http://www.articlesnatch.com/rss2/IGVSI IGVSI Articles from ArticleSnatch.com Rss Follow Up Thu, 16 Feb 2012 06:06:58 -0500 Most people never forget their first love. I'll never forget my first trading profit --- but the 600 1970 dollars I pocketed on Royal Dutch Petroleum was not nearly as significant as the conceptual realization it signaled. I was amazed that someone would pay me that much more for my stock than the newspaper said it was worth just weeks ago. What had changed? What had happened to make the stock go up, and why had it been down in the first place? Without ever needing to know the answers, I've been trading RDSA for over 40 years! Looking at scores of similarly profitable, high quality companies in this manner, you would find that: 1) most move up and down regularly (if not predictably) with an upward long-term bias, and 2) that there is little if any similarity in the timing of the movements between the stocks themselves. This is the "volatility" that most people fear and that Wall Street loves them to fear. It can be narrowly confined to certain sectors, or much broader, encompassing practically everything. The broader it becomes, the more likely it is to be categorized as either a rally or a correction.Volatility]]> Stock Market]]> Modern Portfolio Theory]]> MPT]]> MCIM]]> Wall Street]]> investing]]> correction]]> rally]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Making-A-Volatile-Stock-Market-Your-Very-Best-Friend/2919800 Tue, 30 Aug 2011 14:14:29 -0400 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Making-A-Volatile-Stock-Market-Your-Very-Best-Friend/2919800 How much financial bloodshed is necessary before we realize that there is no safe and easy shortcut to investment success? When do we learn that most of our mistakes involve our very own greed, fear, and unrealistic expectations? Eventually, successful investors begin to allocate assets in a goal directed manner by adopting a realistic investment methodology --- an ongoing security selection and monitoring process that is guided by realistic expectations, selection rules, and management guidelines. If you are thinking of trying a strategy for a year or so to see if it works, you're due for a smack up alongside the head. Viable strategies transcend cycles, not years, and viable equity strategies consider three or four disciplined activities, the first of which is selection. Most strategies ignore one or more of the others. How should an investor determine what stocks to buy, and when to buy them? Will Rogers summed it up: "Only buy stocks that go up. If they aren't going to go up, don't buy them." Many have misread this tongue-in-cheek observation and joined the "buy anything that is rising" club. I've found that the "buy investment grade value stocks lower" approach works better.Value]]> stock]]> investing]]> equity]]> selection]]> worksheet]]> investment]]> portfolio]]> financial]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/A-More-Refined-Equity-Selection-Universe-Breeds-Superior-Performance/2348837 Mon, 25 Apr 2011 14:14:02 -0400 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/A-More-Refined-Equity-Selection-Universe-Breeds-Superior-Performance/2348837 The Dow, Investment Grade Value Stocks, and Alternative Investments There are two extremely good reasons why your portfolio may not be "performing" (whatever that means) either as well as you would like or as well as your buddies say that they have been doing. But let's define our terms before digging any deeper. None of you have done as well in the equity market as investment grade value stock investors. Most of the time, investors are content to observe the steady growth of their portfolio, as income and (unrealized) market value gains add to their ego-friendly asset base --- this while the ebb and flow of the markets remains in a relatively boring "trading range". They can see the steady progress being made toward the goals that they established for their portfolios. Long-term-successful investment portfolios must have both reasonable goals and a plan for moving in their direction. For them, performance is a measure of this movement toward objectives and it is generally considered a long-term, personal proposition. Income securities are expected only to produce dependable income, and equities are expected to produce growth in the form of realized capital gains.Dow]]> DJIA]]> S P]]> IGVSI]]> MCIM]]> alternative investment]]> investor]]> stock market]]> Wall Street]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Wall-Street-Most-Wanted--A-New-Blue-Chip-Market-Indicator/2290646 Tue, 12 Apr 2011 15:11:15 -0400 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Wall-Street-Most-Wanted--A-New-Blue-Chip-Market-Indicator/2290646 Where's the beef? Where's the high income? Who are they trying to kid? A week or two ago, while exchanging ideas at an AAII chapter meeting somewhere in the Northeast, a comparison was made between a professionally directed "Market Cycle Investment Management" (MCIM) portfolio and any of several "High Dividend Select" equity ETFs. Many years ago, I raised the question (to no one in particular): what's