Tag: street authority

Bill Ackman: This Is The Market's 'Best Kept Secret'

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By: Josh Sparrow of Street Authority

The name Bill Ackman carries more weight now than it did a year ago.

2014 was a rough year for most hedge fund managers. The average fund returned just 2% and the first six months of the year saw 461 hedge funds close shop.

Yet Ackman's fund, Pershing Square Holdings, returned an astounding 40.4% in 2014 and went from managing around $11.5 billion assets at the start of the year to more than $18 billion currently.

Ackman was named top dog in Bloomberg's 2014 ranking of the world's best hedge fund managers.

And that success helped make Pershing Square Holdings' (AMS: PSH) recent IPO that much more successful. The firm's October IPO -- which opened on the Euronext Amsterdam exchange -- was one of Europe's largest in 2014, at $2.7 billion.

Investors who bought shares of the company at the time of its IPO have already seen a nice 12.7% gain in just a few months.

In the company's first letter-to-shareholders, Ackman laid out what he believes to be the company's primary competitive advantages. He wrote, "When compared with other investment holding or operating companies, PSH benefits by its favorable tax structure and long-term track record." Continue reading "Bill Ackman: This Is The Market's 'Best Kept Secret'" →

A Presidential Order That Could Save Energy Drillers

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By: Joseph Hogue of Street Authority

In his six years in office, President Obama has stressed his support for strict environmental regulation. He has expanded powers for the Environmental Protection Agency and has repeatedly deferred approval for the Keystone XL Pipeline System.

One key stat: The number of oil and gas leases approved during the first three years fell by more than 40%, compared to the final three years of President Bush’s administration. Drilling permit approvals on federal lands fell by a similar amount.

In addition to the regulatory headwind, falling oil prices are also impeding drilling permit activity. Against this one-two punch, some analysts are questioning the emergent theme of U.S. energy independence and shale production.

But is an unlikely supporter about to throw the sector a lifeline? Continue reading "A Presidential Order That Could Save Energy Drillers" →

The End Of BRICs... Here's How To Profit

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By: Joseph Hogue of Street Authority

The days of dartboard investing in emerging markets are over.

Over the two years ended April 2008, a basket of these markets, as represented by the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets (NYSE: EEM), surged an impressive 60%. You could have invested in any number of these economies and seen solid returns.

This group of markets eventually swooned and rebounded, but it's increasingly clear that the days of heady returns are gone. In the two years to 2015, the fund lost 11% and individual country funds are posting huge disparities in returns.

As an emerging markets analyst and an expatriate living in South America, I see the shifting economic environment first hand and it's not just down here. The Russian market is crumbling and stocks of African countries have not done any better.

Yet you can't paint these markets with a broad brush. Some markets, notably China and India, have done very well over the last year. The iShares China Large-Cap fund (NYSE: FXI) has risen 14% and the WisdomTree India Earnings ETF (NYSE: EPI) has zoomed 38% higher in that period. Continue reading "The End Of BRICs... Here's How To Profit" →

Play Defense With This Strategy In 2015

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By: Adam Fischbaum of Street Authority

 

Over the holidays, I decided to drive to Orlando and give the Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) a few of my hard earned dollars. My 12 year-old son talked me into riding the Tower of Terror at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

As a thrill ride, the Tower of Terror plays on three of humankind’s most basic fears: falling, the unknown and the dark. I wasn’t that concerned. In the investment biz, that’s just another day at the office.

But when it comes to the investing, I’ll be honest. I am a concerned about the stock market in 2015.

Here’s why: It’s all about earnings.

At the end of the day, an investor should buy a stock based on the underlying company’s ability to deliver quality, consistent earnings. Those earnings should also be purchased at a fair-to-discounted price as measured by a stock’s price-to-earnings ratio (PE).

In more bullish times, investors are sometimes a bit too optimistic about the future and will push stock prices and their attached PE’s higher. In bearish times, they often become too pessimistic and drive prices and PE’s down.

I took notice after working on this chart of peak PE ratios for the SP 500 Index.

The way the picture tells the story, we’re overly optimistic and at the same valuations as before the 2008-2009 crash.

So are we so positive? The current numbers don’t indicate a profoundly bullish market in 2015.

Consensus estimates for the SP 500's 2015 EPS are around $125. In 2014, the SP saw EPS at around $117.

If things go according to plan, the market would see EPS growth of about 6-to-7%. Curb your enthusiasm. Continue reading "Play Defense With This Strategy In 2015" →

Don't Let The Government Decide When You Retire

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By: Amy Calistri of Street Authority

I try not to be tempted by "click-baiting" headlines on the Internet. You know what I'm talking about -- the salacious, ridiculous, or shocking headlines that you click on, only to discover mundane articles that may or may not have anything to do with the headline.

But we all have our weaknesses; mine is information about retirement planning. This explains why I clicked on the U.S. News headline, "The Perils of Retirement at Age 65."

The article didn't provide me with many new insights. For instance, I already knew that even though you are eligible to start receiving Social Security retirement benefits at age 62, most people have to be older than 65 to receive "full" benefits.

What did surprise me were the comments people posted after reading the article. They fell into two general groups.

There was a group that couldn't bear the thought of working until the age of 65 and over: Continue reading "Don't Let The Government Decide When You Retire" →