Stocks & Mutual Funds Information

Again With the Bubbles?


A few years back - it seems like an eternity today - the U.S. stock market experienced a severe bubble burst. Legitimate stocks rose beyond reasonable valuations and ideas merely in the germination stage sold for prices far beyond those of real proven companies. When the bubble burst, billions of dollars of shareholder value evaporated. One would have thought we'd learned our lesson.

Today, Yahoo and EBay, the two leading internet companies, again sell for prices beyond reasonable value. Again, people seem content to listen to a good story and place unrealistic valuations on companies that have no earnings or real prospects. Google's recent IPO is proof positive that the market is still bubble-icious. Even stocks like General Electric are selling at prices above what the market should bear. What's the story?

The story is, very simply, that we don't learn lessons very well. Also, if you think about it, a lot of people actually made money back in the late 90's during the bubble. So, there's a case to be made for gambling on another similar adventure. If we can survive the "greater fool" theory, and find someone willing to pay more than we are, it almost doesn't seem dangerous to buy a stock that has little or no intrinsic value, as long as there's a belief that someone else might eventually pay more. So much for value investing!

No, the "experts" are now convinced that stocks and markets do not move in line with actual events, but instead move along with emotions and trends. Thus, the big money is chasing itself, going where it goes simply because it is going there. Does that make sense to you? I hope not.

We've held firmly to the seemingly outdated position that value does matter. We differ from some value investors, such as Warren Buffett, who avoids technology and new ideas: we do believe such stocks can have merit. We also hold firm to the idea that stocks will eventually return to their real value?or at least move toward that point in the end.

In these days when emotion seems to dominate reason, it is not unlikely for the whipsaw effect to be stronger than the reality effect. But we believe that, even in the midst of such insanity, having a focus on reality is worth something?even if no one else believes it.

For questions or comments, Scott Pearson can be reached directly at Scott@valueview.net or by visiting www.valueview.net

Scott Pearson is an investment advisor, writer, editor, instructor, and business leader. As President and Chief Investment Officer of Value View Financial Corp., he offers investment management services to a wide variety of clients. His own newsletter, Investor's Value View, is distributed worldwide and provides general money tips and investment advice to readers both internationally, and in the U.S.


MORE RESOURCES:

The New 'Cakedex' vs. the S&P 500
Seeking Alpha, NY - 19 hours ago
Cake has ratings for 2033 stocks, mutual funds and ETfs (versus 3069 for Schwab and 4074 for Morningtsar). Cake Scout: A stock recommendation system that ...


Cramer's Tip For Investing In A China Rebound
TheStreet.com - Sep 3, 2008
I can't stand ETFs. These "exchange-traded funds" are an affront to my stock picking abilities. Be darned if I am going to own some instrument that has ...


Morningstar, Inc. Completes Acquisition of Financial Computer ...
MarketWatch - Sep 2, 2008
Morningstar provides data on more than 280000 investment offerings, including stocks, mutual funds, and similar vehicles. The company has operations in 18 ...


Why Picking Stocks Is Better Than Picking Funds
CNBC, Englewood Cliffs - Aug 29, 2008
Investing can be confusing. Luckily, Cramer has mapped out some road rules for all you Home Gamers trying to navigate the jungle that is Wall Street. ...


Preparing for house ownership through mortgage credits
The Punch, Nigeria - Aug 31, 2008
It is also interested in the borrower‘s other assets, like stocks, mutual funds or personal property like a boat or cars. All these are also considered in ...


Why you can't beat forced savings for long-term gain
South China Morning Post (subscription), Hong Kong - Aug 30, 2008
Besides life-insurance policies, I invest in blue-chip stocks, mutual funds and properties. When I buy a new property and move in, I usually keep the ...


It doesn't take much to be green
Norwich Bulletin, CT - Aug 30, 2008
Because of the newness of this industry, there are no long track records for these company stocks. Mutual funds have generally been safer vehicles for ...


SEC Weighs Overhaul of 'Index' Annuities
Wall Street Journal - Aug 16, 2008
But the SEC wants indexed annuities to be considered "securities," just like stocks, mutual funds and even variable annuities. ...


Ibbotson Selected by ING Financial Advisers to Create Model ...
MarketWatch - Aug 13, 2008
Morningstar provides data on more than 280000 investment offerings, including stocks, mutual funds, and similar vehicles. The company has operations in 18 ...


Taiwan's Cathay Life Invests in Blackstone Capital
Trading Markets (press release), CA - Aug 28, 2008
Cathay Life said its investment strategy is to diversify its invested assets into a variety of portfolio products such as stocks, mutual funds, ...

Stocks-Mutual-Funds - Google News

home | site map
© 2006