Author: David Merkel

Why do we do time-weighted returns for analysis of portfolios?  Because we are lazy, and they are simple to calculate.  We don’t want to be bothered with the effects of cash flows. Besides, mutual fund managers...

I read an interesting article today called Dead Stocks Walking. Good article, but I want to point out a few things the article missed. The article deals with large companies that had moderately high valuations, but were still...

I received a question from a friend of mine and want to give an answer: Background: I teach high school physics.  In my AP class, I have some cross-registration with the Micro-econ & Personal Finance classes.  In...

Yesterday, I received a pitch in the mail for a penny stock.  They should put a big red X over my address, but alas, they don’t. Now for all of my prior penny stocks that I have been written about, all have done...

This post should be short.  I trolled through four of the insurance companies that I own today to try to ascertain what credit risk they might have.  I was pleasantly surprised that all of them had steered clear of the...

I am often a fan of neglected small cap stocks.  When I find a good one, I add it to my portfolio.  But I am generally not a fan of stocks that trade below $1.00.  Why?  Because there are many promoters of...

I regularly get people asking me how they can get jobs in finance.  Many of them are young.  Some are older and have done other things, but have been bitten by the investing bug, and want to make a shift. Now, before I...