Dave’s fall 2020 update

First I want to give you an update about my business meeting processes. After 27 years and three office locations I was already thinking about shifting to a flexible office model when the pandemic came along and forced my hand. As of now and until the pandemic is over I will be doing meetings by […]

What do you think is happening?

For an audio version of this posting, please just click below to play it. . After four years without a market correction of any consequence, many people have become acclimatized to a stable and rising series of account statements.  As a side note, I believe the regulatory requirement for such frequent statements is in part […]

Disregard all short term forecasts and predictions

When they feel uncertain, investors often look to the investment media for insights into how to position their portfolios. While reading the work of these forecasters and prognosticators may seem to provide compelling evidence you should “do something”, they usually add no real value and are more likely to detract value. As an example of this, one study tracked the […]

While people need good advice, what they want is advice that sounds good

I came across a truly exceptional article today and thought it was well worth sharing some of the most important points made by the author and a few comments of my own. 1. “That’s because good advice rarely changes, while markets change constantly. The temptation to pander is almost irresistible. And while people need good […]

Income mobility in Canada

As a person who believes in the greatness of human abilities and is deeply aware of economics, production and wealth creation, I am often frustrated by social problems that I believe can easily be solved through economic freedom but which are prevented by the entrenched collectivism that has come to permeate much of our society. […]

What to expect when you’re excited

With the recent release of the movie “What To Expect When You’re Expecting” that is based on the highly acclaimed book (I saw the movie and it was fun to watch), it seems like a good time to look back on what often happens when investors get carried along by the excitement of a rapid […]

Europe – a tale of two halves

I was listening to a fund manager discuss the current situation in Europe and he pointed out how different is the reality in Europe from the perceptions held by many people.  The fact is that in the more developed European countries, corporations are often in excellent shape.  While their head office may be based in […]

How to improve your returns

If you think most people are rational investors, think again. Financial services market research firm DALBAR has surveyed individual households for more than 20 years and created their Quantitative Analysis of Investor Behavior (QAIB). This measures the returns of the S&P 500 Index against the returns of the individual investor. Here are two surprising facts: The […]

What do we know about the current market mood?

As the title of this article indicates, my intention is to distinguish the market mood from several important facts.  The emotions of market participants is subject to change every moment of every day, causing them to change their outlook on the future value of businesses.  If people worry about the future, their appraisal of the […]

Think before firing that fund manager

Michael Nairne wrote an article in the National Post that provides healthy advice about the consistent tendency of investors to change mutual fund managers at the wrong time, for the wrong reasons.  For many years I have emphasized to clients how important it is to make rational, careful selection of fund managers before investing with them, […]