By Jack Forehand, CFA (@practicalquant) There has been a major change in our economy going on for a long time now. The days where the largest firms make physical things…
Why Eliminating Discretion from Quantitative Models is Harder Than You Think (Ep. 57)
There is a tendency for those of us who support quant models to talk about them as if they are these things that just run on autopilot over the long-term…
Bets on U.S. Consumer by Bond Investors are Winning Big
As households are spending less and saving more, investors who bet U.S. consumers will keep paying their debts this year are seeing a windfall. This according to a recent article…
Speculative Stock Bets from Bulls are Near Two-Year High
At the end of October, bullish bets on the U.S. stock market from speculative investors rose to their highest level in almost two years, according to a recent Bloomberg article,…
Is Value Investing Dead? (Ep. 56)
Value investing has struggled for over a decade now. Although no one will dispute that fact, there are significant disagreements about whether this is just another of the long periods…
Berkshire Hathaway Investment Returns Boost Profit
Berkshire Hathaway’s third quarter profits were bolstered by investment gains despite lower operating profits due to insurance underwriting losses. This according to an article in The Wall Street Journal. The…
Bill Ackman is Hedging the Pandemic Again
After turning $27 million into $2.6 billion earlier this year by hedging against the pandemic, billionaire investor Bill Ackman placed a similar (although somewhat smaller) bet in early November after…
Berkshire Hathaway Becoming Its Own Elephant Investment?
While Berkshire CEO Warren Buffett has faced pressure to use the firm’s nearly $150 billion in cash balances to make a significant acquisition, or “elephant investment,” the company’s biggest spending…
If Not Now, When Will Value Return?
A recent article from Pzena Investment Management shares insights regarding value investing and the likelihood that it will emerge from its long period of underperformance. Here are some key takeaways…
Knowledge Mining in the Market’s Past Returns
When you hear stats like the S&P 500 is up 10% for the year or the index has more than tripled off the 2009 low, it’s easy to take those…