better for your financial health, 6% tax free/tax deferred or 3%? There is absolutely not one molecule of similarity between any MCIM portfolio and any Index ETF, period. You decide which is best for you. I took a closer-than-I-normally-would-bother-to look at three different equity ETFs in the "high dividend equity" category: PFM, FDL, and VIG. They had almost everything in common, except their Morningstar rating, which varied from two-star to five-star. Interestingly, the five-star rated fund seemed to be the most speculative. Each was constructed, or "marked-to", the weighting of the securities in a specific index, such as the "Dividend Achievers Select Index". These indices are comprised of mostly large capitalization US companies with a history of regular dividend increases.ETF]]> CEF]]> mutual]]> fund]]> dividend]]> achievers]]> MCIM]]> market]]> cycle]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/High-Dividend-Etfs---An-Equity-income-Investment-Fantasy/2225448 Thu, 24 Mar 2011 08:52:55 -0400 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/High-Dividend-Etfs---An-Equity-income-Investment-Fantasy/2225448 Stu Taylor's Twenty Questions of Professional Investor Steve Selengut For nearly ten years now, Stu Taylor and I have been entertaining audiences throughout the country with a Q AND A format program that consistently draws an hour full of interesting (and sometimes off-the-wall) investment questions. We have never, ever, gotten very far into the script --- thought you might be interested. ONE - Steve, you've managed investment portfolios for about 40 years. What are the three biggest mistakes that people make? : They don't have a clear cut plan or a clear idea of what to expect from investment securities and markets. : They get stuck in the fear and greed emotional cycle, always buying high and selling low. : They rely on gimmicks, software programs, and predictions, ignore cyclical realities, and choke performance with unrealistic time constraints. : They ignore the income generating portion of their portfolio --- the list is really much longer than just three. TWO - OK, and just what is reality? : Markets, the economy, and interest rates are cyclical entities. Their movements do not correspond with calendar time periods.Stock Market]]> Cycle]]> Investment Management]]> Business cycle]]> interest rates]]> Wall Street]]> investors]]> advisors]]> market gurus]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Investment-Guru-Interview---Money-Matters-Radio-/2182482 Fri, 11 Mar 2011 09:46:10 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Investment-Guru-Interview---Money-Matters-Radio-/2182482 About a year ago this week, just before the one-year anniversary of this market rally, there were about 45 IGVSs priced 15% or more below their 52-week highs. The market seemed to be entering a corrective phase, but it just never happened. A year later, the market statistics, all of them, are shouting at the top of their lungs --- the correction is coming! The correction is coming! Portfolio "smart cash" is at pocket-hole-burning levels; less than 3% of all IGVSI stocks are even close to "bargain" prices; new 52-week highs have more than quintupled new lows; and issue breadth has been exceptionally positive. Those of you who are "in the know" will recognize "smart cash" as the type that is created by targeted profit taking plus dividend and interest income. It reflects an Investment Grade Value Stock Index (IGVSI) that has surpassed its pre-financial crisis record high --- in spite of the fact that all the other averages remain below theirs. Most (equity heavy) Market Cycle Investment Management (MCIM) program portfolios are at all time high profit levels;MCIM]]> market cycle]]> IGVSI]]> investment]]> performance]]> grade]]> bargain stock]]> monitor]]> value stocks]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/How-Much-Longer-Can-This-Wall-Street-Toga-Party-Last-/2170161 Tue, 08 Mar 2011 09:45:03 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/How-Much-Longer-Can-This-Wall-Street-Toga-Party-Last-/2170161 In addition to a well thought out investment plan, successful equity investing requires a feel for what is going on in the real world we refer to as "the market". To most investors, the DJIA provides all of the information they think they need, and they worship it mindlessly --- thinking it has mystical predictive and analytic powers far beyond the scope of any other market number. A cursory review of New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) "issue breadth" figures (90% of the Dow stocks are traded there) shows how the Dow has not been prescient or historically accurate with regard to broad market movements for the past twelve years. Additionally, this financial icon that investors revere as the ultimate "blue chip" market indicator has lost its luster. Only 40% of DJIA companies claim an A or better S AND P rating, 20% of the issues are ranked below investment grade --- and this after recently (and quietly) dumping AIG, C, GM, and HON. Has the long-in-the-tooth DJIA grown impotent? Hasn't it really become a mini-S AND P 