The best businesses can be too good to stay that way. Blessed with superb economics and seemingly-impregnable market positions, anyone would want to own their quality but for two recurring problems: Valuation – Unless the company or its sector is new (think Google-owner Alphabet on listing in 2004) or there is some kind of crisis (as [...]
active investing
If half the stocks on the LSE are going to be bid for at a premium, then I know which half I want to own!
While nothing is always true in investing, it’s generally the case that buying cheap assets gives you a better prospect of higher future returns. With bonds the relationship is clear. Lower bond prices mean higher yields – and your starting yield with a bond is an excellent indicator of the return you’ll ultimately receive. With [...]
Entertaining documentary about the GameStop saga or disturbing sign of how warped society is getting?
A case study in what can happen when your portfolio is constructed from newspaper and wealthlist recommendations.
Investing edge is (mostly) a fantasy concocted by people that (mostly) don’t have it, in order to make you pay.
If you decide to try to beat the market by stockpicking, you’ll need to avoid these common return sucks…
The Investor got away with his ill-advised foray into mini-bonds, but did he learn any lessons?
Are you a new share trader? Do you want to see a path to making profitable investments? Read on!
The only way for active funds to compete with ever-cheaper passive rivals is to cut costs to the bone. Will they?
Investors who stick to boring companies that churn out cash have been well-rewarded over the long-term.
The returns of the world’s greatest investors, plus the rest of the week’s best reads…
Warren Buffett doesn’t have to champion index funds, but because the maths favours them for almost all managers, he does. Don’t bet against him.
Losing money investing isn’t as easy as it was in the good old days of commission-based brokers, 5% upfront charges, and no cheap tracker funds…
As one of the world’s very best stock pickers, Warren Buffett knows exactly how hard it is to beat the market…
I started life as a passive investor and I’ve become a market-obsessed stock picker. What changed, and why?
Why take one share into your portfolio, when you can mess about with two? Or three? Or ten? Well, there are a few flimsy reasons.
A long wander through the woods of investing behaviour, via a look at the defiantly different Capital Gearing investment trust.
Active investors can only beat the market if other active investors do worse. This isn’t a morality tale – it’s a warning with respect to your finances.
There’s a crucial difference between the fact that trying to beat the market is a zero-sum game, and the *misconception* that the same is true for investing.
Dead set on buying into actively managed funds? On your head be it… but at least read these tips first.
Drowning in data? Submerged by a smorgasbord of shares? You need to tighten up your investment process to focus on what mattes.
If you must pick stocks for a pastime and profit, then the steady way offered by John Lee is likely a surer path to success.
Hard evidence shows that investors are better off investing in passive funds than active funds in the UK.
The dream of a growth investor is to discover a Microsoft or a Coke in the early years.
Ex-hedgie turned passive investing prophet Lars Kroijer debuts his first article on Monevator with a look at the true cost to you of active funds.
In the grand finale of our three-part investing debate, we tackle edge – does it exist for humble folk? Then we shake hands and head off for a sherry.
Part two of our three stage smash-up sees The Investor turn the tables on The Accumulator to ask him why he never tried going active.
A seasonal passive vs active investing debate laced with a little humour, respect and fanatical devotion to the annihilation of the other side. [Not really]
John Lee’s book on stock picking won’t tell you exactly how to find treasure in the UK stock market, but it is a great exposition of why it’s worth trying.
So you want to be the next Warren Buffett? Here are the best areas of the market to start your search.