A recent Validea blog outlines the following eight lessons Warren Buffett has taught Berkshire Hathaway shareholders— that may have kept them loyal through recent years of lagging performance: Education: The consistent messaging in Buffett’s annual letters to shareholders that advocates for “long-term buying of good businesses at what are hopefully reasonable prices, controlling your temperament and believing in the U.S. stock market and corporate America over time.” Keeping Emotions at Bay: Buffett is steadfast in… Read More
A recent article by New York Times columnist Carl Richards offers investors a road map for riding out today’s market volatility: Give yourself a break: It’s okay to feel “scared and unsure what to do next,” Richards writes, advising investors to accept the feelings as part of their humanness and to resist feeling guilty or “dumb” about it. Remember why you invested in the first place: Richards advises investors to circle back to their original,… Read More
By Jack Forehand, CFA One of the major changes I have made in my life in the past few years is that I have significantly increased my focus on learning. In the past, I tended to focus too much on the things I knew, while not focusing enough on the things I didn’t. That changed for me when I realized that no matter how much I know, the number of things I don’t know will always… Read More
In a recent interview with Barron’s, Davis Advisors’ chairman and portfolio manager Chris Davis shares valuable insights for investors regarding the current market environment. Here are some key takeaways: The market has suffered intense volatility because of the coronavirus pandemic but has bounced back in a way that doesn’t align with the underlying economic data, Davis says, adding that he and his firm “recognize that the short term is completely unpredictable” but that if you… Read More
Have you ever heard a song that jogs a strong memory, motivates you in a powerful way or makes you think about things you wouldn’t otherwise consider? This happened to me the other day while listening to some of the late Tom Petty’s biggest hits. I couldn’t help but notice how many of the lyrics related to the world of investing, which sent me on a fun and enlightening mission of combing through this rock… Read More
By Justin J. Carbonneau “War is a nightmare, war is awful, it is indifferent, devastating and evil. War is hell. But war is also an incredible teacher, a brutal teacher and it teaches you lessons you will not forget.” In a 2017 TED talk, former Navy SEAL, best-selling author, leadership consultant and top podcast host, Jocko Willink, shared his experiences and key leadership lessons that emerged from a battle in Ramadi, Iraq, a seemingly insurmountable… Read More
In this week’s episode of Excess Returns, we talk about the biggest lessons from the first year of our Five Questions interview series. Our Five Questions series features in depth interviews with leaders in the investing industry. We discuss the five most important lessons we learned from our interviews with Jim O’Shaughnessy, Corey Hoffstein, Michael Mauboussin, Ben Hunt and Wes Gray. We discuss the following lessons: Corey Hoffstein – Beware of the Risks You… Read More
Whether you are training for and participating in a 25+ mile march or are saving and investing for retirement and long-term wealth creation, success requires the right mindset as well as discipline and patience. In this episode of Excess Returns, Justin Carbonneau talks with Jack Forehand about Justin’s participation in The March For The Fallen, a 28-mile ruck he participated in a few months ago with 35 lbs in his backpack to honor those who… Read More
An article in MarketWatch argues that, while it’s impossible for the typical individual investor to trade like quant legend Jim Simons, “there are lessons every investor can learn from Simons’s successes and failures:” Go long— Since Simons has not been successful at generating hefty profits on long-term bets, the article notes, which “creates an opening for investors willing to hold shares for a year or longer, who don’t need to worry about facing off against… Read More
Researchers on game theory say that poker strategies can translate into lessons for investors, according to a recent article in The Wall Street Journal. Carnegie Mellon professor of philosophy Kevin Zollman says that investors dislike losing more than winning and are prone to what behavioral finance refers to as the disposition effect, which leads them to sell assets that have increased in value but hold onto those that have decreased in value. The same behavior… Read More