500?Dow]]> DJIA]]> average]]> investor]]> stock market]]> Wall Street]]> bonds]]> income]]> asset allocation]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/The-Dow-Jones-Industrials-----A-Blue-Chip-Average-No-More/2129811 Thu, 24 Feb 2011 09:40:46 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/The-Dow-Jones-Industrials-----A-Blue-Chip-Average-No-More/2129811 "Hey 'Deep Pockets', what were you doing on October 19th, 1987", the Wall Street Jungle reporter asked? I was gritting my teeth, shaking more than just a little, palms sweaty but placing dozens of individual orders for the best NYSE, dividend-paying, companies --- at prices that nearly everyone thought would drop even further. Looking around the room, I seemed to be the only one in the office that was actually buying! The other brokers were fielding phone calls from frightened clients. Sell! Sell! Sell! The crash of '87 was the first significant test of an investment methodology developed in 1970 by an RIA client of mine. Two months earlier, many of his investment management clients were wondering why he had sold practically everything, and was sitting on mountains of what he called "smart cash" --- whatever that meant. Now they knew, but why were they so quiet? Their cash was completely invested, the media was predicting the end of the world --- my phone was the only one not ringing! The investment manager had one call from a client that day --- the guy wanted to know how many calls he had received.GPS]]> MCIM]]> market cycle]]> investment]]> management]]> RIA]]> crash]]> black friday]]> WSJ]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Need-A-Gps-For-Your-Investment-Portfolio-/2001409 Wed, 19 Jan 2011 12:20:34 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Need-A-Gps-For-Your-Investment-Portfolio-/2001409 Whoa! Stop! Hang on a minute. There is absolutely nothing unusual going on in the income securities markets. There is nothing to be particularly concerned about or afraid of. Relax, take a few deep breaths, and read on. Falling income security prices are all the buzz in the financial media these days, but why does this translate into such fear and confusion? I saw a news report the other day that encouraged investors to abandon their income ship and sail away on a stock market steamer that has been cruising steadily higher for twenty months --- the IGVSI equaled its September 2007 high on December 8th. And lest we forget, the over-riding purpose of investing in income securities is, after all, the generation of income. That's income, Alice, not growth in market value. Just income. Income securities, as measured by an index of high quality closed end funds (CEFs), remain roughly 50% above where they were at the bottom of the financial crisis and, more importantly, precisely within their normal price range of the past ten years. The most conservative CEFs are yielding from 6% tax-free to 8% taxable.income investing]]> CEF]]> media]]> securities]]> fixed]]> equities]]> Wall Street]]> markets]]> interest]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Income-Security-Prices-Tank--What--Me-Worry-/1875196 Mon, 13 Dec 2010 08:23:03 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Income-Security-Prices-Tank--What--Me-Worry-/1875196 KIAWAH ISLAND, SC, December 13, 2010 Kiawah Golf Investment Seminars (an investment education enterprise located near the Kiawah Island Golf-Tennis-Beach resort) proudly reports estimated investment performance results for a sampling of Market Cycle Investment Management (MCIM) portfolios. Thus far in 2010, MCIM (70% Equity vs. 30% Income) portfolios are up roughly 16%. This gain, on top of "dismal decade" growth estimated at 85%, further strengthens the methodology's reputation as the safe and conservative approach to steady growth of both wealth and retirement income. Kiawah Golf Investment Seminars is the only entity in the world authorized to teach the Market Cycle Investment Management methodology. From the end of 1999 through the end of 2009, all of the popular Wall Street market performance measurement tools were in the red. Because of their emphasis on dividend paying, Investment Grade Value Stocks, and a solid base of income producing Closed End Funds, Market Cycle Investment Management portfolios were up an estimated 85%. Both the S AND P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average were negative from 1999 through 2009. From the recent financial crisis beginning in 2007, through the interim "peak" on December 10 2010, most MCIM portfolios have regained positive territory.Kiawah resort]]> golf]]> steve selengut]]> investment]]> seminar]]> retirement]]> income]]> asset protection]]> allocation]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Mcim-Portfolios-Rally-To-Three-year-High-Levels/1875192 Mon, 13 Dec 2010 08:21:19 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Mcim-Portfolios-Rally-To-Three-year-High-Levels/1875192 In the recent financial crisis, a very small percentage of (I-bought-my-home-to-live-in) mortgagors stopped making their payments. Still, the hysteria over the bursting housing bubble (i.e., lower market