A recent article in the Los Angeles Times suggests that there’s a growing inclination among baby boomers to shift to day trading as a strategy to make up for all the losses they incurred since 2008.  The average 60-year-old currently has only $114,500 in his or her 401(k), according to benefits firm Aon Hewitt, and…
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A recent poll by the Investor Protection Trust, a non-profit devoted to investor education, found that almost 60% of respondents — all professionals who work with the elderly — deal with elderly victims of investment fraud “quite often” or “somewhat often.”   The respondents included state securities regulators, financial planners, medical professionals, social workers, caregivers, and…
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Vanguard, the large mutual fund company, recently released a study that attempted to answer the following two questions: Do hedge funds consistently outperform standard market benchmarks? Do hedge funds represent “alternative” investments with good diversification potential relative to stocks & bonds? Vanguard’s conclusion:  “No” to both questions. Titled “A mixed bag: Performance of hedge fund…
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I mean that quite literally. Volatility causes a drag effect on investment returns. And although modern portfolio theory teaches that investments with expected higher returns generally have higher volatility, volatility itself always negatively impacts returns. This is not a theory but a mathematical fact that can easily be demonstrated. Let’s take a hypothetical example. You’ve…
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