Index Funds
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Monday, November 1st, 2010Here are the total returns for the 7 Twelve Portfolio through October 2010 (Click to see a larger version): NOTES: This portfolio assumes $1,000,000 initial investment with a 5% income withdrawal on December 31, 2009 for a net investment of $950,000. The portfolio also does not include trading costs. The Vanguard REIT Index ETF is [...]
S&P Indice 2010 Year-to-Date Performance Through October
Monday, November 1st, 2010October 2010′s 3.81% total return for the S&P 500 Index was its best October return since 2003. October’s positive return brought the year-to-date return for the index 7.84%. The Midcap and Smallcap indexes have performed much better so far this year. Interestingly, the Barclay’s Aggregate Bond Index has outperformed the S&P 500 so far this [...]
Another Equity Indexed Annuity I Would Avoid
Friday, September 10th, 2010My friend, Allan Roth, posted an article today about an equity indexed annuity that he came across (you can read Allan’s piece here). It’s an interesting piece that details certain tricks that companies use in order to lure people into their products. I want to focus on his trick #2 – “average annual” return. According [...]
A Hypothetical Conversation Between a Stock Picker and an Indexer
Tuesday, July 13th, 2010I saw this hypothetical conversation between a stock picker and an indexer by Larry Swedroe in the book I mentioned last night: Mutual Funds: Portfolio Structures, Analysis, Management, and Stewardship (Robert W. Kolb Series)*. Read the conversation and tell me what you think. My thoughts are at the end. Steve: I just bought a 1,000 [...]
Correlation In the Market is Making Life Difficult for Stock Pickers
Monday, July 12th, 2010An article in today’s WSJ talks about how the correlation (the tendency for stocks to move in the same direction) in the stock market is at high not seen since 1987. From the article: Earlier this year, when stocks were on the mend and investors were less anxious, the correlation between the S&P 500 and [...]
American Funds’ Investment Company of America vs. S&P 500 Index (Part 2)
Wednesday, April 28th, 2010My post from yesterday raised some eyebrows and ruffled some feathers. I suppose I used a bit too much glamour when I used the word “smoked” in the title. I tend to do that sometimes when I want to draw attention to a post. Some questions were raised about my methods: Why did I choose [...]
A Decade-by-Decade Look at the S&P 500 Index and Inflation
Wednesday, February 24th, 2010Okay, for those you who like graphics (do any of you like graphics or am I just doing this for my own gratification?), here is a decade-by-decade look at the S&P 500 Total Return Index and the CPI. I began each decade with the S&P 500 TR Index, the CPI, and the S&P 500 TR [...]
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