Rather than supposing that firms who have done well recently will continue to do well, systematic investors can rest easy knowing that they will participate in the upside of the next ‘Big Five’, the ‘Big Five’ after that and each subsequent ‘Big Five’. Those who can block out the noise of good stories and jumping on bandwagons are usually rewarded in this game.
Read MoreOne of the hardest concepts to grasp in investing is that a ‘good’ company is not always a better investment opportunity than a ‘bad’ company. If we believe that markets work pretty well – not unreasonable given that few investment professionals beat the market over time - and that they incorporate all public information into prices pretty quickly and efficiently, all of the ‘good’ and ‘bad’ news should already be reflected in these prices.
Read MoreWhat is the impact of this pandemic on my investment portfolio? And what can you do to protect your future wealth?
As always, I will remind you we cannot predict the future. That is not our job. But what we can do is try and find similar issues in the past and see what strategy we can adopt today.
Read MoreWhile it might make intuitive sense that there should be a close link between how a country's economy performs and the returns from its stock market, the historical evidence shows otherwise.
Read MoreThe South Sea Bubble was one of the first, and one of the worst, financial crashes in history. The lessons from that episode are as important today as they were 300 years ago.
Read MoreSome financial professionals are dismissive of academic research, arguing that it’s too far removed from the realities of today’s financial markets. True, academic models are, by their nature, theoretical. But that doesn’t mean investors can’t learn practical lessons from them.
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While the temptation to try to pick stocks can be great because the rewards can be high, the odds are not in your favour. It is much better to trust the market as a whole.
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For decades active managers have sold the idea that they can out-perform the market. That is what investors pay them to do. But how many are delivering value for money?
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The media’s need for big market calls that attract eyeballs is easy to understand. We’re naturally drawn to the idea that someone out there can see the future clearly. The reality, unfortunately, is that no-one can. Everyone is guessing.
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In most relationships it tends to be the male partner who makes the financial decisions. Yet women are just as good at dealing with money than men, if not better. Why, then, do so many women shy away from finance and investing? And how can the balance be redressed? Psychologist Moira Somers sheds more light on the subject in this video.
Read MoreModern consumers are told we can have everything we want right now. And, if we can’t afford it, we can put it all on the plastic and worry about paying for it later. Investing doesn’t work like that at all.
Read MoreThe fall of Neil Woodford, once dubbed “Britain’s Warren Buffet”, is just the latest in a long line of investment fiascos, and it won’t be the last.
Read MoreThere is a significant body of research showing there is a long-term premium available for investors who tilt their portfolios away from glitzy growth toward less fashionable value stocks — ones with low prices relative to fundamentals like earnings or book value. The problem is that no one has worked out either when and where that premium will kick in
Read MoreIt’s very tempting to try to second-guess the market. But successful market timing is often down to luck rather than skill, and doing it consistently is almost impossible. So what are the alternatives?
Read MoreAs attention turns to the Rugby World Cup in Japan, we’ve been looking at what we can learn from the oval-ball game when it comes to building a suitable investment portfolio.
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