Investing Based on a Company’s Net Income is Probably Not the Best Idea

 

It’s earnings season again, which means you are probably staring at a company or two in your portfolio that have seen their share price take a dive after reporting “disappointing” earnings.

 

You are not alone.

 

Here was the news the other morning after Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway reported earnings:

 

brk_earnings

 

Sounds bad right? Profit (Net Income) is down by a sizeable margin year over year for Berkshire.

 

Does this mean it is time to say goodbye to the all-star investor?

 

From those headlines it may seem so. But there is a lot more to a company’s financials than that headline earnings number. (Read to the end and find out how Buffett really measures the success of his businesses.) [continue reading…]

Want to Invest in the Stocks Ben Graham Would Buy Today? There’s a Fund for that! Q4 2016

ben-gragam-fund-spotlight-banner

 

Our newest addition to our Fund Spotlight Series. Here we are building off of our Ben Graham Value Screen Series, and making those screens investable with just a click with the help of Motif Investing.

This is a collection of companies that most recently have passed Graham’s stringent value investing screen.

Of the whole investing universe, less than 25 companies make the list. What would Ben Graham buy today? this is probably a good start: [continue reading…]

Quote of the Week: The First Key to Investing

key to investing post image

There are many factors that go into creating long term success for investors. Despite what the talking heads on CNBC or your broker or advisor may say, trading in and out of today’s hottest investments is not one.

Investors have struggled in finding out what it takes to succeed for long periods on Wall Street.

Just in the last decade and a half investors have been made to believe they are investing geniuses in 1999, only to be burned by 90% losses in the tech bubble of 2000. Thought they were real estate market wizards only to been stuck holding 5 houses in the real estate bust of 2008. Or, been scared to believe that the only viable investment is a shiny yellow metal, only to see a decline of $600 an ounce in gold since 2011 (this is just to name a few).

 

So when the founder and CEO of one of the most successful fund management companies of the last 30 years opens up about his firm’s investment philosophy, it’s probably in our best interest to listen.

 

His best advice is only one sentence long, simple to implement and takes less effort than pouring a cup of coffee:  [continue reading…]

Guy Spier’s 9 Rules for Smarter Investing

shareasimage 9 rules

The latest monthly issue of AAII Journal has a great piece written up by Guy Spier – manager of the Aquamarine Fund and author of the excellent book “The Education of a Value Investor: My Transformative Quest for Wealth, Wisdom, and Enlightenment“.  Here, Guy Spier gives 9 rules for smarter investing. His book goes into more detail on each of these topics (and many more), but this provides a great starting point. [continue reading…]

FRED – Federal Reserve Economic Data – Your Access to the Best Economic Research

For investors looking to get more involved managing their portfolio and willing to spend some extra time doing research, here is a resource for some of the best macroeconomic data available (And it’s FREE!) [continue reading…]