values) led to financial institution road-kill because of ridiculous accounting rules. When the dot-come bubble destroyed "new economy" gladiators in a gory spectacle destined to repeat itself over time, what investment portfolios cheered unscathed from the coliseum bleachers? If you reduce the amount of betting in your portfolio (and throw out politicians who don't have a clue about the workings of free markets) you can safely navigate even the choppiest seas that the market, interest rate, and economic cycles roll your way. The tide-like change of market values is the normal order of things, and until we embrace the cyclical nature of markets, all markets, our disappointment and disillusionment will continue. Portfolio market values will reflect where we are within the various cycles --- there are no "up only" assets. Interest rate sensitive securities (all bonds, government securities, preferred stocks, and relatively high dividend equities) vary inversely with interest rate expectations, most of the time.Risk]]> asset allocation]]> investment]]> stock market]]> financials]]> money]]> asset allocation]]> market value]]> profits]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/How-To-Minimize-Investment-Risk/1483699 Wed, 25 Aug 2010 13:51:48 -0400 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/How-To-Minimize-Investment-Risk/1483699 The Investment Grade Value Stock Index "Bargain Stock Monitor" clearly reflects the profit taking that hit the market late in January--- you and I have been harvesting our gains all along though. Right? Although there are nearly twice as many IGV stocks 15% below 52-week highs as there were at year-end, there is no evidence that a new correction has commenced--- tune in again in March or April. The numbers are telling you that most Investment Grade Value Stocks are still well above bargain price levels, and no matter how much "smart cash" has accumulated in your portfolio, it's not necessary to re-load your portfolios with new stuff all at once. Like apples, one a day is just fine. Most Market Cycle Investment Management (MCIM) Program portfolios are still a hiccup or two below the all time high profit levels achieved in 2007, but those with larger income allocations are generally well above those levels. So, aren't you glad you've been taking profits and positioning yourself to take advantage of the new bargains sauntering down the runway? Take your time. Always start new positions slowly while you continue to take profits instantly.MCIM]]> market cycle]]> IGVSI]]> investment]]> performance]]> grade]]> bargain stock]]> monitor]]> value stocks]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Igvsi-Bargain-Stock-Monitor---February-2010/953484 Thu, 04 Feb 2010 14:36:40 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Igvsi-Bargain-Stock-Monitor---February-2010/953484 The IGVSI Bargain Stock Monitor clearly reflects the strength of this eleven-month-rallying stock market. In fact, the bargain monitor is sporting the best numbers ever recorded. No, this is not a "buy" signal. The numbers are telling you that most Investment Grade Value Stocks are at or approaching their highest valuations of the past 52 weeks. Market Cycle Investment Management (MCIM) Program portfolios are approaching the all time high profit levels achieved in 2007, and only a handful of IGVSI equities are at "bargain" price levels--- i.e., down 20% or more from their 52-week highs. Additionally, the most conservative MCIM portfolios have been achieving new all time highs regularly, for the past three or four months--- this because managed income closed end funds rose about 31% in market value during 2009. So, with the very best numbers we've seen in two and a half years, why aren't you taking profits and positioning yourself to take advantage of the next market correction instead of (as usual) being victimized by it? The Bargain Stock Monitor is reporting that a 52-week high has been achieved in Investment Grade Value Stock market values, but it is predicting nothing.MCIM]]> market cycle]]> IGVSI]]> investment]]> performance]]> grade]]> bargain stock]]> monitor]]> value stocks]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Igvsi-Bargain-Stocks---Are-There-Any-Left-/920927 Sat, 16 Jan 2010 15:34:43 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Igvsi-Bargain-Stocks---Are-There-Any-Left-/920927 During the past sixty years, most economic, market, and interest rate cycles have lasted from two to five years, peak-to-peak. Rarely have any of the cycle-tracking market indices moved in tandem, and none of the cycles are considered to be particularly predictable. Individual securities (the stuff that indices are made of) complicate things significantly by having even less predictable cycles of their own. This generally uncertain atmosphere is the very nature of the financial markets. If investors could come to grips with the non-calendar, cyclical, nature of markets, it is likely that they could improve their investment performance considerably. In spite of decades of irrefutable evidence to the contrary, Wall Street has convinced most investors and far too many