Key Takeaways Recessions are temporary, but the damage from panic-selling your TSP can be permanent. Each of the five TSP funds—G, F, C, S, and I—plays a different role during economic downturns. Moving to the G Fund or F Fund before or during a downturn can protect your portfolio from catastrophic losses. The investors who …
When it comes to evaluating investment performance, the Sharpe Ratio has become one of the most respected tools. Named after Nobel laureate William F. Sharpe, the Sharpe Ratio is more than just a statistical measure; it’s a powerful tool that helps investors understand the risk-adjusted return of an investment strategy. In this article, we’ll explore …
If you’ve ever worked with a financial planner or investment advisor, there’s a good chance you’re using an investment strategy known as strategic asset allocation. While you may not know it by that name, you’re probably familiar with how it works. What you may not be of aware of, however, are how recent changes in financial markets have made this approach to investing more dangerous than ever before.
Investing is very much a mental game. It requires an intellectual toughness and fortitude that is not only uncommon, but very difficult to develop. In this article we discuss the mental resilience that investors need to cultivate in order to stomach the fluctuations that come with being a successful investor.
With the Federal Reserve having recently raised interest rates for the fourth time since the financial crisis, we thought it was an opportune time to discuss how changes in interest rates affect you as an investor. In this article we discuss the role of interest rates in an economy, how those interest rates change over time, and how those changes affect the value of different components of your portfolio.
With each and every investment that you make, you’re going to be giving up one benefit in exchange for another. Most of the time, this trade-off is between risk and potential return. Understanding this trade-off at a conceptual level will go a long way in helping you to select the right investments (or strategies) on your path to retirement.
Regardless of whether you’re a seasoned investor, or someone just getting started, it often helps to review the most basic fundamental principle that underlies all of investing: compounding. If you truly understand the power of compounding, then you recognize that beyond any other force, it is time that exerts the greatest influence on your investment portfolio.
The age-old idea of not having all your eggs in one basket is considered timeless wisdom, but could it be working against you? In truth, diversification is a double edged sword. The benefit that it provides comes at a mighty cost. When it comes to investing, most individuals aren’t aware of the hidden price they pay for this so-called “free lunch.”
The unfortunate reality is that nothing in this world is certain. In fact, the only thing in life that is certain … is that nothing is certain. This is especially true when we talk about money and investing. Since we can’t deal with certainties, we’re forced to deal with probabilities. Therefore, probabilities become the lens through which we must view all things investment related.
You probably understand that you should take less risk with your portfolio as you age, but what does that mean in terms of changes to your investments? And for a given age, exactly how much risk should you be taking? These are two of the most important questions when it comes to managing money, and …
You’ve heard of the gender pay gap, but are you aware of the gender investing gap? Put simply, women do not invest to the same extent that men do. As a result, when retirement rolls around, women end up with only two-thirds as much money in their portfolios. This is a BIG problem, especially when you consider that women in the U.S. tend to live on average 6.5 years longer than their male counterparts.
Stocks? Bonds? Cash? Where should your money be invested? Over the last few decades it has become commonplace to talk about stocks and bonds from a fixed-allocation perspective. This approach to portfolio management has become ingrained in our society; however, it is a very dangerous way to approach investing.
Target-date funds have increased in popularity during recent years as a result of investors continually searching for easy, one-size-fits-all solutions to manage their money. But just how appropriate are these funds for the average investor? The answer may surprise you.
At Model Investing we frequently receive two questions from investors: Is your investment approach conservative, moderate, or aggressive? If I’m close to, or in retirement, how do I adjust your recommendations to accommodate my lower risk appetite? These are excellent questions, and we’ll address each one below. As you’ll see, the answers to both of …
For most investors, the idea of “getting out at the top” is as illusive an idea as winning the lotto, or licking your elbow. The chances of picking that one magical day just seem too low to be probable. But is it really that tough? Or do most investors simply have a poor understanding of how stock market tops develop?
Whether we like it or not, the value of our portfolios depends heavily on the behavior of financial markets, which, in turn, are intertwined with the economy. Therefore, how and where we invest are dictated in large part by our expectations of future economic growth. As the U.S. and other G7 economies slow, it’s going to permanently change the investment landscape.
If you’ve done your homework and are aware of the risks of owning bonds, then you might have heard the argument that you can eliminate interest rate risk by owning individual bonds and holding them to maturity. Let’s explore whether or not there is any truth to this line of reasoning.
Over the last few years a number of automated investment services, known as robo-advisors, have opened their doors. These services are designed to provide ordinary investors with sophisticated portfolio management at a fraction of the cost of a traditional financial advisor. Their growing popularity has caused a stir in the investment community, but just how good are these robo-advisors?
Jim Cramer’s Actions Alerts Plus is a subscription service offered through TheStreet.com. It allows investors to trade alongside Cramer as he makes investment decisions for his charitable trust stock portfolio. With over 70,000 paid subscribers, the service appears to be very successful. But just how well has the Action Alerts PLUS Portfolio performed over time? And how does Model Investing stack up?
When it comes to fixed income investing, there are two options available to investors. You can own individual bonds, or you can purchase shares of a bond fund. Both options have unique advantages and disadvantages that make them suitable under certain conditions.
During the last few decades, bonds have developed a reputation as being one of the safest asset classes to invest in. This is unfortunate because that false sense of security is going to take a large bite out of the retirement accounts and portfolios of many investors.
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