Mark Hulbert reports on two indicators that historically have pointed towards above average returns for stocks:
The indicator in question focuses on corporate money-raising. Considerable research has shown that when companies turn aggressively to the equity market for their financing needs, through new issues or secondary offerings, it is a sign that the stock market is [...]
Lance on Feb 21 2008 | Filed under: Domestic Equities, Domestic Fixed Income, Economics, Federal Reserve, Global Fixed Income, Government policy, Housing Market, Risk, economy, monetary policy
Martin Feldstein, stepping down from heading up the National Bureau of Economic Research since 1977, has piece in the Wall Street Journal that is rather pessimistic about the economic outlook. More tellingly he thinks the recession, if it occurs (and like me, he suspects it has already begun) will be more difficult to stimulate our [...]
Lance on Feb 11 2008 | Filed under: Absolute Return, Asset Allocation, Domestic Equities, Great Investors, Hedge Funds, Relative Return, Risk, Valuation, indexes, real estate
The recent downturn from the high in October has led to a great deal of chatter about the markets being cheap. That the recent turmoil has presented us with wonderful buying opportunities based on valuation. Readers here know that I disagree, and vehemently. Which doesn’t mean there isn’t money to be made as speculators. Certainly [...]
Lance on Feb 07 2008 | Filed under: Domestic Equities, Great Investors, Valuation
Occasionally I look at my list of reads and realize I haven’t been someplace in quite a while, so early this morning I headed over to Jeff Matthews place to rectify that issue. Full of great stuff, but I want to highlight two pieces.
First, Jeff tackles the subject of stock buybacks and the piece echoes [...]
Lance on Jan 29 2008 | Filed under: Absolute Return, Asset Allocation, Commodities, Developing Markets, Domestic Equities, Domestic Fixed Income, Great Investors, Hedge Funds, International Equities, Managed Futures, Portable Alpha, Relative Return, Risk
Finally it is the long-term investor, he who most promotes the public interest, who will in practice come in for most criticism, wherever investment funds are managed by committees or boards or banks. For it is in the essence of his behaviour that he should be eccentric, unconventional and rash in the eyes of average [...]
Lance on Jan 25 2008 | Filed under: Domestic Equities, Economic Indicators, Economics, Market Data
As I noted earlier, Dale Franks was curious about how Harley Davidson (HOG) would do on its latest earnings release:
One earnings report to watch this week, though, is Harley-Davidson (HOG). It’s a solid company with a loyal customer base—I’m one of them actually—but, motorcycles are a luxury item. For every guy [...]
Lance on Jan 25 2008 | Filed under: Absolute Return, Asset Allocation, China, Domestic Equities, Economic Indicators, Economics, Federal Reserve, Global Equity, Hedge Funds, International Equities, Latest data, Risk, today's links
Morningstar takes a look at the Long/Short category of mutual funds. They, like I, appreciate John Hussman.
China turned in yet another double digit year:
China’s economy grew by 11.4 per cent in 2007, the highest pace in 13 years, but the trend of decelerating exports to a slowing US recorded in the final two quarters is [...]
Lance on Jan 25 2008 | Filed under: Asset Allocation, Domestic Equities, Risk, Taxes
Where Have Buybacks Gone, asks the Wall Street Journal? I cannot tell you how often I heard that buybacks were going to keep earnings strong (Ken Fisher in particular comes to mind.) As the Journal points out, that can dry up if people need the capital, or in a related issue, have loaded themselves up [...]
Lance on Jan 23 2008 | Filed under: Domestic Equities, Emerging Markets, Global Equity, International Equities, Market Data
This is a very cool look at the market carnage of the last few days geographically from the Wall Street Journal. You can go from one day to the next and watch how the markets in various places rose and fell*. Hat tip: James Hamilton (who has interesting observations on what happened.)
Click here for Global [...]
Lance on Jan 23 2008 | Filed under: Domestic Equities, Economic Indicators, Economics, Housing Market
Dale Franks gives his rundown on what to look for going forward from the economy, and the implications for investors:
We’ve dropped off about 20% from the stock price highs of October, so we’re about due for a rally. Especially with the Fed obliging everyone with rate cuts. At this point, though, I’d look askance at [...]
Lance on Jan 23 2008 | Filed under: Domestic Equities, Economic Indicators, Economics, Federal Reserve, Global Equity, Government policy, Housing Market, International Equities, Latest data, Market Data, Risk, monetary policy
Like me, Barry Ritholtz sniffed a whiff of panic in the Fed’s actions yesterday. The question he asks is why they acted before their meeting. Here are his questions, all good. I have pretty much stolen the whole post. Hopefully Barry will not mind:
What does this mean for investors. Quite a number of things – [...]
Lance on Jan 17 2008 | Filed under: Asset Allocation, Domestic Equities, Economics, Federal Reserve, Government policy, Housing Market, Risk, monetary policy
Reader ChrisB asks in response to yesterdays link to Anna Schwartz’s comment on the Federal Reserve:
In retrospect, what should the fed have done differently?
Risk and Return is really about implications for investment policy, and thus identifying which factors have implications is key. Pumping for particular policy choices really isn’t our role. Still, in identifying what [...]
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