financial professionals that the calendar year is somehow investment relevant. Simple, yes; tax-code friendly, perhaps; but investment realistic--- not. Too many experts have abandoned the financial world's fascinating cyclical undulations for the simplicity of the planet's annual orbit around the sun. It's time for a change in direction--- one that doesn't ignore the realities of the investment markets. It's time to get back on our "hogs", and ride!Stock Market]]> Cycle]]> Investment Management]]> Business cycle]]> interest rates]]> Wall Street]]> investors]]> advisors]]> market gurus]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/The-Market-Cycle-Investment-Management--mcim--Program-/900234 Sun, 03 Jan 2010 11:57:10 -0500 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/The-Market-Cycle-Investment-Management--mcim--Program-/900234 A participant in the morning Working Capital Model (WCM) investment workshop observed: I've noticed that my account balances are returning to their (June 2007) levels. People are talking down the economy and the dollar. Is there any preemptive action I need to take? An afternoon workshop attendee spoke of a similar predicament, but cautioned that (with new high market value levels approaching) a repeat of the June 2007 through early March 2009 correction must be avoided--- a portfolio protection plan is essential! What are they missing? These investors are taking pretty much for granted the fact that their investment portfolios had more than merely survived the most severe correction in financial market history. They had recouped all of their market value, and maintained their cash flow to boot. The market averages remain 40% below their 2007 highs. Their preemptive portfolio protection plan was already in place --- and it worked amazingly well, as it certainly should for anyone who follows the general principles and disciplined strategies of the WCM. But instead of patting themselves on the back for their proper preparation and positioning, here they were, lamenting the possibility of the next dip in securities' prices.WCM]]> working capital]]> workshop]]> investment]]> Wall Street]]> stock market correction]]> rally]]> crash]]> 9/11]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Investment-Retrospective--A-Preemptive-Portfolio-Protection-Strategy/793275 Fri, 23 Oct 2009 16:16:29 -0400 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Investment-Retrospective--A-Preemptive-Portfolio-Protection-Strategy/793275 Actually, hindsight and the Investment Grade Value Stock Index (IGVSI) Bargain Level Monitor tell us that it died early in March 2009. More realistically, however, corrections don't die quite so abruptly. They are supplanted by rallies--- and vice versa. The IGVSI Bargain Stock Monitor tracks the price movements of an elite group of New York Stock Exchange equities. Their "eliteness" is earned by a B+ or higher S AND P rating, a history of profitability, and the fact that they pay dividends to their shareholders. Unfortunately, they are the same companies whose boards of directors allow senior executives to pillage treasuries with obscene salaries and bonuses--- and elite does not mean invulnerable to the whims of markets and governments. But, for Working Capital Model (WCM) equity investments, they are just perfectly less risky (historically) than the others. An IGVSI equity becomes a bargain stock (or "OK to add to your portfolio if it meets strict WCM diversification and price standards) when it falls at least 20% from its 52-week high. From 15% to 20% down, it is held in a mental "bull pen", getting ready for the "bigs" after a few more down-tics.Investment grade]]> valuestock]]> IGVSI]]> stock market]]> correction]]> rally]]> bargain]]> NYSE]]> New York]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/This-Stock-Market-Correction-Is-Dead/765389 Thu, 01 Oct 2009 22:35:50 -0400 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/This-Stock-Market-Correction-Is-Dead/765389 As impossible as it is to predict the future of the markets, it's relatively easy to anticipate what you are going to experience when you view your next brokerage account statement. Whether you go the discount route through Schwab, Ameritrade, Fidelity, etc., or enjoy a higher level of service through an independent like LMK Wealth Management, you should never be surprised by the market values reflected on your monthly statement. None of the firms make it easy for you to examine asset allocation, particularly on a working capital basis, and most refuse to even acknowledge that Municipal CEFs should not be lumped in with the equities. Additionally, no brokerage statement ever includes a warning label about the dangers of margin borrowing. Surprised? Not. But you can be sure that all statements will emphasize (in every conceivable way) the short-term change in your market value. Any long term or cyclical analysis (if any) is reserved for the "we understand your long term objectives" propaganda that fills their prospect-only glossies. Statement market value movements in both directions need to be anticipated and understood, not labeled bad or