One of the big challenges for average investors like you and me is sifting through the mountains of information that comes from the market on a daily basis. I think that may be the biggest reason that so many investors have been conditioned over the course of decades of market activity to rely on analyst […]
Read MoreOne of my favorite movies of all-time is “The Man from Snowy River,” and one of my favorite sound bites from that film comes early in the story, when Kirk Douglas’ crusty codger tells the young hero, “don’t throw effort after foolishness.” That bit of advice comes back to me fairly often, and I think […]
Read MoreIf there’s one thing that always seems to get investor’s attention it’s any news, rumor or speculation about interest rates. I guess that isn’t too surprising – central banking policy about interest rates has always wielded considerable influence on the financial markets. I think this is a fact that has become even more true over […]
Read MoreOver the last couple of months, one of the most-talked-about sectors of the economy has been the Financial sector, with a specific emphasis on the Banking industry. From early in 2020 until the beginning of 2022, the sector was one of the biggest stars of the market. As interest rates have increased this year, however, […]
Read MoreNo matter what the economic or market cycle is, one of the things you can bet on is that the Technology sector will be on the bleeding front edge of the stock market’s direction. In today’s world, it shouldn’t be that surprising to hear that Technology tends to lead the way in defining whether the […]
Read MoreThe quest for useful value in the stock market is one of those things that applies to any market condition – bull, bear, or none. The current state of the market and the economy in general is what tends to shift the value focus from one sector to another. The last year and a half […]
Read MoreOne of the core principles about technical analysis that was drilled into my head early in my investing career is that “the market is always right.” It’s one of those idioms that is good as a sound bite. It’s also useful in building a disciplined investing mindset, because it’s designed to disconnect a person’s bias […]
Read MoreSo far in 2023, investors have been anxious to find a thread—any thread—of hope that the economy might turn bullish at some point before 2024. While interest rates have continued to rise, speculation is increasing that while the Fed will probably not start cutting interest rates this year, they might be ready to start leaving […]
Read MoreA big piece of successful value investing involves the ability to identify useful “targets of opportunity.” That’s something that isn’t altogether easy, but it can be done in a few different ways. One of the ways is to work from top to bottom. Rather than sifting through thousands of individual stocks, that means starting at […]
Read MoreUncertain market conditions make it harder for average investors like you and me to find winning stocks – at least in the short term. As a contrarian-minded, value-oriented investor, I actually like these kinds of market conditions, because it keeps pressure on most sectors and industries in the market. That means that finding stocks trading […]
Read MoreWhen I see stocks trading at or near historical highs I almost always assume that the stock is overvalued. That’s even more true if the stock is near to an all-time high and has been following an upward trend of more than a year. A similar, opposite logic applies to stocks in a downward trend; […]
Read MoreInflation, rising interest rates, and all of the economic uncertainty that comes with them puts a lot of pressure on industries that are associated with consumer demand. That includes the Auto industry. The last few years have seen a lot of turmoil for auto manufacturers. The pandemic shuttered economic activity, and collapsed oil prices as […]
Read MoreOne of the simplest concepts a lot of successful investors have used to find useful investments is to start by looking around their house. Regular household items, including what you wear, can offer an interesting outlet to find practical investments, often at useful, discounted prices. One of the trends that I’ve followed with interest for […]
Read MoreThe start of 2023, in many ways has been an extension of fears and uncertainty that plagued the market for most of 2022. The last year or so has shifted the narrative away from COVID and onto the reality of inflation, rising interest rates, and all of its normal effects. Issues that existed prior to […]
Read MoreMore than two decades of experience as a student of the markets have taught me that while the market is generally resilient, there is one word that always seems to automatically put the market on edge: change. For the last few years, change has been a constant reality in the global economy. Whether you want […]
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