Earlier this week, Senator Dick Durbin called out Bank of America, infuriated by the bank’s decision to impose a $5 monthly charge to use their debit card. Specifically, while standing on the Senate floor, Senator Durbin was quoted as saying “Bank of America customers, vote with your feet, get the heck out of that bank. … Continued
Markets continue to roil, further depressing equity and portfolio values. Once again, the determination of long term investors is being tested. In our view, the disconnect between the current economic environment and market perceptions continues to widen. The distress in Greece is creating issues that appear to be self-fulfilling prophecies for many financial institutions in … Continued
President Obama has suggested it is time to raise income taxes for “millionaires and billionaires” but beyond the rhetoric, this applies to anyone earning over $200,000. The two “Warrens” (Buffet and Elizabeth) have also recently weighed in on the merit of an income tax increase and with this avalanche of support, it reminded me of … Continued
Following the conclusion of the GM/UAW contract negotiations, it was revealed that one component of the contract was that each worker would get a “signing bonus” of $5,000 each if the contract was approved by the rank and file. Does it strike anyone else as a bit disturbing that the company would be passing out … Continued
Like most people, we have always admired Warren Buffett as an astute investor. He is thorough and rigorous in analysis, he uses a common sense approach to investing and he is patient and disciplined in his investment process. He also employs a common sense approach to compensation structures used at the companies owned in the … Continued
Yes, but there are some difficult and potentially contentious hurdles. In the interest of perspective, it would be helpful to consider the public and the private sectors separately. The Federal Government, through State or local governments, could simply begin hiring, or provide funding for non-federal hiring. The problem with this approach is that it requires … Continued
During times like these we are often asked what we are doing to protect the value of our clients’ portfolios. This is a fair question and one that deserves an answer. From a macro perspective, we take the time to understand each of our client’s risk tolerance, time horizons, income needs, etc. This information leads … Continued
On Friday, September 2, 2011, President Obama announced that he was suspending the Environmental Protection Agency’s rule tightening air quality standards, recognizing that the regulation was certain to impair job creation in an already poor economic and employment environment. Last December, President Obama also signed legislation extending lowered tax rates enacted during the Bush Administration. … Continued
During the first eight months of 2011, the Detroit Three auto manufacturers have enjoyed a 16% increase in unit volume as industry sales increased 10%. These results reflect, in part, an improving economy and inventory problems for two of Detroit’s primary competitors, Toyota and Honda. Detroit’s market share increased to 49% (up from 44%) while … Continued
Equity markets have proven their penchant for volatility in August. The last few trading sessions have been mostly positive though. As the volatility temporarily fades from the radar screen and we turn our sights to other matters germane to investment decision making, we thought it notable that Greek sovereign bonds are currently trading for anywhere … Continued
We thought this was worth sharing: “Investors Who Held On Since 2008 Made Right Move”. This was published August, 19, 2011 on CNBC. They report three key findings: Those that changed equity allocations to zero and stayed clear of stocks had an average balance increase of only 2%. Participants who exited after the crash and recently … Continued
Dylan Ratigan caught my attention twice within the past week. The first, during his self-admitted televised rant and the second, his follow-up article where he, after gathering his thoughts, put together a more detailed explanation of his opinions (review for yourself here). Reading this explanation three times myself, I found the undertones to be quite … Continued
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