Focus Value model manager Analytic Investment attempts to take advantage of equity mispricing opportunities led by market inefficiency. To do so, Analytic Investment utilizes computer algorithms that compute the relative value of all stocks based on their fundamental factors. Last week, they added several new positions to the model, including […]
Jeff Phillips manages the Long-Short Equity model on Covestor with an eye toward maximizing the probability of the portfolio’s profitability by using results of ongoing empirical research. The model has assets stretching across all sectors and uses a market timing strategy. The top holding in the model is Dynamex Inc […]
The Cash Flow model managed by Jose Betancourt uses fundamental analysis to focus on cash flow and negative net debt. Recently Betancourt added a couple of new positions to the model. The first was Bridgepoint Education Inc (NYSE: BPI). BPI had assets totaling $281.7 million in 2009 and liabilities totaling […]
After increasing last week, initial unemployment claims fell by 24,000 this week according to a report issued today by the Department of Labor. The report (found here) also mentioned that the four-week moving average was reduced by 10,000. The Mortgage Bankers Association’s Weekly Application Survey showed an increase of 5.8 […]
The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) issued its survey-based Small Business Economic Trends report today. The report shows that optimism among small business owners increased in October, though its numbers are still consistent with those of a recessionary economy. The 23-page report (which you can access in full here) […]
If ever there was a sign that individual investors need protection from themselves, it may have shown up in Tuesday’s November 2nd 2010 market action in Equus Total Return (EQS) shares. I have no position. Rarely do shares of a company trade higher on news that it is entering wealth destructive transactions. However that is exactly what occurred on November 2, 2010 with EQS shares trading significantly higher. Investors paid up for the right to infuse additional capital into a Closed-End Fund with a transaction which would appear highly destructive to per share published Net Asset Value.
The market discount of Cohen and Steers Dividend Majors Fund (DVM) shares has narrowed by more than 11% in less than two months. On the evening of September 15th, 2010 Cohen & Steers announced adopting a level rate distribution policy, and declared third quarter distributions for its affected Closed-End Funds. That afternoon, DVM had closed at $11.20, a 15.66% discount to its $13.28 Net Asset Value (“NAV”). Yesterday, November 4th 2010 DVM closed at $13.61, a 2.86% discount to its $14.01 NAV. (Data source: CEF Connect)
Many regional Federal Reserve bank representatives voiced concerns today about the Federal Reserve’s plan to invest $600 billion in treasuries for quantitative easing. Unfortunately, these concerns were not limited to other Fed officials but were also shared by world financial leaders. Some of the concerns, mentioned in articles on CNN.com […]
Investors use many different strategies for picking equities, some of them well-known and widely utilized and some proprietary and based on years of personal research and strategy development. This week, we asked Reiman School of Finance Professor and AthenaInvest Co-Founder C. Thomas Howard, PhD to discuss the proprietary investing strategy […]
The Labor Department issued their October 2010 Employment Situation Summary today, and showed an increase of 151,000 nonfarm jobs in October, although the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 9.6 percent. You can see the full report here. Unfortunately, the pending home sales news released by the National Association of Realtors […]
Initial jobless claims rose by 20,000 during the last week of October, according to today’s report by the Department of Labor (which you can find here). But this piece of negative news was not enough to overshadow yesterday’s announcement by the Federal Reserve that they would begin quantitative easing efforts […]
I added three new companies to the Dividend Value Plus model in Oct 2010. All companies have excellent balance sheets and are currently out of favor with investors and analysts.