Archive for January 2010
DFA founder and directors on Efficient Market Hypothesis (Theory)
Posted by: Michael Zhuang on: January 28, 2010
“Stir-Frying” Chinese Stocks
Posted by: Michael Zhuang on: January 26, 2010
At the end of last October, the Chinese stock market index was up 70% for the year. One would expect Chinese investors to be making money hand over fist. Not so, the Chinese Securities Investor Protection Agency, the equivalent of SIPC, did a survey of investors in November that garnered 2,791 valid responses. The result [...]
“Good intentions” doesn’t cut it
Posted by: Michael Zhuang on: January 25, 2010
There are inherent conflicts of interests between for-profit mutual fund companies and the investors in funds run by such companies. For example: Investors benefit from low expense ratios. Fund management benefits from high expense ratios. Investors benefit from plain-English, thorough disclosures regarding costs and conflicts of interests. Fund management benefits from poor disclosures. A reader [...]
Roth IRA conversion examples
Posted by: Michael Zhuang on: January 17, 2010
There is one important rule to keep in mind when it comes to converting a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA – you need to pay federal income taxes on any portion of the conversion that you haven’t already paid taxes on. Example 1 For example, let’s say you started to fund traditional IRAs in [...]
‘The Investment Scientist’ or ‘The Investment Fiduciary’: Help me Choose
Posted by: Michael Zhuang on: January 17, 2010
When I started this blog 30 months ago, my only goal was to disseminate the best investment research done in academia. Much of the so-called investment research produced by the financial industry (aka Wall Street) and purveyed by the media is nothing more than advertisement in disguise. The truly rigorous and unbiased research is often [...]
Jim Cramer’s top tech stocks for 2010
Posted by: Michael Zhuang on: January 9, 2010
Never underestimate what a bull market could do to Jim Cramer. After shying from making any top picks for 2009, presumably because he didn’t see any stocks worthy of buying at the beginning of 2009, he is back to his own game with a vengeance this year. We’ll see if his 2010 picks below will [...]
How not to ruin a 60/40 portfolio
Posted by: Michael Zhuang on: January 6, 2010
This past Christmas, I had the distinct pleasure of calling several of my clients in retirement and telling them their portfolios are back to their pre-crisis level and their financial freedom is safe and sound. Their portfolios are variations of the so-called 60/40 portfolio – about 60% in equity-like investments and 40% in bond-like ones. [...]
Profit from Harry Dent’s prediction? think again
Posted by: Michael Zhuang on: January 2, 2010
I am exasperated. A client of mine just sent me Harry Dent’s latest book, The Great Depression Ahead, with a note. My client was absolutely convinced that the Dow will go down to 3,800, and he wanted me to do something to profit from this inevitability. I don’t blame him. Dent is a brilliant man; [...]
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