Of Special Interest ...examining a significantly timely topic
Assessing Stock Market Valuation Tools: Which Work—And Which Don’t?
“Of Special Interest” this month evaluates several stock market valuation techniques. Newfangled valuation techniques do not always lead to better results.
Selling In May: A Market Maxim That Won’t Go Away!
This month’s “Of Special Interest” takes a stab at debunking the “Sell In May And Go Away” anomaly. Instead, we have come to respect this annual strategy.
Splitting Atoms and Hairs: Expect Nuclear Power To Grow (Not Shrink)
Japan’s problems are leading many to write about the demise of nuclear power. However, Dave Kurzman not only believes the nuclear industry will survive, but will also prosper. See this month’s “Of Special Interest” for thoughts regarding this energy source from our Clean Tech guru.
Update: Profit Margins At The Sector Level
In this month’s “Of Special Interest” section, Jim Floyd updates the broad sector profit margins charts. Information Technology now producing 15% margins, the highest levels ever. Energy and Materials sectors still relatively low, but rising commodity prices will support higher margins in 2011.
U.S. Small Caps: Carving Out A Very Long Top
The current period of small cap leadership is the longest ever. And while small caps have been selling at a premium, the premium has persisted for a long time.
Dreams, Nightmares & Bridesmaids: Should You Hold On To Last Year’s Winners?
Of Special Interest asks “Should You Hold On To Last Year’s Winners?” by examining the Dreams, Nightmares and Bridesmaid strategies. This year, our analysis expands beyond equity groups to the sector and asset class levels.
The Charts Of The Year
This month’s “Of Special Interest” takes a look back at and updates some our favorite charts from 2010.
Perspectives On Gold: Relationships That Help Us Understand Gold Price Movements
All our asset allocation portfolios have commitment to gold and silver. This month’s “Of Special Interest” focuses on the yellow metal. Valuation matrixes are of little use, but we do present a variety of relationships that may help at least understand the price movements of gold.
Playing The Bounce Strategy 2010: Individual Stocks and Equity Groups
“Playing The Bounce” season is once again upon us. This is a tactical trading strategy designed to identify beaten-down stocks which come under heavy selling pressure at year end. When selling abates, stocks tend to “bounce.”
A Mid-Term Exam: What The Upcoming Elections Could Mean For The Stock Market
Prompted by a client request, Eric Bjorgen examines the impact of mid-term elections on the stock market.
Dividends Making A Comeback
Jim Floyd presents three screens looking for high (and healthy) dividend paying stocks. With bond yields so low, we believe there is opportunity in these types of stocks.
Will the Disaster in the Gulf Present an Opportunity for Alternative Energy Stocks?
In this month’s “Of Special Interest”, David Kurzman, manager of the “Leuthold Global Clean Technology” mutual fund provides his take on whether the Gulf oil spill will present any real opportunities for alternative energy stocks.
Four New Equity Group Purchases—Highlights of Quantitative and Qualitative Strengths
Substantial turnover in Select Industries Portfolio created room for several new industry group positions to be established.
Is It Too Late To Buy The “Early Cyclicals”?
One of the great contrary trades in recent memory may well have been the Consumer Discretionary stocks during the last recession and early in the recovery. The consumer had been written off, but these stocks have been the clear market leader. It looks, however, like the move may be running out of steam.
Bull Market Milestones: How the Current Bull Stacks Up to Past Cycles
This month’s “Of Special Interest” examines the characteristics of past bull market recoveries. Using a variety of historical comparisons, the current recovery is put into some perspective. The majority of these comparisons seem to indicate the current recovery still has a ways to go.
Profit Margins At The Sector Level
This month’s “Of Special Interest” takes a look at Q4 profit margins across the 10 broad economic sectors. Best looking is Information Technology, while Consumer groups have also seen impressive gains by becoming lean and mean.
Insight Into The Cyclicality Of Equity Valuations
In this month’s “Of Special Interest”, Eric Bjorgen looks at the cyclical nature of P/E ratios. The normalized P/E ratio follows an expansion/contraction cycle that has been repeated five times since 1926, but the interesting thing is that the cycles have lengthened significantly over time.
U.S. Stocks: What If The New Decade Is “Normal”?
While most are content to make annual predictions at this time, leave it to Doug Ramsey to bite off an even bigger piece…predicting the next DECADE.
Symptoms of a Maturing Bull Market—Assessing Potential Remaining Upside
In this month’s “Of Special Interest”, Eric and Doug put the current market in historical context. They use a variety of factors to assess the potential for further upside.
Small Cap Appeal Is Fading
After already rallying substantially from the March lows, it will be tougher for small caps to continue their outperformance.
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