http://www.coastwisegroup.com/Blog Investment Blog Tue, 19 Aug 2008 23:22:08 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Until recently, many investors I would come across in California insisted that real estate was the only way to go when it came to investing. “Real estate is something tangible, something I can touch and feel, I can go and kick a building I own, therefore I am comfortable with ... http://www.coastwisegroup.com/Blog/?p=44 In life, we are generally told not to do this. To hit a man when he’s down is improper etiquette and horrible karma. But what if we’re not talking about a person? Does this PC rule apply when we’re talking about the market? I say “No,” and here is why: Say ... http://www.coastwisegroup.com/Blog/?p=43 You may have heard about before, various conflicts of interest arising between individual investors and their advisory or discretionary brokers---where the broker makes or advises a deal just so he can get commission or increase company sales. With due diligence laws and the threat of securities fraud, many believe the ... http://www.coastwisegroup.com/Blog/?p=42 It’s so easy to get caught up in a fad. In fact, that’s exactly what so many investors do and precisely why they do it- because it’s easy. But the question is whether or not this kind of behavior is smart. When the market is hooked on a price increasing ... http://www.coastwisegroup.com/Blog/?p=41   I was riding a stationary bike last night and a financial show I watch from time to time was on the TV in front of the bike.  The show has 4 or 5 regular guests – the Traders – who give sound bites about particular stocks they like, dislike, etc.  ... http://www.coastwisegroup.com/Blog/?p=40 It was recently reported that a major brokerage firm reduced its recommendation on Bear Stearns (BSC) to SELL from HOLD, but at the same time RAISED its price target to $10…even though the stock was trading above $10 at the time of the revised recommendation.  Go figure.  Another example of ... http://www.coastwisegroup.com/Blog/?p=39 “Pain Is Pleasure.”               -        Arnold Schwarzenegger Circa 1982     This is a concept I have subscribed to since I was a kid, namely the notion that (constructive) pain is an actual source of pleasure as it represents growth, challenges overcome, forward motion….  Lately the stock market has been ... http://www.coastwisegroup.com/Blog/?p=38 As I noted in the June 2007 issue of the "Coastwise Monthly Dividend" Newsletter (http://www.coastwisegroup.com/News/News.php?archive=11), Starbuck’s (SBUX) has had an outlet in the Forbidden City in Beijing for some time. I have seen it on several occasions, and despite the fact that I was SERIOUSLY mocha-deprived when I was ... http://www.coastwisegroup.com/Blog/?p=36 GE, one of the oldest and largest companies by market capitalization in the world has seen its stock go from the mid 34’s to a shade under 41, a nearly 20% rise in under 3 months.  That is a couple year’s worth of gains in less than a quarter for ... http://www.coastwisegroup.com/Blog/?p=35 New Century Financial (NEW), a company big into the sub prime mortgage industry, 'surprised' Wall Street by announcing that losses on their risky mortgages would be bigger than expected. These are the same mortgages that writers for the WSJ and other financial periodicals have been saying for months or ... http://www.coastwisegroup.com/Blog/?p=33