...as hedge funds go from bad to worse. You may have heard of hedge funds but not be entirely sure how they work. In a nutshell a hedge fund is an investment fund that uses complex strategies, is open only to high net worth individuals, has less regulatory oversight than other types of funds, and charges much higher fees. Normally the word “hedge” means to take precautions to lower risk. This was the case when these funds were first developed in the late 1940s to early [...]

In 1972 the Miami Dolphins had a remarkable run of success. Led by coach Don Shula the team won all 14 of their regular season games and all 3 of their NFL playoff games, including Super Bowl VII. The “Perfect Season” is a feat that's never been repeated, though the New England Patriots came close in 2007. But let's say that a hypothetical friend of yours becomes an NFL coach and one day confides in you that he has a foolproof plan for going undefeated and [...]

Today's article is from the WSJ. I'm sharing it because it serves as a 'heads up', and accurately paints the current tax picture and what the potential picture could be, based on recent statements and predictions. When it comes to the stock market, we never make predictions. When it comes to tax policy, being forewarned is being forearmed. **************** Complain if you must, but we live in a Golden Age of Taxes—the lowest rates we may see for decades. President Trump’s 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs [...]

In their paper Evaluation and Ranking of Market Forecasters a team of statistical researchers from the U.S. and Australia sought to rank the accuracy of 68 prominent financial forecasters. The study looked at 6,627 predictions made over a 14-year period about the S&P 500. The time frame of the predictions varied from three to twelve months. What the study found was that about two-thirds of the forecasters had an accuracy score of less than 50%. Statistically, you'd be better off flipping a coin rather than following their advice. [...]

As I've written in many previous email blasts, we're going to be bumping along between a couple 'guard rails' - 23,000 and 24,000 until the market gets some good news. And while we're traveling this crazy road, it's sometimes difficult to see the bigger picture, especially when the media is blaring doom and gloom 24/7. Let's take a look at a little history - perspective - so folks can perhaps breathe a bit easier. At least for this week. Since 1926, the US stock market has [...]