That Agedashi Is About to Get More Expensive
Soybeans through the roof. (Chart from futuresource.com)--OK, I am a bio-nerd/engineer, so I think these pickup lines are really funny. My favorites:4. If I was an enzyme, I’d be helicase so I could unzip your genes.7. Be my queen and mate me with your knight moves.28. I wish I were adenine because then I could get paired with...
Quiz: What is the Best Performing Index the Past 12 Months?
Volatility (VIX) - up around 140%. (Link from IndexUniverse.)Tip of the hat to Marc Faber for nailing this call at the beginning of the year.Also interesting is fact #10 - I cringe every time I hear some pundit say dividends are "safe":Fact 10: Dividends Are Getting WallopedThe Dow Jones Select Dividend Index is down 8.1% this year. And...
Storm Clouds on the Horizon?
A pretty cool shot from my sabbatical in Mexcio right before a big storm. . .Might as well rename Elon Musk "Midas". Do you know anyone else who has built three (4 if you count Paypal) world changing companies? We are right down the road in El Segundo - if a perk includes a new Tesla, maybe...
Up 50% Through July
...and no down quarters since 1999. I never get tired of reading about Jim Simons.Simons at Renaissance Cracks Code, Doubling AssetsThanks to reader RT for the link.
When Is the Time To Buy Homebuilders?
2009 is looking great.With the Dow Jones Homebuilders Index down roughly 75% from the peak, it is tempting to do some bottom fishing and try and pick the bottom.If my previous research on mean reversion in asset classes, country equity indexes, and industries is any indication, 2009 could be a good time to look to invest in the...
A Short Sabbatical
I spent Thanksgiving in the Mexican state of Sinaloa. Watched the Mazatlan Venados lose to the Mexicali Aguilas, did some surfing, and caught up on my reading over a few Pacificos. While my travels were hassle-free, this blog aptly named stuckincustoms is a great site for photography buffs.Had you been using a simple timing model(this chart is...
Hedge Fund Masters
Will looking under the hedge fund hood reveal investment gems - or are you driving by looking in the rear view mirror?The 13Fs are arriving and it is that time again - time to look under the hood and see what all the top hedge funds are up to. This post is particularly timely as my truck just...
A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing?
The 13Fs are trickling in, and I will be updating the portfolios shortly. A manager I was interested in checking out is MLF Investments run by Matt Feshbach - one of the most famous short sellers in history. I penned an article about his fund earlier this year titled "A long only short seller that probably wished...
Mind over Money
Jason Zweig, author of Your Money and Your Brain , has a good interview in Research magazine here.One of my favorite quotes from Zweig:What all the research boils down to is not to make decisions but rather to follow rules and procedures and to act in accordance with policy.Interesting tidbit - he is working on a new book with...
Weekend Reading
The TIPS Bond ETF is up ~ 9% this year, and has had a strong move lately. I wonder why?--Most quants I know perfer the complex to the simple, and more factors to less. I (usually) sit on the other side of the fence, opposite Mr. Rube Goldberg.This fellow would make a great quant! (Although I must...