Monthly Archives: April 2013

The PETRR Principal: How to Compare Growth Stocks and Yield Stocks

Today’s Wall Street Journal points out that despite weak EPS growth Procter & Gamble commands a higher PE ratio than Google because it has a juicy dividend.  Investors reaching for yield are piling into high dividend stocks without paying much … Continue reading

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Pain Pay-off: Why Sequestration Is a Game-Changer

In the wake of the 1987 stock market crash, a wise and wily Wall Street executive told his troops “change only comes through pain and agony.”  By bringing a healthy dose of “pain and agony” to Washington, sequestration will introduce … Continue reading

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Profits: Good Enough for “Valuation Levitation” to Continue

First quarter earnings look OK but not great and broadly consistent with Wall Street strategists’ expectation of $108 for S&P 500 EPS this year.  That’s bad news for bears who expect weak profits to derail the rally.  Despite mediocre profits, … Continue reading

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Jews Against Free Speech

On Sunday we drove down to a synagogue in Edison, NJ to hear a talk by Pamela Geller, a controversial anti-Jihad activist.  I counted four police cars outside because the Rabbi had received death threats and someone shot pellets at … Continue reading

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Q1 Profits: Soft, but Good Enough for Further Valuation Levitation

The media does a terrible job of covering profits.  Here are a few tips. First, forget about the percentage of companies beating consensus, which is always way above 50% because companies guide estimates to a number they can beat. (Some … Continue reading

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Stockman’s Scary Sundown – Five Lessons for Long-term Investors

If you want to know why, for most people, their house is a better investment than stocks, read David Stockman’s New York Times jeremiad “Sundown in America.”  It is alarming articles like this that convince investors to avoid buying stocks until … Continue reading

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