In the 1960s and early 1970s, there were 50 wildly popular stocks known as the “Nifty Fifty” that seemed invincible. Originally identified by Morgan Guaranty Trust as the fastest growing companies around, the Nifty Fifty were called “one-decision” stocks because you only needed to buy them but never would need to sell them. They were […]
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The 2-Minute Thought: Japan Underappreciated
Japan has long served as the globe’s cautionary tale on deflation, stagnation, and the consequences of a dwindling, greying population. In the 20 years leading up to 2015 — while the U.S. economy grew by more than 130% — the Japanese economy grew not at all. It simply carried on quietly through its gloom with […]
Sven Eklof Graduated from Leadership Champlain
Sven Eklof recently completed Leadership Champlain, a program of the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce for emerging leaders in their businesses, professions, and communities. Leadership Champlain is a 10 month program that focuses on community issues such as the Vermont Economy, Criminal Justice, Education, Civic Engagement, and Energy. The program develops leadership skills and […]
The Robots Are Everywhere…
After the November election President Trump pressured a number of companies to either keep their existing U.S. factories open or to bring jobs back to the U.S. The companies that complied often did so with a big caveat, that they would substitute robots for many of their employees in order to keep expenses down. Conventional […]
Amazon at $1,000…What A Trip…
Amazon is the steamroller of today’s economy. When it enters a new sector – watch out – competitors may not be there tomorrow. Amazon went public 20 years ago and already the stock is up to over $1,000 a share. A $10,000 investment in Amazon 20 years ago is worth nearly $5 million today. Many […]
Lessons from the Gates Foundation…
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is all about going big and bold and tackling the world’s hardest problems. Its guiding principle is that “All lives have equal value.” Its aims are to get more young children to survive and thrive, to empower the world’s poorest people, to combat infectious disease and to inspire people […]
The Madness of Mobs or The Wisdom of Crowds?…
For most of the last 50 years, economists have supported the idea that markets are “efficient” and that securities prices fully reflect all available information. This theory about how markets function (the Efficient Market Hypothesis or EMH) is based on a set of laws that describe how investors behave (they are rational and profit maximizing) […]
The 2-Minute Thought: Purposeful Reading For Investors
So much to read, so little time. . . The lament of investment portfolio managers everywhere is the never-ending struggle with unread newspapers, journals, corporate filings, speeches, investment research, and good books. How do you get through it all and cover all you feel you should know? The frustration is age-old. Even Roman philosopher Seneca […]
The 2-Minute Thought: On Getting Better With Age
In 2014, Lewis H. Lapham wrote a wonderful essay for The New York Times Magazine called “Old Masters” with the subtitle “After 80, some people don’t retire. They reign.” It profiled people in their 80s — and beyond — getting better and better at what they do. The profiled individuals spanned a wide range of […]
The 2-Minute Thought: Industry Concentration, Monopoly Power
The conventional wisdom today is that U.S. stock prices are high and a correction is due. But what if stock prices actually can stay elevated for a long time to come? U.S. stock valuations have been high for longer than many expected. As Jeremy Grantham of money manager GMO shows in the chart below, the […]
The 2-Minute Thought: Lying and Deception
Do you think that when people lie, they avoid eye contact, fidget, or stutter? It’s a widespread belief across cultures. But it is not so. Gaze aversion, posture shifting, rapid eye blinking, and similar cues do not help us detect dishonesty. That’s one of the surprises of a recent research study published by CFA Institute […]
The Science of Football…and Also Investing?…
Back in March 2008 we wrote a piece about football (only we Americans call it soccer). Football matches are low scoring affairs often decided by just one goal. When a penalty kick is awarded, the Goalkeeper is just 36 feet away from the shot taker and has all of 0.2 to 0.3 seconds to react. […]