good (rhyming not intended).Investment Grade Value Stocks]]> IGVSI]]> asset allocation]]> issue breadth]]> market cycle]]> CEFs]]> market value]]> pr]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Investment-Performance-Expectations-And-Broker-Account-Statements/728243 Thu, 03 Sep 2009 09:53:14 -0400 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Investment-Performance-Expectations-And-Broker-Account-Statements/728243 The Investment Grade Value Stock Index is a barometer of a small but elite sector of the stock market. Some Investment Grade Value Stocks are included in all averages and indices, but even the Dow Jones Industrial Average includes several issues that are below Investment Grade and very few boast an A+ S AND P rating. The IGVSI tracks a portfolio of approximately 400 stocks--- and less than half of them are likely to be found in the S AND P 500 average. This new market index was developed in late 2007 to provide a benchmark for the equity portion of investment portfolios managed without open-end mutual funds, index funds, or any of the other popular speculations and hedges that are included in most professionally managed portfolios. Two related indices (the WCMSI and WCMSM) track portfolios of closed-end income funds. Between the three, they serve as an excellent performance expectation development tool for investment portfolios managed according to the disciplines of the Working Capital Model (WCM). Through July 31 2009, these indices soared approximately 24%---- about five times the growth of the S AND P 500 and twelve times that of the DJIA.Value stocks]]> Wall Street]]> investment grade]]> IGVSI]]> management]]> WCM]]> base income]]> stock market]]> stocks]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Investment-Grade-Value-Stock-Index--igvsi--Soars-24--Thru-July-2009/696848 Thu, 06 Aug 2009 10:58:39 -0400 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Investment-Grade-Value-Stock-Index--igvsi--Soars-24--Thru-July-2009/696848 Before Wall Street and the media combined to make investors think of calendar quarters as "short-term" and single years as "long-term", market cycles were used as true tests of investment strategies over the long haul. Bor-ing. There were four types of standard analysis used by most financial institutions, Peak-to-Peak, and Peak-to-Trough being the most common found in annual reports. There were also basic differences in purpose and perspective in the old days, and a focus on results vs. reasonable expectations for actual portfolios. Even more boring, and not nearly as profitable for "the wizards" as today's super Trifecta, instant gratification, speculative, mentality. Portfolio performance analysis was intended to be a test of management style and overall methodology, not a calendar year horse race with one of the popular averages. The DJIA was (I believe) originally conceived as an economic indicator, not as a market-performance measuring device. No real-life, personalized, portfolio should ever be a mirror image of any other, or comparable to any particular market index. Analysis should be of process, content, and operating strategy; the objective should be fine-tuning of either the philosophy or the discipline.investing]]> derivatives]]> investment products]]> closed end mutual funds]]> wall street]]> finance]]> cycles]]> working]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/How-s-Your-Investment-Portfolio-Doing--Seven-Long-term-Indicators/666315 Thu, 09 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0400 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/How-s-Your-Investment-Portfolio-Doing--Seven-Long-term-Indicators/666315 Every correction is the same, a normal downturn in one or more of the markets where we invest. There has never been a correction that has not proven to be an investment opportunity. You can be confident that governments around the world are not going to allow another Great Depression "on their watch". Every correction is different, the result of various economic and/or political circumstances that create the need for adjustments in the financial markets. While everything is down in price, as it is now, there is actually less to worry about. When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping. In this case, an overheated real estate market, an overdose of financial bad judgment, and a damn the torpedoes stock market, propelled by demand for speculative derivative securities and Hedge Funds, finally came unglued. But it is the reality of corrections that is one of the few certainties of the financial world, one that separates the men from the boys, if you will. If you fixate on your portfolio market value during a correction, you will just give yourself a headache, or worse.Stock Market]]> Correction]]> Investment Plan]]> government]]> mutual fund]]> Inflation]]> Economy]]> smart cash]]> IGVSI]]> http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Stock-Market-Corrections-Are-Beautiful---And-Necessary/580554 Thu, 16 Apr 2009 00:00:00 -0400 http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Stock-Market-Corrections-Are-Beautiful---And-Necessary/580554