http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5903 Wherever you look, you will find various rating systems on mutual funds, each of which uses a different approach. All of them are designed to weed through the thousands of funds to get to the best ones. But is there really such a thing? Does a high rating really mean a fund will do better in the future? Many people seem to think so. A recent study showed that Morningstar, North America's most recognized rating system for funds, has a tremendous influence on fund sales. If Morningstar gives a fi Tue, 12 Jan 2010 09:33:28 PST en-us http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5903 http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5903 Tue, 12 Jan 2010 09:33:28 PST How a 46 year old internet neophyte made his way on the web and found his voice! http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/3428 http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/3428 Sun, 24 May 2009 01:46:34 PST When is 3 percent better than 6 percent? Yeah, we all know the answer, but only until the prices of the securities we already own begin to fall. Then, logic and mathematical acumen disappear and we become susceptible to all kinds of special cures for the periodic onset of higher interest rates. We’ll be told to sit in cash until rates stop rising, or to sell the securities we own now, before they lose even more of their precious market value. http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5645 http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5645 Thu, 02 Jun 2016 11:33:45 PST The larger the portfolio, the more likely it is that you will be able to buy round lots of a diversified group of bonds, preferred stocks, etc. But regardless of size, individual securities of all kinds have liquidity problems, higher risk levels than are necessary, and lower yields spaced out over inconvenient time periods. http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5646 http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5646 Thu, 02 Jun 2016 11:49:04 PST It matters not what lines, numbers, indices, or gurus you worship, you just can't know where the stock market is going or when it will change direction. Too much investor time and analytical effort is wasted trying to predict course corrections… even more is squandered comparing portfolio Market Values with a handful of unrelated indices and averages. http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5648 http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5648 Mon, 18 Jun 2018 10:49:41 PST So, in addition to the normal risks associated with investing in general, we add: speculating in narrowly focused sectors, guessing on the prospects of unproven small cap companies, experimenting with securities in single countries, rolling the dice on commodities, and hoping for the eventual success of new technologies. http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5652 http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5652 Tue, 18 Aug 2015 11:09:06 PST Without having mega millions to work with, or a line of credit that goes around the block, you can have positions in various forms of Real Estate (commercial, industrial, residential) at the same time, and focus either on growth opportunities, income production, or a combination of the two. http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5657 http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5657 Wed, 13 Nov 2013 09:16:37 PST Smack, right up alongside the head. Your 401(k) investment program deteriorated rapidly as the stock market and the economy weakened. Who would have thought that there was so much risk of loss in those mutual funds, and ETFs? Fortunately, the pain is most often temporary, but the timing of the recovery could alter some participant retirement schedules and benefits--- not to mention the hefty confiscation level retirees can count on from Uncle Sam. http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5659 http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5659 Wed, 28 Oct 2009 02:43:38 PST Call it foresight, or hindsight if you want to be argumentative, but a long-term view of the investment process eliminates the guesswork and points pretty clearly toward a trading mentality that keys on the very natural volatility of the hundreds of investment grade value stocks out there for your portfolio building attention. Market Cycle Investment Management makes market volatility your Very Best Friend http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5660 http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5660 Mon, 09 Dec 2013 08:19:19 PST Value stocks are those that tend to trade at lower prices relative to their fundamental characteristics than their more speculative cousins, the growth stocks; they have higher than usual dividend yields and lower P/E and P/B ratios. http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5667 http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5667 Wed, 28 Oct 2009 03:36:21 PST Golfers will spend thousands on instruction, gadgets, machines, clinics, magazines, lessons, drivers, and putters. Investors love the gimmicks, shortcuts, and expert recommendations, but they seem allergic to anything really educational. They must see it as a sign of weakness. Golfers should be better investors. Investors need to introduce themselves to some basic education. http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5675 http://net-teams.net/nti/Display.cfm/5675 Mon, 13 Jul 2015 11:47:05 PST