Interview

On Withdrawal Rates

In a recent Barron’s interview, Ray Dalio discusses financial deleveraging and makes an interesting point about the relationship between nominal interest rates and...

Slow and Steady at SunAmerica Proving Variable Annuity Business Not as Bad as it Seems

Despite a barrage of negative press, it appears that SunAmerica ’s measured approach to the variable annuity business is demonstrating that the successful production of variable annuities is similar to most other lines of insurance . The Hartford ’s recent decision to exit the variable annuity business entirely is attributable in part to their management’s (under significant shareholder pressure) view that the VA business is capital intensive and has relatively unattractive...
Companies: 

Trees Grow

“Trees grow” is an adage that has stuck with me over the past several years.

In a post financial crisis interview, a successful investment manager was talking about his decision to load-up on Citigroup and a handful of other banks in early 2009 when the decision to do so was difficult to say the least.

The manager referenced a professor who shared the trees grow saying with him, and he emphasized the impact that the idea had on his decision to build and maintain significant long positions in banks and other financial services stocks when everyone else was certain the world was coming to an end.

The trees grow idea involves considering fundamental qualities of things—whether trees, people or businesses.

Growing is what trees do—it is...

Glossary: 

Does Buy and Hold Now Require a Floor?

The Wall Street Journal recently published an interview (see the video below) with entrepreneur and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.

The interview is interesting for a number of reasons.  Cuban talks about investing his own money and he offers some suggestions for regular, non high net worth investors. 

In a nutshell, Cuban strongly believes that the “buy and hold” approach to investing is a worthless strategy.

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Companies: 

For Retail Investors Who Want to Sleep at Night

It is the afternoon (markets are closed) of August 9 2011, and millions of retail investors around the world must be asking themselves whether they can continue to stomach the gut-wrenching capital market...

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