Wrestling with re-focusing my equity portfolio away from mortgage REITs and tech.
Apple, Amazon, Google have done yuch recently.
QE3 or 4 or whatever they call it is hurting the mortgage REITs. Another present (along with low savings bank and money market interest) from Washington to investors. The Australian dollar is coming back. But the Australian interest rates are falling.
Weekend project. Find something Maybe some more shorts? CAT? JOY? BBY? Checking.
I did buy some NLY preferreds. They pay 7.5% and are up a few pennies. Vanguard bond fund VWALX keeps inching up and paying a nice dividend. It’s long been a safe favorite.
You didn’t do as bad as you think. Maybe you even did a little better:
Endowment Returns — year to June 30, 2012
Harvard University -0.05 percent
Yale University: +4.7 percent
Stanford University: +1 percent
Massachusetts Institute of Technology: +8 percent
University of Pennsylvania: +1.6 percent
University of Chicago: +6.8 percent
Bowdoin College +2.7%
Went to the NYC ballet last night. Loved it. Love George Balanchine’s work. Also saw The End of Watch.
Great movie. Seniors now cost $10.50 for a 5 PM show at our local New York City movie house. However, only $5 at our movie house in Chatham, NY, up $1 this year. The ballet was $108 a seat. Entertainment is not cheap. Big inflation.
Watched 20 minutes of the VP Debate. I didn’t fall asleep. I had to walk the dog so I missed the opinions from the enlightened pundits. Entertainment is not cheap. Good news: Rosie did number one and number two. Important accomplishments.
Groundswill of support by CEOs for Romney. See this Economist piece:
The silence of the suits
Corporate America’s affection for Mitt Romney is the love that dare not speak its name
Click here.
Fascinating to listen to Steve Wynn this morning on CNBC. He points out that the 2,700 page Obamacare health care law didn’t touch:
+ Interstate competition between health care providers. Still forbidden.
+ Defensive testing by doctors.
+ Huge malpractice law suits, forcing doctors to pay far too much in malpractice insurance. Hence forcing up the price of health care.
+ The fact that members of Congress specifically exempted themselves from Obamacare. They didn’t want it. They have their own, better health care. You want theirs. Trust me.
Taxing authorities are getting weirder and weirder. They lose your returns. They mislay various sheets. They bug you for returns you filed three times. Half of their people can no longer speak English. Vietnamese anyone?Mine stinks.
I have only one “solution.” If you can file electronically, do so. Electronic seems to work better.
Harry Newton who wonders why he’s presently spending so much time playing maintenance manager. From windows that don’t open to doors that won’t close to my favorite Timex Indiglo watch that no longer lights, to a newly-dead Samsung computer monitor. Good news, eBay has a $12.95 repair kit of capacitors I can use to fix it.. They say it’s easy. Yup. And pigs will fly. Click here.
Have you ever seen worse disrespective buffoonery than that of Biden last evening? Hard to believe this guy is VP of the USA.
Harry….. if you have never used a soldering iron before….?? you’re going to be a little frustrated by the time you are done…. you should practice on something besides the board you are trying to repair… Good luck…. ;>)
Harry, I just bought AGNC @ 35 for the juicy dividend. I won’t hold you to it, but is it time to bail or hang in there, close my eyes and collect the dividends?
Geez, what a sap. Worst investment ever.
YOu may be right. Please explain your thinking.
Please enlighten us with your wisdom.
“+ Huge malpractice law suits, forcing doctors to pay far too much in malpractice insurance. Hence forcing up the price of health care.” When they were drawing up the legislation they were clear and up-front that they would not touch the “Third Rail” of tort reform. The (Great) State of Texas essentially reformed healthcare by reforming the “plaintiff’s bar”. Doctors moved INTO Texas to practice. Obamacare is a huge FAIL by the Pelosi Reid Obama leadership.
Fderfier…….you make it sound as if the “tort layers” are in the pocket of the Democrat Party. You must be making this stuff up.
I’m a CPA. 3 years ago made it mandatory for all my clients to file electronically. Only one objected, 80 year old woman who insisted on paper-file. I told her I’m not giving her that choice. She went to someone else. E-file advantages are significant.
New York theater is not cheap but always try plugging in promo codes when making online purchases. You would be surprised how often they work. Saw end of watch myself, good movie..reminded me of The Hurt Locker.
Why pay for entertainment when get to watch Rosie poo and pee for free?
Sure, it’s more entertaining than Harry’s writing.