AAI

How Bad Was September for Hedge Funds?

Excellent article, thank you.

How Have Absolute Return Funds Held Up?

What's the point of holding any market neutral funds if the managers can't pick longs that perform better than their shorts? I might as well hold cash.

EFA More Attractive Than SPY

The "lower valuation" of Europe vs US may be due to its different sector weightings, such as higher Energy weighting.

Tuesday Outlook: Déjà vu All Over Again

I always like the Shadow Govt Stats stuff. Looking at the dark blue line, the obvious question is: When is 1980 coming again? That of course would be a major sell signal for commodities and TIPS. If economies buckle a more under the ongoing credit crunch, and if Emerging Markets really do care about taming inflation (a big If), the answer could be, "Soon!"

DB Agriculture Fund a Blunt Instrument

Ok, cut your positions in the ag commodity funds. New acreage is creeping into the market, the dollar rout may be subsiding, and global economies are slowing. But don't give up yet on the high intellectual-property ag-driven equities, such as Monsanto and Syngenta.
And next time around when you're looking at ag commodity funds, note that several SeekingAlpha stories say is far more tax-efficient to own ETNs (such as JJA).

Money Magazine ETF Recommendations: Keeping It Simple May Be Stupid

Some of the other "asset classes" you mentioned are highly correlated with the five highlighted by Money magazine, which puts you FURTHER away from your efficiency frontier because of expenses and taxes as investors try frantically to re-balance such an over-diversified portfolio quarterly or semi-annually. I strongly recommend you take a look at David Swensen's "Unconventional Success: A Fundamental Approach to Personal Investment." Swensen is one of the world's most successful investors, whose arguments you don't address at all.

MSCI Frontier Markets Index Leaves Emerging Markets In the Dust

"Frontier" markets by nature nature aren't easily accessible to retail investors, and not even very liquid to experts (think Lewis & Clark) like small institutions who work hard at it. But they're getting a bit more so, if you're willing to spend several long days filling out brokerage applications for stock markets like in Ghana and Kenya, then risking problems such as lack of standard paper trails, and, oh yes, high valuations as many hedgies are trying to get through these keyholes.

New York, New York: It's Hell of a Muni Bond ETF

I appreciate your emphasis of the muni bond market, but how does buying an ETF avoid one's exposure to default risk? Muni bond defaults would reduce the prices of the ETFs.

From The Horse’s Mouth: Yale's Endowment Officer Makes Financial Sense

Great piece, Geoff. Thanks for the headsup on QPP as well.

Domestic and International Stocks: Absolute and Relative Valuation Analysis

Steinhilber's long-term track record is worth looking at, because his long-term valuation discipline appears to have created substantial value. What's more, his investment letter on Monday 3/17/08 recommended that investors who are underweight equities add to their holdings, because the U.S. market is at valuation levels that have indicated the end of 70% of past bear markets. He's off to a good start with today's 4% equity rally.