The Investment Scientist

Archive for September 2009

The recession is very likely over.” – Fed Chairman Bernanke on 9/15/09.

What does the fed chairman’s statement mean for stocks, if indeed the worst recession since 1929 is over? We don’t know for sure. We can, however, let history be our guide.

In this spirit, I studied the one-year and three-year returns of the S&P 500 Index and the Fama/French Small Cap Value Index coming out of a recession for the nine recessions since 1950.

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My friend Carl Richards made an interesting observation in his last post:

Just when we need something to zig, they all zagged together!

FearSome people draw the conclusion that diversification no longer works. I strongly disagree.

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Roth-conversion-opportunityStarting from tax year 2010, the Tax Reconciliation Act permits all taxpayers to make Roth IRA conversions, regardless of income level. Previously, taxpayers with a modified adjusted gross income of $100,000 (or more) were not permitted to make Roth IRA conversions.

With a stroke of the pen, many affluent Americans can increase their wealth by 10-20% in their lifetime. If circumstances are right, they may even double their wealth for their family.

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Author

Michael Zhuang is principal of MZ Capital, a fee-only independent advisory firm based in Washington, DC.

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