The “c” word (i.e. crash) is “awfully good at grabbing investor’s attention,” but there’s no way to know when it will arrive, according to a recent article in The Wall Street Journal. But that hasn’t stopped many from trying, the article notes, citing examples of some of history’s bold prognosticators: Roger Babson, who “pioneered the practice with his 1920s newsletter of making predictions that he claimed were based on Newtonian physics,” and whose “reputation and… Read More
By John Reese (@guruinvestor) — Thirty years ago, five days after 1987’s infamous Black Monday, Louis Rukeyser shared some calming and timeless words on his evening broadcast of Wall Street Week: “Okay, let’s start with what’s really important tonight. It’s just your money, not your life.” He goes on to list a number of life’s reassuring certainties (including warm puppies and singing robins) that would endure unfazed in the wake of the stock market’s 23… Read More
Wall Street Journal columnist Jason Zweig takes us back 30 years to Friday, October 1987 when the stock market fell “a record 108.35 points on unprecedented volume of nearly 339 million shares.” He shares a story from famed investor James O’Shaughnessy who, thinking that the selling was “completely overdone” feared that sticking with a bearish bet (having made a “five-figure” bet through buying stock-index put options) would prove costly when stocks bounced back. So, shortly… Read More