Blog: Cutting Through the Noise

Postings

Podcast: Second Quarter Review

Excerpt from Scott Ronalds's blog on July 10, 2009

In this podcast, Tom and Scott review the second quarter of 2009. The equity markets rebounded sharply in the quarter, with many stocks posting strong gains. The corporate bond market also enjoyed a long-awaited recovery, as yields declined...

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Podcast: Tom & Christine Discuss the Global Equity Fund

Excerpt from Scott Ronalds's blog on June 18, 2009

Christine Montgomery from Edinburgh Partners, the manager of our Global Equity Fund, has been traveling in North America this week meeting with companies (research) and clients (hand-holding). We dragged her out of the San Francisco fog and welcomed her to...

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Book Review: Panic

Excerpt from Scott Ronalds's blog on June 16, 2009

Panic is a compilation of articles that shed light on the most severe upheavals in recent financial history – the crash of ’87, the Russian default and subsequent collapse of Long Term Capital Management, the Asian currency...

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Hedge Funds are Dead

Excerpt from Scott Ronalds's blog on June 10, 2009

Be it resolved that hedge funds are dead - or at least the model as we know it needs to change. This is the position that Tom Bradley argued in a debate yesterday at a luncheon held by the Alternative Investment Management Association (Canada’s...

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A Tip of the Hat to the 'Capitalist'

Excerpt from Scott Ronalds's blog on May 21, 2009

Blogger Canadian Capitalist published a complimentary posting on Steadyhand the other day. He highlighted four aspects of our firm that we emphasize on our website and in our conversations with investors: Low cost, Concentration, Co-investment...

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Podcast: Uneasy About the Market Bounce?

Excerpt from Scott Ronalds's blog on May 19, 2009

Stock markets have rebounded 25-35% since the lows reached in March. Feeling uneasy about the recent bounce? In this podcast, Tom expands on his recent Globe and Mail column and provides some advice to investors who are unsure what to do...

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Morningstar Study: The Investor Experience

Excerpt from Scott Ronalds's blog on May 13, 2009

Morningstar recently published a comprehensive report on the ‘investment climate’ for mutual fund investors titled Global Fund Investor Experience. The report analyzes the fund marketplace in a number of countries around the world, highlighting the strengths...

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Safety is Expensive

Excerpt from Scott Ronalds's blog on May 7, 2009

We’ve been advising clients that safety is expensive these days. In other words, investors are getting paid very little for holding low-risk assets such as money market products and government bonds. The counterpoint is that the latter securities...

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Podcast: Active vs. Passive Management

Excerpt from Scott Ronalds's blog on April 22, 2009

Many studies on active vs. passive management draw the conclusion that the latter strategy (more commonly known as ‘indexing’) is superior because it generates higher returns. Notwithstanding the ‘sloppiness’ of some of these comparisons, it is true that many...

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Podcast: First Quarter Review

Excerpt from Scott Ronalds's blog on April 13, 2009

In this podcast, we review the first quarter of 2009 and discuss how our funds have fared in the current market environment. While it was another ugly quarter for equities in general, there were some bright spots, with some stocks posting strong gains...

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Steadyhand NHL Playoff Pool

Excerpt from Scott Ronalds's blog on April 12, 2009

Dig out the white towel and put the razor away. It’s playoff time. Get in on the action by entering the Steadyhand NHL Playoff Pool. Entry is free, and the winner will walk away with a team jersey of their choice. Tom would suggest a Mats Sundin Canucks jersey, of...

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Case Study: Pat and Stephanie

Excerpt from Scott Ronalds's blog on April 2, 2009

Nobody likes looking at their account statement these days. No matter where you’re invested, returns are ugly. But beyond the numbers, there’s often a lot to be desired. We’ve had a number of statements come across our desk lately from investors who are looking...

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