How To Become A Better Investor : MarketRiders.com

Double Your Money With Compound Returns

Posted on April 29, 2011 by MarketRiders

The law of compound returns is a force of nature and understanding this concept is critical to your success as an investor. It is how the rich keep getting richer, but maybe not how you are led to believe. Simply put, the law of compound returns says money left alone creates more money. Einstein said, "Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world." Ben Franklin echoed that thought, sayin... Read More

Are Commission-Free ETFs Worth It?

Posted on April 22, 2011 by MarketRiders

Over the past year or so, the four leading trading houses have offered a suite of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that trade for free. Schwab lead the charge by offering free trades on their ETFs. Vanguard, Fidelity, and TD Ameritrade followed suit with similar offerings. And now just this week, FocusShares entered the game by launching 15 of the lowest cost ETFs ever offered in the public markets... Read More

Why You Should Buy U.S. Treasuries

Posted on April 15, 2011 by MarketRiders

When PIMCO Total Return (symbol PTTAX), the largest bond fund in the world, not only sells, but shorts—or bets against—treasuries, it is as if Moses has descended with tablets and has a frown on his face. True to herd mentality, large bond funds like the ... Read More

Why You Should Fire Your Investment Adviser Today

Posted on April 9, 2011 by Ryan

Burton Malkiel's famous tome, "The Random Walk Guide to Investing," begins with the right exhortation for most investors: Fire your investment adviser today. Although it takes moxy to say "no" to that special someone who has earned your trust, the facts reveal that your investments will do far better with your wealth manager's hands no longer dipping into your cookie jar. The facts are plain to... Read More

What Is Asset Allocation Anyway?

Posted on April 3, 2011 by MarketRiders

Yale professors studied money managers to uncover the source of their portfolio performance. They found that 90 percent of the returns came from the markets where they invested. Less than 10 percent came from the individual stocks they bought, and the timing of buying and selling investments. For example, if they owned small-cap value stocks and that group of stocks did well that year, the perform... Read More

Our Conspiracy Theory

Posted on March 29, 2011 by MarketRiders

Have you ever met the crazy conspiracy theorist who is convinced that a well-executed and malevolent plot lurks behind most events? These were the people whose eyes bugged-out during Y2K, who are convinced that Apollo 11 never landed on the moon, that the World Trade Center was actually blown up by the United States to garner support for invading the Middle East, and the list goes on. The conspira... Read More

Tsunamis, Nukes, and Uprisings: Why Smart Investors Don’t Predict

Posted on March 23, 2011 by MarketRiders

This year has been full of the unexpected. The world is an unpredictable place. It was just a few weeks ago that Egypt and then Libya dominated the airwaves. Now they are distant memories with the horrific events in Japan this week. Who would have thought that an earthquake would lead to a nuclear meltdown? Who would have predicted that Arab dictatorships would topple because of Facebook and Twitt... Read More

Picking ETFs: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

Posted on March 14, 2011 by MarketRiders

In the mid 1990s, exchange-traded funds came riding down Wall Street like Clint Eastwood in an old spaghetti western—fearless and ready to take on the bandits who had been terrorizing the townsfolk. For years prior to the arrival of ETFs, average investors were held hostage by obscene fees while mutual fund robbers brashly collected their booty, threw back some expensive whiskey, and then shamel... Read More

How To Build Your Own Energy Portfolio

Posted on March 6, 2011 by MarketRiders

Oil prices recently broke $100 a barrel and the stock market tanked. Last week, Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke proclaimed that increasing commodity prices could negatively impact the U.S. recovery. Moments like this are instructive for observing our own emotional schizophrenia. On one hand, our greed glands are pumping, and we want to get in on the action. We don't want to feel stupid by missi... Read More

Analysis Paralysis: 3 Ways Investors Can Break Free

Posted on February 28, 2011 by MarketRiders

Since March 2, 2009, a significant investor demographic has sat frozen on the sidelines while the S&P 500 has soared skyward by more than 95 percent. To get a sense of just how much cash left the market and headed for the sidelines, a September 2009 Bloomberg study reported that record levels of bank deposits and money market funds reached a shocking $9.55 trillion—enough to buy all the comp... Read More