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Two Predictions You Can Take to the Bank

Huffington Post

Most predictions are utter nonsense. They’re made by self-styled “gurus” who are really emperors with no clothes. If they are right, it’s due to luck and not skill (although they are quick to claim credit). Warren Buffett’s view of those who pretend to have the ability to predict the future is spot-on. He famously stated:…

My Misguided Quest to Beat the Market

Wall Street Journal

During my first 15 years as a professional investor, I fully believed it was possible to identify individual securities through fundamental research that would outperform the market. That commitment to seeking alpha is the one investment decision I would most like to redo. As the result of my choice to employ an active approach, the…

Value Premium Goes Missing

ETF

That value stocks (in particular, small value stocks) have provided higher returns for investors over time is both well-documented and well-known. So it’s no great surprise that—as director of research for The BAM Alliance, a community of more than 140 independent RIA firms—I’ve been getting a lot of questions about the recent disappearance of the…

Lessons Worth Learning

“I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life, as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.” – Booker T. Washington Occasionally, I will read a biography worth passing along to my kids. And, knowing how hesitant they are…

Looking Inward to Determine Your Financial Values

By Carl Richards I’ve been surprised by a lot of things as a financial adviser. One of the biggest surprises has ended up playing a critical role in my development: the process of self-examination. It has mattered both professionally and personally, and it should to you too. Yet hardly anyone openly talks about the need…

How Much Are You Paying for Your Size and Value Tilt?

It’s becoming clear that the price for overall U.S. equity market exposure is close to zero. Many market-cap weighted index funds and exchange-traded funds from Vanguard and others are charging expense ratios of five basis points (bps) or less. An interesting, and more difficult, question to answer: How much are you paying to gain exposure…

Changing jobs? 3 tips for making a smooth switch

There are few occasions in life so filled with optimism—and stress—as leaving one company to join another. Regardless of how common career moves are, the tactical skill and emotional fortitude required is anything but typical. The stakes are high, and as a result, mistakes are often made. Here are three rules to follow to help…

‘The One-Page Financial Plan’

ETF

If you’re like most Americans, you may be confused, or even paralyzed, when it comes to developing a financial plan. In fact, most investors I’ve met—including many of those who have a relationship with a stockbroker—don’t have a written investment plan, let alone an overall financial plan designed to incorporate estate planning and risk management…

‘Sure Things’ That Didn’t Pan Out

ETF

Each January, I put together a list of predictions that financial “gurus” have made for the upcoming year—sort of a consensus of “sure things.” I then keep track of whether or not these “sure thing” predictions have actually come to pass. The turn of the calendar into April means that it’s time for our first…

Currency Hedging? Individual Investors Shouldn’t Bother

Wall Street Journal

As it has been so frequently noted in the financial press, last year the U.S. dollar appreciated significantly against most foreign currencies, including the widely quoted benchmark euro. For investors with a portion of their portfolio in unhedged international stocks, this caused some short-term pain. For illustrative purposes, let’s expand the discussion beyond the euro…

Money Talk: A Lifetime of Learning

As a regular contributor to The New York Times and the author of two books, Carl Richards knows the value of a good story. Here’s one he loves. It comes courtesy of Ron Lieber’s new book, The Opposite of Spoiled. Lieber, who also writes a personal finance column for the Times, wrote in his book…

How Poor Decision-Making Affects Your Returns

US News

We tend to think in the short term, but it hampers our ability to invest intelligently. In order to invest successfully, you need to be skilled at decision-making. This is true if you are a do-it-yourself investor or if you rely on recommendations from your financial advisor. The many decisions you must confront include whether…

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