Well, the equities market has turned very tough and given back all of the gains in 2011. Today the market was down for the 8th consecutive day and the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 265 points, or almost 2.20%. Having survived stock market declines for the last 20 years, or at least up to this point, these are the days when it seems like no stock you own goes up. It also seems like the market will never stop going down. However, time and patience cures the ills of the market, and I would imagine this situation is no different.
Here was the impetus for the sell off today- a decline in consumer spending for the first time in two years- http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-08-02/consumer-spending-in-u-s-unexpectedly-falls-for-first-time-in-two-years.html
A nice article on what top venture capitalists are looking for- http://techcrunch.com/2011/08/02/keen-on-how-mobile-will-make-us-smarter-more-efficient-healthier-tctv/
A new application we are all familiar with for the Ipad-http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/microsoftpri0/2015800121_skype_comes_to_ipad.html
As always, on any company mentioned here, past performance is not a guarantee of future returns. 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.
Yale Bock, CFA
President, Y H & C Investments