Interesting contrast between Bill Gross, the largest manager of fixed income in the world at PIMCO, and Warren Buffett, Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway. Gross is heavily invested in U.S. Treasuries and Buffett believes they should come with a warning sign that says, "Hazardous to your financial health." My own belief is U.S. Treasuries are the biggest sucker bet because of the high prices, low yields, and low expectations for inflation. The view in the financial world is that it is the best asset to own which is negatively correlated to stock markets or commodities. Essentially, by owning treasuries you are betting the bond market bull run over the last 15 years keeps going unabated. There is a quote in finance that trees don't grow to the sky, but that is just my opinion. I would even lean more towards buying an ETF that shorts 10 year or 30 year treasuries, but you need a real strong stomach for that, and it has not worked for the last few years. Doesn't mean it won't work, but you could definately feel some pain if Europe falls apart. Here is a link to what Jim Cramer thinks about the debate (fron CNBC.com) :Cramer's Pick in Buffett vs Gross Bond Battle
The news that Whitney Houston died yesterday was sad. She sold over 170 million albums world wide and in her prime could really bring it. It is also a reminder if you don't take care of yourself and have good healthy habits you are going to run into problems. I look at this situation, or Michael Jackson, where you have people who have every reason to live and are self destructive and just think it is a waste of talent. Unfortunately, the most common thing in the world is wasted talent and intelligence. What is rare are guys like Buffett and Munger, who built themselves into billionaires, and built Berkshire Hathaway into a multi-billion dollar enterprise and helped build the wealth of tens of thousands of people. Yet Buffett takes more criticism these days than ever before. You have to wonder if there is anything in the world that is unassailable. Here is a link from Bloomberg on the Whitney Houston Story-http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-02-12/whitney-houston-record-setting-popular-singer-film-actress-dies-at-48.html
Great article in the New York Times on digital theft at the highest levels, especially when traveling to China-http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/11/technology/electronic-security-a-worry-in-an-age-of-digital-espionage.html?ref=business
Another good example of an entrepreneur in the NY Times as well-http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/12/jobs/plum-districts-chief-on-investing-in-mom-power.html?ref=business
Nice article from CFO magazine regarding the return on investment of social media. By the way, CFO magazine is a super read for anybody interested in business-http://www3.cfo.com/article/2012/2/technology_social-media-roi
Great story in the NBA about the new point guard for the New York Knicks, Jeremy Lin. Not drafted, cut last year by the Warriors, shows that persistence pays off. Reminds me of a good friend of mine-http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-02-08/harvard-s-lin-boosts-knicks-interest-in-asia-with-record-setting-debut.html
I hope everyone has a good week and if you have any comments or questions, please post them!!!!
As always, on any company mentioned here, past performance is not a guarantee of future returns. Investing involves risk of losses on invested capital. One should research any investment and make sure it is suitable with your objectives, risk tolerance, risk profile liquidity considerations, tax situation, and anything else pertinent to your financial situation. Also, the CFA credential in no way implies investment returns will be superior for any charterholder.
(If you are interested in seeing the latest Seeking Alpha articles about specific stock picks from Yale Bock and Y H & C Investments, click the following links)
1) http://seekingalpha.com/article/320102-marchex-contender-or-pretender-in-the-mobile-advertising-industry
2) http://seekingalpha.com/article/317215-american-greetings-a-value-trap-or-a-good-opportunity-for-outsized-gains
3) http://seekingalpha.com/article/317139-usa-technologies-possibly-building-a-payment-processing-juggernaut
4) http://seekingalpha.com/article/347561-cardionet-a-market-beater-or-a-value-trap
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