ETFs have soared in popularity in the last few years. They are often the best, most efficient way to invest in an asset class. Closed-end funds (CEFs) are also an alternative way to own an asset class that can have advantages. But sometime these types of funds are not so Read more…
We are living through the greatest test of the 4% safe withdrawal rate in history. Sounds like a big overarching statement but that’s what the data tells me. A little over a year ago I questioned whether or not the year 2000 retiree would be the first to destroy the Read more…
Value investing seems easy when you first approach it. Buy stocks that are undervalued and wait until they return to at least fair value. Finding those stocks that are cheap is also pretty easy. Pick your favorite ratio, arm yourself with a stock screener, and you can easily find a Read more…
OK. I know. I’m schizophrenic. In my last post I’m telling you why I think interest rates will stay low longer than people expect. Now, I’m going to explain how rates could go higher and why I’m hoping they do. One of the things that makes investing a challenge is Read more…
How many times a week do you read that interest rates have no where to go but up? That bonds are terrible investments and will be crushed by rising rates? And when was the first time you started to hear these stories? If you read pretty much any source of Read more…
I am often shocked at how much income investors will stick their neck out for yield. I spend most of my time looking at stocks so I often will note how I think investors are reaching for yield by going after utilities, REITs, etc… But if you really want to Read more…
For my first post back from my break, I’d like to focus on the valuation of one of my favorite sectors, MLPs. I’ve posted on MLPs many times before (see here for a list of posts) and my largest single stock position for years has been Enterprise Products (EPD). Bottom Read more…
Its had been quite a while since my last post. Recently I’ve been getting the itch to get back to writing about investing. More importantly, my wife, Nina, says I’ve been talking too much about investing to her and to myself while staring at my computer screen. So, I guess Read more…
In my last post I covered the easiest and most obvious way to get exposure to dividend stocks, by investing in dividend ETFs. While dividend ETFs give you one of the biggest benefits of dividend investing, higher returns, they fail to deliver on other key benefits of dividend investing; lower Read more…
“OK, I buy the dividend argument, now what?” This is something I hear quite a bit. After going through the argument for investing based on dividends, which I summarized in my blog summarizing my top dividend posts, many investors don’t know what to do next. Basically, there are two choices Read more…
Recently there were two great pieces of investment research published that are well worth your time to site down and read. Both of these pieces provide great historical data on major asset class returns, country returns, valuation, etc… First, is the Credit Suisse Global Investment Returns Yearbook 2012 (thanks to Read more…