Guest Blog by Kip Robbins, CFA, Zacks.com. Having worked in the equity markets for awhile now with a primary focus on finding profitable stock-picking strategies, I sometimes feel like the keeper of great stock picking ideas. That being said, as the New Year is upon us, I’m in a giving mood and would like to [...]
Archive for the ‘Portfolio Investing 101’ Category
3 Stock Picking Strategies for 2012
Posted in Investors, Long-term investing, Low Cost Investing, Market Outlook, Portfolio Investing 101, Risk, Stock Investing, Uncategorized, tagged asset allocation, Income Investing, stock investing, stocks, volatility on January 9, 2012 | Leave a Comment »
Lemons or Lemonade?
Posted in Behavioral Finance, Diversification, financial planning, Income Investing, Investors, Market Outlook, Personalization, Portfolio Investing 101, Uncategorized, Wealth, tagged Accrual Anomaly, cash flow, Dr. Richard Sloan, earnings, Len Zacks, The Handbook of Equity Market Anomalies, zacks, zacks.com on November 23, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Guest Blog by Kip Robbins, CFA, Zacks.com. This past Sunday it was 71 degrees and dry in Chicago. If you’ve ever lived here in November, you know that’s an anomaly. At this time of year, it’s usually 44 and wet. I felt so warm, I decided to have a glass of lemonade which is usually [...]
The Five Biggest Financial Issues for People with Children At Home
Posted in 401(k), debt, Diversification, financial planning, Investors, Long-term investing, Market Outlook, Portfolio Investing 101, Real Estate, Regular Investing, Retirement, retirement planning, Uncategorized, Wealth, tagged college savings, Elizabeth Warren, emergency savings, financial literacy, retirement, The Two Income Trap on November 21, 2011 | 1 Comment »
This is the second article in a series. The first is titled The Five Biggest Financial Issues for Pre-Retirees. The years in which you are raising children are among the most important in your life, and financial choices and decisions are no small part. First, you are managing the widest range of financial demands. You [...]
“A Little Late” by Carl Richards
Posted in Active Investing, Asset Allocation, Diversification, Financial Advisors, financial planning, Investors, Long-term investing, Low Cost Investing, Market Outlook, Market Timing, Markets, Portfolio Investing 101, Rebalancing, Regular Investing, Retirement, Risk, Stock Investing, Uncategorized, Volatility, Wealth, tagged Behavioral Finance, behaviorgap.com, Carl Richards, diversification, economy, market volatility, recession, stock market predictions, stock market rebound, Wall Street Journal on September 27, 2011 | 1 Comment »
Carl Richards’ is a favorite contributor here at the Portfolioist. We’ve interviewed him in the past (see, “How to Pick an Investment Advisor (Part 3): Carl Richards’ 3 Key Questions” by Nanette Byrnes) and remain a fan of his website, behaviorgap.com. Using a Sharpie and a piece of card stock, Richards captures complex financial ideas [...]
Long Live Diversification!
Posted in Active Investing, Asset Allocation, Bonds, Diversification, ETFs, financial planning, Income Investing, Investors, Long-term investing, Low Cost Investing, Market Outlook, Market Timing, Markets, Passive Investing, Personalization, Portfolio Investing 101, Rebalancing, Regular Investing, Retirement, Risk, Stock Investing, Uncategorized, Volatility, Wealth, tagged A Random Walk Down Wall Street, diversification, economic downturn, economy, recession, retirement, S&P 500, S&P 500 Index, Target Date Folios, Target Date Funds on September 22, 2011 | 1 Comment »
I get tired of all of the articles saying that the old standards of buy and hold and diversification are dead. Every time the market takes a dive or things get volatile, I hear the same refrain: “Buy and hold is dead.” “Diversification is an easy way to lose.” “Diversification is for idiots.” What I [...]
It’s Time to Revisit Our Financial Resolutions
Posted in Active Investing, Asset Allocation, Behavioral Finance, Bonds, Commodities, debt, Diversification, Dividends, Income Investing, Investors, Leverage, Long-term investing, Low Cost Investing, Market Outlook, Personalization, Portfolio Investing 101, Rebalancing, Retirement, Risk, Stock Investing, Uncategorized, tagged Inflation, inflation beating bonds, low-beta stocks, recession, stock market volatility, TIPS, volatility on September 6, 2011 | 2 Comments »
Did you make a financial resolution when the clock struck midnight on New Year’s Eve? Don’t we all? Believe it or not, January 1, 2011 was more than eight months ago—and needless to say, a lot has happened since we all rang in the New Year. That’s why right now might be the perfect time to [...]
The Changing American Workforce: Can They Still Retire?
Posted in Active Investing, financial planning, Investors, Long-term investing, Personalization, Portfolio Investing 101, Rebalancing, Regular Investing, Retirement, Stock Investing, Uncategorized, tagged economy, employers, hiring, job market, recession, retirement, retirement costs, Target Date Folios, Target Date Funds, Wall Street Journal on August 30, 2011 | 4 Comments »
The Wall Street Journal recently published the article, “What’s Wrong with America’s Job Engine?” which talks about the changing relationships between employers and workers in the wake of the recession. The article suggests that companies have not ramped up their hiring in the ways that many expected. The first thing that really jumped out at [...]
Why Warren Buffett Was Right: “Diversification is Protection Against Ignorance”
Posted in Active Investing, Asset Allocation, Behavioral Finance, Commodities, Corporate Governance, debt, Diversification, Dividends, ETFs, financial ratios, Global Investing, Income Investing, Investors, Leverage, Long-term investing, Market Outlook, Market Timing, Markets, Mutual Funds, Portfolio Investing 101, Rebalancing, Regular Investing, Retirement, Risk, Stock Investing, Uncategorized, Volatility, tagged diversification, ETFs, fear, forecast, market drop, market fears, mornignstar, prediction, recession, REITs, retirement, S&P 500, Target Date Folios, Warren Buffett on August 3, 2011 | 2 Comments »
The volatility in the broad stock market has shaken investors’ belief in the true value of portfolio diversification. The problem is that many of the people who believe that diversification no longer works, may not know how to build a truly diversified portfolio. Warren Buffett is widely quoted as saying : “Diversification is protection against ignorance.” I’ll [...]
Are Americans Saving Enough for Retirement?
Posted in Active Investing, Asset Allocation, Behavioral Finance, ETFs, Investors, Leverage, Market Outlook, Market Timing, Markets, Portfolio Investing 101, Retirement, Stock Investing, Uncategorized, Volatility, Wealth, tagged Fidelity, Financial Crisis, retirement, Vanguard on July 18, 2011 | 3 Comments »
Have retirement accounts balances rebounded from the financial crisis? Reports from both Vanguard and Fidelity put the average balance for U.S. 401(k) plans at a record $75,000 (as of March 31, 2011). The first report, released from Fidelity in May, showed that the average 401(k) balance rose to $74,900—up 12% over the last year. This [...]
Why Low Beta Stocks Are Worth a Look
Posted in Active Investing, Asset Allocation, Behavioral Finance, Diversification, Investors, Leverage, Long-term investing, Low Cost Investing, Market Outlook, Market Timing, Mutual Funds, Portfolio Investing 101, Retirement, Risk, Stock Investing, Uncategorized, Volatility on July 12, 2011 | 5 Comments »
Just last month Geoff Considine wrote an article about why investors may want to explore low beta strategies in a highly volatile market. Here at the Portfolioist, we thought we’d re-post the article in reponse to this week’s wild ride on Wall Street. The recent volatility in the stock market has many investors trying to [...]

