Blog

Cutting Through the Noise


February 27, 2007

By Tom Bradley

Structured Products – Proud to Shroud

I like to read Doug Steiner’s columns in the ROB Magazine. You never know what he’s going to write about. You do know, however, that he will have a strong view on whatever it is. In this month’s issue, Doug ...

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February 26, 2007

By Tom Bradley

Appetite for Risk may Lead to a Bad Case of Cramps

The Globe and Mail, Report on Business Published February 23, 2007 I’ve always encouraged investing enthusiasts to read more than just the newspaper for ideas and education ( User’s Guide to the Business Media ). If you discover a professional ...

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February 23, 2007

By Tom Bradley

This Merger is a Sirius Copout

What happened to the ‘winner take all’ attitude? Where’s the competitive spirit? Doesn’t an intense rivalry mean anything anymore? Is the corporate world turning into milk toast? What has sparked all these questions is the proposed merger between Sirius Satellite ...

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February 21, 2007

By Tom Bradley

Assessing Performance – Don’t be Sloppy!

It’s that time in the market cycle when we’re all vulnerable to hearing how great someone else has done with their investments. Invariably, this kind of chatter leads back to comparisons with the mutual funds owned by the speaker or ...

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February 20, 2007

By Scott Ronalds

JetBlue – An Untimely Lesson in Growth

JetBlue, the New York-based low-cost airline known for its leather seats, seatback TVs and superior customer service, suffered a public relations nightmare last week when an east coast ice storm grounded many of its scheduled flights. Hazardous weather is beyond ...

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February 18, 2007

By Neil Jensen

Creating steadyhand.com

One of my intentions for this blog is to expose some of the inner workings of Steadyhand, including the functions we outsource and the vendors we work with. A natural place to start is with this website and the firm ...

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February 16, 2007

By Tom Bradley

29 Funds and Counting

I’ve had some fun and interesting responses to my Globe column last Friday on the Canmore couple that owned 29 mutual funds ( RRSP Nightmare: Too Many Funds in Your Basket ). Adrian Mastracci of KCM Wealth Management in Vancouver ...

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February 14, 2007

By Tom Bradley

Steadyhand – An Alternative to the Big Guys

Yesterday was a big day for the team at Steadyhand. We filed our final prospectus and turned on our website. While our funds won’t be available to investors until April 10th, these are still big milestones for us. Also yesterday ...

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February 13, 2007

By Scott Ronalds

The Bear Truth

Grizzly Facts, Part I The Grizzly population of North America is estimated to be between 40,000 - 50,000 B.C. is home to 1 of every 4 remaining Grizzly bears in North America Newborn cubs weigh less than a pound A ...

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February 13, 2007

By Neil Jensen

Recovering from the MFDA Site Visit

Here's a shot of our Manager of Research & Communications, Scott Ronalds, recovering from our last MFDA site visit in January. ...

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February 9, 2007

By Tom Bradley

RRSP Nightmare: Too Many Funds in Your Basket

The Globe and Mail, Report on Business Published February 9, 2007 We were driving to Whistler last weekend and out of the blue my wife Lori said “it's RSP season and you still haven't written that column”. It took me ...

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February 7, 2007

By Tom Bradley

Who's This Money for Anyway?

This past weekend I came across an investment situation that I see quite often. It relates to the portfolios of super seniors (80 plus years). The situation is this: The senior has a regular income from a pension plan or ...

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February 1, 2007

By Tom Bradley

Ivy League Lessons

The January 20th issue of The Economist had a good article on the investment success that American university endowments have had. The article points out that these endowments have done better than other types of investors (pension funds being the ...

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January 26, 2007

By Tom Bradley

When a Manager Moves, Be Prepared

The Globe and Mail, Report on Business Published January 26, 2007 Do I follow my favourite manager to a new fund? There are probably a few investors out there who feel like they have a big "L" on their forehead. ...

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January 22, 2007

By Tom Bradley

The ETF Diaries - Part 2

Jonathan Chevreau's column in today's Financial Post provides more data on the Claymore ETFs of which I spoke in a recent posting ( ETFs' I've Seen This Movie Before ). The column reinforced some of the views I put forward: ...

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January 18, 2007

By Tom Bradley

Yearly Predictions

I've been under the weather over the last week and have had lots of time to sit and read. Thank goodness I've had other things to read besides the newspapers, otherwise I'd be going crazy right now. For a few ...

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January 18, 2007

By Tom Bradley

Going Global

Posted by Scott Ronalds For a while, my partner Tom Bradley has been talking about how Canadian investors are less diversified than they should be ( Feeling Comfortable? Maybe it's Time to Shake Up Your Portfolio ). At times, it's ...

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January 12, 2007

By Tom Bradley

In Investing or Exercise, There are No Quick Fixes

The Globe and Mail, Report on Business Published January 12, 2007 The YWCA that I go to is always busier in the early part of January. This year is no exception. As part of our New Year's resolutions, we all ...

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January 5, 2007

By Tom Bradley

Why we Have Too Many Mutual Funds

As of this week, there is a new mutual fund on the market called the Mackenzie Founders Fund. The fund will invest equally in four of Mackenzie's oldest funds. It will be automatically rebalanced to maintain an equal weighting in ...

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January 5, 2007

By Tom Bradley

Predictions are Easy - on Anything but the Market, that is

The Globe and Mail, Report on Business Published December 29, 2006 I'm not one to make predictions on what the capital markets are going to do in the next year, or three years for that matter. But with my editors ...

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January 2, 2007

By Tom Bradley

Option Pricing - Where do you Draw the Line?

Compared to the Enron / Worldcom blowups, the options pricing scandal we're going through now is very low key. Enron et al were front page news for a long time. The options scandal is strictly a page 8 item in ...

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December 22, 2006

By Tom Bradley

Too Good to be True

I came across a wonderful quote yesterday. I was reading a piece I'd found on the Tocqueville Asset Management website (www. tocqueville.com) written by their Chairman, Francois Sicart. "I never invest in a situation in which I cannot lose money" ...

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December 18, 2006

By Tom Bradley

If these Investment Vehicles were Ice Cream, I'd Take Vanilla

The Globe and Mail, Report on Business Published December 15, 2006 I've been in the investment business since 1983 and I find that with each passing year simplicity becomes more and more appealing. And I don't think I'm alone; it's ...

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December 16, 2006

By Tom Bradley

U.S. Housing: Long, Extreme Up Cycle... Quick, Painless Down Cycle? Not Likely

There was an article in the Wall Street Journal this week (December 13, 2006) which suggested that first-time buyers were starting to look at homes again. The reasoning was that prices had come down a little and affordability was better. ...

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December 7, 2006

By Tom Bradley

ETFs - I've Seen This Movie Before

Exchange-traded funds (ETFs) are a great product. They provide exposure to the equity market for a reasonable price. If you buy the iShares XICs, you can be assured of getting the return of the S&P/TSX 60 for only 0.17%. That's ...

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