Meet Penelope the cow. NPR’s Planet Money asked the internet how much Penelope weighed and got 17,205 responses. The average of all the responses was 1,287 pounds and the actual weight was 1,355 pounds. The average was off by only five percent. This experiment, which was originally conducted in Read more…
Stock Market Correction
I wrote an article at the beginning of the summer titled Volatility is Not the Enemy. I remember thinking it would be the perfect article for whenever the market had a correction. Since it had been nearly four years since the last correction, I figured it should be published and referred back to Read more…
5 Estate Planning Documents You Need
Estate planning is a little different for everyone. While you are alive, the estate planning process allows you to manage and preserve your assets. At death, your estate plan allows you to conserve and control their distribution after your death according to your goals and objectives. Read more…
Risk Tolerance
Today we continue a discussion that began with defining risk and then focused on measuring the risk/return tradeoff. To briefly summarize those articles, we learned: Read more…
How to Analyze Risks and Returns in Investing with Plancorp
Smart investment decisions are necessary on the road to financial security, but it's important to understand how to analyze the risks and returns associated with investment decisions. Knowing how to analyze risk and return properly can help you build a successful portfolio. Read more…
Asset Location Strategies
Everyone is thrilled that tax season is behind us. Now it’s time to focus on future tax bills. Read more…
Defining Risk
We frequently say that risk and return are related, but many people don’t understand exactly what we mean by the word “risk.” Read more…
Evaluating Cash
“Today people who hold cash equivalents feel comfortable. They shouldn’t. They have opted for a terrible long-term asset, one that pays virtually nothing and is certain to depreciate in value.” Read more…
Valuations and Return Expectations
Valuation – the price you pay for earnings, assets minus liabilities, cash flow, etc – is one of the best indicators of future returns. In general, we experience lower returns when valuations are high (i.e. stocks are more expensive), and higher returns when valuations are low (stocks are cheaper). Read more…
Value Investing vs. Growth Investing: What’s the Difference?
If you've been considering investing or expanding your portfolio, you've likely come to a fork in the road: you can either take the value investing or growth investing route. These are the two main types of stocks, primarily chosen based on investing style. Although you'll find that people often Read more…
